Abstract:
Good performance in Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education is a primary determinant of one's career as it facilitates the transition to the next level of training. The purpose of this study was to establish the relationship between the selected school-based factors and students‟ performance in public secondary schools in KCSE in Masaba North Sub-County of Nyamira County. The objectives of the study were: to establish the relationship between teacher qualification and students‟ performance in K.C.S.E.in Masaba North Sub-County; to establish the relationship between school facilities and student performance in K.C.S.E; to determine the relationship between principals‟ supervisory roles on school performance in KCSE. This study adopted a descriptive research design. The population for the study comprised of 264 teachers employed by Teachers Service Commission in Masaba North Sub-County. Purposive sampling was used to select the principals and Directors of Studies while simple random sampling technique was used to sample the classroom teachers. The sample was determined as follows: 24 principals, 24 Directors of Studies and 24 classroom teachers yielding a total of 72 respondents from 24 public secondary schools in Masaba North Sub-County in Nyamira County. Twelve teachers were not included in the final study because they were used for the pilot study. Data was collected using semi-structured questionnaire for principals and teachers. The questionnaire was pilot-tested for validity in three public schools that were not included in the final study. Cronbach‟s alpha co-efficient was used to test reliability and yielded a co-efficient of 0.86. The Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 22 was used for data analysis. Data was presented in charts and tables. The findings of the study revealed that there was a significant relationship between teacher qualifications, school facilities and principals‟ supervisory role and students‟ performance in KCSE. Therefore, the study concluded that there is a statistical significant relationship between selected school-based factors and students‟ performance in KCSE in Masaba North Sub- county in Nyamira County. The study recommends policy makers in the Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology (MoEST) to come up with policies on how teachers‟ qualifications can be enhanced to improve academic performance at KCSE. The policy makers should also reduce the burden of the principals being supervisors and at the same time being classroom teachers by allowing them to teach a minimum workload if they must teach. The MoEST and Board of Management should look for means to avail the required essential resources to the various schools.
