Dismal performance of boys in kenya certificate of secondary education: diagnosis of effects of socio-economic factors in subukia district, nakuru county, Kenya

This study sought to establish the socio- economic factors that affect the academic performance of boys in national examinations in Subukia District, Nakuru County, Kenya. The study had three-fold objectives, namely i) to profile students performance in the study locale, ii)to assess the extent to which family background affected boys academic performance ;and , iii) examine the mechanism adopted by school managers to address the dismal performance of boys in the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education in Subukia District. The study was premised on the theory of Educational productivity by Walberg (1981). A descriptive survey research design was employed. A combination of purposive and random sampling techniques was used to sample of 429 subjects comprising of 372 students and 57 principals to participate in the study. The main research instruments were questionnaires for students and interviews for principals. The quantitative data obtained from questionnaires was analyzed using SPSS to generate mean, percentages and frequency. Qualitative data from principals was analyzed using thematic analysis. The major findings of the study were that the performance of boys in the study locale declined as they progressed within the school system and that parents’ income and their levels of formal education positively correlated to the boys’ performance in KCSE Examinations. The study concluded that as boys progress within the school system their performance declines due to social economic factors such as lack of latent education levies thereby forcing them to enter casual employment and lapse into indiscipline. It is recommended that secondary schools should consider fully operational guidance and counseling departments to mitigate on the effects of social-economic factors effecting boys performance in national examinations in Subukia District, Nakuru County, Kenya[277 words]