Analysis Of Transition Of New Students In Secondary Schools In Bomet District, Bomet County, Kenya

Student‘s ability to cope with the transition to secondary school is dependent on several factors, including personal maturity and coping resources, the nature of the new school environment, and the level of preparation and social support available prior to and during the transition. The researcher‘s main objective of the study therefore was to analyse the effectiveness of induction and orientation programme for new students in public secondary schools in Bomet District. This   programme is related to students discipline and academic achievement. Barriers to successful transition and possible solutions were also investigated. Descriptive survey design was employed in the study. The target population included form two students, form two class teachers and head teachers from sampled public secondary schools. Stratified random sampling technique was used in selection of schools to be studied. A random sampling technique was also used in selection of form two students and purposive sampling technique used to select teachers and head teachers. The selection of teachers and head teachers was based on their resourcefulness in the study and also their number was small compared to other respondents. Self- developed questionnaires and interview schedules were used to collect the data. After coding the responses manually, data was entered into the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) computer program for analysis. Descriptive statistics such as frequencies, percentages and mean were used to analyze the data quantitatively. Qualitative data obtained from open-ended questions were analyzed according to themes based on the research objectives and the research questions and thereafter, inferences and conclusions were drawn. Analysed data was presented using tables, graphs and charts. Study findings indicated that all sampled public secondary schools in Bomet District had functional induction and orientation programmes available to new students with their key features being: To explain the school rules and regulations to new students; To introduce new students to the school programme and routine; To guide and counsel new students on subjects and their career prospects. The main obstacles to ensuring effective induction and orientation programmes were noted as: Students‘ cultural orientation and late reporting of new students which prevent them from adjusting to the more formalized secondary school setting. The following were the recommendations based on the study findings; i) Selection of new students to secondary school should be done early and the reporting tagged to the same time for all students to benefit from the services of induction and orientation programmes present in schools; ii) Transition programmes should also be carried out in the last year in primary schools (standard eight) to prepare the students as the transit to secondary schooling. ii) Students grooming should be included in the induction.