FACTORS INFLUENCING POOR EXAMINATION PERFORMANCE IN COMMERCIAL SUBJECTS IN SENIOR SECONDARY SCHOOLS
ABSTRACT
The study sought to elucidate the factors influencing poor performance in science subjects in Shinyanga Municipal Council secondary schools.
The study employed a survey research design and a quantitative technique. The study sampled six public secondary schools out of eighteen public secondary schools, with 415 respondents. The form four National Examination results from selected secondary schools over the last five years were used to show the trend of performance in science subjects. Structured questionnaires were used to collect information, and the sampling criterion was a simple random method.
According to the study, the following factors influence poor performance: an insufficient number of teachers, a lack of teaching and learning materials, poor teaching methods (theory), and students’ attitudes toward science subjects. The study also discovered that the suggested solutions to the problem of poor performance in science subjects in Shinyanga municipal council secondary schools were the presence of adequate teachers and the availability of science teaching and learning materials.
The study concludes that a lack of qualified science teachers and a lack of teaching and learning materials are the major factors influencing poor science performance in secondary schools in Shinyanga municipality.
The study recommends that the ministry ensure adequate availability of qualified science subject teachers in secondary schools, as well as adequate teaching and learning materials such as books, teaching aids, specimens, chemicals, and laboratory apparatuses, as well as a conducive learning and friendly environment at schools.
INTRODUCTION
CHAPTER ONE
1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
In recent years, poor performance in science subjects has increased among secondary school students in Tanzania, East Africa, Africa, and the world at large. (Jidamwa, 2012)
According to Science Education in Europe (2011), international student assessment surveys conducted in Europe under agreed conceptual and methodological frameworks with the goal of providing policy-oriented indicators show a decrease in relative standings in science subject performance among European members.
According to Ajaja (2008), poor performance in science subjects in secondary schools has been a major source of concern for educators, business organizations, and the government at large. This problem has been caused by a variety of factors, including a lack of incentives and motivation for teachers to increase their efficiency and effectiveness in order to improve student performance.
According to Kiyaga (2013), science subjects continue to be a burden in Ugandan education, despite increased efforts to promote the academic field. The 2012 Uganda Certificate of Education (UCE) results revealed that science subjects continued to perform poorly when compared to arts subjects.
Poor performance in science subjects has increased from time to time in many secondary schools in Tanzania in recent years, as evidenced by national examination results. According to data collected from the National
Examinations Council of Tanzania (NECTA), the pass rates (grade A to D) for the National Form Four Examination results in Mathematics were approximately 31 percent, 24 percent, and 18 percent in 2007, 2008, and 2009, respectively, while the pass rates for Chemistry were 33 percent, 31 percent, and 28 percent, Biology pass rates were 46 percent, 41 percent, and 43 percent, and Physics pass rates were 29 percent, 26 percent, and 27 percent (Hamilton et al., 2010).
According to Osaki (2007), despite significant progress in improving access to quality education in Tanzania over the last two decades, poor performance in mathematics and science subjects at the primary and secondary school levels persists,
raising concerns about whether or not the education system can produce graduates with the competencies required in the emerging technology sector. Mathematics and science failure rates remain high, with little improvement at either the primary or secondary school levels; mathematics scores have dropped dramatically in the last three years, from 20% to 40%.
According to (Tema & Mlawa, 2010) in the MKUKUTA annual assessment meeting report, recent statistics released by the National Examination Council of Tanzania (NECTA) revealed a trend of massive failures in science subjects in Tanzanian secondary schools. Year after year, the situation deteriorates. There has been a 12% increase in poor performance in science subjects compared to the proportion of failures five years ago.
Stakeholders in the education sector have urged the government to address the rising number of students performing poorly in science subjects, warning that failure to act quickly would leave Tanzania dangerously short of scientists (Shekighenda, 2010).
The rise in poor performance and failures in science subjects in secondary schools may result in a significant loss for both individual students whose goal was to continue with higher education and pursue a career, but all of that may be jeopardized as a result of poor performance in science subjects, and this may affect the nation, whose goal is to have professionals in various science fields such as medicine, communication, industries, building, and construction in order to achieve national goals (Rogers & Ford 2007).
According to Mabula (2012), there is a continuation of failure and poor performance in science subjects in secondary school National Examinations, as well as a continuous dropout from science subjects, with the dropout being more serious in physics and chemistry subjects as opposed to mathematics and biology, which are compulsory to all students.
According to recent statistics released by the National Examination Council of Tanzania (NECTA), the trend of massive failure is worsening by the day. In 2009, approximately 82 percent of students who took the CSEE failed in Mathematics, which is 12% higher than the proportion of failures five years ago (Chief Inspection Officer, 2010).
In an increasingly interconnected world, science and technology are critical to socioeconomic development. As a result, developing countries such as Tanzania must embrace science and technology as a critical tool for accelerating the country’s socioeconomic development.
Science and technology education is thus important to Tanzania’s national development from various perspectives, such as the use and application of knowledge, skills, modern tools and materials of science and technology that add value to human life around the world, such as in medical, environmental, and engineering sciences. (URT, 1996.)
Various studies have been conducted on the issue of poor performance in science subjects, and the trend of performance in science subjects, some of which include; the study looking on the contributory factors to poor learner
performance in physical sciences in KwaZulu-Natal Province with special reference to schools in the Pinetown District, which was done by (Dhurumraj, 2013), whereby he discovered that lack of resources, language of learning and teaching (LoLT), and the so-called “learning environment”
The study conducted by (Komba et al., 2013) on the factors influencing academic performance of ward secondary schools case study in Moshi municipality discovered that there is poor performance in ward secondary schools, and the factors influencing their poor performance are a lack of teachers, un-conducive teaching and learning environments, and poor teaching and learning materials.
The study on the causes and solutions for poor performance in science subjects in secondary schools in Tanzania was conducted by (COSTECH, 2007). The study discovered that poor infrastructure and a lack of teachers were the factors that contributed to poor performance in science subjects.
There is a downward trend in secondary school performance, particularly in science subjects. According to the findings of a study on the performance of the Audit Report on School Inspection Program for Secondary Schools in Tanzania (2008), the Tanzanian education system faces a major challenge in ensuring quality education in order to create a competent human resource base in science.
This is evident from students’ poor performance in examinations, particularly in mathematics and science subjects. According to the CAG report, 70 percent of students who sat for their Certificate of Secondary Education Examination (CSEE) in 2007 failed mathematics, and a significant number of failures were also present in other science subjects.
The researcher therefore sees a need to investigate the factors influencing poor performance of science subjects in secondary schools in Shinyanga Municipality, because there is no similar study done on the factors influencing poor
performance of science subjects in secondary schools in Shinyanga Municipality, the researcher sees the research gap and decides to conduct the study in order to investigate and provide information on what are the factors influencing poor performance of science subjects in secondary schools in Shinyanga Municipality, the researcher sees the research gap and decides to
1.2 Problem Description
In Tanzania, performance in science subjects in secondary schools has been rapidly declining over the last two decades; the trend indicates a rapid decline in performance in science subjects, particularly in secondary schools. Failures in science subjects may also lead to a shortage of science experts such as doctors, engineers, and teachers.
As a result, there is a need to investigate what the root causes and factors that influence poor performance in science subjects are, as well as how to solve the problem. As a result, this study will look into the factors that contribute to poor performance in science subjects in selected secondary schools in Shinyanga Municipality.
1.3 Study Objectives
1.3.1 GENERAL OBJECTIVES
The study’s overarching goal is to look into the factors that influence poor performance in science subjects in selected secondary schools in Shinyanga Municipality.
1.3.2 THE STUDY’S SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES
The following are the study’s specific objectives:
I To present a five-year trend of academic performance in science subjects in selected secondary schools in Shinyanga Municipality.
(ii) To identify the factors influencing poor science performance in selected secondary schools in Shinyanga Municipality.
(iii) To suggest possible measures to improve science performance in selected secondary schools in Shinyanga Municipality.
1.4 Research Issues
The following are the research questions addressed in this study:
–
I What has been the trend in academic performance of science subjects in selected Shinyanga Municipality secondary schools over the last five years?
(ii) What are the factors influencing poor performance in science subjects in selected Shinyanga Municipality secondary schools?
(iii) What are the proposed possible measures to improve science performance in selected secondary schools in Shinyanga Municipality?
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