School Related Factors Influencing Parental Choice of Primary Schools in Embakasi Sub-county, Nairobi City County, Kenya

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to investigate the school related factors influencing parental choice of primary schools in Embakasi Sub-county, Nairobi City County, Kenya. The objectives were to determine the influence of adequacy of physical facilities, academic performance, pupil-teacher ratio, and school’s proximity to area of residence on parental choice of primary school. This study was based on the Rational Choice Theory pioneered by George Homans (1961). The study used descriptive survey design. The target population constituted 117 school heads and 60,458 parents from both public and private primary schools. To pick the study sample, the population was stratified into public schools and private schools, each with subgroups of school heads and parents. Systematic sampling was used to pick 95 school heads and 600 parents. Primary data were collected using questionnaires for head teachers and parents and an observation checklist. The questionnaires gave information on qualitative data while the observation checklist checked on the adequacy of the physical facilities. Content validity of the instruments was established through expert judgment of the supervisors. Test-retest method was used to establish instrument reliability. Data collected were analyzed qualitatively and quantitatively. The study realized a response rate of 89.8 percent which was deemed very satisfactory. The study findings revealed that majority (73.8%) of the parents were influenced by academic performance, while 71.9 percent of the parents were influenced by availability, adequacy and appropriateness of physical facilities in their choice of school. The study findings also showed that the proximity of schools to area of residence had an influence on parental choice of school with a significance level of 0.7. Pupil-teacher ratio influenced parental choice at a significance level of 0.6. The researcher, thus, recommends that the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MoEST) in conjunction with other stakeholders should ensure availability of adequate and appropriate physical facilities in public schools in order to meet the competitiveness of the private schools. The researcher also recommends that educationists should conduct forums which help them develop innovative ways of meeting both parents’ expectations and children’s educational needs. The researcher suggests that similar studies be conducted in other counties to allow for better generalization of findings.