Factors Affecting Secondary School Students Enrolment In Arsi Zone Of Oromia Regional State

Abstract

The main purpose of this study was to assess the factors affecting secondary school students enrolment in Arsi Zone and to come up with solutions in order to improve the enrolment of secondary school. To achieve this, the following four research questions were generated. These are: What major challenges do schools identify as factors affecting secondary school students enrolment in Arsi zone? To what extent the educational stakeholders aware on the major factors affecting secondary school students enrolment in Arsi zone? Is there an appropriate network of collaboration work relation between primary and secondary schools? What measures have been taken to overcome the hindering factors of secondary school students enrolment in Arsi zone? The method employed in the study was a descriptive survey. It helps the researcher to identifying major problems related to the students enrolment of secondary education with an inherent intention of suggesting recommendations. Sampling woredas were selected by stratified sampling design based in their geographical location for getting all representative sample woreda from every direction of the zone and schools were selected by simple random sampling techniques and from the respondent side 15 woreda education experts, 5 zone educational experts, 30 teachers, 20 students, 20 school PTA members through purposive sampling and 10 school principals by availability sampling techniques. The required information was gathered through the use of questionnaires, interviews and document analysis. Primary and secondary data have been analyzed in line with research objectives. Both quantitative and qualitative data were gathered and analyzed using mean, frequency and percentage. The findings of the study showed that factors affecting secondary school students enrolment rate were related to low completion rate of primary school graduates, school facilities both at primary and secondary level, poor interest of students in learning, and low job opportunities for school leavers, weak networked work relation between primary and secondary schools. From these findings it can be concluded that:- low performance of primary schools, poor internal efficiency, weak collaborative net worked work relation in the education system leads to the continuous decrements of secondary school students enrolment in the zone. Based on these findings and conclusions the following points are recommended; increasing promotion and completion rate of primary students and improving the intake rate of preparatory schools, creating primary-secondary schools clustering system, developing secondary school expansion strategies such as building additional new classrooms in existing secondary school, construct new secondary schools in new city or rural areas, adding two or more classrooms in an existing primary school. Moreover the government and concerned bodies should have play a role of creating employment access for secondary school leaver or graduates in their area and through improving the school leadership competency at school level. .