Geoffrey Otieno, Joab O. Onyango, James J. Owuor, Pauline W. Mbugua, Peter M. Ndangili, Fred. W. Sawenja, Simon O. Adede, Austin O. Aluoch and Patrick M. Shem*
School of Chemistry and Material Science, The Technical University of Kenya,
P.O. Box 52428 – 00200, Nairobi, Kenya
Abstract
The study assessed level of training of staff, skills gap, physical facilities and socio-economic factors affecting teaching and learning of chemistry in secondary schools in Narok and Kajiado counties in Kenya which have a large population of nomadic pastoralists. The study involved 20 teachers, 10 technicians and 196 students from 19 schools. Data was collected using questionnaires, observations and oral interviews. The results showed that schools in both counties experienced growth in student enrolment between 2013 and 2017 without a matching increase in facilities and resources for curriculum implementation and evaluation. All the teachers were qualified to teach in secondary schools, however, the average teacher to student ratio in both counties was 1:137 way above the recommended 1:40. The data indicates that the performance in chemistry has been declining in the national examination with 81% of the candidates scoring 31% and below. The poor performance is attributed to inadequate number of teachers and technicians, inadequate laboratory facilities and student absenteeism due to socio-cultural practices. The results indicate an urgent need to address the causes of the declining performance in chemistry.
Keywords:
Nomadic pastoralists, chemistry curriculum, chemistry examination, laboratory facilities, socio-economic practices
