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Factors influencing gender imbalance in appointment of head teachers in public primary schools, Thika municipality, Kiambu county, Kenya.
No full textGender balance in leadership has long been a concern to the educators and policy makers. Despite the growing awareness of gender imbalance in leadership positions, gender gaps in school management in public primary schools still exist. The appointment of head teachers tends to favor male teachers. Studies on gender and leadership have revealed that there are a number of barriers which prevent women from seeking positions of educational leadership. These barriers include social cultural factors; expectations of the society; women's perceptions of themselves and leadership; criteria used in appointment of the head teachers; academic background and lack of role models. The purpose of this study was to determine the factors that contribute to gender imbalance in appointment of head teachers in public primary schools in Thika Municipality, Kiambu County. The research used descriptive survey research design. All the head teachers (23), teachers (365), standard seven pupils from 23 public primary schools (1610) and officers (6) from the Municipal Education Office constituted the target population. A sample size composed of 7 (30%) head teachers, 110 (30%) teachers from the seven sampled schools, 483 (30%) standard seven pupils and 2 (30%) Municipal Education Officers was drawn. All the subjects were sampled randomly except for the officers in the MEO's office who were purposively selected. The study mainly employed qualitative approach as this enabled the researcher to obtain data needed for clarification, and explain the factors that led to gender imbalance in appointment of head teachers in public primary schools in Thika Municipality. Data collection was by use of questionnaires, focus group discussions, face to face interviews and document analysis. A pilot study was done in two schools in one of the zones in the neighboring district to facilitate assessment of validity and reliability of the research instruments. The collected data was checked for completeness, categorized and coded. It was then analysed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) computer software. Quantitative and qualitative methods were used in the data analysis and interpretation. Frequency, tables and percentages were used in data presentation. The study found that most women lacked confidence in leadership and this made most of them not to apply for leadership positions. Lack of gender policy on appointment of head teachers also contributed to gender imbalance in appointment of the head teachers in public primary schools. Therefore, the study recommends that the Ministry of Education should scrutinize the criteria used to promote teachers into headship positions and sensitize female teachers to contest for leadership positions with their male counterparts. The study also recommends that female teachers should ignore cultural beliefs, values and practices of the community and build up confidence when seeking for leadership positions
The Ameru Traditional naming methods: The effects of Christianity and missionary education on traditional naming culture.
No full textIn all human communities individuals are identified by names. The process by which these identities are stamped on the person depends on the cultures of the society where the person hails from. Traditionally the Ameru peoples had developed more than two naming methods. The first name of a boy or girl child was given by a caucus of elderly women from the village or family soon after the child was born. The second name given to a Boy-child was by warriors after initiation/circumcision when he was deemed to have attained adulthood. The girl-child never acquired a new or second name until after her marriage. But this traditional system only held sway before the advent of Christianity which invaded the African societies during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Thereafter Christianity supplanted traditional by injecting totally new and strange naming systems and nomenclatures. The research problem on this study therefore was to explore and explain the Ameru traditional naming methods and systems before the advent of Christianity and how these traditions were impacted by it thereafter. The scope of the study endeavors to answer the research questions and to investigate the problem statement in the research proposal and how to achieve the objectives of the study. The geographical area already covered and the targeted population encompass all the six Meru linguistic dialects spoken within the territorial area inhabited by the community. There is considerable scarcity of written literature on this topic within the entire East Africa Region. The research method which was designed for this study encompassed sample survey using purposive or judgmental method. The data collection methods comprised of key informants interviews, selected respondents for interview schedules and group discussion with identified community elders and sages. The questionnaires were administered by the researcher in person among the more literate young parents and youths. The target population was selected from the knowledgeable elderly members of the community from each linguistic dialects of the Meru peoples. Some older respondents who experienced early missionary conversion to Christianity were also interviewed on the methods adopted by the missionaries to convert the populace into Christianity. The limitation experienced in this research is that with scarce written records the researcher has to almost entirely rely on the fading memories of the older generation who are themselves fast fading away. It is therefore strongly recommended that in order to preserve the African traditions and cultures, the educated Africans do record their traditions in permanent records that will guide the future generations of our peoples
The impact of extra tuition on the perfomance of students in science subjects in secondary schools in Embu East District, Kenya
No full textLC 1050.5 .N93 2014The development and access to education for all bas been given great emphasis al1 the world. To ensure that learners achieve high grades in Mathematics and science subjects, extra tuition has been offered to the learners outside the normal school hours. Studies done by different scholars and researchers in different parts of the world .show that offering extra tuition to students is a widespread phenomenon. Many researchers claim that research concerning the impact and effectiveness of extra tuition programme has been sporadic, underfunded, inconclusive and with serious methodological flaws. The study investigated the impact of extra tuition on the performance of students in Mathematics and Science subjects in Embu East District, Kenya. The study adopted the descriptive survey design. The target population for the study constitutcd the head teachers, teachers, students and the D.E.O. in Embu East District. The researcher selected 12% of the target population and obtained a sample size of 458 respondents constituting 433 students in Form 3 and Form 4, 20 Science sebject teachers, 4 head teachers, who were selected using the random sampling technique. The D.E.0. was purposively sampled. Data was collected using two sets of questionnaires for the students and for the Science subject teachers. Interviews were conducted for the school principals and the D.E:O. Document analysis was done by tabulating the K.C.S.E. performance in science .subjects for the last five years. Piloting of the research instruments was done to a group of respondents with similar characteristics as the sample group, who did not take part in the study to enhance validity. Reliability was done by employing the Cronbach's Coefficient Alpha of correlation. A coefficient correlation of 0.82 showed that the instrument was reliable for the study. Data was analyzed by computing the means, percentages and a t-test. Research question four was analyzed by computing a t-test to compare the difference in mean scores of learner's
performance in science subjects for the last five years (2008-2012) and 2013 when no extra tuition was done after it was banned by the government. Data analysis was aided by the Statistical Package for Social Sciences {SPSS, 16) under the guidance of a biometrician to ensure accurate data interpretation. Presentation of data was done by use of frequency charts, tables, percentages and pie charts. From the study, it was evident that extra tuition had been done in most secondary schools. Both learners and the teachers had a strong belief that extra tuition improved the performance of leaners in the national examinations as well as the overall school mean score. After computing a t-test, it indicated that there was no relationship between the extra tuition and the performance of Iearners in Science subjects. The findings may be of benefit to the teachers and other education stakeholders to determine whether the extra tuition offered to the learners contributes to improved performance in national examinations
Effects of situational factors and packaging characteristics on the outcome of purchase behavior in Kenyan supermarkets
No full textPrevious studies on shopping behavior have paid considerable attention to the effect of situational factors in explaining the outcome of consumer's buying behavior in the supermarkets. Other studies have limited the explanation of consumer's shopping behavior to the influence of packaging elements. However, no study has considered the effect of the two sets of factors on the shopper's behavior at the supermarkets in same framework. Moreover, despite the growing number of supermarkets in Kenya, customer shopping behavior in supermarkets in Kenya has received very limited attention. This study investigates the effect of situational factors and packaging characteristics on the outcome of behavior (amount of processed milk bought from supermarkets in Kenya). The knowledge generated by this study could help retailers and other marketing practitioners to formulate and undertake more efficient marketing strategies. Several hypotheses were tested against cross-section data collected from 1230 shoppers in supermarkets in three towns in Kenya. Data was collected using self-administered questionnaires. It was analyzed using quantitative techniques. Descriptive statistics were used when analyzing shopper's characteristics. Regression analysis was used to test hypotheses concerning the effects of situational factors and packaging characteristics on the amount of fresh processed milk bought. The results showed that except for purpose for drinking directly from the pack reason for buying, all the other situational factors had significant effect on the amount of milk purchased. They include: supermarket atmospherics, store density/crowding, presence of companions, time of the day, being cash-constrained state and long stay at milk stand in the supermarket. However, being cash-constrained state, time of the day when shopping was done (morning), crowding at the milk stand and the purpose for drinking directly from the pack had negative effect on the amount of processed milk bought. Perceived importance for milk packaging characteristics had positive and significant effect on the amount of processed milk bought from supermarkets. After the controlled factors (individual characteristics) were included in the regression model, the effect of perceived importance for packaging characteristics and all situational factors (except for drinking purpose of buying) on the amount of processed milk bought remained significant. Shopper's age, education, income, gender (male) and family size had a positive effect on the amount of fresh processed milk purchased. However, price had a negative effect on the amount of processed milk purchased
Effects of regulatory reforms on security market returns: evidence from Nairobi securities exchange
No full textCapital markets are key to the economic development of any economy. Most governments have invested immensely on the capital markets through regulation to ensure that the investors are protected and making the market more efficient. The responsibility of regulation of the capital market in Kenya rests with the Capital Market Authority. Since its establishment the authority has created a regulatory framework that is aimed at creating orderliness, fairness and efficiency in the capital market. This study aims at examining the effect of reforms, guidelines and regulations enacted by the capital market authority on stock market returns. This was achieved through carrying out an event study methodology on specific regulation independently. The causal research design was used on each event to find out whether there was any significant difference between pre and post regulation by observing the behaviour of abnormal returns and stock returns volatility. Data was collected from a sample of 39 companies out a population of 55 companies which traded continuously from 1998 to 2010. NSE and stock returns were subjected to market model to determine alpha and beta to calculate abnormal returns. The GARCH model was used to find the significant difference between the pre and post regulation through stock market volatility. The study results indicate that each regulation analysed had evidence of abnormal returns that accumulated slowly over the event period for each of the regulations under analysis. The analysis of regulation on insider trading shows high level of abnormal returns ranging from O to 8. The analysis of the information disclosure regulation, corporate governance and licensing requirements regulations indicates reduced abnormal returns ranging from -02 to 0.7,-0.4-0.6 and -0.4-0.06 respectively. The regulation on the Central Depositories (operational rules) had abnormal returns ranging from -1 to 4 but much was after the regulation was enacted. This could be attributed to the December 2002 general election which constituted the pre regulation period. All regulation indicated reduced volatility during the post regulation measured using the GARCH model. This is an indication of the positive effects of the regulation on Stock returns. The volatility of the mean, standard deviation and variance indicates that the market efficiency has improved as new regulations were being enacted by CMA. Each regulation created shock in volatility of the stock returns which was not persistent over time. The results indicate that investors viewed the regulation as good news to the market. There was anticipation among the investors before each regulation was enacted by CMA as reflected by stock volatility during the pre -regulation period. The study concludes that regulation of the capital market bring about efficiency through reduced volatility and reduced abnormal returns as successive regulations are enacted by the government. These results create attention to policy makers on the implementation of reforms, regulation and guidelines targeting market operations and institutional development in Kenya
An investigation on the extent to which the growing of Miraa has influenced the education of boy child in Embu county, Kenya.
No full textABSTRACT
Miraa (Catha edulis) is a flowering shrub, native to the region extending from Eastern to Southern Africa, as well the Arabian Peninsula. Miraa farming has been shown to have a negative effect on both the health and education of individuals who use or cultivate it. Some schools in Embu County have low boys to girls ratio. This is contrary to the expectation that the large sums of money earned from miraa trade might be used in paying school fees and improvement of school attendance and retention. The combined influence of labour provision in Khat farms, trade and chewing on secondary school boys, education has not been well documented. Thus, the purpose of this research was to establish the extent to which Miraa farming in Embu East district has affected the education of the boy child. This was appropriate in order to establish the influence of miraa farming on low retention rates of boys in schools. The study employed a descriptive research design using both quantitative and qualitative data. The population of the study was drawn from Embu East District within Embu County. The study employs descriptive survey research design. Stratified random sampling was used to select the sample. The sample size was calculated at 20% of each category to identify the respondents for each category. The study employed questionnaires and interview schedule as instruments for data collection. Data analysis was done using statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) version 17. The study established that miraa growing impacts negatively on the education of boys since most of them drop out of school to engage in the business. The study established that parents who grow and chew miraa motivate their boys to remain in school. The study established that peer pressure, lack of guidance and counseling and ready availability of miraa in Embu East district are the main driving forces behind consumption of miraa among boys. Finally, the study established that young boys are involved in the growth and sale of miraa. Based on the overall finding of the study, it was concluded that boys from miraa growing families are less likely to complete their studies and that educating children is not a priority among families growing miraa. Most boys prefer working for money than being in school and 50% of the parents who grow miraa pay school fees grudgingly for their sons. It was also concluded that most boys are likely to drop out of school while in form one, form two, and form three and not at form four. However, the study also concluded that most parents prefer their children going to school rather than helping them on miraa farms and that parents who work on miraa farms do not neglect their boy child's education. Based on the results it was also concluded that peer pressure, availability of miraa and lack of guidance and counselling are the main factors that drive boys to consume miraa in Embu East district The study therefore recommended that parents who grow miraa in Embu County should be sensitized on the value of boy child education. Moreover, strict rules should be enacted to discourage employment/involvement of young boys in miraa trade in Embu County. In addition, the study recommended that the sale of miraa to young boys should be prohibited in Embu County. Finally the study recommended that guidance and counselling department in schools should be empowered or improved to offer counselling services to boys in Embu County in order to curb the negative effect of miraa growing and trade on young boys. The study also recommended that there is need for further study to be undertaken on factors which influence students to engage in miraa cultivation and trade and on psychological impacts of miraa chewing in Embu County
Analysis of factors that influence drugs and substance abuse among secondary school students in Imenti North District.
Get PDFRC 564.M85 2014Drug and substance abuse has continued to be an issue of great concern during the past
several years with a great number of people reported as drug abusers in the world and
being a serious problem affecting secondary school students. Drug and substance abuse
has numerous biological, psychological and social adverse consequences. The menace has
been reported as being influenced by different factors which include mass media,
availability of drugs, peer pressure, curiosity, and availability of funds, boredom, harsh
school rules and poor parenting. The study being carried out is aimed at analyzing the
factors that influence drug and substance abuse among secondary school students in
lmenti North District. The research objectives for the study were whether peer pressure,
mass media, amount of money given to students and availability of drugs influence drug
and substance abuse among secondary school students in Imenti North. The target
population was composed of 10,663 students from the 43 secondary schools in Miriga
Mieru East and West divisions. Questionnaires were prepared and used in the collection of
primary data from the deputy principals, teachers and students. Prior to administration, the
questionnaires were pilot tested to facilitate validation and assessment of reliability. The
data was analyzed manually at the end of which results were displayed using frequency
distribution tables, percentages and pie charts. The study concluded that drugs and
substance abuse was influenced by different factors. These were categorized into major
and minor factors, the major factors included mass media, peer pressure, availability of.
Drugs and the amount of pocket money given to the students. The study, therefore,
recommends that parents and guardians should avoid giving a lot of pocket money to their
children; the government should come up with ways to fight drugs found within the
students' reach
Effects of teachers' motivation on students' KCPE performance in public primary schools of Westlands District, Nairobi county, Kenya.
No full textABSTRACT
Teacher motivation on academic performance is essential to the long term growth of any educational system in the world. Determinants of pupils' performance have been the subject of discussion among all stakeholders including children, parents, educators, academics and policy makers. This study assessed the effect of teachers' motivation on academic performance in public primary schools. The study was undertaken in Westland district, Nairobi County, Kenya. The study was guided by three objectives: To establish the relationship between intrinsic motivation and students KCPE performance, to establish the relationship between extrinsic motivation and students KCPE performance, to find out the impact of incentives to teachers on students KCPE performance and to examine the relationship between challenges faced by public primary schools teachers and students KCPE performance. The study used descriptive research design. The target population for this study was 320 teachers and head teachers of Westland district Nairobi County. Cluster and then random sampling was used to select 175 respondents. Data was collected by use of semi structured questionnaires. Piloting was done before the questionnaire was administered to establish the validity and reliability of the research instrument. The data was then analyzed by the use of descriptive statistics. Content analysis was employed for the qualitative data from the open ended questions. In addition, Karl Pearson's product moment correlation analysis was conducted to establish "'relationship between teachers' motivation and students KCPE performance in public • schools. The study found that intrinsic motivation has the highest effect on students KCPE performance (r = 0.638; P = 0.029), followed by extrinsic motivation (r = - ; P = 0.017) while incentives had the least effect on the students KCPE performance in public primary schools of Westlands District, Nairobi County (r = 0.522; = 0.031). The study concludes that teachers' motivation affects students' KCPE performance in public primary schools of Westland District. This is achieved when teachers have intrinsic motivation for their students to learn more as they feel that they personally responsible for part of the education of every student they teach, spend a lot of energy to make my classes interesting and view teaching as a noble career. The policies of the school system allow the teachers to do their job effectively and the teachers have the support of the entire staff in doing their work. However, the teachers motivation and hence students KCPE performance is negatively affected by poor salaries, unreasonable student load, unappreciative principals and compensation disparities based experience. The study recommends that teachers should be offered incentives such as to finance remedial education and given better pay by TSC which will go a long way in improving students KCPE performance. Teachers should be encouraged to cooperate with other teachers from different schools in Westlands and there should be cooperation between teachers and all the other stakeholders of primary schools. Further, working conditions should be improved with a reasonable teacher-students ratio, adequate teaching resources and zero interference by parents
Factors influencing perceptorship of pre-service nursing students in Northern Tanzania
No full textRT 81.P3 2014The benefits of clinical experience in nursing education have been overlooked for many years since the nursing education shift from hospital settings to university settings. The purpose of the study was to identify factors influencing preceptorship of pre-service nursing students in Northern Tanzania. A descriptive survey design was used. The study population was preceptors whereby the sample size was composed of all preceptors (68) from the nine Nursing school located in the Northern zone of Tanzania. The questionnaire was used as a tool for collecting the data Pre-test was done at Muheza school of Nursing to ensure reliability and validity. Data was analyzed by using Statistical Package for Social Science and results presented in Ratios, figures, and tables. The findings revealed that; none of the preceptors had undergone formal training. All preceptors said that for effective preceptorship one needs to be trained in clinical learning and teaching, assessment and evaluation and communication skills. A majority (91 %) had not updated their knowledge meaning no seminar or training had been attended for the last one year. All preceptors are assigned other routine ward duties like other nurses regardless of preceptorship duties. The study also revealed that the ratio of preceptor to students is 1: 20 except for KCMC School of nursing where the ratio is 1:8. All preceptors perceived clinical teaching as important as classroom teaching. They mentioned challenges of preceptorship as; preceptors being assigned routine ward activities, lack of opportunity to update their knowledge, inadequate cooperation between faculty and preceptors, limited clinical follow-up's from the tutors, and students being used as manpower in the clinical area to cover the shortage. The researcher recommended the following; Ministry of Health and Social Welfare should ensure that preceptors training and the credentialing program is developed for effective preceptorship. The number of preceptors should be increased in relation to the increasing number of students. Ministry of Health and Social Welfare should ensure that the number of teaching staff is adequate for effective students' clinical follow-ups. The cooperation between the teaching institution and practicum site should be improved and maintained for effective preceptorship
Negative impact of family instability on pupil's academic achievement: A case study of Buuri District.
No full textFamily relations and interactions have a strong and permanent influence upon a personality. Family structure affects pre-school readiness. It affects educational achievements at elementary, secondary and college levels. How parents treat their children has a direct impact on how children eventually see themselves. Children who are rejected by their parents, who grow up in homes with considerable conflicts, or who are inadequately supervised, are at the greatest risk of becoming delinquent. Whether a child's parents are married, divorced, single, remarried or cohabiting has a significant influence on children's educational performance. The purpose of this study is therefore to investigate the negative impact of family instability on learning among primary schools pupils in Buuri district. The researcher adopted descriptive survey and data collected using questionnaires. The target population was 20,982 respondents from 116 primary schools. A sample of 642 respondents was adopted. Simple random sampling was used to get 600 pupils from 21 schools, which was sampled using purposive and simple random methods. Twenty-one headteachers and twenty-one guidance and counseling teachers were purposively sampled from the twenty-one sample schools. The instruments were tested using test-retest formula. Data was analyzed using frequencies and percentages. The findings of the study revealed that most pupils came from unstable homes. Only 51 % of pupils came from relatively stable families. The rest, 49 %, either came from single-parent families, are orphaned, live with step parents, or their fathers are polygamous. This resulted to numerous challenges on the pupils, such as, lack of adequate attention from the available parent as well as chronic absenteeism from school. This consequently led to poor academic achievement