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Gender and access to Inclusive Education in Tanzania: A Case of Selected Primary Schools in Shinyanga and Mwanza Regions
Get PDFThis study examined gender relations and access to inclusive education for children with disabilities in Shinyanga and Mwanza regions. The study was conducted specifically to examine community attitudes and practices towards girls with disabilities, harmful gender cultural norms, practices, traditions and barriers girls with disabilities face in accessing education. The study employed interpretive phenomenological design and purposive sampling technique to obtain 96 participants. Children with disabilities were identified by using the Child Functioning Module (CFM) questions and participants were purposively sampled. Data were collected using key informant interviews, focus group discussions and observations. Thematic analysis techniques were employed to analyse the data. The study found that there were deep rooted discriminatory cultural practices and gender norms which rendered children with disabilities excluded from school as compared to their male peers and those without disabilities. This was further compounded by poor teaching and learning environment. Girls faced greater barriers than boys, including more hours spent doing household chores, early marriages and pregnancies leading to drop out. It is recommended for government, community and development partners to focus more on children with disabilities, especially girls, increase community awareness on inclusive education and gender as well as improve teaching and learning environments
Transforming Biology Assessment through Written Feedback in Tanzania Secondary Education: Insights from Action Research
Get PDFThis study examined the impact of written feedback in Biology assessment in secondary schools, focusing on both student and teacher perspectives. Using action research with 80 students and their teacher, the study spans four months across three reflective cycles. Central findings reveal that descriptive, non-evaluative feedback empowers students. Feedback clarifies misunderstandings, offers specific improvement guidance, and makes "next steps" manageable. Further, descriptive feedback exposes students to broader problem-solving strategies. The study also shows that written feedback transcends mere evaluation. It becomes a reflective dialogue, with students actively using feedback to improve, and teachers acting as facilitators, guiding students towards better learning outcomes. Consequently, assessment shifts from simply judging to a transformative partnership. Both students and teachers contribute actively, aligning assessment with the ultimate goal of enhanced learning
Local Communities’ Awareness and Perceptions of Astro-tourism in Tanzania: A Case of Mbozi Meteorite
Get PDFTourism is one of the fastest growing economic sectors and the largest industries in the world. Among the many branches of tourism that this study considers is nature-based tourism, with a particular emphasis on a special interest tourism product referred to as astro-tourism. Astro-tourism focuses on activities related to observing night skies and celestial phenomena in natural spaces, as well as terrestrial meteorites relicts. Astronomical views such as rainbows, beautiful sunsets, sunrises, and astronomical phenomenon such as solar and lunar eclipses can attract many tourists all around the world. In Tanzania, the Mbozi Meteorite (kimondo) is emerging as an opportunity for tourism destination in the country. The main objective of this study was to assess local communities’ perceptions and awareness of Mbozi meteorite as one of the aspects of astro-tourism. A mixed research approach with questionnaires, in-depth interviews and observations was used to collect data from 110 respondents who were randomly selected for the study from local communities/villages in the neighbourhoods of Mbozi meteorite site. 15 key informants were purposefully selected from Songwe region including local community leaders/elders, tourism entrepreneurs (Agents, tour guides, shopkeepers, curio, art & crafts), and government officials. Both descriptive and thematic analyses were used to analyze quantitative and qualitative data. Findings revealed that the local community members are aware of the presence of kimondo, and they associate it with varied taboos and traditions. Further they noted that despite being there for decades, it is just of recent that kimondo has attracted attention and attracted a number of visitors and tourists. The number of tourists has increased in the locality hence bringing up new opportunities and threats. The study recommends for community education and involvement in tourism activities that will improve their livelihoods
Physicochemical Characteristics and Heavy Metal Levels in Groundwater from Selected Areas of Dar Es Salaam City, Tanzania
Get PDFDisparities in teaching practice corrective feedback among university teaching practice assessors in Tanzania: Implications on pre-service professional practices
Get PDFThis study examines disparities in teaching practice corrective feedback among university assessors in the Tanzanian context: Implications on pre-service professional practices. A mixed-method research design was employed to bring together different strengths and non-overlapping weaknesses of quantitative and qualitative methods. The purposive sampling technique was used to get 120 undergraduate pre-service teachers from three colleges involved in the study. Questionnaire, interview and documentary reviews were used to collect data and analyzed descriptively to provide summaries in terms of numerical counts and frequencies. The study revealed that teaching practice assessors have conflicting suggestions and non-consensus in supporting pre-service teachers when dealing with similar issues. Conflicting suggestions might pose anomalies on the course of action to be undertaken by pre-service teachers who are trying to grow professionally. The study recommends the formulation of inter-institutional consensual supervisory guidelines that could inform synergy among university teaching practice assessors and supervisors
Exploring Legal Aspects Related to Emerging Technologies in Tanzanian Distance Education
Get PDFThe emergence of new technologies in the ICT sector and their integration into Tanzanian distance education presents both opportunities and challenges for the educational field. Innovations like Artificial Intelligence, robotics, Mobile learning, e-learning, cloud computing, video-assisted learning, and Digital Content Platforms play a crucial role in improving the teaching and learning process. These technologies have not only transformed various aspects of universities, such as teaching methods, assessment procedures, administration, examination management, financial records, and timetable scheduling but have also expanded educational access, enhanced quality, and reduced costs. This abstract provides an overview of a comprehensive research study focusing on the legal aspects related to the use of emerging technologies in Tanzanian distance education. As distance education becomes increasingly popular as a means to enhance access and quality of education in Tanzania, it is essential to consider the legal dimensions associated with this transformation. While technology brings significant improvements to the education sector, it also introduces legal, security, privacy, and safety challenges that require attention and resolution. From a legal perspective, the technology involved in electronic learning (e-learning) presents specific challenges because many existing legal and policy standards in education are primarily designed for traditional brick-and-mortar classrooms and face-to-face interactions. This research aims to identify and analyze the legal issues surrounding the implementation of emerging technologies in distance education. The study utilizes doctrinal and comparative research methods to examine international legal instruments, policies, and laws from other jurisdictions. The findings indicate that the current policies and legal instruments governing emerging technologies in Tanzania do not adequately address the existing legal gaps.
 
Student Teachers’ Involvement in Internal Quality Assurance Processes and its Impact on 21st Century Skills in Tanzania Teacher Colleges
Get PDFThe study sought to evaluate the impact of student teachers’ involvement in Teacher Colleges’ quality assurance processes on 21st century skills in Tanzania. The study was guided by students’ involvement theory. The main was pragmatism paradigm and students’ involvement was adopted as a theoretical framework. Data were gathered through questionnaires and interviews. Results were presented in mean, standard deviation, and inferential statistic measures. The participants felt crucial for student teachers to be adequately involved in all the six quality assurance domains. This involvement positively and significantly predicted the development of the most of 21st century skills. The study concludes that urgent need to involve student teachers in internal quality assurance processes is an inevitable attempt for the development of 21st century skills required for their teaching profession. Other researchers may develop a scale to measure the 21st century skills among student teachers in Tanzanian context
Analysis of the Role of Community Actors towards Self-Employment Support for Higher Education Graduates in Tanzania
Get PDFThe study aimed to explore the community perceptions about higher education graduates’ employability and community support practices towards graduates’ access to self-employment. A sample of 314 community participants using systematic random sampling was used to select participants for the study. The sample involved staff from the selected divisions and departments at the district councils, wards, villages and local street government offices. The other sample was employees from selected community based organisations located in respective study regions and districts. The study used an explanatory mixed design where quantitative and qualitative data were collected and analyzed sequentially. The results showed that,146(46.5%) of community participants perceived higher education graduates’ participation in self-employment as poor, while only 80(25.5%) perceived it as good. Further, 223(71.0%) of the studied community organs had no specific support services for graduates, 63(20.1) percent offered them for sometimes, and 28 (8.9%) said they had specific services. Results also showed that, out of the six examined factors; support from family, friends, and relatives 154(49.0%) and hard work 135(43.0%) were rated as most contributing factors to graduates’ access to self-employment. The interview results showed that, negative graduates’ and lack of specific support schemes highly contributed to low graduates’ participation in self-employment. The study concludes that, the community support for enhancing higher education graduates’ access to self-employment is poor and disorganized. Deliberate actions were recommended for the policy makers to encourage the Tanzania communities towards support for graduates’ access to self-employmen
Effectiveness of Offline Video-Based Biology Instructional Materials on Students’ Performance in Secondary Schools
Get PDFThis study investigated the effectiveness of offline video-based instructional materials in enhancing students’ academic performance in biology lessons in selected secondary schools in Dar es Salaam. The study used holistic multiple case study and quasi-experimental research designs to collect both qualitative and quantitative data using structured questionnaires, interviews and tests. A total of 2 teachers from school A and school B (i.e. one from each school) and 168 students (i.e. 84 from each school) were purposively selected to participate in the study. Analysis by SPSS and data reduction techniques have revealed that offline video-based instructional materials are effective in enhancing students’ academic performance in biology in the experimental groups from both schools (P=0.0001) and made students quite positive about learning biology (89.3%) - 97.6%,). As perceived by students, the enhanced academic performance is the result of improved classroom interactions due to the materials. Specifically, the use of offline video-based instructional materials improved interactions between students and biology teachers, amongst students through group activities and between students and the learning resources. Furthermore, the materials enhanced students’ interest in biology (94.0%), and understanding of concepts (92.9%) and made them retain more biology concepts (94.1%). Based on the findings, appropriate recommendations for policy, action and future research are suggested. 
Economic Viability of Mucuna Intercropped with Maize Cropping System in Muheza District
Get PDFMucuna (Mucuna puriens) intercropping with maize is one of the alternatives to revive the declining maize production caused by low soil fertility and pest infestation. However, there is paucity of knowledge on the economic viability of the technology being studied. This research assessed the maize yields, variable costs and economic viability of adopting mucuna-maize intercropping in Muheza district, Tanzania. A total of 400 farmers were selected randomly (200 farmers who adopted mucuna intercropped with maize and 200 farmers growing maize after maize (continuous cropping). The Partial Budgeting approach was used to determine the net change in income when farmers decide to switch from continuous cropping. The results indicated that switching from continuous maize cropping to Mucuna intercropped with maize resulted in a positive net change in income of TZS 235,304.60/ha. The study concluded that mucuna intercropped with maize is economically viable. The use of mucuna intercropped with maize is hereby recommended to farmers