Influence of parental level of education on academic achievement of pupils in public primary schools in kisumu west sub county: an analytical study

Although the Government of Kenya and parents value primary school education, disparities have continued to exist in academic performance in each school. Academic achievement of pupils in Kisumu West Sub County had remained low in comparison with other neighboring sub counties for the period 2011 to 2014, yet studies linking poor performance with level of education status of parents in this particular area of study were limited. Between 2011 and 2014, Kisumu West’s mean score was 243.17; Kisumu East 256.19; Kisumu Central 278.14, Nyando 248.66 and Muhoroni 258.46. The purpose of this study was therefore to establish the influence of parental level of education on pupils’ academic achievement in public primary schools in Kisumu West Sub County. It was conceptualized in the study that pupils’ academic achievement depends on parental level of education and these variables helped to guide the study. The study established that Parental level of education had positive influence on pupils’ academic achievement. The influence was moderate as signified by r -value of .503 at a p-value of .000, and accounted for 25% of the variation in pupils’ academic achievement. The study concluded that parental level of education moderately influences pupils’ academic achievement in public primary schools. The study recommended that parents regardless of their level of education, should be encouraged to enhance their children’s education by instilling into them academic discipline.