The study investigated the relationship between stress and academic performance among government-sponsored undergraduate students from the University of Nairobi in Kenya. The mediating roles of the students’ age, gender, locus of control, level and course of study in the relationship between stress and academic performance were also examined. The sample consisted of 319 male and 265 female students selected using stratified random sampling techniques, from all the six colleges of the university. The study was carried using a cross-sectional survey design involving levels one to five of the academic programs. Data was collected using questionnaires that measured stress and locus of control. Academic performance was assessed from the students’ academic transcripts. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were used for data analyses. Two-way and three-way chi- square statistics were used to test the statistical significance of the hypothesis.. The analyses were done using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) computer program. Regression analysis was conducted to find out how the confounding variables contributed to the relationship between stress and academic performance. Results showed that most of the students (64.4%) reported that they experienced between moderate to high levels of stress while just over a third (35.6%) reported low stress levels. The relationship between stress and academic performance was statistically significant (χ2=9.49, N=584, df=4, p=0.048). The relationship between stress level and academic performance was significant within 19 to 22 years, 23 to 26 years, males, females, College of Humanities and Social Sciences, College of Agriculture and Veterinary Sciences, levels one and four of study, internal locus of control, and external locus of control. Regression analysis showed that the higher the stress level, the poorer is the academic performance. However, only course/college appears to have statistically significant effect on the relationship between stress and academic performance. The cofounding effect on the stress and academic performance is complex and needs further investigation. The findings indicate the need for relevant authorities to institute programs that will lower the experience and effects of stress among university students. Further research is recommended to investigate the areas where the results were not significant.

Teenage pregnancy is a major social problem in Kakamega County in Kenya that tends to have negative ramifications especially on the lives of young girls. Recent studies have documented school children lack the necessary skills to manage their sexual life due to the misconceptions they have about menstrual cycle despite having gone through Kenyan school science curriculum. This can be supported by worldwide reports that teachers can actually be one of the sources of such misconceptions in their learners. This study sought to assess teachers’ understanding of menstrual cycle in Navakholo sub-county, Kakamega County, Kenya. A case study design with a mixed-method approach was used in two secondary schools in Navakholo sub-County, Kakamega County Kenya. A mixed gender sample of 20 teachers aged 24 years and above, responded to a multiple choice questionnaire targeting the menstrual cycle concept. Four focus group discussions and 4 Key Informant Interviews were conducted. Three levels of understanding emerged in the data analysis, i.e., Full Comprehensive Basic, Full Comprehensive Intermediate and Full Comprehensive Understanding. There was a statistically significant relationship be full comprehensive understanding level and ones knowledge of menstrual cycle, (χ2=13.7620, p=0.003). Basic understanding was found to have no statistically significant effect on knowledge (t=-0.44, p=0.661) at the 5% level of significance. Intermediate understanding was found to have statistically significant effect on knowledge (t=-1.89, p=0.062) at the 10% level of significance. Full understanding had positive and statistically significant effect on knowledge (t=5.33, p=0.0000) at the 5% level of significance. As the understanding graduated from basic through intermediate to full comprehensive understanding, the fewer the number of respondents who achieved higher level of understanding. Full comprehensive understanding of the concept of menstrual cycle was not achieved by the majority meaning that teachers lack a high level understanding of the menstrual cycle concept.