Influence of home environment on pupils’ performance in rural primary schools in Kabarole District

Abstract

This study intended to find out what influences academic performance in rural primary schools in Kabarole District. The researcher noted a big difference in performance between urban schools and rural schools in Kabarole District, and then wondered whether it was due to home environment or special ability. A cross section/research design was used. The research involved both qualitative and quantitative research methods. Information was collected using a questionnaire from 204 respondents (P.7 pupils) from six primary schools. More information was got through interviewing different categories of people like headteachers of the six schools, 30(thirty) teachers, six chairpersons of school management committee of the six schools and other people like parents businessmen, nurses and farmers. The data was coded, categorized and tallied and frequencies tabulated. Through tabulating, the frequencies were transformed into descriptive statistics like percentages and then compared. The information from interviews and discussions was interpreted carefully and compared to the responses from the questionnaires. The findings revealed that, parents educational level and socio-economic background influence academic performance to a certain extent. However a combination of other factors like heredity might have also contributed to some degree. And pupils from big or small families can still perform well or poorly depending on a number of circumstances which may not be due to the size of the family. Following the results of this study, both the small and big families’ children showed a reasonably good academic performance. This means that they might have been influenced by the socio-economic background and educational level of their parents or the hereditary genes of their parents. In other words, even if the family is big but has enough resources to support their children’s education, the children can still do well. In the same way, a small family without enough resources to support its children’s education cannot have good academic performance of its children The study recommends that schools should organize seminars and meetings to sensitize illiterate parents to monitor their children’s performance and hold discussions with teachers and administrators. Parents and teachers should work together to develop pupils’ potentials. Parents who have many children in school should be advised to work hard and provide the necessary requirements for their children’s education.