Statistical Exploration of Academic Performance of Students in some Selected Programmes of the University of Cape Coast

Abstract

Education is a basic human right to which every individual should have access to. Every country designs education that will be suitable for it citizens so as to achieve as a whole the country’s educational aims and objectives. Academic performance is a subject of great concern in Ghanaian education and is the main criterion that is used to admit students into both Senior High and University education.

The main objective of the study  was to investigate whether there exit exist a relationship between academic performance at the Senior High School (SHS) and that of university. The study answered the following research questions:   Which variables significantly contribute to academic performance of the students at University level? ; Are the variables stated reliable to predict the results of students in future?

The data for the study were secondary data obtained from the Data Processing Unit, University of Cape Coast. In all, result of thousand one hundred and fifty three (1153) students were collected. Convenience sampling was used for data collection. Statistical analyses were done using Minitab. Regression analysis was  the main statistical tool for this study.

The study revealed that students’ Grade Point Average (GPA) at the university  has little to do with their previous academic performance at the Senior High School. Programme offered  contributes significantly  to academic performance at the University. Although, there was a weak relationship between the explanatory variables, there were some variables that contributes or determines students’ academic performance.

The study recommends that students performance at the University should not solely based on entry aggregate. Other factors can also be considered such as programme, academic environment, the availability of academic resources, teaching empowerment, student attitude, and finance.

Key Words: Grade Point Average, Entry Aggregate, Programme, Performance, Senior High School