The influence of socioeconomic status on students’ mathematics achievement in secondary schools in Borama District, Somaliland

Abstract

Socioeconomic disparities continue to shape educational achievement globally, yet little is known about how these dynamics operate in fragile and under-researched contexts such as Somaliland. A cross-sectional survey of 365 students selected by stratified random selection was used in this study to assess the influence of socioeconomic status (SES) on secondary school students’ mathematics achievement in Borama District. The mathematics scores were examined using descriptive statistics, and simple linear regression. The results showed that students from high-SES households had the highest mean achievement (M = 63.01, SD = 27.68), followed by moderate (M = 55.97, SD = 29.18) and low SES peers (M = 53.12, SD = 28.41. The results showed a weak but statistically significant association between mathematical achievement and socioeconomic level (F (1, 363) = 8.76, p = 0.003, adjusted R2 = 0.021. Each one-standard-deviation increase in the continuous SES composite score (derived from standardized components) resulted in an estimated 5.11-point gain in mathematics achievement. The effect size (f2 = 0.025) indicated a small but meaningful contribution. The results show a weak descriptive association between socioeconomic status and mathematical achievement. Possible institutional constraints that may limit the translation of family advantages into learning outcomes are discussed as, informed by prior literature, rather than as mechanisms directly tested in this study. These findings provide context-specific descriptive evidence for the association between socioeconomic status and mathematical achievement in a fragile education system. The findings also highlight the need for policies that combine household-level support (scholarships, cash transfers, and school feeding) with structural reforms in public education financing and teacher quality. Addressing these levels of inequality is critical for improving educational equity and making progress toward SDG 4 in Somaliland and other fragile contexts.