Educational Foundations

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://repository.chuka.ac.ke/handle/chuka/271

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Browsing Educational Foundations by Subject "secondary education"

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    Covid-19 pandemic mitigation measures and students’ participation in schooling: A study of pre and post covid-19 period in public boarding secondary schools in Tharaka Nithi county
    (Chuka University, 2025) Murungi, Leah Ntinyari
    Education is a cornerstone of national development, fostering literacy, skills, and socioeconomic growth. In Kenya, the COVID-19 pandemic and associated containment measures disrupted traditional schooling, altering student participation in schooling through school closures, social distancing, suspension of co-curricular activities, and introduction of remote learning. These changes deepened existing inequalities, strained school culture, and challenged learner engagement. Understanding the extent and nature of these impacts is critical for developing resilient, inclusive education systems capable of sustaining participation in schooling during future crises. This study examined the effects of COVID-19 containment measures on secondary school students’ participation in schooling, by comparing pre-pandemic and post-pandemic schooling experiences. The study targeted a population of 1532 which comprised of 108 curriculum masters/mistresses and 1424 teachers in public boarding secondary schools in Tharaka Nithi County. Purposive sampling method was used to select 20 curriculum masters and simple random sampling was used to select 360 teachers. Data was collected by use of questionnaires for teachers and interview schedule for curriculum master. Piloting of the study was done on 20 teachers and 5 curriculum masters from Meru County. Experts from faculty of education ascertained content validity of the instruments. The questionnaire instrument tested for reliability achieved the alpha Cronbach value of 0.73 for teachers. The data was analyzed using descriptive statistics, and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests for hypothesis testing. The study found that COVID19 lockdown hindered student participation in schooling because they were restricted to staying. The new learning strategies introduced were difficult to implement because it required infrastructure to enhance their implementation which were not available in many rural areas. The adjusted school culture restricted interaction and hence limited the socialization aspect of schooling. COVID 19 mitigation measures created social inequalities and worsened the already existing ones. The study recommends that the Ministry of Education and its stakeholders need to develop a multi-dimensional crisis management policy guideline on how to respond in case of pandemics. The government to addressed digital equity through prioritizing ICT infrastructure investment in all schools, especially in marginalized and rural areas. The curriculum developers need to integrate digital and online learning in school curriculum. The school managements should emphasize and strengthen co-curricular activities as part of the school calendar to enhance socialization. The Parents Association together with teachers need to develop participatory, community-oriented measures with due consideration given to the role of parents, teachers, and local community leaders.
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    Selected sociological interventions and students’ participation in schooling in public secondary schools in Meru county, Kenya
    (Chuka University, 2024-10) Kararwa Humphrey Mugambi
    Participation of students in schooling is an essential contributor to the success of education process in which students are the beneficiaries. It enhances students’ active involvement in educational activities like co-curricular activities, school attendance and classroom engagement. levels of learner participation in schooling have been directly associated with effectiveness of various interventions by stakeholders. Ineffectiveness of these interventions have occasionally been blamed for low participation of students in curricular and co-curricular activities at different levels particularly in public secondary schools of Meru County, Kenya. This means that most learners transiting schooling may not only continue to lose out in various academic related fields but also in skill related areas. This study therefore sought to assess the effectiveness of selected sociological interventions on students' participation in schooling in public secondary schools within Meru County, Kenya with an intent to find out how sociological interventions affect students' participation in schooling. The study focused on parental involvement, social support programs, economic support programs, and community school infrastructural programs seeking to provide insights on their effectiveness in relation to students’ participation. The research adopted a mixed-methods approach, combining both descriptive and correlational research approaches to gather quantitative and qualitative data. The study sampled 331 respondents from 1,903 participants consisting of Principals, chairpersons of the Parent Association, Constituency Development Fund Managers, class teachers, and student leaders from the study area using purposive and stratified random sampling. Data was gathered through semistructured interviews, self-report questionnaires and focus group discussions. The validity of the instruments was determined by evaluating them from the perspectives of face, content, and construct validity. Data collection instruments underwent pretesting using Cronbach's Alpha, with a threshold of 0.7 and above considered acceptable based on data obtained from a pilot study conducted in Tharaka Nithi County. Qualitative data was subjected to thematic analysis, while quantitative data was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics with the aid of the Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 27.0 computer software. The study variables were described using descriptive statistics, which included frequency and percentages while inferential analysis was based on Chi-square test. Findings illustrated below average extent of parental involvement, below average access to social support programs, very low levels of ready access to economic support programs and below average extent of community school infrastructural support programs. Additionally, it was illustrated that parental involvement, social support programs, economic support programs and community school infrastructure support are significant in facilitating student participation in schooling. It is therefore recommended that more effort be put in place to enhance public secondary schools’ access to parental involvement, social support programs, economic support programs and community school infrastructure support interventions in an attempt to enhance students’ participation in schooling. Specifically, schools’ Board of Management in collaboration with school management should put strategies to enhance parental involvement, improve social support programs for schools, enhance access to economic support programs to schools and put in place strategies that can enhance sustainable community school infrastructural support programs.