Effects of drug and substance abuse on academic performance among secondary schools, Bunyangabu District,Uganda
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Date
2019-04
Authors
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Journal ISSN
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Publisher
Kampala International University ,College of Education
Abstract
Drug and substance abuse threaten and tends to derail these noble strides by demotivating the
students in learning and subsequently ruining school going children that the government intends
to rely on in driving the economy to the next level. Despite the overwhelming intervention
strategies by the Government, religious organizations, non-state actors and many other keen
stakeholders to curb the problem of drug and substance abuse especially among the youth, the
number of schools going youth being suck into drug abuse seems to be escalating day by day. The
purpose of this study was to assess the effect of drug and substance abuse on participation in
learning among secondary school students in Bunyangabu District in Uganda. The study used
descriptive survey design combining both qualitative and quantitative research strategies. The
research targeted all the form three students and their respective school principals in the 12
secondary schools in Bunyangabu District, six schools constituting 30% of the 12 schools in
Bunyangabu District were sampled. Purposive sampling was used in the selection of the nine
schools and their respective principals. From each selected school, 20 Form three students were
selected using systematic sampling. Questionnaires were used for data collection. Once data was
obtained from the field it was coded and analyzed by computer using a statistical software SPSS
(Statistical Package for Social Sciences). On basis of the findings, the study concludes that all
the principals had experienced cases of drug abuse by students in their schools. Majority of the
principals (60.5%) kept records of those students engaging in drug abuse. The study concluded
that most of the schools offered guidance and counseling to the students and that most of the
students had attended guidance and counseling against drugs in their schools. Alcohol was the
frequently abused drug in the schools as expressed with a mean of 2.632. The study concluded
that drug abuse among the students caused dropping out of school, strained relationship with
other students, lack of interest in studying, low concentration span and declining grades. The
study concluded that anxiety, headache, feeling sleepy, confusion and vomiting were serious
effects of drug abuse among students and that the students have friends who take drugs. The
study recommends that all schools should set up guidance and counseling offices facilitated by
professionals to counsel students who indulge in drug abuse. Parents and teachers should
discourage students and be firm in ensuring that the students do not take alcohol which is the
most abused in the schools. The parents should also ensure they do not give so much money to
their children and if they do so they should ensure that the money is put into constructive use.
Description
A research project submitted to the department of education for the requirement of degree of bachelor of art with education at Kampala International University
Keywords
Drug, Academic Performance