RP-Department of Educational Management Policy & Curriculum Studies

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Dismal Transition, Retention and Performance of the Girl - Child: What are the Explanatory Variables in Rhamu Town, Mandera County, Kenya?
(2014-07) Orodho, John Aluko; Dube, Aftin K.
This study sought to examine the dismal transition, retention and performance the girl-child in secondary schools in Rhamu Town in Mandera County, Kenya. The major research question is; what are the explanatory variables for this dismal participation? The study was premised on the Classical Liberal Theory of Opportunity and Darwinism whose major tenet is that each person is born with a given amount of capacity, which to a large extent is inherited and cannot be substantially changed. Mixed methods employing descriptive and multi-case studies research designs were used to conduct the study in Rhamu Town. A combination of purposive and stratified random sampling techniques were used to draw 18 teachers, 120 students and 54 parents yielding a total sample size of 192 subjects to participate in the study. Questionnaires were used to collect data from teachers and students, while interviews and focus group discussions were used to collect information from parents. Quantitative data from questionnaires were analyzed with the assistance of the statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) computer programme Version 20 to generate descriptive statistics such as means and charts. Information from interviews and FGDs was transcribed and thematically analyzed and reported in narrative and direct quotes. It was established that there was high wastage of girls in the schools system because after initial high enrolment of the girls in lower classes of pre-school and primary schools, mostof the girls dropped out in upper classes of primary schools particularly between class 5 and 8. The few who proceeded to secondary schools dropped out before completing, thereby portraying very dismal retention and progression profile. The performance of the females compared to their male counterparts was equally poor. The major causes for this state of affairs were: inability of parents to cater for latent school levies due to poverty at the household level, retrogressive socio-cultural practices and low premium attached to the education of the girl-child, early pregnancies and marriages, and inability of the Government through the Ministry of Education to sensitize parents on the value of education as well as enforce punitive aspects of the Basic Education 2013 on parents who fail to take their children of any gender to school. It was recommended that the Government of Kenya should enforce the Children’s Act that outlaws early forced marriage and punish parents who do not take children of school going age to schools in Mandera County, Kenya
Education access and retention for street children: perspectives from Kenya
(IISTE, 2016) Kisirkoi, F.K.; Mse, G.S.
Human beings and specifically in African societies value children for they determine the communities’ future and place them at the centre of their family life. Over the decades, governments have recognized the importance of children in their development efforts and have devoted considerable resources to child development especially in education and health. In Kenya, Free Primary Education (FPE) led to significant increase in primary school enrolment. Among the children who were enrolled in school were Street children but many more children are once again on the streets. Such children end up roaming the streets, deficient of adult supervision and engage in activities majorly to themselves and the society. The major objective of the study on which this paper is based was to determine the learning needs of street children in Kenya. A survey research design was adopted for the study. The study was conducted in Nairobi County targeting 320 street children living in the streets and those found in rehabilitation centres. A total of 33 street children and 20 in rehabilitation centres were sampled and studied. It was established that quality accelerated education delivered through a relevant curriculum would enable such children lead a decent life and contribute to national development. An appropriate curriculum was recommended for this special category of learners.
The Equity and Quality Implications of Free Day Secondary Education (FDSE) Policy in Kenya: What is the Unfinished Business in the Financial Arrangement?
(International Journal of Current Research, 2014) Orodho, John Aluko
This paper assesses the financing mechanisms of Free Day Secondary Education (FDSE) education policy focusing on the sustainability of the programme in terms of fostering the desired equity and quality of education provided. It is concerned with one main question: What is the unfinished business in the current education financial arrangement in Kenya? To answer the question, the paper sets out to achieve three objectives: To profile the current trends in enrollment and equity in secondary school education in Kenya; to assess the funding strategy for the secondary education sectors in the country; and to examine the emerging challenges and implications of the free education policy in Kenya in order to establish the unfinished business. The source of data for the paper was a combination of secondary data through desk literature review and primary data from interviews with 136 secondary school teachers and principals pursuing their school-based degree programmes at Kenyatta and Mount Kenya Universes during the 2012/2013 academic year. The major finding is that while on the one hand the implementation of the policy has resulted into exponential quantitative growth in students’ enrollment; on the other hand , the education sector is fraught with multifarious and intertwined finance related challenges of providing quality and equitable education thereby resulting in conspicuously wide and severe regional and gender disparities in access to, and quality of education. The funds meant for the day secondary schools are grossly inadequate and irregularly remitted to schools and this has exacerbated acute shortages of essential learning physical and human resources forcing teachers to resort to unconventional instructional techniques. The overall impact has been low quality outcomes of education and emergence of compulsory latent user charges to be shouldered by the already over-burdened poor households, especially those residing in urban slums and ASAL regions. It is concluded that the unfinished business in the current Government funding strategy is to make is sustainable and hence there is an urgent need to devise alternative additional sources of funding in order to increase the current capitation from a flat rate of Khs.10, 265 to 32,747 for boys and 33,707 for girls who should get an extra Ksh.960 to meet their sanitary needs. It is recommended that day secondary schools in Kenya should be encouraged to generate extra funds from income generating activities and work out mechanisms of eradicating all bottlenecks related to additional educational financial burden for children from poor socio-economicbackgrounds that hinder them from accessing equitable and quality education
Financing Basic Education: What Are the Equity and Quality Implications of Free Primary Education (FPE) and Free Day Secondary Education (FDSE) Policies In Kenya?
(International Journal of Development Research, 2014) Orodho, John Aluko
The thrust of this paper is to examine free primary education (FPE) and Free Day Secondary Education (FDSE) education policies with a view to critically assess their implications on equity and quality of the education provided through these initiatives in Kenya. It is concerned with three questions? What is the current progress in enrollment and equity trends in education in primary and secondary schools in Kenya? What are the funding strategies for the primary and secondary education sectors in the country? What are the emerging challenges and implications of these free education policies on equity and quality in Kenya? The study utilizes both data and methods triangulation techniques combining secondary data sources through desk literature review and primary data from interviews with purposively sampled 136 primary and secondary school teachers and headteachers pursuing their school-based degree progrmmes at Kenyatta and Mount Kenya Universities. The major finding is that there has been a phenomenal growth in student enrollment both in primary and secondary schools in Kenya as a result of the implementation of these free education policies. However, education in the country has been fraught with multifarious and intertwined finance related challenges of providing quality and equitable education, resulting in conspicuously wide and severe regional and gender disparities in access to, and quality of education. The funds meant for primary and secondary schools are inadequate and irregularly transmitted to schools and this has exacerbated teacher shortages, high pupil-teacher ratios and inadequate and /or inappropriate teaching resources forcing teachers to resort to unorthodox instructional techniques. This has resulted in a drop in quality outcomes of education. It is concluded that although Kenya has adroitly put in place additional series of educational interventions and incentives including bursaries for the poor needy learners and encouraging individual schools to solicit for additional funds from the community and school projects to supplement government funding, these interventions are yielding more of quantitative growth in student enrollment at the expense of equity and quality of the education provided. It is recommended that in order to effectively finance basic education of high quality, all constraints related to additional educational financing should be eradicated through making strong and tough decisions that pragmatically translate the education policies from the current rhetoric chimera to practice.
Impact of Social Inequality Factors on Access and Completion Rates in Public Primary Schools in Athi-River District, Machakos County, Kenya
(2014) Orodho, John Aluko; Mbaabu, Betty Ukima
The thrust of this paper is to access how factors in social inequality impact on learning process among primary school children in Athi-River district. The objectives of the study were three fold, namely i) to identify types of social inequality and challenge,ii) document access to education by primary school pupils and iii) determine the state of retention of learners in schools. The study was premised on the Reference Theory by Matron (1936) which stipulates that people often identify with social and cultural group to which they belong. A descriptive survey design was adopted to guide the study. A combination of purposive and stratified sampling techniques were applied to select 256 subjects comprising of 48 parents, 72 teachers , 120 pupils and 2 quality assurance and standards officers (QASOs) to participate in the study. Questionnaires for teachers and pupils, focused group discussion for parents and interview guidelines for QASOs were the main research instruments used to collect data. The major findings were that poverty, family background (orphans) poor infrastructure, poor pupil-teacher ratio, level of parental education and poor housing were the major social inequality factors in the community. It was also evident that although accessibility to school was good, the schools were not enough for all school-age going children. The conclusion was that the negative impacts of social inequality on education of pupils include poor academic performance, lateness to school, dropping out of school, early marriages, early employment and drug abuse. The study recommended that employing more teachers, improving school feeding programs and infrastructure were some of the measures meant to reduce the negative impacts of social inequality in schooling in the study locale of Athi-River District, Machakos County, Kenya
Progress towards attainment of Education for All (EFA) among Nomadic Pastoralist: Do Home-based Variables make a Difference in Kenya
(2013) Orodho, John Aluko; Waweru, Peter Ndirangu; Getange, Kennedy Nyambeche; Miriti, J. M.
The purpose of this study was to analyze home-based factors inhibiting access and participation in basic education among vulnerable groups in Garissa County, Kenya. The study was framed by a household production function approach that typically assumes that postulates that household schooling decisions are explained by the interaction of social, cultural, and economic factors working through power relations within the household. The study used a sample of 45 students selected by convenience sampling from undergraduate and postgraduate students undertaking their school-based studies at Kenyatta and Mount Kenya universities residing or teaching in Carissa County, Kenya during the 2012/203 academic year. The study used mixed methods to collect and analyze the data. It was found that despite the gains in access and equity since the launch of FPE and FDSE in Kenya at the national level, there still remain pockets within Kenyan communities, especially Carissa County which has remained unreached for a host of reason including home-based factors. The major reasons were the low educational level of the heads of households, household poverty, retrogressive cultural practices, and low premium attached to education. It is concluded that home-based factors make a significant difference in efforts to achieve EFA among nomadic pastoralists .It is recommended that :all other user charges that have been sneaked into the current FPE and FDSE should be removed; enhance the school security by advocating for peaceful conflict resolution; create a conducive learning environment through peace education and education in emergency; reverse most of the retrogressive socio-cultural practices through civic education as well as mass advocacy and appropriate legal measures as stipulated in the Basic Education Act 2013; amongst others.

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