Impact of Discipline on Academic Performance of Pupils in Public Primary Schools in Muhoroni Sub-County, Kenya

Abstract

In Muhoroni Sub-County, Kenya, pupils' academic performance has received little attention in relation to discipline. The objectives of this study were to determine the level of discipline and extent of impact of discipline on academic performance among class eight pupils in the sub-county's public primary schools. The study adopted descriptive survey and correlational research designs. The study population comprised 2,450 class eight pupils in the sub-county's public primary schools. From 34 randomly selected schools, 817 pupils were selected by stratified random sampling. Questionnaires were used to collect data on discipline and academic performance of the pupils. Reliability coefficients of the questionnaires were determined by test-retest method and found to be 0.83 and 0.97 for questionnaire on discipline and academic performance respectively. The questionnaires' face and content validity was ascertained by experts. Results indicated that 46 (5.6%), 214 (26.2%), 413 (50.6%) and 144 (17.6%) of the pupils had low, moderate, high, and very high discipline respectively. Also, discipline related positively with, and accounted for 23% of variance in the pupils' academic performance (R = 0.480, ß = 0.480, R[superscript 2] = 0.230, p < 0.05). The study recommended enhancement of discipline among the pupils for improvement of their academic performance.