The Role of School Feeding Programme on School Retention and Academic Achievement Among Primary School Pupils in Adamawa State

The study was carried out to determine the role of school feeding programme on school retention and academic achievement among primary school pupils in Adamawa State. The objectives of the study were: to determine the role of school feeding programme on the retention rate of primary school pupils and to determine the role of school feeding programme on the academic achievement of primary school pupils in Adamawa State. The study used Correlational research design. The study population comprised of 1,331 primary schools operating the school feeding programme in Adamawa State. Stratified random sampling technique was used to obtain a sample of 297 primary schools. Proforma titled “School Record Inventory (SRI)” was used to obtain data for the study. The instrument was validated by experts in primary education and agricultural education with one from the Department of Educational Foundations and the other from the Department of Vocational and Technical Education, Adamawa State University, Mubi. The instrument was subjected to field trial test using test re-test method in Taraba State to obtain the reliability. The instrument’s reliability was calculated using Cronbach Alpha Coefficient and a reliability of 0.78 was obtained. Mean, standard deviations and paired sample t-test were used for data analysis. Results from the study revealed that school feeding programme increased retention and academic achievement of pupils in the study area. Based on the findings of the study, it was recommended among others that federal government should ensure continuation of the school feeding programme due to gains in retention rate of primary school pupils recorded.