PHD-Department of Educational Communication & Technology

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A study of perceptions of headmasters and teachers pertaining to the role of the secondary school headmaster in Nairobi and Thika , Kenya .
(1982) Karagu, Nelson Muchoki
A survey of productive musicianship: The interface between music literacy and expressiveness among Secondary School Music Teachers in Kenya
(Kenyatta University, 2004) Wanjala, Henry Namsyule
A general observation m Kenyan schools today reveals tendencies of musicianship that is more theoretically oriented to the detriment of expressive and inventive qualities. Research sources also show that in spite of the practical music assessment at the end of the KCSE course, the graduates of the system end up with a lot of information about music but lacking in skills that would enable them to benefit from the music education. More fundamentally however is the absence of a strong "Musician Model" which could enable students to display more vibrant musicianship. This study was undertaken to establish teachers' involvement in music beyond the classroom, taking into account their level of commitment in music making and the extent they modeled musicianship for students' sake. The assumption was that the divergent ways through which teachers ventured into music were a reflection of their musicianship. The researcher therefore sought to study the prevailing trends of musicianship among secondary school music teachers, factors that influence their musical disposition as well as the association between levels of training and music productivity. The focus of the study was to investigate the Interface between Music Literacy and Expressiveness to establish the missing links in the teachers' musical disposition. The conceptual theory of complementary relationship in musical experiences based on Swanwick's (1979) outlook of musicianship through the variables of Composition, Literature studies, Audition, Skill acquisition and Performance (CLASP) was employed in identifying teachers' productive initiatives in music. To facilitate the inquiry, the researcher utilized the illustrative conceptual model of music productivity generated from CLASP to bring into focus the perception of Productive Musicianship, the basic understanding being that Thought and Expressiveness were fundamental to any art and music was no exception. The target population for the study was secondary school music teachers. Nairobi and Western Provinces were purposively identified to be the research locales. Data collected through questionnaires, interviews and observation during the inter-house music festival was subjected to content analysis through descriptive method. Associations of variables related to Kenya Music Festival were tested through Chi Square and inferences made to facilitate the examination of the study objectives. The Participation Index in KMF and the features observed during the Inter-house Music Competition were crucial as they helped to establish teachers' commitment level and involvement in music. These aspects were also used to describe teachers' musical profiles and productivity. Analysis of data revealed disparities in basic performance skills among music teachers, in particular instrumental utility and the skill of playing. Teachers' commitment levels in composition were also found to be low. In terms of enterprising through music, it was noted that music education had apparently not reached the milestone of entrepreneurship, an observation that was confmned by lack of initiatives and interest toward gainful music making activities. It was learnt that teachers' musical profiles are generally sensitive to the regional, socio-economic and cultural influences, a revelation that helped to explain the diametric manifestation of interests and tendencies in the teachers' musicianship. On the gap between knowledge and practical competence, this study noted that opportunities for exposure to expression when demonstrated with the dynamic participation of the music teacher enhanced the spirit and quality of musicianship in the students. In as far as professional growth in music was concerned, most promotions were found to be based on partial merit and generally lacked a follow up programme to strengthen the knowledge base of teachers. As part of recommendation therefore, expedition of teachers' promotion needed a balanced criteria and a follow up program for knowledge base refinement and updating of musical competence. The study also advocates for a review of training strategies in music with a view to making teachers more innovative and practically enterprising. With educational and economic trends that are increasingly becoming market oriented, it was necessary that the music teachers view their musicianship not only in light of teaching the subject matter, but also more essentially in terms of how they can increase the practicability of their music knowledge to face the social challenges.
Learner competencies and proficiency in English listening comprehension in Selected Secondary Schools in Kenya
(Kenyatta University, 2007) Adelheid, Marie Bwire
This study aimed at measuring leamers' listening comprehension proficiency in order to establish their weaknesses and strengths in this area. It also sought to analyse the listening materials leamers were exposed to and the extent to which listening skills were taught Factors affecting listening comprehension proficiency were also explored. A stratified sample of 520 students, 56 teachers and 8 heads of department English section from 15 schools in two districts were involved. An audio- based test was used to measure students' listening comprehension proficiency. Content analysis of the Integrated English Book 3 (1992) was done to assess the quantity and quality of listening materials and tasks. A questionnaire for teachers of English was used to get information about the teaching of listening comprehension. This was complemented by interviews with heads of department and Kenya Institute of Education English curriculum head. Instruments were refined through a pilot study. Data were analysed qualitatively and quantitatively. Procedures used for data analysis were frequencies, means, analysis of variance (ANOVA) and correlations. Inferential statistics (the t- test) were used to explain observed differences and address the factors determining listening competencies. Results indicated that English language course books had negligible provision for materials and tasks that promote listening and that teachers were not guided on teaching listening skills yet they wholly depended on the same course books for teaching the same. The majority of students (89.6%) performed poorly on listening comprehension skills. Further, students scored better on explicit items than on inferential items. Performance was poorest on skills that tested competence in listening to dialogue, drawing inferences, inferring meanings of unfamiliar words, paraphrasing and predicting outcomes. These were also the students' areas of weakness among the micro-skills tested. Areas of relative strength were found to be those that demanded competence in listening for specifics and details. Urban school students performed better on listening comprehension skills than those in rural schools and students in boarding schools performed better than those in day schools on the same. Mixed day schools recorded the poorest performance. There was no consistent relationship between girls' and boys' performance on the listening comprehension test: girls' scores in mixed schools were significantly (at 0.05 level) lower than those of boys in the same schools. Boys in rural schools performed significantly better than the girls in the rural schools. Although, the boys in urban schools performed better than the girls, there was generally no significant difference between their performance on the listening comprehension test. Among the main conclusions made were: teaching of listening skills was not given its due emphasis; type of school affected leamers' listening comprehension abilities; boarding environment gave students better cognitive disposition; gender did not make a difference in performance in listening comprehension, test material type and task were significant in ESL listening and students were more inclined to listen with understanding to continuous prose than to dialogue. ,.
Attitudes towards learning and peformance in mathematics among students in selectd secondary schools in Bureti District, Kenya
(2011-05-01) Mutai, Jackson Kipronoh
The purpose of this study was to investigate the attitudes' influence towards learning and performance in mathematics by students in secondary schools in Bureti District. The objectives of the study were: a) to determine the attitudes formed by the students towards learning and performance in mathematics, b) to find out whether such attitudes contributed to inappropriate learning of mathematics and consequently poor performance in secondary schools and c) to establish factors which influence attitudes towards learning and performance of mathematics among secondary school students. The study adopted a descriptive survey design and data was largely descriptive by nature. Data was collected using Mathematics Teachers Questionnaires (MTQ for teachers and Mathematics Students Questionnaires (MSQ for students. These were administered on a sample of 24 teachers and 359 students respectively selected from six secondary schools in Bureti district. Data collected were coded and subjected to a Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) analysis. Findings indicated that the major problem associated with attitudes in the learning of mathematics in the secondary schools included lack of confidence and interest in the ability to learn and perform well in mathematics as reported by 45% of the respondents. Lack of interest in mathematics was mentioned by 24% of the respondents. With regards to attitudes towards mathematics as a subject, 56% of the respondents strongly agreed that they enjoyed learning mathematics as a subject. In addition, the same percentage (56%) strongly disagreed that Mathematics classes/lessons were not interesting. Out of the students respondents 49% of them strongly agreed that they would like to continue doing mathematics after secondary school. Only 38% of the respondents strongly disagreed that understanding mathematics was difficult while 70% of the respondents strongly agreed that Mathematics was a very useful subject in life. The following recommendations are made from the study: a) positive attitudes towards learning and performing well in mathematics are necessary ingredients in secondary school mathematics education. There is need for teachers, parents, and any other education stake holder to enhance these positive attitudes, b) there is a successive connection between attitudes, learning, performance and practical utility of mathematics. This connection should be established early enough in students' mathematics education cumculum; c) mathematics teachers particularly should know precisely how students learn mathematics. This will help them organize and plan for effective teaching and learning of any mathematical concept. d) Language used while students learn mathematics should be purposively geared towards enhancing favourable attitudes towards mathematics education, e) mathematics departmental counseling should be undertaken regularly to assist students with persistent negative attitudes towards learning and performance in mathematics. The unfavourable attitudes should be curtailed professionally and early enough before students utterly drop learning and/or performance in mathematics, f) mathematics teachers should wisely utilize available learning resources to enhance positive attitudes, reinforce neutral attitudes, if any, and neutralize any negative attitudes towards learning and performance of mathematics, g) efforts should be made to ensure gender does not hinder learning and/or performance in mathematics among students. Teachers, parents and siblings of the students should encourage both the female and male learners to equally embrace mathematics
Proficiency in pedagogical content knowledge in mathematics: secondary school mathematics teachers' interpretations of students' problem solving strategies in Kenya
(2011-08-02) Khakasa, Miheso-O'Connor
This study investigated pedagogical content knowledge ( PCK) proficiency among mathematics teachers in Kenyan secondary schools. Levels of proficiency were established by examining teachers' interpretations of students' problem solving strategies. Data collection process involved selecting a sample of teachers, exploring their content knowledge, perceptions and observing them at work. Accordingly the study adopted a mixed research design. The central thesis of the study was that effective instruction in mathematics depended on teachers' level of proficiency in pedagogical content knowledge. Nairobi province and Kakamega district, whose selection was based on logistical reasons, formed the primary study locations. Study instruments included questionnaires, classroom observation schedules and interviews. Validation of these instruments and reliability of results were acceptable at ; = +0 .890 and a = 0.892 respectively. The study was guided by three objectives: (1) to determine levels of teacher proficiency in PCK, (2) to establish a relationship between proficiency in PCK and teaching experience and (3) to establish factors that influence the status of teacher's proficiency in PCK. Data was analyzed using both qualitative and quantitative methods. Categories of Fluent, Standard and Mediocre were used to classify findings on levels of proficiency. When data was analyzed, the findings showed that teachers' levels of proficiency in PCK were multidimensional across the components of pedagogical content knowledge and across the study mathematical objects both at personal and group levels. Proficiency of teachers in subject matter knowledge was found to be Fluent, but their ability to transform content into forms that were comprehensible to learners was found to be Mediocre. The cumulative effect of these variations on teacher proficiency in pedagogical content knowledge in mathematics was found to be Standard. The study concluded that, these mixed proficiency levels in pedagogical content knowledge in mathematics caused teachers' evaluative acts at classroom level to be weak. This in turn leads to the observed persistent poor performance of students in secondary school mathematics. Based on this observation, the study argues that, foundational knowledge specifically in mathematical knowledge for teaching was necessary for these cadre of teachers to support them progress knowledgeably towards increased levels of PCK proficiency. The study recommends that a mathematics education course should be established to replace the existing methods unit and that the learning process be cyclic to replace the existing linear model. According to the study, this approach would address the dynamic nature of mathematics education as well as support teachers to progress systematically towards expertise in mathematical knowledge for teaching.
The readability of teaching and learning text books used for Health training programmes in the Ministry of Health in Kenya
(2011-10-27) Mwamisi, Joseph Musyoka
Teaching and learning text books that are difficult to read are a hindrance to the delivery of health care services that are vital to a healthy nation. These teaching and learning text books pose problems and difficulties to the reader who is expected to acquire skills. The problems may come as a result of unsuitable teaching and learning text books used by health workers during their training. The teaching and learning text books may be defective or bad because they may not be written well and may have difficult vocabulary, long sentences or unclear illustrations. This study hoped to identify the reading problems in the teaching and learning text books used in the training of health workers under the Ministry of Health in Kenya. In order to identify these reading problems it was important to determine the readability of these text books. From the review of the literature it is clear that there are several factors that can contribute to readability problems in teaching and learning text books. The study adopted the survey design. The population of the study comprised the Kenya Medical Training College and the Medical Training Centers in the six provinces (Coast, Eastern, Nairobi, Central, Rift Valley, Nyanza and Western) namely: Mombasa, Medical Training Center, Machakos, Medical Training Center, Kenya Medical Training College, Nakuru, Medical Training Center, Kisumu, Medical Training Center and Kakamega, Medical Training Center. The number of respondents for the study was 139. Data were collected through questionnaires and from text books used during health training programs under the Ministry of Health in Kenya. The questionnaires were administered by the researcher and extracts from the teaching and learning text books collected for analysis. Quantitative data was analyzed using descriptive statistics and results presented in percentages. A total of 26,000 words from two hundred and sixty (260) extracts of the teaching and learning text books were analyzed using Flesch Formula Nomogram. This formula helped the researcher to use the criteria of syllables per words for lexical difficulty and words per sentence for syntactic complexity as criteria for overall readability of text. Comparisons were done among the 26 textbooks analyzed and the research revealed that some of the extracts were of standard level. In addition some extracts within a text book comprised standard and difficult levels. In summary results from the application of the Flesch formula suggested that the text books' heading passages are pitched at a very difficult readability level. The average Reading Ease Score (RES) is within the 30 - 50 range, which are (36.) "difficult". The researcher also used a content analysis approach known as Personal Judgment to assess the readability of teaching and learning text books by examining several factors that contribute to the readability of the text books, namely: lexis, syntax, text organization, coherence, cohesion, punctuation, headings, text and art work interaction and reader involvement. The number of textbooks used was 26. The research has revealed that the most readable teaching and learning text books have the following characteristics: The text book is characterized by:-fewer latences, shorter sentences, comparatively normal (25 words and below) sentences inVG length, comparatively low syllables /100 words ratio, high proportion of simple words, It also has discourse markers or sign posts such as then, however, but..... In conclusion the study indicated that the analysis of the Teaching and Learning Text books used during health training program under the Ministry of Health in section 4.4 has revealed that readability in the writing of the Text books has not been given top priority. This is proved by the fact that the findings, based on data analysis, measurement by formula, evaluation by students and trainers, variables contributing to readability, etc., place the Teaching and Learning Text books at a difficult reading level. Another problem includes some typing errors in some text books. This implies that some of these text books are not adequately proof - read. Perhaps an good editor needs to be appointed. Evaluation by students and trainers show several short comings, such as illustrations lack gender balance and are insensitive to cultures. Some illustrations are also confusing. Sentences are rather long with complicated vocabulary. Most of the text books are outdated and therefore, require review/revision. The study recommends that in order to improve the readability of teaching and learning text books used for training students under the Ministry of Health in Kenya it would be necessary to initiate or improve an existing program by developing a program for teaching the development of readable teaching and learning text books.
Learner competencies and proficiency in English listening comprehension in selected secondary schools in Kenya
(2011-12-01) Bwire, A. M.
This study aimed at measuring learners' listening comprehension proficiency in order to establish their weaknesses and strengths in this area. It also sought to analyse the listening materials learners were exposed to and the extent to which listening skills were taught. Factors affecting listening comprehension proficiency were also explored. A stratified sample of 520 students, 56 teachers and 8 heads of department, English section from 15 schools in two districts were involved. An audio- based test was used to measure students' listening comprehension proficiency. Content analysis of the Integrated English Book 3 (1992) was done to assess the quantity and quality of listening materials and tasks. A questionnaire for teachers of English was used to get information about the teaching of listening comprehension. This was complemented by interviews with heads of department and Kenya Institute of Education English curriculum head. Instruments were refined through a pilot study. Data were analysed qualitatively and quantitatively. Procedures used for data analysis were frequencies, means, analysis of variance (ANOVA) and correlations. Inferential statistics (the t- test) were used to explain observed differences and address the factors determining listening competencies. Results indicated that English language course books had negligible provision for materials and tasks that promote listening and that teachers were not guided on teaching listening skills yet they wholly depended on the same course books for teaching the same. The majority of students (89.6%) performed poorly on listening comprehension skills. Further, students scored better on explicit items than on inferential items. Performance was poorest on skills that tested competence in listening to dialogue, drawing inferences, inferring meanings of unfamiliar words, paraphrasing and predicting outcomes. These were also the students' areas of weakness among the micro-skills tested. Areas of relative strength were found to be those that demanded competence in listening for specifics and details. Urban school students performed better on listening comprehension skills than those in rural schools and students in boarding schools performed better than those in day schools on the same. Mixed day schools recorded the poorest performance. There was no consistent relationship between girls' and boys' performance on the listening comprehension test girls' scores in mixed schools were significantly (at 0.05 level) lower than those of boys in the same schools. Boys in rural schools performed significantly better than the girls in the rural schools. Although, the boys in urban schools performed better than the girls, there was generally no significant difference between their performance on the listening comprehension test. Among the main conclusions made were: teaching of listening skills was not given its due emphasis; type of school affected learners' listening comprehension abilities; boarding environment gave students better cognitive disposition; gender did not make a difference in performance in listening comprehension, test material type and task were significant in ESL listening and students were more inclined to listen with understanding to continuous prose than to dialogue.
Pupils' development of spatial ability in mathematics: an issue of learning environment in selected secondary schools
(2012-02-14) Rukangu, S. M.
Critical thinking determines human activity in life and is enhanced by spatial mental processes, which also determine pupils' learning and performance in Mathematics. Any factor that interferes with the development of spatial ability would affect critical decision making while learning mathematics and solving social problems. This study assessed factors, which affect pupils' development of spatial ability in secondary schools in Kenya. Thus, the study undertook to assess pupils; (a) Constructivist paradigm, which emphasizes perception of ideas from a learning environment. (b) Problems solving skills, whose application requires, abstract thinking. (c) Attitude towards learning of mathematics. (d) Ability to visualize and understand spatial concepts in mathematics. The study was done in Nairobi and Eastern provinces in the Republic of Kenya where 483 pupils and 25 teachers were randomly selected from 24 secondary schools. The objectives of the study were to: (a) Determine how the pupil and non-pupil characteristics are correlated with the ability to solve mathematics problems that require the mastery of spatial concepts. (b) Suggest policy recommendations based on the study findings. Although a number of authors have addressed some issues relating to spatial concepts, individuals’ spatial ability potential has not been critically considered. This study did that. The pupils' spatial ability test (PSAT) mathematics teachers questionnaire (MTQ), classroom observation schedule (COS) and official documents from the ministry of education were used in collecting the data. Validity and reliability of the instruments were enhanced by a pilot study and by adopting tested items in the PSAT. The extent to which some factors affect the development of spatial ability was determined through multiple regressions. The main findings are that: (a) There is lack of effective communication between the teacher and the pupils in a mathematics class. (b) Some secondary schools in Kenya do not provide conducive learning environment for pupils’ development of spatial ability. This situation affects girls more than boys. (c) Most pupils find drawing nets and reflection images to be difficult. The above findings show that there is need to improve learning environment in Kenya's secondary schools. Unless sensitizing agents of curriculum implementation do this, secondary school pupils will continue to have their spatial ability inadequately developed. The implication of these findings is that individuals who learn in unconducive environment for the development of spatial ability are likely to develop less ability to interpret, solve social problems and communicate their ideas effectively. In view of this, it is home and school environments. This thesis has five chapters. Chapter one introduces the statement of the problem while chapter two reviews the relevant literature to the study. Chapter three deals with methodology for data collection whereas chapter four presents data analysis. Summary of the results, conclusion and recommendations are presented in chapter five.
Learner support systems in enhancing the delivery of distance learning programmes for in-service teacher education in Uganda: the case of Kyambogo University
(2012-03-29) Otto, Aron Yona
The focus of this research study was on learner support systems in enhancing the delivery of distance learning programmes for in-service teacher education in Uganda: the case of Kyambogo University. The study recognizes the development of distance learning in Uganda in general and the use of distance learning in improving the training of teachers in particular. The study stresses the need for better trained teachers whose roles are changed from being expositors to that of facilitators of learning activities. Such teachers must be provided with an educational environment which is conducive to learning, replete with resources of various kinds, print-based, audio visuaf, ICT and mechanical devices where possible to support such learners. This study was carried out in nine Primary Teachers' Colleges co-ordinating centres. These are: Kibuli, Busuubizi, Nkokonjeru, eTK Gulu, Lodonga, Kabwangasi, Bukedea, Ibanda and Kiyoora. The research design used was cross-sectional survey. This design helped the researcher to gather information from different categories of samples at the same time. The primary data was collected by use of questionnaires, interview and observation tools. The secondary data was obtained from reference books, magazines, journals, periodicals and internet materials. A total of 420 respondents were used for the study. The data collected were analysed using both qualitative and quantitative methods in an inter-complementary manner. Qualitative analysis was used to analyse views of the respondents, while quantitative data were entered into the computer and analysis was done using computer statistical package for social sciences (SPSS). The results of the study revealed a number of challenges associated, with learner support system in enhancing the delivery of distance leaming programmes at Kyambogo University. The key challenges the study identified were, lack of provision of a variety of learner support services, poor facilitation skills by lecturers, lack of library uses by the distance learners, poor co-ordination of the distance learning activities between Kyambogo University and the PTe co-ordinating centres, delay in release of results and lack of Government involvement in supporting distance education programmes in Uganda. In view of these challenges, key recommendations were made, notable are that, Kyambogo University should review its learner support services to improve programme delivery systems, study materials be provided in time for the distance leamers to access, staff training in distance education should be enhanced and effective guidance and counseling services be provided to improve support servces, Prompt release of results to the distance learners should be done timely to encourage them to work harder in their studies. Above all, practical work and library facilities should be made available for the learners and facilitators to access and utilize in order to improve teaching and learning at a distance.
Towards context-based learning as a model for pre-service primary teacher education in Kenya: a case of Meru and Egoji teachers colleges
(2012-03-29) Mwangi, Suleiman Kairu
Research evidence points out that there is a strong relationship between teaching and learning. The KESSP 2005-2010 document and the Sessional Paper No.1 of 2005 have cited low quality teacher education as a problem in Kenya. They attribute this to the traditional content-based pedagogical primary teacher education model which presents a fragmented view of learning and is not context-based leading to little or no connection between theory and practice. Though efforts have been made in terms of reviewing the primary teacher education curriculum among others, not much has been done in reviewing the traditional model of training. This study sought to establish whether context-based learning through focus discussion group on teaching and classroom practice improves pre-service teachers' teaching effectiveness. It identified experiences and perceptions of pre-service teachers on focus discussion group as a model of contextbased learning and formulated a suitable primary teacher training model for Kenya. Five null hypotheses were formulated and tested. A Quasi-Experimental research design in a form of a pre-testlpost-test longitudinal panel control group was used. It involved a stratified random sample of eighty (80) first year pre-service teachers from Meru and Egoji colleges for the experimental and control groups respectively. The experimental group was subdivided into groups of ten of equal gender proportions through stratified random sampling. They held discussions under the facilitation of the researcher once per week during the 1st and 2nd school-based practice learning sessions. The research instruments used included a classroom observation schedule, a questionnaire, a focus group discussion schedule and a reflective diary which were piloted at Kigari Teachers College. Data obtained from the research instruments were analysed by use of frequencies,percentages, and an independent t- Test. The findings obtained showed that there were significant differences between the experimental and control groups on all the variables under study namely; instructional system planning (t (78) = 5.327, P < .05), teacher-student interactions ( t (78) = 2.458, p < .05), students' motivation (t (78) = 2.348, p < .05) and use of instructional resources (t (78) = 2.807, P < .05) However, teachers' classroom management and control had a non-significant r-Test value of (t (78) = 1.143, p < .05). The study also revealed that pre-service teachers rated focus discussions groups as useful in their professional development and indicated that all the components of the context-based primary teacher education model were operating well. Based on these findings, a context-based pre-service primary teacher education model with four interacting sources of learning was formulated for primary teacher education in Kenya. Recommendations were made to primary teacher education policy makers, curriculum developers, tutors and pre-service teachers to design and implement contextbased learning approaches in the training of primary school teachers which would create student-centred lessons, make students responsible for their learning. It will also help students to relate theory to practice, develop higher order thinking and problem-solving skills and contextualize their teaching in primary schools. Further research was recommended in determining the effect of each context-based learning component on pre-service teacher effectiveness and establishing tutors teaching practices.
Role of corporate social responsibility in enhancing environmental education and stewardship in the manufacturing and service sectors in Kenya
(2012-03-29) Nyaga, Rahab Njeri
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is a concept whereby companies decide voluntarily to contribute to a better society and a cleaner environment, by integrating social and environmental concerns in their business operations and in their interaction with their stakeholders. CSR, known to enhance a company's reputation and business opportunities, is the avenue companies use to address environmental concerns. Despite this recognition of its importance and potential benefits, the contribution of CSR to environmental care appears to be minimal. The purpose of the study was to investigate the role of CSR in enhancing environmental education and stewardship in the manufacturing and service sectors in Kenya. The main objective was to gather views and opinions of employees, management and directors on CSR in their companies and what they perceived the role of CSR in environmental education and stewardship to be. The study was a descriptive survey and its population was drawn from participants in the Kenya Institute of Management's Company Of the Year Awards (COYA). Purposive and simple random samplings were used to select the 16 companies studied, while stratified sampling was used to identify questionnaire respondents. Data were collected using questionnaires and interview schedules. A pilot study and triangulation were used to ensure validity while the measurement used for reliability was Cronbach's alpha. The coefficient considered reliable for this study was 0.70 or higher and final results on the instrument used yielded coefficients of between 0.76 and 0.99. Data analysis was done based on research objectives and the gaps identified in the study. Descriptive analysis was done for nominal data while Likert-scale statistical analysis was used for interval data. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) was used to produce relevant tables and charts for analysis. Interviews were coded and analyzed thematically using themes emerging from the responses. Key findings indicated that although high knowledge of the need for environmental care was indicated, corporates were not prioritizing the environment. Main CSR initiatives were on humanitarian and development aid to communities, not the environment. This resulted in the persistent observable discrepancy between stated concern for the environment and actual application of CSR funds to the environment. Environmental initiatives seen as important were tree planting, conserving forests and clearing garbage. Preferred environmental initiatives were those in line with the corporates' core business. CSR, however, was the avenue corporates used to address environmental concerns. Lack of a unified approach and prioritization resulted in scattering of effort and minimal impact. Environmental education and partnering for greater impact emerged as the way forward to ensure CSR enhances environmental education and stewardship. The study concluded that CSR was the environmental lifeline from corporates. The study recommends development of age-appropriate curricula to engage all Kenyans at all levels in environmental education. Other recommendations include partnering for greater impact; prioritizing' of environmental initiatives to focus efforts; Public Private Partnership (PPP), and training of CSR . officers in corporates for effectiveness. Kenyans need to individually embrace and act on the environmental message for impact and sustainability.
A critical study of history and government syllabus and textbooks in Kenyan secondary schools
(2012-04-04) Were, Mary Washika
The study is concerned with the History and Government syllabus and textbooks used in secondary schools in Kenya. The main area of focus is on the content of the syllabus and textbooks; whether they are in the line with changes taking place in education and history. Specifically, it focuses on research findings in General History of Africa series and the present gender sensitivity in education. The research constitutes a survey, which has made use of questionnaires and checklists for documentary analysis. The sample of the study includes six hundred and sixty four (664) history students and eight-one (81) History teachers from rural and urban schools represented by Nairobi and Western provinces. it also consists of ten (10) History and Government textbooks used in secondary schools and the 1992 History and Government syllabus. The data are analyzed using descriptive statistics and evaluative discussions. The findings indicate that the History syllabus and textbooks in use do not live up to the research findings by renowned African scholars as presented in General History of Africa series, nor are they sensitive to gender issues in the writing and teaching of history. In fact, there is a gap between the knowledge produced by academic historians and that consumed in the schools. The syllabus, for instances, is based on Euro-centric views of history and on sex blindness of traditional historiography. It is over-national in approach and suffers the most insidious forms of bias of omission in relation to world, Africa, women and cultural history. The content taught fails to give the child a clear perspective of world, continental and a balanced view of male and female roles in history or human development. Similarly, the textbooks written to facilitate the syllabus objectives and content perpetuate the same vies of male-dominated approach to historiographic content. The use of Europe-centric and derogatory words dominate the texts which in turn do not facilitate exposure to historical awareness by learners partly because of poor content organization, difficulty of grammar, ineffective illustrations, inaccurate and out-dated content, and lack of gender awareness in the language and illustrations used. It has been recommended that the present history syllabus and the textbooks be revised to reflect the emphasis and findings of General history of Africa series and gender as a new dimension of history teaching and writing. The history taught should impart knowledge of cultural diversity and a world perspective. The importance of African past, African perspective of history, African culture and African contribution to world civilizations should not be over emphasized. The study is divided into five chapters. Chapter 1 sets the study in focus by giving an introduction. Chapter 2 reviews literature on important features of the study, while chapter 3 deals with research methodology. The fourth chapter is divided in three sections and focuses on data analysis and its interpretation. The last chapter is on summary of the findings, conclusions and recommendations.
A critical study of methods and materials used to teach history and government in secondary schools in Kenya.
(2012-04-04) Kiio, Mueni Ngungui
The primary concern of this study was to investigate the methods and materials used to teach History and Government in secondary schools in Kenya. Specifically, the study attempted to investigate the following: (i) The qualification and teaching experience of teachers teaching History and Government in the sample study; (ii) The quality and effectiveness of the methods used to teach History and Government in the selected schools; (iii) The quality and utility of instructional materials used in History and Government teaching learning; (iv) Problems encountered by teachers and students in the course of History and Government teaching/learning and (v) Methods used to assess students in History and Government. The research was limited to thirty-six secondary schools drawn from Nairobi, Central, Rift Valley and Eastern Provinces. The subjects for the study included three hundred and ninety-seven History and Government students and fifty-two teachers. History and Government specialists at the Kenya Institute of Education, Inspectorate and the Kenya National Examinations Council were also involved. The nature of this study called for the use of questionnaire, interview, evaluation schedule, and checklist and observation schedule. The questionnaire was used to get information from students and teachers about the quality of methods and resources used to teach History and Government. Interviews were held with head of humanities departmention areas, which were not dealt in the questionnaires. Interviews were also held with History and Government specialists in the Ministry of Education. Expert view on the current state of teaching/learning History and Government was sought from these officials. Observation of lessons was done to find out how teachers and students of History and Government interacted with methods and instructional materials at their disposal. As part of observation, the researcher also check listed all the resources available for History and Government teaching and learning. There was an evaluation schedule for each method and type of resource to determine his or her quality. The researcher also examined the quality of History and Government KCSE papers for the years 1993-1996. The main area of focus in these papers was content and skill coverage. The collected data were assembled carefully for analysis and interpretation. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Results from the study revealed the following: (i) Majority of History and Government teachers in the sample study were professionally trained to teach the subject. (ii) History and Government teachers employed a variety of methods to teach the subject. However, there was under undue dependence on expository oriented approaches, which tend to encourage passive learning. (iii) There was a wide range of media in the sample schools, which could be used in History and Government teaching and learning e.g. textbooks, graphic and collateral materials, audio-visual and regalia. However, most of these resources were inadequate in terms of quantity and quality. This hampered their effective utilization. (iv) History and Government teachers and students experienced a number of problems in the teaching/learning of the subject. The major problems identified by teachers include: lack of professional guidance: inadequate resources, difficult content and poor methods of teaching. The following recommendations were made on the basis of the above findings: (i). History and Government teachers should be in serviced in order to update their professionalism. (ii). Expository-oriented methods of teaching which were dominant in the sample schools should be integrated with heuristic approaches in order to make the teaching/learning of History and Government stimulating. (iii). Effort should be made to improve quantity and quality of instructional resources for history and Government teaching and learning. (iv). History and Government teachers should utilize as fully as possible the available resources in their schools in order to improve the quality of teaching/learning. (v) History and Government syllabus should be trimmed into manageable proportion. (vi) Formative assessment in History and Government should be done regularly to determine the extent to which instructional objectives are achieved. (vii) The quality of assessment in History and Government national examinations should be improved.
A study of the relationship between performance in physical skill and academic achievement among pupils in primary education in Kenya
(2012-04-10) Muindi, Daniel Mulwa
Physical education played a central role in traditional African communities' way of life through which vital information was transmitted for immediate and future purposes of the community. The arrival of Western influence and colonization led to a disintegration of the traditional type of physical education. A different type of physical education, which consisted of Games and Sports activities popular in Britain, was introduced in Schools. However, due to strong emphasis on good performance in National examinations, the physical education which was a non-examinable subject began being increasingly viewed as an irrelevant, and time wasting subject that was devoid of any contribution to the pupils immediate school needs and future needs and was not academic enough to warrant being examined. The subject therefore appears on the class timetable but often this time is utilized to teach the Examinable subjects. Other times available for the pupils to experience organized movements through Games and Sports activities are utilized to train, coach and prepare the few pupils in the school team for Games and Sports competitions. This reduces the majority less able pupils to mere spectators and thus is denied an opportunity for regular physical activity. The literature reviewed indicated that the school and societal emphasis in changing the value system of school experiences to preparing pupils to pass examinations at the expense of learning for healthy living. With the gradual change in lifestyles and emergence of life threatening diseases that can be alleviated through regular physical activity, the need to expose pupils to a well-implemented Physical Education programme is even greater. Further, the emerging evidence that regular physical activity has a positive relationship to academic achievement at school should lead to a value re-assessment at school. A school curriculum that recognizes the vital role of physical education in the balanced total development of the pupils should be put in place. Such a curriculum would tone down competitive sport in school and place emphasis on providing opportunities for every pupil to experience regular movement activities. Performance in Physical skill and academic achievement are broad concepts consequently only a few variables related to the two phenomena were examined. The sample consisted of both rural and urban Primary Education standard eight class pupils. A total of 192 pupils consisting of 127 Boys and 65 Girls spread in 16 Primary schools were involved in the study. Out of each Primary School, 12 Pupils were selected for the study, so as to fit into three categories of performance in physical skill. The data was collected using a questionnaires and interview schedule. The data was analyzed using the Chi-square test, the contingency coefficient test and the correlation coefficient test besides use of simple tables and descriptive analysis. The findings revealed that the Pupils who had high performance in physical skill also scored highly in academic work. On the other hand, the pupils who had low performance in Physical skill also scored poorly in academic work. The results of the data analysis were discussed, explained and concluded before recommendations were made. The main conclusions were highlighted as: (1) All learning involves processing of information (regardless of the domain). Consequently, an individual excelling in Physical skill has the ability to also excel in cognitive skill (academic tasks) under similar conditions of practice, time reinforcement and feedback. (11) Regular Physical exercise enables the individual to develop and maintain his body organs and system in the most suitable state for optimum productivity. Since the brain is a body organ like any other, the Physically fit individual has a healthy brain that is efficient and can endure fatigue for maximal output. Since performance in Physical skill and academic achievement are broad concepts, only a few variables related to the two phenomena were examined. The findings therefore, cannot be generalized to all primary school pupils in the country.
An investigation of aspects of concept formation and their representation by secondary school pupils in science
(2012-04-18) Amadalo, Maurice Musasia
This study was concerned with the investigation of various aspects of concept formation and their representation in science as demonstrated by Kenyan secondary school pupils. Specifically, the researcher was concerned with establishing modes of concept representation; detailing variety, quality and status of concepts held; determining utilization of concepts across different contextual situations; and investigation origins as well as development of concepts held. The underlying theoretical framework was constructivism, which put the learner at the centre of all efforts of making sense of the physical world through the construction of personal tentative knowledge. The investigation was done by administering written task battery, written Tests About Incidents on selected Themes (WTIST) to 849 pupils, and subsequently interviewing a sub-sample of 105 pupils. The pupils involved were form 1 and form 4 chosen from 10 schools selected from 5 provinces. The sample was chosen from 4 girls, 3 boys, and co-educational average ability schools. The follow-up group interview was done to clarify the issues that had emerged from the written questionnaire The responses from WTAIST and the support interview were analyzed in accordance to a developed concept formation criteria set. The analysis revealed the ability of the pupils to depict their concepts in two main representational forms namely: prepositional and diagrammatical forms. Various levels of conception were identified. They were generalized as true concepts, alternative conceptions and misconceptions, and none concepts. It was found that for every task, the misconceptions out numbered any other shade of concepts held. The least held type was the true concepts. The patterns that emerged indicated that the concepts were tenaciously held. They were resistant to change through instruction. Class level was found to have minimal influence on the concepts held. Gender had a small but distinctive effect on the type of concepts formed and represented. The profiling of the individual major categories of misconceptions and alternative conceptions revealed pupil thinking difficulties with tasks involving boiling, air pressure in an inflatable enclosure, particle diffusion, and potential energy involving a wood block. Pupils' concepts were fairly uniformly applied across different task situations. The main sources of pupils' conceptions were identified as authority (teacher, books, parents, peers) as well as the pupils’ personal observation and experience of natural phenomena. Implications of these findings for curriculum and instructional purposes were discussed. Re-organization of curricula courses and revamping of teacher education programmes were suggested. Suggestions for further research work in concept formation and representation in physics topics and indeed other science subjects in Kenya were made.
A psycho-cultural approach to health education
(2012-05-22) Katsivo, Melanie Nyambura
Health education was officially recognized as an important component of Primary Health Care by the World Health Organization in 1978. Over a long period of time, it has been approached from the point of view of giving people information. The expectation has been that people's health behavior would change, as a result of receiving the information that they are given by health personnel. However, this expectation has failed to materialize, leading to a re-examination of the whole practice of health education. This study was concerned with the methods used to deliver health education to a rural community in Kiambu, a district of Kenya. The objectives of the study were: a) To investigate and identify the traditional methods of education practised by one ethnic group of Kenya. b) To develop a health education model for that particular ethnic group, based on adaptations from the traditional methods of education. c) To determine the knowledge, attitudes and practices as an indicator for necessary change. d) To apply the remedial health education messages to the model developed. e) To implement the health education model containing the remedial messages. f) To determine the effect of the model on the knowledge, attitudes and practices related to diarrhea in the study community. The study focused on identifying how the various life processes such as childcare, hinting, animal and crop husbandry, the transition from boyhood to manhood, or girlhood to womanhood, were passed on from generation to generation. Specifically, detail was sought on how the ''classes'' were organized, like who taught the various processes to the various age groups through which media. The study also attempted to find whether there were special times for handling the teaching of different materials and whether all the people of different age groups would be given the lessons while sitting together in one group. The interviewees were 86 men and women aged 55 years and over. These teaching methods were adopted in the formulation and implementation of a teaching model. Knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding definition, causation, treatment and prevention of diarrhoea disease were established in 741 child caretakers at the beginning of the study. Based on these findings, remedial health education messages were formulated and applied in Thigio Village. Conventional educational methodology was used in Kamirithu Village whilst Rironi was the control village where no health education was applied. Trained field workers taught health education, recruited from the study area. At the end of the study, another 'Knowledge. Attitudes and Practices' study was carried out on a sample of 417 of the same child caretakers, in order to assess any changes that might have occurred. Sources of data were all the subjects of the study, and supportive research material was obtained from published material from the College of Health Sciences of the University of Nairobi, Kenyatta University, Ministry of Health and available local and international journals. The results showed that after health education, the child caretakers in Kamirithu had more knowledge of the signs of diarrhoea than those from Thigio. They also mentioned a wider range of possible ways that diarrhoea can be caused, and all leading to contamination (of food, utensils and environment) and infection whilst those from Thigio focused their responses on unsuitable food and uncleanliness as the major causes of diarrhoea. A significant percentage of child caretakers from Thigio mentioned incorrect methods of preventing occurrence of diarrhoea, as compared to the more focused and correct responses given by the Kamirithu child caretakers. Oral Rehydration Therapy was defined correctly by a significant percentage of child caretakers in both Kamirithu and Thigio but at the same time, more caretakers in Thigio than Kamirithu gave descriptions that were not related to Oral Rehydration Therapy. A lot more child caretakers heard about Oral Rehydration Therapy at home in Thigio than in Kamirithu. Diarrhoea was recognized as an illness by a significantly higher percentage of caretakers in Kamirithu than in Thigio, and this could also be linked to their preference for a combination of self administered home therapy and a health facility based one. On the type of substances that were administered to children when diarrhoea occurred, Clinical solution, Sugar/Salt solution and a combination of Clinical and Sugar/Salt solution were the fluids of choice for the Kamirithu child caretakers, whilst those of Thigio preferred a wide range of combinations of fluids and solids. The practice of rehydrating children suffering from diarrhoea was good in both villages. Further, the child caretakers in Thigio were more knowledgeable on the frequency of administering fluids to a child suffering from diarrhoea. Balanced diets were given by a significantly higher percentage of caretakers in Kamirithu than in Thigio. Thigio child caretakers preferred to feed children with diarrhoea on a wider variety of foodstuffs, unlike the Kamirithu ones. The caretakers from both villages disposed of household waste either indiscriminately, in the garden or into compost pits before and after health education. There was very little change between the two patterns. In conclusion, health related messages were received more correctly by the child caretakers in Kamirithu village, where the conventional approach to health education was used. The responses were better defined and more focused. This group also gave the most of correct responses pertaining to the various aspects of diarrhoea. In Thigio, the messages seemed distorted judging by the great diversity and unfocussed nature of the responses. The following recommendations were made: 1. Use of existing cadre of Family Health Field Educators should be continued. However, they need strengthening through training, provision of equipment and supervision. 2. Use of Audio-Visual aids that have been adapted to the local situation should be encouraged and intensified. 3. Teaching adults in groups as opposed to individually, achieves better results. 4. Emphasis should be placed on the place of educational methodologies in the context of modern socio-economic-political environment, rather than on traditional forms of education.
Aging and retirement in Kenya; focus on aging and retired teachers under the Teachers Service Commission (TSC)
(2012-06-04) Kithinji, C. T.
At the beginning of this century before the western influence was felt by many Kenyans, family land units were sufficient to support all family members including those who worked away from home and returned home after retirement. The ethnic customs decreed that the welfare of the aged was the responsibility of the family and the community. However, due to increase in population the land units became smaller and were unable to support all family members. Also the young and educated people no longer felt bound by their customs to support the aged. The problem of aging and retirement is with us and it is compounded by the fact that many workers in the civil and parastatal bodies have to retire at age 55 the compulsory retirement age in Kenya. The literature reviewed indicated that Kenyan culture is experiencing strain and change in value system. The extended family within which the needs of the elderly were met is slowly disintegrating. It is therefore important for us to prepare people to accept aging and retirement as normal phases in life, so that they can face retirement and old age more confidently. Research studies will assist in the preparation. Until the late 1970s aging and retirement were rare issues in Kenya. The 1980s particularly 1984 and 1985 have witnessed real concern on aging and retirement throughout the country, in local newspapers and public addresses by prominent Kenyans. During this period the compulsory retirement age of 55 years was enforced. In addition, people who were recruited into managerial and other executive posts present study, therefore, is very timely and its main purpose is to identify a group of retired people, study their life conditions, gather documented evidence to assist retirees, and people dealing with the aging and retiring populations as well as to lay a foundation for further research. Since aging and retirement are very broad concepts only a few variables or aspects related to the two phenemena were examined in this study. These included age attributes, education, socio-economic status, health, nutritional status, preparation for retirement, social activities, family and community life. The sample was rural consisting of mainly primary school teachers. Their characteristics indicate that findings cannot be generalized to all retirees in the country. OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY From the literature reviewed, the researcher's inference and the basic assumptions of the study, the following general objectives were formulated. (1) To identify a group of retired people in Kenya with emphasis on retired teachers. (2) To examine whether they prepared themselves for retirement. (3) To analyze their present life conditions (4) To elicit their views on aging and retirement (5) To make recommendations based on the evidence gathered on how to make retirement more acceptable and worthwhile. From the general objectives a number of specific objectives based on the actual variables under study were drawn to direct the present study. Methodology and Instruments In order to carry out the present study the following steps were followed. The venue and respondents were decided upon. The instrument were identified, developed, pretested and revised before being used for actual data collection. The main instruments were a questionnaire and a personal interview schedule. Two hundred and six respondents from the Eastern and Central provinces of Kenya correctly completed and returned the questionnaires used for data analysis. Thirty of the same respondents were personally interviewed by the researcher to supplement the questionnaire information. Descriptive statistics were used for data analysis and presentation. CONCLUSIONS Data analysis and discussion yielded many tentative conclusions in this study. There are many retired teachers in Kenya and men seem to outnumber women. The sample consisted of 183 men and 23 women. This could be due to the lower status of women's education in pre-independence days. Age is the main cause of retirement in Kenya. Very few respondents retired due to other causes such as poor health, family problems, termination of employment or early retirement. Most of the teachers retired between the late 1970s and the early 1980s, a period which coincides with the enforcement of compulsory retirement age. The retirees face many problems associated with the loss of work routine and decreased finances. Many reported that their socializing circle had become very small and as a result they became very busy in their personal work to occupy themselves. A few who did not find activities to engage themselves in reported boredom in retired life. Results indicated that many teachers did not prepare themselves adequately for retirement and most of the little preparation came naturally. Building of a permanent home, developing one's shamba/farm or buying a shamba were just natural advances in life. Many did not stop to think of approaching retirement and its applications. Farming is the main occupation for this sample and many respondents indicated they were very busy on their shambas or farms. The venue of the study is a rich agricultural land where coffee and tea are the main cash crops. During the interviews some respondents took the researcher round their coffee and tea shambas of which they were very proud. ''Now, I have more time to do the things I could not do when I was employed'', a few remarked. Although 70% of the respondents in this sample thought of themselves as aging, 30% denied the fact. This last group needs encouragement to be realistic about their life and organize themselves for a good later life. Many respondents were aware of the existence of Homes for the Aged, and they rejected the idea of being taken to such homes even when they grow very old. They argued that such homes were not in line with the African culture, they valued their independence and preferred to grow old in their familiar environments. The rejection was by an overwhelming majority of 90% of the respondents. The family is a very important support system for the retirees. The spouse, children and relatives were named as outstanding and essential confidants, helpers and companions of the retired teachers. Friends were also considered important. RECOMMENDATIONS The following recommendations were made on the basis of the literature reviewed and the findings of the present study. It is important for employees to be well disposed to retirement psychologically, economically and socially in order to lead a good productive life in retirement. To achieve this disposition, employers should be interested in the welfare of employees and not only in the services they render. This calls for the employers to assist employees in preparing for retirement without necessarily lowering their productivity. Availing loans to workers, encouraging them to form self-help cooperatives and educating them on their rights and pension schemes are good acts towards assisting prospective retirees. Employees should be given long enough retirement notice to reduce the ''shock'' that some unprepared ones get on receiving short retirement notices. If the first notice is given ten years before retirement and a reminder at five years, it is assumed that the shock if any will be less. Family planning should be encouraged to reduce the heavy responsibilities that the bulk of retirees in this study are facing, that is payment of school fees and meeting the basic needs of their children who are still in various levels of education including primary school. If families are well planned and late marriages are discouraged, by the time most people retire their children will be grown up and probably independent. Pension schemes need to be revised with a view of improving the amounts and mode of distribution. More effort should be made to decentralise payment stations effectively so that retirees do not travel far to sort out their pension problems. With regard to the amount of pension, retirees earning less than K.Shs.500/= per month in Kenya today need special consideration due to the ever rising cost of living. There is need for the government to have a policy to monitor the increasing number of retirees, identify and assist the very old and poor ones in line with ''minding other people's welfare''. The family should be prepared to accept its aging and retired members and assist them in adjusting to retirement. People are born in families, nurtured and they in turn start their own families. It is just in order for them to spend their old age in a family set up, a condition valued and respected by the traditional African. Further research is needed using different venues, retirees in other occupations, another system of data analysis and sampled with bigger proportion of women to men.
Objective correlates of subjective features of the speech event with pre-and post-speech evaluations across professional, nonprofessional, and experienced professional judge groups
(2012-06-05) Kitonga, Ellen Crowley
Purpose: 1) To determine the value of professional training and experience on the pre- and post-speech evaluation of the four subjective features: understandability, fluency, complexity, and accuracy. 2) To determine which of twenty-nine objectives indices were the best predictors of subjective evaluation of speech events. Procedure: Three-minute speech samples were obtained in an interview situation from thirty dialectally homogeneous ninth-grade students divided into three equal groups by stanine scores on the Stanford Language Achievement Test. Fifteen professional judges--graduate students and faculty in English, speech, and Linguistics; fifteen nonprofessional judges--college freshmen; and three experienced judges--the researcher and two transcriber-analysts all from the University of Wisconsin, were selected. These judges, after defining the four subjective features and rating them on a seven-point scale, listened to the speech samples, rating on a seven-point scale the four subjective features plus overall impression for each speaker. Comments on the experiment itself were then added. The speech samples were transcribed and analyzed for the occurrence of twenty-nine objective indices. Analysis of variance determined significant differences in (1) the pre-speech ratings of subjective variables and (2) judge group evaluations of each of the subjective features across all subjects. Stepwise regression analyses determined (1) which of the four subjective variables best predicted overall impression and (2) which of the twenty-nine objective indices were the best predictors of understandability, complexity, accuracy, and overall impression. Results: The only significant difference in pre-speech ratings was that nonprofessional ratings of understandability were significantly lower than professional ratings; each judge group ranked the features in descending order of importance: understandability, accuracy, fluency, complexity. Definitions by the professional groups were more articulate, but did not substantially reflect recent theory or research. Stepwise regression analysis showed that each of the discrete subjective indices had a high positive correlation with the others and with overall impression; the only exception was the low correlation of accuracy with the other discrete subjective features and with overall impression for the experienced professional judges. Experienced professionals offered significantly lower evaluations of accuracy, whereas the nonprofessionals offered significantly higher evaluations of understandability and overall impression. All judge groups agreed on their evaluations of fluency and complexity; thus there were eight judge groups across features. Indices providing significant negative (favorable) correlations with overall impression and ratings of two or more discrete subjective features or judge groups were grammatical error, deletion, the communication ratio, non-simple sentences, sentence transformations, prenominal quantifier, and general adverb. Indices with a significant positive (unfavorable) correlations were vagueness, slang, incomplete maze, phonological error, and codings of repeat and filled pause weighted to account for grammatical structure. Conclusion: Professional experience and training were of some value in formulating definitions of subjective features, but these definitions were of little worth in providing objective measures of subjective evaluations. The ranking of features before speech evaluation was the same for each group. Except for the separate evaluation of accuracy by the experienced professionals, the judges offered a global reaction to the samples, rendering meaningless a discussion of the objective correlates of each feature. The objective correlates of overall impression and global reaction provided a range of traditional, structural, and transformationally oriented indices, measures which had originally been hypothesized as predictors of understandability, fluency, complexity, and accuracy. Future research may seek to determine (1) whether global response is the usual procedure in speech evaluation and (2) if the objective correlates of speech evaluation vary with differing subject and judge groups.
Factors influencing the attitude towards technical vocational education and training in Uganda
(2013-01-22) Okello, Benson; Ondigi, S. R.; Mary, Were Nasibi
The study sought to; establish the attitudes of Ugandans towards TVET, identify the factors responsible for the attitude to TVET, establish gender differences in those factors influencing the attitude towards TVET. Stratified samples of 100 students, 24 lecturers, 20 retired officials, 4 government officials were used in the study. the study instruments were mainly questionnaires used to get information from students and lecturers meanwhile interview schedules were used to get information from retired officials and the government officials These instruments were duly pre-tested using test re-test method before proceeding to the field. Besides the initial pre-testing of the instruments to ascertain the validity, experts were also consulted to judge the validity and the reliability. The data collected using the instruments were subjected to SPSS editor program for data analysis.Results indicated that there is a positive attitude to technical and vocational careers. About 30% of responses indicated that a negative attitude still exists. The reasons for the attitude include are basically socio economic. The factors influencing the attitude of people positively towards TVET are the economic benefits derived from TVET skills. It was further found out that a drastic change of attitude in favour of women participation in TVET has taken place in Uganda. Most of the informants interviewed supported women in their bid to take up TVET. The study further revealed policy challenges government is facing to elevate the status of TVET. The study recommended campaigns on the importance of TVET in the development of the country, increased budget in favour of TVET. Others are; quality assurance needs to be looked into at all levels of TVET, career guidance needs to be strengthened in all the primary and post primary institutions on the importance of TVET.There is also need to create a deliberate policy in the education system to encourage the teaching of technical subjects in primary and secondary schools. There is need for a study on the industrial training in Uganda. How should this be conducted and by who in the industries? How effective has it been conducted? There is also need to study the relevance of the current TVET in line with the oil industries in Uganda. A survey should be done in this line to see how the nation would develop TVET visa-avis the oil exploitation in the country. There is also need for a tracer study of the graduates of TVET institutions to determine their competence in the job market, another area for further study is the role of TVET in sustainable development. The study then came up with a model that should be applied in order to reform education in favour of TVET in the country
Responsiveness of primary teacher education in Kenya to challenges of the 21st century
(2013-08-14) Mwangi, Samuel Mwaniki
The concern about responsiveness of education to contemporary issues is global. The literature reviewed indicated that countries have endeavoured to make their educational systems more responsive to emerging needs. In Kenya, the achievement of the national goals of education has been elusive despite various educational reforms. This arguably raises questions regarding the responsiveness of the education system in Kenya to contemporary challenges. This study focused on responsiveness of Primary Teacher Education (PTE) due to its central place in providing the foundation for acquisition of knowledge, skills and attitudes. The general purpose of this study was to assess the responsiveness of PTE in Kenya to contemporary challenges. The specific objectives of this study were to: analyse the contemporary issues to which PTE should be responsive; develop a criterion for assessing responsiveness of PTE; assess the extent to which PTE is responsive to contemporary issues; evaluate the effectiveness of PTE in equipping teachers to prepare pupils for the demands of the 21st century; identify obstacles that limit PTE’s responsiveness to contemporary challenges and suggest how PTE can be made more responsive to contemporary challenges. There were five research questions which guided the study. The Critical Theory of Knowledge, Learning and Literacy as propounded by Paul and Elder (2001) provided the theoretical framework. The research involved a field survey as well as library research. The design of this study was exploratory in nature. The target population included PTTC heads of departments, PTTC lecturers, teacher trainees, QASOs, KIE curriculum developers and practising teachers. Random sampling, stratified sampling and purposive sampling were used to identify the samples. A total of 258 respondents were involved in the study. Data collection instruments used were questionnaires, interview schedules, focus group discussion guides and observation checklists. The data obtained was analysed using descriptive methods and was organized in themes according to the research objectives. By use of descriptions, interpretations, comparisons, percentages and frequency tables, the data was collated, discussed and presented in chapter four. Analysis of statistical data was done using measures of central tendency and measures of association. Based on literature review and analysis of field data, the study found out that PTE in Kenya faces cognitive, cultural, political, social, economic, technological, environmental and religious challenges. The study found PTE to be insufficiently effective in empowering learners to learn, think critically and innovatively, develop financial, entrepreneurial and business literacy and use ICT skills. The study identified obstacles that limit PTE from being responsive in the light of which relevant suggestions and recommendations were made.

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