Abstract:
The purpose of the study was to investigate the factors affecting the performance of
senior high school biology students in Ashanti Bekwai Municipality. The study was
guided by the following research objectives; to examine the influence of learning
resources on the performance of senior high school biology students in Ashanti
Bekwai Municipality, to examine the influence of teacher related factors on the
performance of senior high school biology students in Ashanti Bekwai Municipality
and to assess the influence of administrative practices on the performance of senior
high biology students in Ashanti Bekwai Municipality. The study employed a
descriptive survey research design. The study targeted all the 785 form two biology
students and all the 28 biology teachers in senior high schools in the Bekwai
Municipality. However, the sample size comprised 120 students and 12 biology
teachers in the participating schools. Purposive sampling technique was used to select
the schools. Random sampling techniques were used to select the 120 participating
students and expert purposive sampling techniques were used to select 12 biology
teachers from the three selected schools in the Bekwai Municipality. The research
instruments used to collect the data included, questionnaires for teachers and students,
interview schedules and observation schedules. Statistical package for social sciences
(SPSS) and Microsoft Excel were used in data analysis. Frequency tables,
percentages, pie charts and bar charts were used to present the analyzed data. The
findings of the study revealed that learning resources were inadequate and hence
affected academic performance to a great extent. The study also revealed that
influence of administrative practices was significant to students’ academic
performance and similarly, teacher related factors had influence on academic
performance to a great extent. The study recommended among others that heads of
department should intensify the routine supervision of teachers and vetting of scheme
of work by teachers to ensure the adherence to the dictates of professional records and
that headmasters and school management should ensure that relevant materials are
procured for use by both teachers and students.
Description:
A Thesis in the Department of Science Education, Faculty of Science Education, submitted to the School of Graduate Studies in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the award of the degree of Master of Philosophy (Science Education) in the University of Education, Winneba
OCTOBER, 2021