Causes of Subpar Academic Achievement of Public Basic Schools with Emphasis on Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE): A Case Study of Sagnarigu Municipality in Northern Region, Ghana

Abstract

The study was set up to determine the causes of poor academic achievement in the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) in the Sagnarigu Municipality in Tamale, Northern Region, Ghana. The study sought to identify the contributing causes of such subpar learning outcomes and to provide some policy interventions to address them. For the study, two research questions were established. Data collection and analysis were done using a qualitative approach. In relation to the basic schools in the Sagnarigu Municipality, the study's accessible population included students, head teachers, teachers, parents, and municipal examination officers. As data sources, interviews and historical records were used. The researcher used the case study technique because he wanted to clearly understand why Sagnarigu Municipality students perform poorly on the BECE examination. Twenty (20) Junior High Schools were chosen purposively from the Municipality. The sample size was also chosen using a random sampling technique and included (10) head teachers, (20) teachers, (20) parents, (20) students, and (2) municipal education examination officers, making a total of (72) participants. The study discovered that the low academic accomplishment in the BECE was mostly caused by all inputs and processes, including teachers, the school environment, parents, and the students themselves. The highlighted school environmental problems included a dearth of teachers with advanced degrees, a lack of suitable physical and material resources to support teaching and learning, and teachers abusing their time spent in direct contact with students. Instances of routine tardiness and absenteeism to school, inability to complete the curriculum and inadequate exercises, assignments, and projects given to students, as well as low/inadequate motivation and pay from the employer, were found to be teacher factors that contributed to the low academic achievement. The student traits that I considered relevant included instances of tardiness and absenteeism, lack of parental or guardian support for homework at home, involvement in vices like internet fraud also known as "yahoo" or "game guys", going to movie theaters and dance clubs, and drug usage. Parents' inability to offer reading materials like textbooks and supplemental readers, their lack of engagement with their children's instructors, and their lack of participation in PTA activities were all factors in the home that affected students' academic performance. Given the foregoing, the study came to the conclusion that all stakeholders—including the government, nongovernmental organizations, teachers, parents, and students—must play their respective parts in addressing the causes of low achievement in the basic schools under consideration in the Sagnarigu Municipality.