Enhancing Higher Education Student Class Attendance through Truancy Reduction Program at the University of Namibia

Abstract

The major objective of the present study was to identify the contributory factors of truancy among higher education students at the university of Namibia. Besides that, it was aimed at gaining a comprehensive understanding of the truancy reduction program which the university may adopt to help lessen the situation. A broader view of attendance issues in higher institutions is becoming more prevalent in literature. Also, the rise of higher institutions of learning has been accompanied by a sharp increase in the journey to source for approaches of enhancing class attendance amongst university students. The sample comprised 48 full-time students from the faculty of Education and Human Sciences aged between 17 to 60 years old from the University of Namibia’s Rundu campus. Data was collected using the open-ended online survey questionnaire. The questionnaire consists of two sections, one on respondents’ demographic data and the other on higher education students’ class attendance. A pilot study had been conducted to validate the instrument. Respondents were sent the link via the WhatsApp platform for them to respond to. Responses were monitored by the corresponding author using google docs. Data were analysed thematically. Results demonstrate that truancy among university students is significantly influenced by students, lecturers, and the university and a thorough grasp of the truancy reduction programme that institutions may use to help reduce truancy should be imposed.