MECHANISMS FOR IMPROVING ENROLLMENT IN PHYSICS IN PUBLIC SECONDARY SCHOOLS OF MASABA SOUTH SUB-COUNTY, KISII COUNTY, KENYA

Abstract

This study was on the topic ‘Mechanisms for improving enrollment in Physics in public secondary schools of Masaba South Sub-County, Kisii County, Kenya’. The purpose of the study was to investigate the key mechanisms put in place to improve enrollment in Physics by looking at how to enhance students’ understanding of the subject, skills teachers use in their teaching and provision of adequate apparatus. The research questions that guided the study were: What is the influence of SMASSE program on enrollment in Physics? How has the provision of adequate laboratory equipment and apparatus influenced teaching and enrollment in Physics? To what extent does involvement of students in Physics club activities and Science and Engineering Fair (SEF) influenced enrollment in Physics? The methodological design used was a mixed research design, specifically convergent parallel mixed design that focused on 44 public secondary schools with student target population of about 19340. Purposive sampling was used to select schools, principals and Heads of Physics/Science Department while simple random sampling was used to select Physics teachers. Students’ sample was obtained through Krejcie and Morgan (1970) table. Qualitative data was gathered through interview guide, analyzed by discussing the major themes and content in the study, and then presented through narration. Quantitative data that was gathered through questionnaire administered by the researcher, analyzed by use of SPPS (20.0) and presented through charts, means, frequency tables and percentages. The study established that there was a statistically significant relationship between application of SMASSE skills and enrolment in Physics as well as participation in Physics Club and SEF and enrolment. However, there was no statistically significant relationship between use of laboratory in teaching/learning of Physics and students enrolment in Physics. The study concludes that the use of planning, doing, seeing and improvement approach is acceptably effective in the teaching of Physics in the secondary schools and that effective teaching/learning in Physics is achieved when students are given tasks to perform and not when the teacher performs all the tasks. Further, students are unable to conduct the practical and experiments which would encourage them to like the subject while learning due to lack of laboratories or inadequately equipped laboratories and that there is low focus on Physics as a subject due to lack of Physics clubs in most of the schools. The study recommended that Ministry of Education should implement a compulsory and mandatory policy of selecting Physics subject and Science teachers to attend SMASSE program. The government and school boards to dedicate funds for establishing Physics laboratories and acquiring equipment and school principals and science HODs to facilitate formation of Physics clubs in addition to the existing science clubs in their schools.