Influence of Parent Involvement on Students Academic Performance in Day Public Secondary Schools in Thika West and Gatundu North Sub Counties, Kenya.

Abstract

Parental involvement contributes significantly in students’ academic success in national examinations. This has forced secondary school administrators to involve parents while preparing students for Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE). Parental involvement influence student’s natural talent, improves behavior, increase classroom attendance and promotes classroom compliance which affects the student`s academic

performance. The objective of this study was to investigate the influence of parent- student, parent- teacher and parent-school involvement on academic performance of their

children in public day secondary school in Thika West and Gatundu North Sub-Counties, Kenya. The study was guided by the Ecological Systems Theory with the use of descriptive research design. Teachers and students in the public secondary schools in Thika West and Gatundu North Sub-Counties were targeted. Questionnaires were used to collect data. Data analysis was done using descriptive statistics, tables and linear regression to determine the relationship between dependent and independent variables.

Ethical issues were adhered to during the study. The study revealed that effective parent- teacher communication, providing necessary learning resources to students, providing a

conducive learning environment at home and paying school fees in time by the parents is a prerequisite for high academic performance. The study also revealed that parent`s failure to provide adequate basic needs to their children affected their performance negatively. This study will be useful to the administrators of public day schools in their policy formulation in relation to parent involvement in school activities. The study recommends that to enhance parents commitment in school activities, school administration should involve parents in preparation of calendar of events defining the role of parents in their children’s academic performance, link up with organizations which can offer bursaries and scholarships in order to finance those students whose parents have financial challenges in paying school fees and make efforts to have open forums for parents, teachers and students in order to be able to interact with each other and communicate schools` expectations to parents and parents to be given a chance to express their views. Further research can be done in boarding schools for comparison purposes