Browsing by Author "Rugendo, Caroline Marigu Nyaga"

Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
  • No Thumbnail Available
    Item
    Balancing work and study: A necessity for successful distance learning
    (University of Nairobi, 2015-06) Ndiritu, A; Chandi, Rugendo; Rugendo, Caroline Marigu Nyaga
    As the country re- evaluates the achievement of Millennium goals, it becomes important for Kenya to take its toll. One of the intentions was to increase gross enrolment rate in higher education. The projection was to increase the number of students joining the universities to 450,000 by end of 2015 from 130,000 in 2008. This number was to be increased through expansion of courses done through distance education. The targeted population was of those already in employment. This group has to be able to balance the demands of their workplace and their social demands for the back to school agenda to be achieved. The University Of Nairobi School of continuing and distance education runs a course in distance education. However It has been noted that among the students who sit for university exams, many do not score 40% which is a minimum score for students to progress to the next level. The failure rate goes up to 63% with 27% out of 38% cases scoring below 40%, which is a very high failure rate. This failure rate prohibits students from graduating. it is worth finding out the cause of this failure rate. This study was carried out to find out if distance learners had a problem managing their time given the demands of the same among competing ends. An effort was also made to find out if this problem had an effect on their academic performance. From a total number of 4500 of students from the University of Nairobi in different levels of their B.Ed degrees, a sample of 650 students were selected using stratified random sampling technique .Data was collected using a mixed mode method and analyzed using Pearson correlations. The findings indicated a strong relationship between time management and academic performance (r=0.569)
  • No Thumbnail Available
    Item
    Influence of Study Habits and Demographic Variables: Study Habits and Academic Performance
    (LAP LAMBERT Academic Publishing, 2017) Rugendo, John Chandi; Rugendo, Caroline Marigu Nyaga
    The study investigated the influence of time management, learner-to-learner interaction, note-taking skills, reading skills, demographic variables and academic performance of distance learning students. Given the increasing numbers of post-secondary institutions offering degrees by distance learning, it is important to know the influence of study habits and demographic variables on academic performance of distance learning students. A total number of 347 students were selected using stratified random sampling technique from a population of 4, 500 students who were registered for the B.Ed. degree in different years of study. The findings indicated a strong positive influence of time management on academic performance (r =0.569), There was a positive influence of notes-taking on academic performance (r=0.635), influence of reading skills on academic performance (r =0.423), and influence of highest academic qualification on their academic performance of adult learners (r=0.237). Based on the findings, the study recommended that students should be trained in time management skills and also they should be encouraged to meet regularly for discussions.
  • No Thumbnail Available
    Item
    The prerequisite for degree courses through open and distance learning: a case of the university of Nairobi, Kenya
    (University of Nairobi, 2015-06) Rugendo, John; Ndiritu, Anne W; Rugendo, Caroline Marigu Nyaga
    The government of Kenya has recognised education as an important pre-requisite for it to become an industrialised country. This realisation has necessitated the need to raise the Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) at all levels of education. The participation rate in higher education is of importance for the populace to be able to acquire high-level skills necessary for development. This is however not possible through the traditional conventional education methods only but also through Open and Distance Learning approaches to be able to reach a large number of students. In this regard, the University of Nairobi runs a course in distance education. It has been observed that many students fail to score a total of 40% in a given course and they re-sit the failed units. The failure rate goes up to 63% with 27% out of 38% cases, which is a very high failure rate. The high failure rate and the ever increasing time taken to graduate are chronic problems in distance learning. One of the reasons why there could be poor performance is lack of post-secondary experience of whatever kind. It is therefore worth finding out how efficiency in distance learning can be enhanced. To find out the relationship between postgraduate qualification and performance in B.Ed courses, a total number of 347 students were selected using stratified random sampling technique. This sample was taken from 4,500 University of Nairobi students who were registered for the B.Ed degree in different parts of study in the School of Continuing and Distance Education. A mixed mode method approach was used in data collection. The study investigated if the independent variables ( academic qualifications ) had a relationship with the dependent variables (academic performance). Pearson correlations were used to establish if there was a relationship between the variables. The analysis indicated a strong relationship between post-secondary qualification and academic performance