Effects of child abuse on academic performance in public primary schools in Waia division, Mbooni east district

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to investigate the effects of family child abuse on the academic performance of learners in Waia division, Mbooni East District. To achieve this, five research objectives were formulated. These objectives were to examine the meanings and scope of child abuse in families, to assess whether child abuse at homes affected their academic performance, to establish the availability of special needs trained teachers in public primary school, to examine the association of abused children with non-abused children at school and to access the role of school teachers in working with the abused children. The study was based on Bandura’s social cognitive theory. The study used descriptive survey design to gather both qualitative and quantitative data. The research instruments that were used in the study included questionnaires which had structured close-ended and open ended questions, they achieved a return rate of 100 percent. The findings revealed that 50 teachers (66%) defined abused children as those who came to school hungry, dirty, with no enough clothing, had sustained truancy, sustained failure to complete or do homework and aggressiveness. The findings further revealed that the scope of child abuse include the physical abuse, verbal abuse, child neglect and orphanhood The study findings revealed that cognitive implications of child abuse included difficulties in learning and poor academic performance and that abused learners scored low on cognitive measures and demonstrate lower academic achievements as shown in mark list table. The study revealed that 70 (93.3%) teachers were trained on special needs education while 5 teachers (6.7%) were not trained. The study also revealed that the abused learners do not freely interact well with other children hence there is need for intervention. The majority of the teachers 68 (90.6%) implied that child abuse was an issue that demanded special attention in schools as abused children were affected by a number of issues including high dropout rate, absenteeism, malnutrition, low selfesteem, and lack of self-efficacy. The study also indicated that 66.6% of teachers agreed that abused learners were isolated, depressed and violent while they were both with their peers. The study concluded that child abuse does exist and child abuse has adverse effect on cognitive learning. The study concluded that that all schools should have special needs trained teachers. Abused learners do not freely interact well with other children hence there is need for intervention. The specialty trained teachers were able to rehabilitate the abused learners by identifying, guiding, counseling and reporting the cases further to concerned authorities. The researcher recommends that the government should build and equip children homes. It also recommended that the perpetrators should be brought to book in order to curb child abuse. That the Ministry of Education should train all teachers on special needs education. That the government should introduce guidance and counseling department in all primary schools in Mbooni East District.