The State of Availability of Resources for Life Skills Curriculum Implementation in Public Primary Schools in Eldoret Municipality, Kenya

Abstract

The government of Kenya recognizes the value of education and training of its citizens to equip learners with understanding and knowledge for informed decision making on good choices concerning their lives and the Kenyan society. Life Skills Education (LSE) curriculum was introduced in the year 2009. After assessing the existing curriculum, it was realized that there was need to address the challenges of daily lives, especially among the youth. The study sought to gauge the preparedness of public primary schools to effectively implement the Life Skills Education (LSE) curriculum in Eldoret Municipality. Based on the study, this paper assesses the availability of resources in the implementation of Life Skills Education in public primary schools in Eldoret Municipality. Out of the total 42 public primary schools in Eldoret municipality, 13 were selected through simple random sampling. A sample size of 13 head teachers was thus purposively selected. Thirty-nine LSE teachers, 3 from each school, were also purposively selected. Stratified sampling was used to select one teacher from lower primary, mid-upper and upper primary. Pupils in classes six and seven were purposively selected. Stratified method was used to divide the pupils according to their gender and then simple random sampling used to select 5 girls and 5 boys from each class from each school giving a total of 20 pupils per school. The sample size therefore comprised 299 respondents. The data collection instruments used were questionnaires and interview schedules for head teachers. Descriptive methods were employed in data analysis and data were presented in the form of frequency distribution tables, graphs and pie charts. Data from interview schedules was analysed qualitatively. The study established that the LSE course books to student ratio in most schools was 1: over 5. This implied that there was a high student to text book ratio. These findings show that schools need to invest more in the acquisition of life skills education teaching and learning materials. The findings could benefit the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development in detecting problems, identifying strengths and modifying the LSE curriculum.