Fieldwork teaching in geography in Kenya secondary schools: a study of selected schools in Kiambu and Machakos districts

Abstract

This study observed the organization of fieldwork teaching in geography. It solicited the reactions of geography teachers, inspectorate personnel and the K.I.E regarding the time allocated to fieldwork in the syllabus. Opinions of the above towards fieldwork teaching were sought by way of questionnaires and interviews. In addition, observation schedule was also used with an aim to establishing the major resources used during fieldwork.

Problems encountered by both teachers and pupils in fieldwork teaching and learning were identified and the relevance of fieldwork teaching in geography examinations assessed.

Information was collected from twenty secondary schools in Kiambu and Machakos Districts. Descriptive statistics in the form of percentages, frequencies, tables and ranks were used to analyze the data.

The major findings of this study were that fieldwork is organized and conducted differently in Kenyan secondary schools due to the constraints of time, teaching personnel, finance and the availability of equipment. There is no uniformity of resources even within one district. The fieldwork question set by the K.N.E.C discourages teachers from teaching geography through fieldwork. Moreover, due to financial constraints, in-service courses for geography teachers were inadequately conducted.

Based on the findings of the study, the writer recommends for a review of geography's training programme in universities and teacher training colleges so as to make it more practical. The writer further suggests that research be carried out to determine the availability, accessibility and utilization of geography resources in secondary schools. Finally, an evaluation should be carried out to determine the success or failure of fieldwork teaching with a view to amending or designing a better teaching programme for Kenyan secondary school's geography syllabi.