Major Factors Affecting Students’ Academic Achievement in the Secondary Schools: The Case of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Abstract

 The purpose of this article is to examine the major factors affecting student’s academic achievement in secondary schools of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Quantitative and qualitative approaches were used to investigate the research problem. For the quantitative part a survey questionnaire with four main parts dealing with factors i.e. self concept, class size, school size and teaching effectiveness were used as a parameter. Interview and focus group discussion (FGD) were used to collect qualitative data. The sample population of this study encompasses a total of 300 first cycle (9-10) secondary school students and 27 teachers from six secondary schools in six sub cities of Addis Ababa. The six secondary schools were chosen in view of the fact that they reflect the diverse school setting and personal characteristics of learners and teachers in the entire secondary schools of Addis Ababa spread in the 10 sub- cities. The findings showed that the formidable challenge, the class-size, is represented by higher level of discipline problem and the prevailing mode of instruction in their classrooms, which is lecture-centered method, where the students’ role was reduced to note-taking and listening to instructor’s explanation. Based on the findings, it is suggested that an awareness program on active learning approach should be given due considerations to help the teachers develop the characteristics that assist them achieve the expected goal.