Influence of Parental Negligence on Students’ Academic Performance Among Form Three Students in Secondary Schools in Yatta Sub-County, Machakos County, Kenya

Abstract

Education is fundamental for human development and economic growth. All children have a right to education. However, factors beyond children, including parental neglect, pose challenges to their educational goals. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of parental negligence on the academic performance of Form three students in secondary schools in Yatta Sub-County, Machakos County, Kenya. The objectives of this study were to determine the influence of physical; educational; and emotional negligence on students’ academic performance. The anchoring theory for the study was The Ecological theory. The research design was a descriptive survey. The study targeted all Form three students attending secondary schools in Yatta Sub-County, Machakos County, Kenya, totalling 3121 students from sixty-one secondary schools. Simple random technique was used to select a sample of 355 students from twenty-one secondary schools, with one Children's Rights Officer and 21 Form three class teachers, yielding a total sample of 377 respondents. Questionnaires and interview schedules were administered as the main research tools. For statistical analysis, students’ responses were obtained using Childhood Trauma Questionnaire. Validity and reliability of the questionnaire was assessed. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Furthermore, to determine the influence of parental negligence on students’ academic performance, the study employed a multiple regression model. Content analysis based on the information on the dependent variable was used to analyze qualitative data, which was then presented thematically according to the study objectives. The study findings revealed that emotional negligence has the most significant negative effect (24.1%) on students' academic performance in secondary schools, followed by physical negligence (20.5%), with educational negligence (13.9%) exhibiting the least negative impact. The analysis underscores the pervasive influence of neglect across physical, educational, and emotional dimensions, highlighting challenges such as inconsistent homework completion, irregular school attendance, and limited parental involvement. The study, therefore, concludes that physical, educational, and emotional parental negligence lowers students' academic performance. The study suggests increased parental engagement in children's education and training parents by policymakers in effective parenting strategies to enhance positive parent-child relationships. The study contributes to new knowledge by providing empirical evidence of intricate relationship between neglectful behaviours and student outcome. Further research is recommended to explore the combined effects of various forms of parental negligence on students’ academic performance.