Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) has become globally recognized as an effective medium for learning. The Kenyan government made a commitment to provide computers for use in teaching in primary schools. This is expected to enable teachers to integrate ICT in their teaching beginning in primary standard one. Teachers will directly implement the ICT project at the classroom level, so are very crucial players to its effectiveness. This article discusses the preparedness of lower primary school teachers for this implementation process regarding their beliefs and attitudes, computer competence, and computer self-efficacy. The authors argue that the provision of computers and other infrastructure in schools may not automatically lead to integration of ICT in schools unless the government addresses teachers' beliefs and attitudes, computer competence and their self-efficacy. The authors recommend revision of the primary teacher education preparation syllabus and training practice for preservice teachers in ICT pedagogy to enhance their preparation to integrate ICT in their teaching in primary school. Keywords: ICT Teacher Age, ICT Primary Education, Teacher Self-efficacy, Kenya Teacher Computer Competence, Kasarani Division, Kenya. IntroductionThe twenty-first century witnessed rapid globalization and infiltration of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in almost all sectors of life. The rapid advancement of ICT and the subsequent emergence of the "knowledge-based" society make it almost mandatory to integrate ICT in teaching and learning at all levels of schooling. The use of ICT in schools has many benefits to the learner. These include easy access to digital information and understanding of concepts (Brush, Glazewski and Hew, 2008); and facilitating student-centered and self-
Globalization and demand for twenty first century skills has led countries to adapt Competency Based Curriculum (CBC). Kenya embarked on curriculum reforms from content based to CBC in 2018. Studies have reported minimal use of CBC teaching-learning approaches in pre-primary schools in Nairobi City County. Teachers are the key implementers of the Curriculum, yet their preparedness to implement the Curriculum in public pre-primary schools remains unknown. Therefore, this study purposed to establish the preparedness of pre-primary school teachers in implementing the CBC in public pre-primary schools in the County. The Concern-Based Adoption Model by Hall, Hord and Rutherford (2006) was used in this study. The study targeted a population of 900 comprising of 450 pre-primary school teachers, 225 ECD Center Managers and 225 head teachers in all the 225 public pre-primary schools in Nairobi City County. Twenty percent of the target population was sampled to participate in the study; therefore the study had a sample size of 180, which comprised of 45 head teachers, 45 center managers and 90 pre-primary school teachers. A Questionnaire, interview schedules, observation checklist and a document analysis guide were used to collect data. Pilot study was conducted in two public pre-primary schools in the County, validity of the research instruments was determined through expert judgment whereas reliability of the questionnaires was determined through split-half method and a Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of 0.799 was obtained. Qualitative data was analyzed thematically whereas quantitative data was summarized using percentages and frequencies and Chi-square test was used to test the hypotheses. This was facilitated by the Statistical Package for Social Sciences Version 21. Findings showed that majority (65.9%) of the teachers had not received any training on CBC, whereas 34.1% of the teachers were trained. The study established a significant relationship between the teachers’ extent of training in CBC and their ability to implement the curriculum with a significance value of p=0.000<0.05. The study concluded that the teachers were not adequately prepared to implement the Curriculum. Thus, recommended that the Ministry of Education in collaboration with the Nairobi City County Government should adequately create a regular in-service training program to equip teachers with necessary knowledge and skills that will help them implement the curriculum effectively.
Children who are taught by both male and female teachers develop holistically. This means that male teachers are vital in the education of young children. The study was to explore parents’ perceptions of the role of male teachers’ in preschools in Vihiga Sub-county as well as examine the influence of age on parents’ perception of the role the teachers in pre-schools in the sub-county. The study was guided by Albert Bandura’s Social Learning theory. Descriptive research design was used to guide the study. The dependent variable was parents’ perception of role of male teachers’ in pre-schools, while the independent variable was parents’ age. The locale of the study was Vihiga Sub County in Kenya. Questionnaire and interview schedules were used to collect data and analyzed using qualitative and quantitative methods. Results from data analysis indicated that parents’ perception of the role of male teachers’ in pre-schools was negative. It was also clear from the results that the perception was influenced by parents’ age. It was recommended that school management should organize programs to help parents to understand the role played by male teachers in preschools in order to change their attitude towards the teachers.
One of the most important factors in realizing reading as a subject in pre-primary schools is teacher working conditions. Literature suggests that working conditions are crucial in teaching of reading and pupils' reading ability. However, empirical studies that have examined pupils' reading ability have not focused on the relationship between teacher working conditions and reading ability. Further, the few empirical studies that have examined the relationships have been conducted in primary and secondary schools. Whereas most pre-primary school teachers in Kenya work under unfavourable conditions, past studies have not examined the relationship between working conditions and reading ability of pre-primary school pupils in Kenya. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between teacher working conditions and pupils' reading ability. The study was based on Herzberg's two factor theory. The study adopted a correlational research design. The target population for the study was 79 head teachers and 79 pre-primary 2 class teachers in public schools in Rongai Sub-County Nakuru. A stratified sample of pre-primary schools in the four zones in Rongai Sub-county was used for the study. The sample size comprised of 66 head teachers and 66 pre-primary 2 teachers. The questionnaires were used to collect data from respondents.. Data was summarized using descriptive statistics such as frequencies, means and standard deviations. To test the hypotheses, Pearson's Product-moment correlation coefficient was used. The results revealed that there was a relationship between teacher workload, school leadership and pupils' reading ability. The study concludes that teacher workload and school leadership affect the reading ability of preprimary school pupils. The study recommends that to improve reading ability, school management should provide effective school leadership and ensure that pre-primary school classes are of reasonable sizes so that teachers do not have a heavy workload.
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