Socio-Economic Status of Students and Its Impact on the Quality of Studies

The research was done in order to highlight the connection between the socio-economic status (SES) of students and the quality of studies, as well as the connection between the organization of the teaching curriculum and the quality of studies. It has a quantitative descriptive design and falls in the field of theoretical-empirical research. The population is homogeneous and includes students from the faculties of Education throughout Kosovo and the Faculty of Mathematical and Natural Sciences in Pristina, who attended bachelor studies in the period 2019–2022. The research was conducted with a sample of 312 students, representing over 2800 students. The research instrument was a survey/questionnaire. The results of the research showed that the social and economic status of students is in stable correlation with the quality of studies. The research also highlighted that the organization and quality implementation of the teaching curriculum significantly correlates with the quality of studies. From the attitudes of the students, it was understood that there is a variable correlation depending on the variables (such as marital status, village-city residence, number of employees in the family, economic situation, etc.). The findings from the research serve as a recommendation for educational institutions so that during the drafting of policies on education, they take into consideration the qualitative organization of studies by institutions of higher education, as well as create mechanisms to help students with poor economic conditions, in order to raise of the quality of studies and the quality of education.

Introduction

Education systems in different countries of the world have their own specificities in the way of organization and operation, as well as in the approach to solving the problems they face during the implementation of specific activities in the area of education. What preoccupies most of the education systems globally is the idea of achieving competence and quality in pre-university and higher education. Most of the reforms in education, regardless of the country, focus on improving the quality of education, achieving professional competencies, and preparing young people for life and employment. Since the processes in education are quite complex and depend on a multitude of factors, it is also quite complex to reach the final product that originates from this process, which is quality education. The quality of education is of particular importance and a precondition to all other developments in society, such as developments in culture, health, science, justice, technology, politics, and commercial and economic developments. The aim of all countries is the fight against illiteracy, while the objective of most developed and developing countries is to raise the quality of education.

For over two decades, the quality of education has been both a goal and a challenge for the education system in the Republic of Kosovo. Currently, the quality of education in Kosovo is not satisfactory despite the consolidated legal infrastructure and the accompanying documents for quality education. Numerous international governmental and non-governmental organizations, in cooperation with the central educational institutions of Kosovo, have invested large amounts of funds and shared international professional experiences aiming to raise the quality of education in pre-university institutions. Despite the continuous commitment of international institutions to raising the quality of education in Kosovo, the intended results have not been achieved so far. Through cooperation between the Ministry of Education and international organizations, significant progress has been made in the creation of legislation in the area of education, the approval of important development documents and strategies, as well as in the establishment of mechanisms for the implementation of the legislation. The decline in the quality of education in Kosovo is precisely due to the lack of quality in the implementation of legislation. The lack of accountability and formal implementation of legislation in the area of education has seriously jeopardized the issue of quality of education for a long time. The quality of education at the pre-university level is closely related to the quality of education at the institutions of higher education. The quality of studies in programs that train students for teaching is a challenge in itself. Some of the factors that we believe affect the decline of the quality of studies include lack of professional academic staff, simultaneous engagement of teachers in several faculties (public and private), lack of academic research, lack of academic literature, the lowering of evaluation criteria, low-quality implementation of the teaching curriculum, tick-the-box approach of the pedagogical practice, the socio-economic status of students, etc. With this reasoning, the focus of this study is to identify the correlation between the organization of studies in the programs for teachers, the implementation of the teaching curriculum, and the SES of students with the quality of studies, respectively, with the quality of education.

Literature Review

Regarding quality as an everyday concept, the obvious understanding is that it is about something that is related to (or associates with) “the good, something higher or something better,” even though the specific meaning of this term varies from country to country. The concept of quality, from the beginning of its use as a terminology, has been of an industrial and economic nature. Quality has always been a prerequisite for the survival of organizations, regardless of whether they have been in the area of economics, commerce, or education. According to Mishra and Koehler (2006), before the 20^th century, quality as a concept was considered an integral element in the production of certain products or in the performance of activities in an economic organization. In the middle of the 20^th century, the practice of quality management and control moved from the field of economics to the field of education. From the researched literature related to the quality of education, we came across different definitions of the term “quality,” such as quality of education or quality of teaching. In various research reports, books, and documents, various authors, including regional and international institutions and organizations, have written about the quality of education.

The actualization of this term in education occurred in the seventies of the previous century when OECD member countries faced the problems of unemployment and the inability of young people to find jobs. From that time, the functionality of education began to be re-examined because, in many countries of the world, a crisis was announced in the acquisition of basic skills, namely the poor achievement of literacy skills by students in schools. Human capital for any society consists of the knowledge, skills, and good health that individuals acquire during their lifetime, which enables them to realize their potential to be productive members of society. Increasing the quality and efficiency of education is also vital for strengthening human capital and economic development. Due to the influence of the economic aspect in the field of education, some ideas about quality were transferred, such as the idea of quality control, the idea of measuring quality, the idea of the possibilities of quality improvement, the idea of ensuring quality in education, the quality in the professional development of teachers, the quality of teaching, etc. In this sense, the concept of quality is complex and includes quality as a process, quality as an economic value, quality in the absolute sense, quality as relativity, and quality as culture. In determining the quality of education, a series of qualitative characteristics appear, through which education is seen in a continuum from minimum quality requirements to high or exceptional achievements.

From a literature review, we have managed to understand that various regional and international authors have done considerable research in the field of education. Most research has variables correlating with parents’ education and the impact on children’s achievements in school, parents’ profession and economic income, the impact of SES on children’s IQ, etc. However, we could not identify any research related to the quality of education, especially any research related to the impact of SES and curriculum on the quality of studies in the faculties of education in Kosovo. In the absence of research in this field of study, there is a significant lack of literature by local authors. Some of the research carried out by international authors in the field of education, which is mainly related to the impact of SES on the quality of education, has drawn the following conclusions:

1. Students from families with low monthly income enter high school with average literacy skills 5 years behind those with high income (Reardonet al., 2013).
2. The success rate of students with low family income is lower in the disciplines of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics compared to students belonging to the social group with higher family income (Doerschuket al., 2016).
3. Individuals from higher social class backgrounds tend to be more successful in developing career aspirations and are generally better prepared for the job market due to access to resources such as career offices, guidance counsellors, the best schools, etc., (Diemer & Ali, 2009).
4. Students from low SES families feel less safe at school, and this may affect their lower educational achievements (Pavlović Babić & Baucal, 2011).
5. Children from low SES communities develop academic skills slower than children from high SES groups (Morganet al., 2009).
6. School systems in low SES communities are often negatively biased towards student academic progress and outcomes (Aikens & Barbarin, 2008).
7. A survey study conducted by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) and reported by the US Department of Education in 2000 found that students from ethnic minority groups lag behind their white peers in dozens of academic achievements (Sirin, 2005).
8. The correlation between family income and children’s achievements is noted (Bracey, 1999; Caldwell & Ginther, 1996; Milne & Plourde, 2006).

From the findings and conclusions of various regional and international authors in the field of education related to the impact of SES on the quality of education, respectively, in improving learning outcomes and skill achievements, we see a strong correlation between SES of students, pupils, and their parents with academic achievement, quality of studies and pupils’ success in school. In the Kosovar context, this issue has not been sufficiently studied. This is why we have focused on this research, to understand more about the attitude of Kosovar students in the faculties of education in the programs for training students for teaching regarding the impact that can have SES of students and curricular contents in the quality of studies.

The Purpose of the Study

The study aims to analyze and verify the attitudes of students in the study programs for the training of teachers in the Faculties of Education in Kosovo, related to (1) the impact of SES on the quality of studies, (2) the difference between the social and demographic variables of students and the quality of studies, and (3) the impact that the quality of organizing of the curriculum has on the quality of studies. The main questions that guide the purpose of the study are as follows:

1. Does the quality of studies depend on the economic situation or SES of the students?
2. Has the economic situation of students affected the decline in the quality of education in Kosovo?
3. In what correlation are the qualitative implementation of the curriculum with the quality of studies and student achievements in learning?

Methodology

Research Design

Due to the nature of the research, the instruments and techniques we used during the research, as well as the way of collecting and processing the research results, the research design is mixed (Creswell & Plano Clark, 2007) and has a descriptive, quantitative, and statistical character. Research with a descriptive and quantitative design usually refers to numerical data and “focus on numbers” (Lee McKay, 2006, p. 6) “focuses on numbers.”

Sample

The research included the students of the Faculties of Education, the Preschool program, and the Primary-elementary program from the first year (I) to the fourth year (IV) of studies in four Faculties of Education in Kosovo (out of a total of five faculties), and the students of the Faculty of Mathematical and Natural Sciences in Pristina, from the first (I) to the fourth (IV) year of studies. From the population of 2800 students who studied in these faculties during the academic year 2018/19–2021/22, the research sample included 312, respectively, 305 students who answered all the questions in the survey/questionnaire.

Materials and Measures

For data collection, a questionnaire was used, which was designed in two parts. The first part of the questionnaire is composed of 7 questions containing bio-social and economic data, while the second part of the questionnaire is composed of 22 open, closed, and combined questions. The drafting of the questionnaires was done in such a way that they collected data and attitudes from the students on their training during studies, the way of implementing the study program, and the impact that socio-economic status can have on the quality of studies. The questions are mainly designed similarly to the 5-point Likert scale (by clicking on the answer: 1. Very much; 2. To some extent; 3. A little; 4. Not at all; 5. I am not sure), as well as from some four optional cross-questions (with click on the answers 1. Always; 2. Often; 3. Sometimes; 4. Never), and some open questions, with the possibility of clarification or description.

Procedure

Initially, the questionnaires were piloted with a group of students (20 students from the Faculty of Education in Prizren), then through student representatives (the student parliament and student organizations at the respective faculties), the questionnaires were distributed in electronic form to the four (4) Faculties of Education and the Faculty of Mathematical–Natural Sciences. The questionnaire was prepared and drafted in the Google Forms format, and students were given access through a link to the form. The time needed to complete the questionnaire was 10–12 minutes, while the online Google Forms link for students to complete the questionnaire was open for 15 days. Students were informed in advance about data confidentiality and research ethics (ALLEA, 2018).

Data Processing and Analysis

The data collected through the survey/questionnaire in Google Forms was processed through the SPSS Statistics program (v20). For the objectivity of the research, we performed (testing) the hypotheses with the so-called non-parametric tests (Chi-square), and some other coefficients were calculated to help in the interpretation of the results (Contingency coefficient, Spearman’s correlation coefficient, then the coefficient of Pearson correlation). The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics (frequencies, percentage, mean, standard deviation). We also examined how the data may have varied with demographic factors and control variables, which were gender, age group, marital status, rural-urban residence, number of family members, number of employees in the family, economic conditions, year of studies, success in high school, objectivity of teachers in the assessment of knowledge, professor-student cooperation, and factors affecting the quality of studies.

Results

Socio-Economic Status of Students

Research has focused on students’ SES and its impact on the quality of studies. In the beginning, we presented the bio-social and economic data of the students (representative/sample) participating in the research, and then the attitudes of the students collected through the survey and the questionnaire were presented.

According to the students’ responses, the gender status of the students participating in the research is women–90.2%, men–9.8%, and undefined–0.0%. Gender representation is proportional to the number of students who enrolled for each academic year in the faculties of education in the teaching program, where usually, women students express greater interest in the teaching profession. The students’ marital status in the research was single–80.3%, married–10.9%, and engaged or cohabiting–8.9%. According to the place of residence of rural-urban students, 54.8% live in villages, while 45.2% live in cities. The number of family members in the SES category of the students is represented as follows: 72.5% live in families with 5–9 members, 22.0% in families with 2–4 members, and 5.6% of students come from families with more than 10 members. The number of members within a family in terms of economics manifests on two opposite sides, depending on the number of employees within the respective family. In cases where there are several employees in large families, the economic situation of the whole family is better. However, in cases where there are no employees or only one employee in a large family, the economic situation is difficult for all family members.

Through the answers in the questionnaire, the students stated the following: 76.7% have an average economic condition, 19% have a very good economic condition, and 4.3% live in poor economic conditions. As for employment within the family, students have declared that 41% are from families that have 2 employees, 34% are from families that have 1 employee, 17% are from families that have 3 or more employees, and 8% of students’ families have no employees. From the analysis of these data related to the SES of the students, including the number of employees in the family and the statement regarding the family’s economic situation, it can be said that the economic situation of the students who studied during this period in the Faculties of Education in Kosovo and the Faculty of Mathematical and Natural Sciences (teacher programs) in Pristina has been good, except 4.3%–8% of students who have declared for poor economic conditions. The level of achievement/success of the students participating in the research during their secondary education was excellent–78%, very good–19% and good–3%.

Student Attitudes

The questionnaire was designed with specific questions in mind to understand the attitudes of students and collect data that enable us to answer the questions posed below:

1. Does the quality of studies depend on the economic situation and the SES of the students?
2. Has the economic situation of students affected the decline in the quality of education in Kosovo?
3. In what correlation are the quality implementation of the curriculum with the quality of studies and the achievements of students in learning?

We presented the students’ attitudes in the questionnaire through numerical and descriptive tables as described in Table I.

Table I. Attitudes of Students Regarding the Factors that Affect the Quality of Studies

Factors influencing the quality of studies in %	High	Somehow	Little	No
Program content–lack of pedagogical-methodical subjects	68.2	28.2	2.6	1
Qualified teachers from the respective subject	73.1	20	5.9	1
Holding lectures and practice hours regularly	83.9	12.7	2.29	1
Objective assessment of student’s work and knowledge	73.7	19	5.9	1.3
Adequate teacher-student cooperation	81.6	12.1	4.6	1.6
Modern research-creative teaching	78.3	16.3	3.9	1.3
Good socio-economic conditions	54.4	28.5	13.4	3.6
Textbooks and necessary study literature	80.3	14.4	4.6	0.7
Pedagogical practice	79	11.8	4.9	4.3

From the attitudes of the students presented in Table I, we can understand the level of correlation between the quality of studies (as a variable) and other variables, including program content, the level of qualification of professors, the objective assessment of students’ knowledge, SES–the conditions economic, textbooks and study literature, etc. The findings, based on the attitudes of the students, show a high correlation between the organization of studies (in higher education) and the quality of studies, namely the correlation between the regular delivery of lectures and exercises by teachers (83.9%), cooperation between teachers with their students (81.6%), textbooks (80.3%) and maintaining pedagogical practice (79%) < with the quality of studies. As for the SES of the students in correlation with the quality of the studies, the findings show that the students were more restrained regarding this issue and that they rated the economic conditions as a factor with a smaller impact (54.4%), compared to the factors others that are directly related to the learning process and the organization of studies.

Table II contains the attitudes of teachers regarding the question: In general, what factors affect the decline in the quality of studies? The factors listed in Table II are in order from top to bottom without any criteria and are mainly related to the quality of studies in teaching programs. Based on the attitudes of the teachers, the most pronounced correlation has been noted between–Suboptimal engagement of professors in work with students 61.9% ≤ with the quality of studies. On the other hand, the suboptimal engagement of students in learning, the teachers not showing up for classes–missing lectures, and the lack of research work, in correlation with the quality of studies, receives 60.6% of the students’ attitudes. From the findings in Table II, it can be said that most students, or over 60%, are aware of and share the opinion about the great importance of the factors listed above for the quality organization of studies in the programs for the training and qualification of teachers.

Table II. Factors Affecting the Decline in the Quality of Studies

In general, what factors do you think influence the decline in the quality of studies? Calculation in %	High	Somehow	Little	No
Lack of pedagogical-didactic-methodical subjects	55.0	36.3	7.2	1.3
Lack of tools and technology for practical work	55.7	37.3	5.9	0.9
Suboptimal engagement of teachers in working with students	61.9	26.9	8.5	2.6
Suboptimal engagement of students in learning	60.6	29.5	7.5	2.3
Missing textbooks and adequate literature	58.6	27.8	10.1	3.3
Teachers not showing up for classes–missing lectures	60.6	23.6	10.8	4.9
High burden of students with homework and other tasks	47.5	36.3	9.5	6.6
Lack of research work	60.6	29.5	7.5	2.3

In Table III, we have presented the attitudes of students regarding some factors and criteria that we think might influence the quality of studies. Student responses make us understand the correlation between several variables related to the organization of studies on the one hand and the impact these factors have on the quality of studies (as a dependent variable or fluids). The attitudes of students regarding the organization of studies allow us to understand that most of them 53.1%–61.0% are satisfied partially or to some extent. As for the impact of the economic situation on the quality of studies, 44.6% of students have expressed their opinion about the impact of SES of students on the quality of studies, 42.6% of students have stated that SES has no impact on the quality of studies and 12.8% of they do not have a specific attitude. But if the comparison of the economic condition is made between the students participating in this research, where most of them (76.7%) have declared that they have average economic conditions, then it can be implied that the correlation between the SES of the students and the quality of studies becomes stronger. The concept of economic well-being as a vital need cannot be the same for individuals who have different economic conditions, on this reasoning we concluded that the correlation between the SES of students and the quality of studies becomes more stable than 44.6%. While in the question related to the trend of the quality of studies between the two periods, comparing the beginning of studies with the last years of studies, the students divided their opinions as follows: 43.9%–improving and ongoing, 26.9%–same conditions, 19.7–declining, 9.5%–not sure. In this study, we also carried out other measurements using cross-questions from the questionnaire and we tested them through Chi-Square tests, symmetrical measurements (Contingency coefficient, Spearman correlation, Pearson correlation coefficient) but to save the reader from numerous tables we did not present them in the paper. The data derived from these symmetrical measurements and tests go in favour of reinforcing the findings presented above.

Table III. Attitudes of Students Regarding the Organization of Studies

	Responses in percentages
Questions	High	Somehow	Little	No
How satisfied are you with the organizatıon of studies in your program?	19.3	59.3	16.0	5.2
How much does this program fulfil your requirements (to become a competent teacher)?	31.1	53.1	13.7	1.9
How satisfied are you with the work of your teachers during your studies?	26.3	61.0	9.8	2.9
How satisfied are you with the cooperation between teacher and student in your program?	27.8	50.8	14.1	7.2
How objective is the assessment of your knowledge from the side of your teachers?	17.4	59.7	15.1	7.8
Does the economic situation of your family influence the quality of your	Yes	No	Not sure
studies?	44.6	42.6	12.8
How do you assess the current trend of quality of studies?	Improving	Same	Declining	Not sure
	43.9	26.9	19.7	9.5

Discussion

This study is focused on two essential issues, the first is related to the SES of students and the impact on the quality of studies, the second is related to the organization of studies in the Faculties of Education in Kosovo–the programs for training students for teaching and the impact that can have on the achievements of students, respectively on the quality of studies. Through the answers to the questionnaire, the students have expressed their attitudes through which we can understand that the SES of the students has a significant impact on the quality of studies. The attitudes of the students are more convincing when it comes to the way of organizing studies in higher education institutions in Kosovo, namely in the Faculties of Education–teaching programs. Regarding this issue, a much stronger correlation is noted between the way studies are organized and the quality of studies, respectively with their achievements during studies. The study also pointed out the correlation between some essential study factors listed in Table III, with the decline in the quality of studies.

Some of the findings in this study correspond to the findings of studies by other authors who have investigated the impact of SES on student achievement (Bracey, 1999; Caldwell & Ginther, 1996; Milne & Plourde, 2006). The good economic status of students is an important factor for their personal well-being, it is a prerequisite for more engagement in studies and access to the necessary literature and technology during the time of studies. The good family economic condition of students is an additional opportunity for many comforts and opportunities to study, but it is not a factor that necessarily leads to success and quality of studies. The quality of studies in teaching programs, besides depending on the proper organization of the curriculum by higher education institutions, largely depends on the engagement of students and their motivation for studying. The socio-economic status of students can have a significant impact on the quality of their studies in several ways: Students from higher socio-economic backgrounds often have greater access to resources such as the provision of private tutors, teaching materials and technology (such as computers and internet access and teaching literature); SES can also affect students’ health and nutrition. Students who come from lower income families find it more difficult to secure quality and abundant food, which can affect their cognitive development and academic performance. Also, personal health care may be more limited for students from lower income families; Students with low SES are more likely to experience and be affected by stress due to financial instability, family issues or living in difficult conditions. This stress can affect their ability to concentrate on studies, for the regular continuation of studies and can lead to dropping out of studies; SES also affects the possibility of socialization of students through the formation of groups of peers or like-minded people for interaction, study, entertainment, or other socializing activities. Students with similar socio-economic backgrounds may share common interests and goals, which may positively or negatively affect study habits and academic performance, etc.

Based on the reasons noted above, the findings of this study provide sufficient data for higher education institutions, namely for the Faculties of Education in Kosovo, to understand the difficulties faced by students during their studies to become teachers. Secondly, based on these findings, the leaders of educational institutions, namely the Ministry of Education, can undertake activities for the creation of affirmative policies for the improvement of study conditions for students in teaching programs, with a focus on changing the study curriculum, the selection of professional teaching staff, supply of contemporary literature for study, application of new creative methods in teaching, including research during studies, etc. Supervision and accountability in education are a very important factor for quality implementation of the teaching curriculum and are also very important activities that can guarantee the quality of studies and quality in education. The study in question is a modest contribution in terms of the scientific aspect, due to the specifics (social, economic and geographical) where it was carried out and the specifics of the education system in Kosovo itself. The findings of this study provide important data and information regarding the impact of SES of students and the teaching curriculum on the quality of studies, findings which could serve the Ministry of Education of Kosovo to draft new policies related to raising the quality of education.

Conclusion

From the statistical calculations, different levels of correlations were proven depending on the variables that were set for comparison. As for the correlation between students’ SES and the quality of studies, the findings are in favour of an average or stable correlation. The study pointed out that there is a stable correlation between the economic status of students and the quality of studies. The study also offers other findings that have to do with the correlation between the teaching curriculum in teaching study programs and the quality of studies. The attitudes of the students are in favour of a stronger correlation when it comes to the influence that the content of the curriculum has on the quality of studies. Also, a high correlation was found between some teaching factors (which include the professional competences of the teaching staff, objectivity in the assessment of students, teacher-student cooperation, pedagogical practices during studies, textbooks and teaching literature, etc.). The research also highlighted other correlations such as the residence of the students (village–city), marital status and gender in relation to the quality of studies, but the correlation between these variables was not so pronounced. Likewise, a more stable correlation was found between the students’ economic conditions and the quality of studies, namely the number of family members and employees in the students’ family. Students who had two or more employees in their family, in their attitudes, the dependence of SES on the quality of studies was observed less, while for students who did not have any employed family members, this economic dependence was observed more in their attitudes. The next finding in this study is the identification of some of the factors that have influenced the decline in the quality of studies in teacher programs. The attitudes of students in research, among the factors for the decline in quality, emphasize: the low commitment of teachers in working with students, the low commitment of students in learning, the absence of teachers/loss of classes/lectures and the lack of research work in programs to train students for teaching. From the findings in this study, it was concluded that in the Faculty of Mathematical and Natural Sciences, in the educational programs for training for teaching, pedagogical school practice is not organized. The study curriculum does not contain pedagogical and methodical–didactic subjects. Chi-squares for the level of significance were in most cases brought to the quota of 99%. The level of correlation between the variables was also confirmed by the calculated coefficients (of Contingency, Spearman and Pearson) where in most cases they were very high, almost in the range of a functional correlation. Based on the attitudes of the students and the statistical data, the correlation between the variables is as we presented above.