Effects of demographics and class attendance on student performance in the Department of Finance: Evidence from previously disadvantaged university

Abstract

This study explored the effects of demographics and class attendance on student performance in the Department of Finance at the University of the Western Cape (UWC) in the 2023 academic session. Student performance is measured by continuous assessments and final marks, while demographic factors are measured by gender, population group[1], marital status, study type, residence type, and rate of attendance. The study employed a dummy regression analysis and found that certain demographic factors impact student performance. Firstly, this study demonstrated that female students outperformed the male students, especially in the undergraduate modules. Secondly, population group 2 emerged as the best performer when compared to group 5[2]. Thirdly, never married students outperformed the single students at undergraduate[3] and postgraduate levels. Fourthly, there is no categorical difference in student performance based on residence type. Fifthly, the part-time students underperformed relative to the full-time students despite the former being allowed to register half as many credit units as the latter. Lastly, the performance of students with ≥70 per cent class attendance far exceeds their counterpart. These findings support the consideration of additional support for male, population group 5, single and part-time students as well as attraction of group 3 candidates in the Department of Finance by relevant stakeholders, namely the university, funding organisations, family, and partners. Finally, introduction of ≥70 per cent attendance as a requirement for student’s participation in assessments will boost performance and throughput rate in the discipline of finance. The results of this study speak directly to our learning and teaching (L&T) practices, specifically the finding that students who attend classes more perform better than those who attend less frequently. In the context of the post-COVID-19 cohort who were used to distance learning, this finding calls for academics to consider the adoption of more active learning approaches, which motivates more in-class participation that is aimed at increasing lecture attendance.