Influence of Learners’ Involvement in Informal Cross Border Trading Activities on School Internal Efficiency

This study examined the influence of informal cross-border trade (ICBT) activities on school internal efficiency in public senior secondary schools in Busia County, Kenya, where increasing learner involvement in border-related economic activities has raised concerns about educational outcomes. The study specifically investigated the effects of learner involvement in trading activities, household dependence on informal cross-border trade, time demands associated with trading, and parental education support practices on school internal efficiency. Guided by Human Capital Theory, Opportunity Cost Theory, and the Push-Pull Theory of Child Labour, the study adopted a convergent parallel mixed methods research design. The target population comprised principals, directors of studies, class teachers, learners and chiefs with data collected using questionnaires, interviews, observation schedules, and document analysis. Quantitative data were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 27 through descriptive and inferential statistics, while qualitative data were analyzed thematically. The study achieved a 96% response rate, with 365 valid questionnaires analyzed. Findings revealed that learner involvement in trading activities had a significant negative effect on school internal efficiency (β = 0.616, p < 0.05), contributing to absenteeism, truancy, poor concentration, and declining academic performance.

absenteeism, truancy, poor concentration, and declining academic performance

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