School Environment and Pupils’ Deviant Behaviours in Primary Schools in Namayingo District, Uganda.

Abstract

This study was carried out in Namayingo district. The specific objectives of the study were: to find out the nature of school environment in primary schools in Namayingo district, Uganda; to examine the level of pupils’ deviant behavious in primary schools in Namayingo district, Uganda; to find out whether or not there is a difference in the level of pupils’ deviant behavious between male and female pupils in primary schools of Namayingo district, Uganda; as well as to find out the relationship between school environment and pupils’ deviant behaviour in primary schools in Namayingo district, Uganda. Using a cross-sectional survey design which took the quantitative and qualitative approaches, a sample of 313 respondents from ten primary schools. Of these, 303 were primary school pupils of P.6 and P.7 who filled the questionnaires and ten teachers who provided qualitative data through oral interviews. The sample of pupils was got using the Morgan and Krejcie (1970)’s method of determining the sample from a given population. The findings were that the home environment in Namayingo district was generally good, the level of primary school pupils’ deviant behaviours was low; there was no significant difference between boys and girls with regard to their deviant behaviours, and there was no significant relationship between pupils’ school environment and their deviant behaviours. The conclusions were that although there is a general outcry that many rural schools are not serious, the current study has established that school environment in Namayingo district is good. Also, the pupils in primary schools in Namayingo district generally behave well. In addition, the male primary school pupils in Namayingo district of Uganda behave almost in the same way as girls do. For both, their deviant behaviours are low. Also, in a situation where school environment is good, the learners from such a school do behave well. From the findings and the conclusions of the study, the researcher recommends that the headteachers should try as much as they can to improve their school environments. This is based on the finding on research objective one that though the school environment in Namayingo district was it was good, not very good, it should be made better. Teachers and pupils’ parents should work together to ensure that the observed good discipline of the learners does not decline, so that it instead improves.