Household Conditions and Academic Performance of Students From the Mfantsiman Municipality in the Central Region of Ghana

Abstract

Household conditions play very critical role in children’s academic performance. The purpose of the study was to examine the relationship between household conditions and academic performance of students in Mfantsiman Municipality. The theory adopted for this study was the household production theory. The study adopted quantitative approach and descriptive survey design. Stratify and random (proportional) sampling techniques were employed to select 104 respondents for the study. Questionnaire were employed for data collection and continuous assessment records of sampled students were also analyzed. The findings of the study show a significant positive relationship between household conditions, parental contribution in education and students’ academic performance. It was revealed that the higher the socio-economic status of parents, the higher the performance of students. Also, the lower the socio-economic status of parent, the lower the academic performance of students. However, there were some exceptions where some students from low socio-economic background perform academically better than those from high socio-economic background due to high intelligent quotients (natural endowment). It is therefore, recommended that parents should play a leading role in their children’s education by encouraging their wards to discuss issues related to their academic work with them. They should provide their wards educational needs and appropriate support in school work. Playing such active role will result in an improvement in academic performance. Keywords: Academic Performance, Household Conditions, Teaching and Learning, Senior High Schools, Students DOI: 10.7176/RHSS/11-24-03 Publication date: December 31 st 2021