Laboratory Learning Resources Management Practices and Students’ Skills Achievement in Chemistry in Public Secondary Schools in Gasabo District, Rwanda

Despite Rwanda's adoption of the Competence-Based Curriculum (CBC) and sustained national investment in science education, many public secondary schools continue to face challenges related to the availability, adequacy, and management of laboratory learning resources, potentially hindering students' acquisition of practical skills in chemistry. This study investigated the effect of laboratory learning resources management practices on students' skills achievement in chemistry in public secondary schools in Gasabo District, Rwanda. The study was guided by three objectives: to assess the influence of the availability and adequacy of chemistry laboratory learning resources on students' skills achievement; to determine the extent to which laboratory equipment management practices influence students' skills acquisition; and to examine the relationship between laboratory learning resources management practices and students' academic achievement in chemistry. Anchored in the Resource-Based View theory and Constructivist Learning theory, the study adopted a convergent parallel mixed-methods design. From a target population of 663 (650 upper secondary chemistry students, 11 chemistry teachers, and 2 Deputy Head Teachers in charge of studies at ES Bumbogo and FAWE Girls' School), a sample of 249 respondents was determined using Yamane's formula and selected through purposive, stratified, and simple random sampling techniques. Quantitative data were collected through structured questionnaires and analysed using descriptive statistics and multiple regression in IBM SPSS version 21, while qualitative data from interviews and observation were analysed thematically. Findings revealed strong agreement (mean scores above 4.0, standard deviations below 1) that laboratory learning resources were available, adequate, and well managed. Regression analysis produced a model with R = 0.378 and R² = 0.143, indicating that laboratory learning resources management practices explained 14.3% of the variation in students' skills achievement in chemistry, and the model was statistically significant (F = 14.344, p < 0.001). Access to laboratory equipment for frequent experimentation (β = 0.223, p < 0.001) and proper utilisation of laboratory equipment (β = 0.302, p < 0.001) were significant positive predictors of students' skills achievement. The study concluded that laboratory learning resources management practices have a positive and statistically significant effect on students' skills achievement in chemistry, and recommended that policymakers, head teachers, and chemistry teachers strengthen hands-on learning approaches, laboratory maintenance, and resource provision to enhance practical skills acquisition.