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Homework is assigned on the assumption that parents or other elder members have the capacity to assist the pupils and that home environment is conducive for the pupil to do homework. A cross-sectional survey using structured and semi-structured interviews was conducted among pupils and parents in Kengeleni division in Mombasa district to explore socio-cultural and economic factors that influence parental participation in pupils' homework and, consequently, propose recommendations for...

This paper explores the discourse of whole class teaching in Kenyan and Nigerian primary school English lessons. Twenty lessons were analysed using a system of discourse analysis focusing on the teacher-led three-part exchange sequence of Initiation -- Response -- Feedback (IRF). The focus of the analysis was on the first and third part of the IRF sequence as it is here that research suggests teachers can enhance pupil learning through questions and follow-up which asks pupils to expand on...

This paper explores the discourse of whole class teaching in Kenyan and Nigerian primary school English lessons. Twenty lessons were analysed using a system of discourse analysis focusing on the teacher-led three-part exchange sequence of Initiation-Response-Feedback (IRF). The focus of the analysis was on the first and third part of the IRF sequence as it is here that research suggests teachers can enhance pupil learning through questions and follow-up which asks pupils to expand on their...

This integrative review on the teaching of reading in Kenyan primary schools provides a foundation for the growing movement there to improve reading education. In gathering sources for this review, we took an inclusive historical stance. Thus, we did not dismiss research reports that lacked traditional indicators of quality such as being published in peer-reviewed journals. We used multiple methods to find relevant research and associated documents, including two trips to Kenya. The review...

This report describes the Forum on Flexible Education: Reaching Nomadic Populations in Africa, which was held in Garissa, Kenya, from 20-23 June 2006. The objectives of the Forum were to share experiences and best practices, create linkages and encourage collaboration in order to make education more accessible to nomadic communities. Representatives from the Kenyan MOE, COL, ComSec and UNICEF provided remarks at the Opening Session of the Forum. They stressed the need to find ways to include...

This article reviews the evolution of education policies in the East African region in a historical context. The focus is on the formulation of policies for access to primary and secondary education in Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania since their independence in the 1960s. The three countries have common characteristics and historical backgrounds. For example, few of their population had access to education at all levels in the past, and hence, each faced similar educational and literacy...

The purpose of this study was to assess the effectiveness of the Strengthening of Mathematics and Science in Secondary Education (SMASSE) and the School-based Teacher Development (SbTD) programmes on classroom interaction in secondary and primary schools in Kenya. It was a case study which focused on four districts, and included holding interviews with 185 teachers, observing lessons and holding focus group discussions with pupils and students. It was established that, while teachers...

In his keynote speech at the 16th Conference of Commonwealth Education Ministers in South Africa, renowned African scholar Mahmood Mamdani called for the creation of regional research institutions for clusters of countries to be made a developmental focus for the Commonwealth. Noting that only African countries with a dense network of universities seemed able to pay for research universities, Mamdani argued that smaller countries, such as Uganda, Kenya, and Tanzania, should collaborate to create a regional research university.

This paper uses the SACMEQ II data to carry out an analysis of classroom context factors that accounted for student scores in reading and mathematics as well as a review of methods used to derive policies in Kenya in order to emphasise the need for evidence-based research for the derivation of policies for the leadership and management of primary education in Kenya. The paper goes further to explain the advantages of the approach as well as some of the impediments. Some suggestions of...

To identify diverse student strengths and to learn how teachers can build instruction on those strengths, the author and his colleagues have conducted multiple studies among students in Alaska, the mainland United States, Kenya, and other countries. In a series of studies in Alaska and Kenya, the researchers measured the adaptive cultural knowledge and skills of native Alaskan students and rural Kenyan students and demonstrated that instruction geared to these cultural skills improved...

This article describes the adaptation and validation of the Constructivist OnLine Learning Environment Survey (COLLES) for use in the transnational higher education context. As higher education becomes a more global phenomenon, ‘borderless’ education, either online or by distance education, is becoming a reality and there is a need for remote evaluation of course delivery and student learning. Curtin University of Technology is managing supported online delivery of Business Studies Degree...

The widespread move toward a free basic education for all in developing nations has raised parents' and policymakers' interest in secondary education. In general, policymakers in such countries, as well as many development strategists, believe that there is a link between secondary education and the opportunity to compete vigorously in a global economy. Some of the challenges to secondary education in developing countries are discussed.

To compete internationally, adapt to new technologies, and attain higher levels of efficiency and productivity, a country needs a highly literate populace. However, in Kenya literacy stands at less than 65% of the population. With such a low rate of literacy, most development is hampered. In order for Kenya to make progress in political, social, and economic development, the level of literacy has to be raised. This paper makes an important contribution in the promotion of adult literacy in...

The focus of this hermeneutic phenomenological study was the experience of being an adult literacy education student in Kenya. Ten adult literacy education students in three learning centres were interviewed. A thematic analysis of the interview transcripts uncovered sixteen common themes in three broad categories: reasons for participating; effects of literacy in the daily lives of students and challenges students encountered.

This paper addresses the role of classroom discourse in supporting children's learning in Kenyan primary schools. The discourse strategies of 27 teachers teaching English, mathematics and science across the primary phase were intensively studied using discourse analysis and semi-structured interviews. A survey questionnaire (n=359) was also used to explore teacher perceptions of classroom discourse practices. The findings revealed the dominance of teacher-led recitation in which rote and...

To compete internationally, adapt to new technologies, and attain higher levels of efficiency and productivity, a country needs a highly literate populace. However, in Kenya, literacy stands at less than 65% of the population. With such a low rate of literacy, most development is hampered. In order for Kenya to make progress in political, social, and economic development, the level of literacy has to be raised. This paper makes an important contribution in the promotion of adult literacy in...

Two recent events occurred in the academic life of one of the editors of this journal. The first was a seminar presented at the University of Sydney by the Director of the Centre for Refugee Research at the University of New South Wales. The Director focused upon the ethics of research with extremely vulnerable populations such as refugees; in particular, refugee women who frequently experience systematised sexual torture and rape. She saw her work as a form of action research whose...

Part of a special issue on young learners around the world. A team of American teacher educators is engaged in a cooperative venture with a rural community in Kenya to improve children's academic achievement. The first step in the cooperative venture involves the development of community resources and leaders. Participants also want to strengthen the educational infrastructure and improve educational practices in the local school. Some important lessons that the U.S. teacher educators have learned from the project are discussed.

The paper reports the results of a survey of parents (n = 12), teachers (n = 8) and pupils (n = 20) in primary schools in rural Kenya. The sample was divided equally between multilingual and monolingual schools, the former using English or Kiswahili only, right through primary school, the latter using the mother tongue (in this case, Kalenjin) Kalenjin in primary classes 1-3, and English or Kiswahili from primary class 4 on, where the children are on average 9 years old. Virtually all the...