An investigation into the challenges facing in-service training of secondary school teachers in Nairobi province

Abstract

The concern of quality teachers is becoming increasingly important with most Kenyans becoming increasingly enlightened. It is no longer a matter of having teachers in a school but the quality of teaching is important. This is the more reason that parents reject some calibre of teachers if they are not delivering. With the new trends in education the teacher has to keep abreast with the changes in the teaching methodologies and curriculum. The process of development of Human resource is continuous. Just like other organizations that are concerned with their staff development the study was to investigate the challenges that face inservicing of teachers as one method of staff development. The study wanted to establish the difficulties encountered in-servicing of secondary school teachers in Nairobi Province by not only the Ministry of 'Education Science and Technology (MOEST) but also by the teachers and the school managers. The study was also investigating whether there are any forms of in-service for the teachers and the value the teachers attach to inservice training. Fifteen (15) schools and 317 teachers from these schools were selected for study. Also targeted were education officers in various departments. The director Kenya Education Staff Institute (KESI), the Provincial Inspector of Schools (Nairobi) and the in-service Training (INSET) co-coordinator were part of the study. The schools were first organized according to divisions and then randomly selected. The information from the teachers and the Provincial Inspector of Schools (P.LS.) was obtained by use of a questionnaire whereas from the director KESI and INSET co-coordinator was got through interview. The information received was analyzed descriptively and simple descriptive statistics involving percentages were employed. The data was then presented in a descriptive form. The study revealed that in-service training for secondary schools in Nairobi Province is quite limited. Only 53.4% of teachers have been able to attend in-service training. The study also revealed that among the challenges or constraints hindering implementation of in-service training are lack of funds, time, poor management and poor co-ordination. This study concluded that the teachers are in need of in-service and the MOEST and individual schools should be more serious in addressing the issue of inservice amongst the secondary school teachers. The researcher suggests that KESIshould be made a body corporate to coordinate in-service of all cadres of education officers and teachers. The INSET unit in the Ministry should be mandated to operate so as to be in a position to co-ordinate.. monitor and evaluate the work carried out by all INSET providers. Further Research should be carried out to cover a wider area and a larger sample in order to determine the constraints hindering effective provision of in-service training to secondary school teachers. A needs analysis should also be done to establish areas of emphasis when providing inservice training.