IMPACT OF CULTURAL PRACTISES ON ACADEMIC

PERFORMANCE, A CASE STUDY OF NYAHURURU SUBCOUNTY,

LAIKIPIA COUNTY.

BY
KIMONDO STEPHEN MUITA
KENYA TECHNICAL TRAINERS COLLEGE
HEALTH AND APPLIED SCIENCES
ADM No. 2022HA147211

A Research Proposal Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements

for the Award of Diploma in Technical Trainer Education(Bio-chemistry)

SUPERVISOR
MR. NATHAN KIKETE

MARCH 2022
 CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the Study
The Laikipia county’s population according to the 2019 National Census is 518,560 with
males forming 50.03% while female form 49.97% of the population. There are multiple
ethnic communities in Laikipia, the Kikuyu and Maasai communities form the largest portion
of its residents. Other tribes mainly Borana, Samburu, Kalenjin, Meru, Somali, Turkana,
European and Asian settlers are the resident minorities. Laikipia County has different
religions, but Christian and Muslim are the principal religions. The pastoralist communities
have cultures which suit their nomadic lifestyle, while the agricultural communities have
different cultures suitable to their way of life. For example, everything about the Samburu
revolves around the livestock and warfare. This means that they have to move from one area
to another in search of pasture for their livestock and engage in raids amongst themselves and
with neighboring tribes especially the Turkana in a bid to recover their stolen cattle. Most of
the communities have gender division of labor depending on activities they engage in on a
daily basis as dominant economic activity. Majority of residents keep livestock and grow
different food crops such as maize, beans, carrots, peas, potatoes, wheat and cash crops as
well as horticultural crops. As of 2020, there are 350 primary schools and 91 secondary
schools in Laikipia County. Some of the top schools include Nanyuki Secondary, Njonjo
Girls and Nyahururu Elite School. Tertiary institutions include Laikipia University and
Karatina University College - Nanyuki Campus. The education system in Laikipia County
mirrors this inequality of opportunity due to the nomadic and cultural nature of communities
living in the County. While there are progressive education policies in place, impressive
academic institutions, and public education is provided at both primary and secondary level,
education often fails to reach people in remote and poor communities. According to African
educational trust the Northern and Arid regions of Kenya rank lowest in the country in terms
of school performance and literacy. Over 50% children in these areas have never attended
school. In the most remote regions, adult literacy rates are 18%, compared to the national
average of 87%. Girls and women fare worse than boys and men. 50% of boys’ complete
primary school compared to only 30% of girls, and there is only one literate woman to every
five literate men. In many cases it is not poverty that is the barrier to education. Providing
free public primary education among pastoralist communities only raised enrolment from 45
to 50%. The larger problem is that the current education system is not suited to pastoral life.

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From the language of instruction, to the location of schools, and the hours of the classes,
traditional schools do not fit with pastoralists’ way of life. Parents' perspectives on the
efficacy of education and their relations with schools, particularly with regard to supporting
their children’s learning, has a powerful effect on the academic success of their children.
According to Agnes Pareiyo, a crusader against FGM in Narok district, “A girl who has
undergone FGM means many things to many people. To boys it means there is an available
wife, to the poverty driven parents she is a source of finance, and if the girl herself continues
with education she becomes big-headed as she thinks of herself as “an adult”, explains
Pareiyo, who partly blames poverty for the persistence of FGM” (Standard Newspaper
2005:7). “Some 56 per cent of Kenyans live below the poverty line”, she says, quoting
statistics from the ministry of National planning (Standard Newspaper 2005:7). And this is
where the circumcisers come in to make money by circumcising the girls at a fee.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
The researcher is interested to investigate the effects of cultural practices to students’
performance. Kenya government to provide education as a means of developing human
resource cannot be overlooked. Over the years, the government has made several policy
pronouncements and institutional changes aimed at improving the quality of the education
system. According to Republic of Kenya (2005) the Kenya government spends over 34% of
its annual budget on education. critical analysis of a child education in Kenya depicts a
worrying trend, hampered by cultural practices which puts high premium on the usefulness of
their labour, on domestic front, in caring for young siblings, cooking and fetching water and
general cleaning (UNESCO 2005). This scenario is likely to affect girl/boy child performance
and more so those living in rural areas. Poor performance in national exams triggers a vicious
cycle wherein poorly educated society are left ill-equipped to obtain well-paid jobs, and this
in turn reduces incentives for parents to invest in children schooling. This study is interested
in assessment of socio cultural determinants of a learner’s performance in Kenya Certificate
of Secondary Education in Nyahururu sub county, Laikipia County.
1.3 Purpose of the Study
The purpose of this research is to assess the effects of cultural practices on academic
performance on Secondary schools in Nyahururu sub county division, Laikipia County.

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1.4 Objectives of the Study
The following objectives will be used to guide the study;
 To determine to what extent early marriages/FGM influence girl’s child academic
performance.
 To establish whether peer pressure and parental attitude influence a learner’s
performance.
 To determine whether domestic chores and less earning influence a learner’s
performance.
 To establish whether cattle rustling and warfare influences a learner’s academic
performance.

1.5 Research Questions

The researcher sought to answer the following research questions;
i. How does early marriages/FGM influence girl child academic performance in
Nyahururu Sub county, Laikipia County?
ii. To what extent does peer pressure and parental attitude influence a child performance
in Nyahururu sub county, Laikipia County?
iii. To what extent do domestic chores and poverty influence a child performance in
Nyahururu Sub county, Laikipia County?
iv. How do cattle rustling and warfare influence a child performance in Nyahururu sub
county, Laikipia County?
1.6 Significance of the Study
According to the Kenya National commission on human rights report 2003-2004, every child
has a right to education. “Education must be viewed as an investment into a collective future
rather than simply as individual consumption for personal success”. Education is one of the
most effective compasses with which one can navigate life. Education provides people with
the means to understand and participate effectively in various life activities by providing
literacy, knowledge, skills and ability to take on new opportunities. Education is an important
component in securing full human personality, other human rights and dignity. It is also the
foundation for self-reliance and a carrier for the values that contribute to individual and
collective well-being, as it helps us understand and tolerate the differences in others. Through
education therefore we find and experience the best in us and in others. More than anything

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else, education has proved to be the most reliable human development undertaking capable of
moving the poor away from the myriad debilitating circumstances that poverty reproduces.
The study is significant and sociologically relevant because it will provide insights into the
causes and persistence of high illiteracy levels and social development. It will therefore
unearth certain crucial issues that need to be strongly addressed by policy makers and
implementers, organizations, advocacy groups, and the wider society in their endeavor to
bridge the gender gap in education in Laikipia county as whole. It therefore refers to the
sociological significance and relevance, societal input, policy implications and the solution to
the problem.
1.7 Limitation of the study
Limitations refer to constrains or influences that the researcher has no control over. They are
shortcomings, conditions or influences that cannot be controlled by the researcher that place
restrictions on the methodology and conclusions. During the research, the researcher will
encounter some limitations such as carrying the research while still carrying out normal
duties in his working station and with minimum time allowance.
The researcher will have to dig deeper into the culture of these people as they are considered
to be unwilling to talk freely about their culture therefore the researcher will ask questions
indirectly. Accessibility in some schools is a problem due to uneven terrain and relief features
in the division, which has led to poor road network hence motorcycles will be used although
in some places the researcher will be forced to walk on foot due to the poor state of the road.
1.8 Definitions of Terms
Circumcision : This is a collective term used in a variety of practices involving the
female genital mutilation.
Access to Education: It is used to refer to the opportunity or right by pupils to get formal
education through the school setting.
Gender : Gender refers to femininity and masculinity which are socio-cultural
constructions.
Impact : Used in the study to indicate that actions or state of affairs are
influenced by another action or state of affairs.
Stigmatization : The process by which people are viewed negatively and are often
discriminated against by others.
Stigma : A mark on someone. A group of people may also internalize stigma
and believe that they deserve to be discriminated against or treated
badly, if they are not circumcised.
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Development: This is a process by which men and women with degrees of external
support increase their options for improving their quality of life.
Empowerment: It is a process by which all people, communities and countries in
disadvantaged positions increase their access to knowledge, resources,
decision making, and power and raises their awareness of participation
in their communities in order to reach a level of control over their own
environment and lives.
Culture : It is a whole complex ideas and things produced by a group of people
in their historical experiences at a given time.
Drop-out : Refers to children leaving school and not re-enrolling in their
immediate or any other school, before they have completed the cycle.
Absenteeism : This refers to irregular attendance in school learning
Repetition : A pupil repeating a class the second time instead of proceeding to the
next class.
KCSE Performance: This refers to the Grade obtained by the student in the Kenya
Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE)

1.9 ABREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS

CAMFED : Campaign for Female Education
EFA : Education for All
FAWE : Forum for African Women Educationalists
FGM : Female Genital Mutilation
FPE : Free Primary Education
FSE : Free Secondary Education
KCSE : Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education
MoE : Ministry of Education
NCCS : National Council for Children’s Services
NGOs : Non-Governmental Organizations
SPSS : Statistical Package for Social Sciences
UNICEF : United Nations Children Education Fund