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The main purpose of this study was to examine impacts of large class sizes on
students’ academic performance in Public secondary schools in Nyamagana
District. Large class size refers to a number of pupils/ students which exceed the
recommended number of students in a class. According to this study the
recommended number of students in a class was 40. Academic performance is the
outcome of education; the extent to which a student, teacher or institution has
achieved their educational goals through examinations or continuous assessment.
The study sought to fulfill three main objectives: to find out the average number of
students in each class, to evaluate views experienced by teachers in teaching large
classes and to explore the challenges of large class size in the teaching learning
process. The study was guided by the systems theory and Vygotsky theory. The
study adopted descriptive survey design. Questionnaires were used to gather
information from head of schools and students while semi structured interview was
used with the teachers. The findings of the study revealed that schools have large
classes though most teachers and students prefer small classes. Teachers prefer
teaching small classes to enable them help the needy students. Lastly, large classes
faced many challenges like poor classroom management, less time to cover task,
poor interaction among teachers and students, bad behavior/attitudes among
students, difficulty to identify weak students and causes truancy to students.
The study recommended that, to improve students’ academic performance in public
secondary schools, the government and community should construct more
infrastructures such as classrooms and to recruit adequate qualified teachers. Large
classes should be split into two or more streams to make them manageable. |
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