The influence of the pupil’s home environment on school dropouts in Tanzania public primary schools: the case of Kisarawe District in the Coast Region

The study sought to investigate the influences of pupil’s home environment on school dropouts in public primary schools. The study was carried out in Kisarawe District in the Coast region; involving 186 respondents from fifteen public primary schools in Kisarawe District. It was a case study which was done through interviews, document search and observation. The findings of the study showed that pupils’ home environment in its aspects of social- economic environment, cultural environment and geographical environment have influences on school dropouts in public primary schools. The findings indicated that the tradition of parents to keep pupils in a camp or inside a special house for a long period for initiation rites caused the pupils to miss lessons for a long period and affected their academic performance. School girls are taken out of school for secret marriages as soon they get pregnant. Household economic level is the main cause for the pupils to lack school needs, get involved in child labour and teenage sexual practices particularly school girls. Lastly the long distance from the pupils’ homes to school discouraged the pupils to attend school regularly and most of them have lost interest in school. In the light to the findings. It is recommended that available by laws should be enforced to punish parents who marry their daughters before completing the primary education cycle. Moreover more schools should be built near village settlements to accommodate all school age going Children and mitigate the impact of distance on schooling.