Characteristics of Home Environment of High and Low Achieving Grade Nine Pupils in Selected Basic Schools in Lusaka Urban District
type: CreativeWork
description: This study was conducted in selected Basic Schools situated within the areas of Lusaka District. The main purpose was to investigate characteristics of home environment of both high and low-achieving grade nine pupils and assess which home characteristics had most positively and negatively impacted on their academic performance. In investigating these issues the study relied on life narratives of the respondents and empirical data. A sample of 138 grade nine pupils from five government basic schools was involved in the study in May 2007. The schools and pupils were selected, using the purposive and stratified sampling respectively. Of the 138 grade nine pupils were 50 interviewed, while 88 answered the questionnaire. Data from the pupils were collected through questionnaires and semi-structured interviews. The questionnaires and interviews sought respondents' opinions about the characteristics of home environment in general. The quantitative data from questionnaires were analysed by means of Chi- square which were generated on a computer, using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPPS) programme. The generated qualitative data from interviews were coded, and emerging themes were grouped into categories using constant comparative analysis technique. Data from the questionnaires and interviews showed that characteristics of home environment had an impact on the academic performance of grade nine pupils in selected basic schools of Lusaka Urban District. Using the Chi- square, the study found that there was a significant relationship between language, residential area, parents' perception of their children's academic performance, communication about school, parenting style, monitoring and controlling of behaviour to optimise academic performance, parent-children communication and time spent on viewing TV on one hand and academic achievement. While most of the high-achieving pupils commonly used English at home, most of the low-achieving pupils used local languages …
abstract: This study was conducted in selected Basic Schools situated within the areas of Lusaka District. The main purpose was to investigate characteristics of home environment of both high and low-achieving grade nine pupils and assess which home characteristics had most positively and negatively impacted on their academic performance. In investigating these issues the study relied on life narratives of the respondents and empirical data. A sample of 138 grade nine pupils from five government basic schools was involved in the study in May 2007. The schools and pupils were selected, using the purposive and stratified sampling respectively. Of the 138 grade nine pupils were 50 interviewed, while 88 answered the questionnaire. Data from the pupils were collected through questionnaires and semi-structured interviews. The questionnaires and interviews sought respondents' opinions about the characteristics of home environment in general. The quantitative data from questionnaires were analysed by means of Chi- square which were generated on a computer, using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPPS) programme. The generated qualitative data from interviews were coded, and emerging themes were grouped into categories using constant comparative analysis technique. Data from the questionnaires and interviews showed that characteristics of home environment had an impact on the academic performance of grade nine pupils in selected basic schools of Lusaka Urban District. Using the Chi- square, the study found that there was a significant relationship between language, residential area, parents' perception of their children's academic performance, communication about school, parenting style, monitoring and controlling of behaviour to optimise academic performance, parent-children communication and time spent on viewing TV on one hand and academic achievement. While most of the high-achieving pupils commonly used English at home, most of the low-achieving pupils used local languages …
author: Mbewe, Nthembe
language: en
keywords: Education-Zambia
date published: 2011-05-24
date modified: 2026-07-27T22:06:10Z
provider: University of Zambia
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: University of Zambia