Abstract

Teacher-parent collaboration has been highly encouraged because of its strong associations with educational success. However, it has not been verified whether it influences pupils’ academic performance in the early years of education, hence continues to be a significant issue. The purpose of the study was to determine the influence of teacher-parent collaboration in monitoring school attendance on pupils’ academic performance in public pre-primary schools in Nyahururu Sub-County, Laikipia County. The study was anchored on Epstein’s theory of parental involvement and Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory. The study approach was quantitative and therefore a descriptive survey research design was adopted. The accessible population of the study was 351 teachers and parents of the 8088 pupils in the176 public pre-primary schools. The sample was 69 teachers and 72 parents. Cluster random sampling, simple random sampling and purposive sampling techniques were used to obtain the study sample. Likert scale questionnaires were used for data collection. Piloting was done in five pre-primary schools to ascertain reliability of the instruments where split-half method was used. Experts from the university scrutinized the instruments to ensure validity. Data collected was coded and analyzed using statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) version 25. Results were presented using frequencies, ratings and mean scores in data tables. Research ethics was duly observed. The study found that teacher-parent collaboration in monitoring school attendance influenced pupils’ academic performance to a great extent. The significance of the study was to enlighten all the early years’ education stakeholders on the importance of teacher-parent collaboration on monitoring of school attendance. Teachers and parents should establish effective collaboration in monitoring school attendance to ensure consistence in attending school thus improving pupils’ academic performance.

1. Introduction

Teacher-parent collaboration is about the role that teachers and parents play in assisting or supporting the learning path of the children. Teachers and parents collaborate in children’s learning, this is crucial because it links learning between home and school. It also enables the teachers and parents to learn the children’s world and be acquainted to developments in their education ³. Parents who take an ardent and active interest in their children’s schooling are said to contribute greatly to the performance of their children unlike those parents who are not supportive thus seeming to lead to poor academic performance in their children. Learners whose parents take interest in their school work are said to perform well, complete their extended learning activities consistently and have no absenteeism records. They are said to have a positive attitude towards schooling and less contending behavior towards their peers. Such findings have been seen across the grades from primary to secondary schools ¹⁴.

When there is teacher-parent collaboration in children’s education, their academic performance seems to improve significantly. A close working relationship between the children’s families and the schools lead to successful schools. Reference ⁷ states that teacher-parent collaboration in schooling improves learning outcomes not considering the parental level of education, their socio-economic status or ethnic background. According to ¹⁰, parents highly influence their children’s development as they progress through school. Parents who collaborate with teachers in their children’s schooling link home and school. A quick and critical parent will start where the teacher stopped and guide the child in given activities in order to increase their competence and confidence. The concepts got in the classroom enable the parent to offer reinforcement to classroom activities by giving similar home activities ¹⁶. Teacher-parent collaboration in children’s activities such as nature walks/field trips and reading books together has been seen to lead to a more social child. Parents who encourage children to take part in play activities with them help to nurture talents in the young children. This enables the children to excel in games and portray more independent behavior in such situations. Having their teachers and parents help nurture their talents, the children develop a strong sense of self. By supporting literacy, numeracy and other child activities, parents seem to influence early childhood development. When parents encourage the practice of numeracy and literacy skills, they can raise their children’s school readiness ⁸. However, teacher-parent collaboration in education has not been observed to a higher level globally. In 2007, the State Board of Education of Ohio strongly encouraged local school boards to incorporate into the local policies the recommendations to enhance existing parent involvement policy requirements. This shows that teacher-parent collaboration (TPC) in Early Childhood Education (ECE) has been a global challenge for a long time. A study conducted by Education International Early Childhood Education Task Force in 2010 showed that the chances of achieving the Sustainable Development Goal of Education for All (EFA) by 2015 were very minimal because most countries in the world had neglected ECE which was included in the EFA goal.

A study on perspectives of early childhood teachers on parent-teacher partnerships in some European countries including Portugal, Lithuania and Finland, ¹² showed that parents’ participation and interest in education that took place at the Early Childhood Education centers was low. It also showed that parents had a tendency of leaving their children’s education to the teachers. This shows that TPC has been a global challenge that requires attention in order to underscore its importance in a child’s pre-primary education which is said to lay a firm foundation for later schooling.

A discussion paper for Good Start on importance of collaboration among parents, early year’s professionals and communities in Australia and New Zealand ¹⁷ showed that TPC in some European countries was a challenge because the early year’s professionals were not fully able to determine the areas that required TPC. These authors called for further research on importance of collaboration among parents and teachers so as to come up with other areas and practices that develop and affect families and students in learning outcomes. A research study in South Africa ¹⁵ showed that parents in South Africa had not embraced participation and involvement in their children’s early years’ education (EYE) wholly. One of her recommendations was to enlighten the parents on the importance of being a part and parcel of their children’s education through collaborating with teachers. This reflects that African countries are still facing challenges in teacher-parent collaboration in the Early Years Education.

Kenya’s Early Childhood Development Education (ECDE), also referred to as Early Years Education (EYE) in the new curriculum, CBC (Competency Based Curriculum), has grown because it is rooted in the community. The program is structured in such a way that 3-year-old children join play groups, 4-5-year-old children attend pre-primary school while 6-8-year-old are in the lower primary. However, in the CBC adopted as the new system of education (2-6-6-3) piloted in 2017 and implemented in 2018, the 3-year-old have not been provided for. CBC is a curriculum that has been designed and put a lot of emphasis on development of skills and knowledge and applying those competencies to real life situations.

The teachers will be equipped with the required skills and a conducive environment with enough instructional materials in order to enable them implement the new curriculum. This will help them to nurture the talents of every child, meet their needs and interests as well as diagnose the learners’ needs and work together with significant others in the child’s life such as parents, extended family and the community at large. The system emphasizes on parental engagement which requires them to be actively involved in nurturing their children’s potential in and out of school in order to help them register good learning outcomes as well as succeed in life. This is a shared responsibility which is continuous between teachers and parents ¹³.

There is great awareness that parents play a vital role in determining the success of a child’s education. They are expected to be the first and the best nurtures, stimulators and educators of their children. They have a shared responsibility with schools to give what is necessary to the children’s learning which would motivate them to achieve their full potential. If all these requirements including an enabling and conducive environment are available, the learners get an opportunity to develop and apply the intellectual and psychosocial competencies that qualifies them to tackle the realities and challenges of everyday life ²³. Through workshops and seminars organized by County and Sub-County Early Childhood Development and Education ECDE Coordinators, parents and the entire community have been sensitized and urged to better their participation in their children’s education. This is taking place at a very slow pace since it is requirement that has been greatly emphasized in the CBC and so it has not been embraced by all. This is as compared to parental engagement in the outgoing system of education.

The benefits of TPC in children’s schooling have long been recognized. ²⁴ highlights that parents take an important role in influencing the aspirations and the education outcomes of their children ¹⁰. A new approach should be developed to the EYE in which teacher-parent collaboration is incorporated into the system as a significant role of ensuring that family learning, early years learning and childcare are mutually supporting. TPC in education is seen to yield better results for children in the early years and throughout school ¹⁰.

The low level of teacher-parent collaboration is one of the most severe social issues faced by our country as well as the most important factor to be addressed for the success of future generations. People need to understand how significant this TPC is to our children and how our nation can be impacted ²⁰. TPC is paramount in a child’s life; parent’s involvement, or lack of it both in school and at home, will evidently influence the future of the child. It is the parent’s responsibility to avail themselves both physically and mentally to their children ⁸. New parents are not always certain on how their children’s education experience will influence them from the early years to the end of the child’s developmental years. Therefore, writing more about teacher-parent collaboration through research will encourage parents to be involved to a great extent in their children’s education. Parents take part in various ways in the running of the school by policy development and governance.

In consideration of the paramount importance of TPC for better learning outcomes, the study sought to assess the influence of teacher-parent collaboration on pupils’ academic performance in public pre-primary schools. The study was necessary so as to give more information and assist parents, teachers and other ECE stakeholders in realizing the importance of TPC in pre-primary school education which can lead to high academic achievement in children during their later years. It will also give benefits to educators who plan to develop partnership with parents and help them in raising their children in appropriate ways.

The study was purposed to assess the influence of teacher-parent monitoring of school attendance on pupils’ academic performance in public pre-primary schools in Nyahururu Sub-County, Laikipia County.

To determine the influence of teacher-parent monitoring of school attendance on pupils’ academic performance in public pre-primary schools in Nyahururu Sub-County, Laikipia County.

Teacher-parent collaboration has been said to influence pupils’ academic performance during their schooling. However, its influence on pupils’ academic performance in the pre-primary school level has not been researched on specifically in Nyahururu sub-county. This is an issue that requires immediate attention. There has been an outcry from education officials and teachers on minimal participation by parents and the community in empowering their children with education. Could this be the reason why learning progress in pre-primary school pupils has been low leading to challenges during transition to Grade 1 in Nyahururu sub-county? Based on the above observations, the study was geared towards assessing the influence of teacher-parent collaboration on pupils’ academic performance in public pre-primary schools in Nyahururu Sub-County, Laikipia County

2. Methodology

A quantitative paradigm was used in this study. The approach allows gathering empirical data, analyzing, interpreting and writing the results of a study ⁵. Reference ²², research design describes the pattern the researcher intends to follow and the plan or strategy for conducting the research. The study adopted a descriptive survey design. Reference ²², a descriptive survey provides viable data that leads to the solution of local problems as well as data that can form the basis of research of an empirical nature. Reference ²¹, sometimes it is the only way through which views, opinions, attitudes and suggestions for improvement of educational practice and instruction can be collected. The survey research design sought to gather information on educational matters. The study intended to collect data concerning the influence of teacher - parent collaboration on pupil’s academic performance in public pre - primary schools in Nyahururu Sub- County, Laikipia County.

The study was carried out in public pre-primary schools (PPS) in Nyahururu Sub-County. The sub-county covers a total of 2783.80 square kilometers with a population of 203,459 (National Census, 2009). There are six wards in the sub-county: Igwamiti, Kinamba, Ol Moran, Rumuruti Township, Marmanet and Salama.

Nyahururu sub-county was the focus of the research because of the outcry of education officials and teachers on the minimal support from parents in pupils’ academic performance of the pre-primary school (PPS) children. Therefore, the study intended to highlight the areas that would require teacher-parent collaboration in order to improve pupils’ academic performance. The sub-county also had both the urban and rural settings indicating an all-inclusive society in terms of social and economic dynamics.

Reference ²², population is defined as all the items, things, objects and people to be studied in research or a targeted population. In the study, the target population constituted all the teachers and parents in the 176 public PPS in Nyahururu Sub-County. The accessible population was 351 teachers, and parents of the 8088 pupils in the PPS in Nyahururu Sub-County according to the County ECDE office 2017 report.

Reference ²¹, a sample as a small proportion of a target population selected by using the right sampling procedures. A sampling procedure is the process used to select a number of individuals or a small amount of something in order to get information about the target population from which they were selected ²¹. Cluster random sampling was used to group the PPS according to the six wards: Igwamiti ward which had 30 PPS, 71 teachers and 1367 pupils; Marmanet ward with 43 PPS, 81 teachers and 2660 pupils; Rumuruti Township ward with 25 PPS, 58 teachers and 1056 pupils; Kinamba ward with 26 PPS, 41 teachers and 1334 pupils; Ol Moran ward with 19 PPS, 38 teachers and 735 pupils; Salama ward with 33 PPS, 62 teachers and 936 pupils. Reference ¹⁹, when the study population in a descriptive survey is less than ten thousand, a sample size of 10% to 30% is a good representative of the target population hence a sample size of 20% was adequate for the study where simple random sampling technique was used. The sample therefore included 36 PPS and 69 teachers. 2 parents were purposively sampled from all the selected centers; therefore 72 parents were involved in the study. The total number of respondents was 141.

In the study, questionnaires were used as the main instruments of data collection. Reference ¹⁸, questionnaires give valid solutions to entangled problems. Additionally, questionnaires give more or less objective data and therefore are completely effective. There were teachers’ and parents’ questionnaires. The questionnaires comprised of questions formulated as per the objectives of the study. The questionnaires had sections covering demographic information, monitoring extended learning, monitoring school attendance, attendance of learners’ progress monitoring meetings and joint decision-making. The questionnaires comprised of Likert scale questions.

Validity is used to establish whether research measures what it is expected to measure and to approximate the correctness of the findings. Reference ¹⁸, validity is the correctness and meaningfulness of inferences, which are based on the research findings. It is the intensity to which the findings from the analysis of data actually represent the variables of the study.

To enhance validity, the researcher constructed instruments that were simple, non-ambiguous and logical. The instruments were subjected to experts in the Department of Education Early Childhood Studies of Mount Kenya University for validation. They scrutinized and verified the information in the research instrument for accuracy, relevance, completeness, consistency and content validity.

Reliability is the degree to which a research instrument produces stable and consistent results. It is the extent to which a data collection tool yields consistent results of data after repeated trials. To determine reliability, a pilot study was conducted in 5 PPS which were not to be considered in the main study. Split half method was used to test reliability and Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of 0.82 was got which is above the recommended level of 0.7 for social science research.

Credibility refers to the degree to which the research represents the actual meanings of the research participants or ‘truth value’ ¹¹. Credibility is also the extent to which the respondents can be relied upon to ensure that the data they give really represents what it is supposed to represent and there is no intent to misrepresent what the data is supposed to represent. Credibility is involved in establishing that the results of the research are believable. To enhance credibility in the study, the researcher explained to the respondents that the information they would give would remain confidential and would not be used elsewhere other than in the study only. The respondents were requested to fill all the fields in the questionnaires with true information. They were also made aware that it was their right to choose whether to fill the questionnaires or not.

Dependability is an assessment of the quality of the integrated processes of data collection, data analysis and theory generation. This is also the researcher’s account of changes built into any setting in addition to changes to the research design as learning unfolds ¹. It involves researcher’s evaluation of findings, interpretation and the study’s recommendations such that all are in corroboration with the data as got from the respondents. Dependability ensures that findings of the study are compatible and could be done again. The researcher ensured that the standard of which the research would be conducted, analyzed and presented would be very high, each step of the process was also documented to enhance dependability by establishing facts.

Prior to data collection, the researcher obtained all the necessary documents; an introduction letter from Mount Kenya University, permission to collect data by National Commission for Science, Technology and Innovation (NACOSTI) and the County Chief Officer, Education and Social Services Laikipia County. Upon clearance from the heads of institutions, the researcher issued the questionnaires to the sampled individuals. Parents experiencing difficulties in filling the questionnaires were assisted by the researcher. The researcher explained the purpose of the research when distributing the instruments to the respondents.

Data from the questionnaires was coded and then analyzed using statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) version 25 for windows which was used to run descriptive statistics such as mean, frequencies and percentages. The results were presented in form of tables based on major research findings.

3. Results and Discussions

Questionnaires were distributed to teachers and parents in public pre-primary schools in Nyahururu Sub-County. The response rate is as shown in Table 1.

141 questionnaires were distributed. 123 were filled and returned. The response rate of teachers was 85.51%, while that of parents was 88.89%. The total response rate was therefore 87.23%. Reference ¹⁸, a 50% response rate is adequate, 60% good and above 70% is rated as very good. Based on this, a response rate of 87.23% was therefore very good.

The respondents were teachers and parents of the pre-primary school children in Nyahururu Sub-County, Laikipia County. The study sought to find out the distribution of teachers and their characteristics in the study and this is expressed in Table 2.

As shown in Table 2, majority of the pre-school teachers, 58 (98.3%) were female while there was only one (1) male teacher (1.7%), indicating that the field was female dominated. This could also affect the learning of the boy child since there are a few male pre-school teachers to act as role models for the boys. It is also evident from the table that majority of the pre-school teachers fell in the age group 38-47 years 30 (50.8%). 27-30 years 14 (23.7%) and 47 and above years 13 (22%) while 18-27 years were only 2 (3.4%). This shows that there are a few young teachers in pre-primary schools. Many teachers, 26 (44.1%) and 25 (42.4%) had spent 11-20 and 1-10 years respectively in their current schools, 5 (8.5%) had spent 21-30 years and 3 (5.1%) had spent 31-40 years. This shows that majority of the teachers have taught for less than 20 years indicating that they might not have a lot of experience in teaching. The level of education is significant in pre-school teachers’ ability to nurture the learners’ potential. Many of the teachers were certificate holders, 37 (62.7%) which is the minimum requirement, 21 (35.6%) had diploma, while one (1) (1.7%) was a degree holder. This shows that the pre-schools pupils were handled by qualified teachers who were attempting to upgrade their skills for better performance which would impact positively on pupils’ academic performance.

The study also sought to find out the distribution of parents and their characteristics in the study and this is expressed in Table 3.

Table 3 shows that female parents 45 (70.3%) were the majority depicting that they were more attached to the interest of the children’s school activities. Parents in the age bracket of 31-40 years, 31 (48.4%) and 21-30 years 23 (35.9%) were the majority with pre-school children, 41-50 years 7 (10.9%) and 51-60 years 3 (4.7%) were just a few. Majority of the parents had secondary 34 (53.1%) and primary 24 (37.5%) education and could therefore assist their children in school related activities. 4 (6.3%) had college education while 2 (3.1%) had university education. Most of the parents were self-employed 29 (45.3%) while 24 (37.5%) were unemployed, a few were employed 11 (17.2%). This shows that this is an all-inclusive society depending on the socio-economic status. Most of the parents 49 (76.6%) were married, 9 (14.1%) were single, 5 (7.8%) were separated or divorced while 1 (1.6%) was widowed.

The objective sought to determine the influence of teacher-parent monitoring of school attendance on pupils’ academic performance. The study sought to find out from teachers and parents the extent to which monitoring of school attendance influenced pupils’ academic performance. The findings from their responses are as shown in Table 4 and Table 5 respectively.

From Table 4, it can be seen that the female teachers 58 (98.3%) and the male teacher 1 (1.7%) rated the influence of teacher-parent monitoring of school attendance on pupils’ academic performance as to a great extent (3). The rating of the male teacher might have been in agreement with the level of the children who needs to be supervised and monitored in what they do throughout. The ratings of the female teachers might have been compelled by responsibility back home as mothers who prepare and ensure that their own children attend school consistently for better learning outcomes. This rating concurred with ⁹ which revealed that for better learning outcomes, children must be consistent in school attendance.

The following age-groups: 28-37 years 14 (23.7%), 48 years and above 13 (22%) and 18-27 years 2 (3.4%), rated the influence of teacher-parent monitoring of school attendance on pupils’ academic performance as to a great extent (3). The sub-sample, age-group 38-47 years of age 30 (50.8%) rated the influence as to a very great extent (4) which might have been influenced by their awareness on the importance of consistent school attendance since they are older teachers and therefore had experience in handling children at school. The sub-sample, age-group 18-27 ratings might have been influenced by the ratings of the other teachers since they were just two.

The teachers who had served in one station for 11-20 years 26 (44.1%) and 1-10 years 25 (42.4%) rated the influence of teacher-parent monitoring of school attendance on pupils’ academic performance as to a great extent (3). Those who had served in one station for 21-30 years 5 (8.5%) and 31-40 years 3 (5.1%) rated the influence as to a very great extent (4) which might have been influenced by their experience in handling the pre-school children. The ratings of the last two sub-samples had the same opinion ⁴ which revealed that school absence is associated with lower learning outcomes, therefore school attendance should be monitored so that children attend school consistently hence reap the benefits of education.

The certificate holders 37 (62.7%), diploma holders 21 (35.6%) and the degree holder 1 (1.7%) all rated the influence of teacher-parent monitoring of school attendance on pupils’ academic performance as to a great extent (3). Despite the level of education of the teacher, it is a requirement that pupils’ school attendance should be monitored preferably by marking the school attendance register daily. This ensures that all the pupils move together in learning and that none is disadvantaged by lagging behind thus creating a gap in his/her learning which would affect their academic performance.

From Table 5, the female parents 45 (70.3%) and the male parents 19 (29.7%) rated the influence of teacher-parent monitoring of school attendance on pupils’ academic performance as to a great extent (3). This rating might have been influenced by the government policy that it is the right of the child to access education and failure to that the parent would be held accountable, therefore the parents have to send their children to school to avoid facing the law.

The parents in the age-group 21-30 years 23 (35.9%) and 41-50 years 7 (10.9%) rated the influence of teacher-parent monitoring of school attendance on pupils’ academic performance as to a great extent (3). The parents in the age-group of 31-40 years 31 (48.4%) rated the influence as to a moderate extent (2). The age-group 51-60 years 3 (4.7%) rated this as to a very great extent (4). The rating of the sub-sample, age-group 31-40 years might have been influenced by a formed opinion that in pre-primary school education is not taken seriously because most of the time is spent on play which depicts ignorance or lack of awareness since pre-school children mostly learn through play. Rating by sub-sample, age-group 51-60 years might have been as a result of their long term awareness of the importance of monitoring school attendance in relation to pupils’ academic performance due to their age.

The parents who had secondary education 34 (53.1%), primary education 24 (37.5%) and college education 4 (6.3%) rated the influence of teacher-parent monitoring of school attendance on pupils’ academic performance as to a great extent (3). These ratings might have been influenced by their compliance to the right of the child to education. The parents with university education 2 (3.1%) rated the influence as to a very great extent (4) which might have been influenced by having the knowledge from higher education that the early years’ education is the bedrock of learning in the later years.

The employed parents 11 (17.2%) rated the influence of teacher-parent school attendance monitoring on pupils’ academic performance as to a very great extent (4). The self-employed parents 29 (45.3%) and the unemployed 24 (37.5%) rated the influence as to a great extent (3). The rating of the employed parents might have been influenced by their access to the requirements of the early years’ education, consistent school attendance being one of them. This agrees with ⁶ that low school attendance is related to negative learning outcomes. The self-employed and the unemployed parents rated the influence as to a great extent may be because of not being well enlightened on the significance of the early years’ education and how it can affect the education of their children in the later years. Due to the nature of their occupation, they might encounter some challenges and hence not be able to meet the school requirements, which can eventually lead to their children’s absenteeism. The study above also showed that children from poor backgrounds tend to register low school attendance patterns.

The married parents 49 (76.6%), the single parents 9 (14.1%), the separated/divorced 5 (7.8%) and the widowed parent 1 (1.6%) all rated the influence of teacher-parent monitoring of school attendance on pupils’ academic performance as to a great extent (3). The rating of the single parents, the separated/divorced and the widowed parent might have been influenced by the challenges faced when raising children single-handedly like inability to meet all the school requirements, thus prompting absenteeism. The married ratings might have been influenced by the same reason as the other sub-samples because they might be married to casual workers or might be small scale farmers as dictated by the economic activities in the area of study.

From the above interpretation, when teachers and parents collaborate in monitoring school attendance, pupils’ academic performance improves. This is shown by their almost tallying opinions that this influences the performance of the pupils as it is stipulated in their consistent rating of 3 (to a great extent). The aspects of the teachers marking the school attendance register daily, enquiring from parents on child absenteeism and ensuring that the child remains in school and by parents sending their children to school daily, informing the teacher on child absenteeism, visiting the school regularly to check on the child directly influenced pupils’ academic performance. This concurs with ² that there was a positive and significant relationship between school attendance and class progress.

From the above interpretation, when teachers and parents collaborate in monitoring school attendance, pupils’ academic performance improves. This is shown by their almost tallying opinions that this influences the performance of the pupils as it is stipulated in their consistent rating of 3 (to a great extent). The aspects of the teachers marking the school attendance register daily, enquiring from parents on child absenteeism and ensuring that the child remains in school and by parents sending their children to school daily, informing the teacher on child absenteeism, visiting the school regularly to check on the child directly influenced pupils’ academic performance. This also concurs with ² that there was a positive and significant relationship between school attendance and class progress.

4. Conclusion

The study was set to determine the influence of teacher-parent monitoring of school attendance on pupils’ academic performance. To respond to this objective, the following research question was developed ‘to what extent does teacher-parent monitoring of school attendance influence pupils’ academic performance?’ The study established that teacher-parent collaboration in monitoring school attendance influenced pupils’ academic performance. Monitoring of school attendance was found to be essential by both the teachers and the parents because they seemed to agree that it positively impacted on the pre-school pupils’ academic performance. When the teachers monitored the pupils’ school attendance by updating the attendance register daily, enquired the whereabouts of an absent child from the parents, ensured that the children remained in school and they attended school consistently, their academic performance improved significantly. When parents sent their children to school every day, informed the teacher on child’s absence from school and visited the school regularly to check on the child, academic performance of the child improved. TPC in monitoring school attendance therefore showed that there was improvement in the pupils’ academic performance as it was rated by both the teachers and the parents; (3) to a great extent. The study therefore found out that pupils’ consistent school attendance influenced their academic performance positively and so school attendance should be highly monitored. When teachers and parents came together and monitored school attendance, there was consistence in school attendance. This enabled the pupils to register good academic performance due to consistency in learning.

Teacher-parent collaboration should be enhanced in pre-primary schools as this will make the parents a part of their children’s learning which is very important in the child’s schooling during the early years of education.

5. Recommendations

On the basis of the major findings of this study and the conclusions arrived at, the study offers the following recommendations geared towards enhancing academic performance in the early years of education:

i. Teachers and parents should establish effective partnership (collaboration) to support school attendance in the early years of education. This enhances academic performance due to the attention given to the feedback from either the teacher or the parent on the child’s school attendance patterns.

ii. Teacher-parent collaboration in school attendance monitoring should be enhanced in pre-primary schools as this will make the parents a part of their children’s learning which is very important in the child’s schooling during the early years of education.

iii. The pre-primary school stakeholders should organize end of pre-primary two (PP2) conference every year in order to prepare the pupils for a smooth transition to Grade 1. This would help in reducing any anxiety and enhance ease in adapting to the changes in the new school routine in the next level.

6. Suggestion for Further Research

i. A replica study to be carried out in other Sub-Counties.

ii. Similar studies to be carried out including other variables such as cultural practices and home environment in relation to pupils’ academic performance in Nyahururu Sub-County or other areas.

iii. A replica study should be carried out in private pre-primary schools in Nyahururu Sub-County and other areas.

iv. A study on the effect of teachers’ level of education and its influence on pre-school pupils’ academic performance should also be carried out.

Acknowledgements

My heartfelt gratefulness goes to my parents Mr. and Mrs. E. I. Chiuri for their holistic support throughout the course, to my daughter Tecla who served as my pillar of strength and to my son Price who was my IT consultant. To my brothers and sisters, I register my endless appreciation for walking with me through this journey.

My sincere thanks go to the ECDE coordinators Nyahururu Sub-County and all the pre-school teachers and parents in the public pre-primary schools in Nyahururu Sub-County for their cooperation during data collection.

Funding

No funding was sought or received for this study.

Competing Interests

None to declare.

List of Abbreviations

CBC: Competency Based Curriculum

ECDE: Early Childhood Development Education

ECE: Early Childhood Education

EFA: Education for All

EYE: Early Years’ Education

PPS: Pre-Primary School

TPC: Teacher-Parent Collaboration

UNICEF: United Nations International Children’s Education Fund

References