Challenges Facing the Implementation of Free Day Secondary Education in Public Secondary School in Narok North Sub County Kenya

Abstract

The launch of Free Primary Education (FP E) in Kenya in 2003 resulted to high enrolments of pupils in the primary schools. However only a small proportion of these pupils were able to access and complete their secondary education due to the cost implications of high school fees which have become a burden to many parents. The purpose of this study was to investigate the challenges facing the effective implementation of FDSE in Kenya with special reference to Narok North sub-county. Kenya in relation to adequacy of learning resources and funding to schools and come out with solutions to these problem. The specific objectives were to: Examine the effect of finances on the implementation of free day secondary education in school in Narok North sub county; access the effectiveness of education policy on the implementation of, FDSE in schools in Narok North sub county; determine the adequacy of resources in the implementation of FDSE in schools in Narok North sub county. to suggest the education system in the implementation of FDSE in schools in the study area. The study employed a descriptive survey research design. The target population was 442 respondents consisting of 30 head teachers. 300 teachers and 8 education officers in the study area. The sample size was 126 respondents, made up of 7 head teachers. 108 teachers, one DEO and two Zonal Quality Assurance and Standards Officers (ZQASOs). Proportionate sampling was used to select the head teachers and teachers while purposive sampling was used to select the DEO and ZQASOs. Questionnaires were used as instruments/or collecting data from the head teachers and teachers while interview schedules were administered to the DEO and the Zonal Quality Assurance and Standards Officers (zQASOs). Validity of the instruments was done through experts in education. Reliability was tested by subjecting the instruments to a pilot study the results were used to compute the alpha reliability coefficient in order to establish the internal consistency of the instruments. Data analysis was done using descriptive statistics after data cleaning and coding. Quantitative data will be analyzed using frequency counts, means and percentages while qualitative data was analyzed by tallying the numbers of similar responses. The results were presented using frequency distribution tables, bar graphs and pie charts. The findings of this study indicated that free day secondary school brought with it many challenges that have been difficult for the teachers and head teachers to cope with. The key challenges that were noted were; increase in the number of student's enrolment against very few resources and facilities in terms of finances, toilets and class room. The head teachers indicated that the finances were not released on time and this had been a major challenge for their planning process. The study therefore concluded that there is need to put in place appropriate measures to ensure that the required facilities were put in place in order to support the entire program. The study discovered that there was need to hire more teachers to be able to handle the influx of the number of students joining the secondary education due to FDSE. The study recommends that more finances be allocated to support the program and the money should be released on time 'in order to enable the head teachers to plan for their activities. The study if implemented by the government is expected to stimulate continuous debate on FDSE and provide valuable insights that the government, stakeholders, scholars and researchers can rely on in their collective endeavor of 'addressing the challenges and making the FDSE initiative a success. The study thus recommends more research be done on this subject.

Key words: Challenges, Implementation, Free Day Secondary Education, Public Secondary Schools. Narok North Sub County Background to the Study