Despite the growing importance of
Early Childhood Education, there are number of challenges that have
continued to pull down its effective implementation. These include
inadequate teaching and learning resources, socio-economic factor, High
Teacher /Child Ratio with Poor Remunerations, financial constraint.
Inadequate teaching and learning resources
Many ECDE centers lack adequate teaching and learning resource and
facilities suitable for ECDE in their learning environment. These
include lack of properly ventilated classrooms, furniture suitable for
children, kitchen, safe clean water, play ground, toilets and play
material (International Association for the Education of Young Children,
1991). This implies that teachers do not have adequate teaching and
learning resources to enable them to implement ECDE Curriculum
effectively. This affects implementation of ECDE Curriculum negatively
as creation of a sustainable learning environment helps deprived
children to improve their academic performance (Offenheiser &
Holcombe, 2003).
Socio-economic Factor
Malnutrition and ill-health are factors associated with the
socio-economic factor. These factors can significantly damage the
cognitive processing ability of children. Children whose processing
capacity is impacted by ill-health and malnutrition may require more
hours of instruction to learn various skills. As such, implementation of
early childhood education may prove critical especially low income
countries (van de Linde, 2005).
Socio-economic differences affecting effective implementation of ECDE
also cut across regions, with some being labeled ‘marginalized’ or Arid
and Semi Arid Lands (ASAL). Regional disparities have significant role
in facilitating access to early childhood care and education, where
enrollment levels in rural and marginalized areas are low in comparison
to those in the urban areas. Children from the marginalized communities
in rural Arid and Semi Arid Lands (ASAL) suffer from lack of access to
early childhood education. One typical example is nomadic Maasai
community, which is one of the communities experiencing the least access
to early childhood education and care because of way of life and
regional disparities.
Financial Constraint
Financial constraints can lead to ineffective implementation of early
childhood education. At macro level, Kenya has suffered from the heavy
debt burden following its pursuit on the World Bank and International
Monetary Fund fiscal policies such as the Structural Adjustment
Programs. It is reported that these debt-servicing programs is partly
responsible for significant reduction in government funding for
subsidized education, health care and school related expenses. The
result has been that families bear more responsibilities in
implementation of early childhood education programmes (Kilbride &
Kilbride, 1990).
High Teacher-Child Ratio with Poor Remunerations
Teacher child ratio has been a subject of much attention among
researchers in relation to the factors facing teaching and learning
process. Early childhood development education has not been left out.
Research shows that teacher child ratio has continued to grow. On
average, teacher child ratio for both 3-5 years old children and 6-8
years olds still remains critical. Teachers are not comfortable with the
increasing number of children in their classes they handle (Dodge &
Colker, 1992). Still with this high ratios, ECDE teachers are poorly
remunerated and under the mercy of parents (most of whom have little or
nothing to give).
Conclusion
This article has briefly highlighted the key challenges facing Early
Childhood Education in Kenya. However, there are various other
underlying issues like lack of proper government policy framework on
ECDE which continue to hinder every good gain that could be realized in
through effective development of early childhood program. Thus, there is
need to build more realistic policy provisions in order to safeguard
the integral development of the Early Childhood Education in Kenya.
References
The Dakar Framework for Action (2000). Education for All: Meeting our Collective Commitments.Paris: UNESCO. Retrieved May, 24 2011 from http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0012/001211/121147E.pdf.
Dodge, D.T. & Colker, L.J. (1992). The Creative Curriculum for Early Childhood. Washington, DC: Teaching Strategies Inc.
Easton, P.B. (2004). Education and Indigenous Knowledge, In Local pathways to global development: Marking five years of the World Bank Indigenous Knowledge for Development Program
Offenheiser, R. & S. Holcombe (2003). Challenges and
opportunities in implementing a rights-based approach to development: an
Oxfam America perspective. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly 32(2): 268 van de Linde, T. (2005). Influencing and developing good policy in Early Childhood
Development (ECD) amongst pastoralist communities in East Africa: The case of Samburu in Kenya.
Retrieved May 20, 2011 from
http://www.ilri.org/Link/Publications/Publications/Theme%201/Pastoral%20conference/Papers/Tanja%20van%20de%20Linde%20paper.pdf
Myers, R.G., (1992). Towards an Analysis of the Costs and Effectiveness of Community-based Early Childhood Education in Kenya: The Kilifi District. Report prepared for the Aga Khan Foundation
Tuesday, 25 November 2014
ECDE POLICY IN KENYA
Kenya The Background Report of Kenya (2005)
Policy Review Report: Early Childhood Care and Education in Kenya (2005)
Policy Review Report: Early Childhood Care and Education in Kenya (2005)
Factors That Have Contributed To the Expansion of Early Childhood Education in Kenya
There
are various factors that have necessitated to the expansion of early
childhood education in Kenya. Some of these factors include government
policies, changing roles of men and women in the growing economy and lastly
but not least the provision of learning environment. This paper tends to
find out in detail how these factors have necessitated the expansion of ECD.
2.1 Government Policies
In
Kenya, ECD is under the responsibility of the Ministry of Education Science
and Technology (MOEST). Of concern here is that the current Education Act
does not even include ECD in its legal provisions. The existing situation in
Kenya is that the Partnership Policy provides the only policy framework that
directs the MOEST’s provision for the development of ECD. This policy is
the, first on ECD and was stipulated in the Sectional Paper No. 6 of 1988
and the National Development Plan of 1989/1993. The Children’s Act of 2001
safeguards the rights and welfare of children from early childhood to
adolescence (UNESCO, 2005).
In a
letter submitted to International Development Association (IDA) by the
Government of Kenya in 1996 on Sub-Sector Policy outlining policies that
will be implemented as a result of a proposed Early Childhood Development
Project, it proposed that budgetary allocation for ECD in the Ministry of
Education budget would be increased to at least 1% of the recurrent MOE
budget at the expiry of the IDA Credit (Http://Siteresources.Worldbank.Org).
One of
the important events was the move in 1983 to decentralize government under
the District Focus Strategy for Rural Development. The focus of development
was shifted to the district level. The result of this shift is that district
and local governments have taken on the main responsibility for ongoing
support of preschool education. The MOE is currently involved in the
formulation of policy guidelines for early childhood programmes,
registration of preschools, coordination of government grants and funds from
external donors and the provision of early childhood personnel at all
levels.
When the
Preschool Education Project was evaluated in 1982, it was recommended that
the activities of the project be continued. This was done through the
creation of a National Centre for Early Childhood Education (NACECE),
established in 1984 to harmonize the growth, evaluation and oversight of
early childhood education. It was later followed by implementation of
District Centers for Early Childhood Education (DICECE) in 1985, to
facilitate decentralization of ECCE support (Ibid).
The
administrative and organizational structure of early childhood care and
education is recognized in the Gachathi and Kamunge educational commissions
from 1976 and 1988 respectively. These commissions played key roles in
creating greater recognition of preschool activities within the MOE.
Thus the
government through its policies has done a lot to expand Early Childhood
Education. From the point where ECD was not included in the country’s budget
to the point where some funds are set aside for the expansion of this
education.
2.2 Changing Roles of Men and Women in the Society
As the world keeps revolving
so do people and their cultures keep changing. In the world that we are
living in at the moment many things have changed from the dressing code,
gender equalities, job specification and many more. All these have led also
to the emerging issues of women employment. This employment affects the
children because in the African community women are taken to hold the main
responsibility of taking care of the children when the husband is out to
work..
It has been reported (Kola,
2001) that regional disparities have significant role in facilitating access
to early childhood care and education, where enrollment levels in rural
areas are low in comparison to those in the urban areas. This is due to the
development of the roles of women in urban areas. Most of the women in urban
areas go to work so that they can be able to provide more for their families
and at the same time keep up with own needs. This leaves no option but just
to take the young ones to these ECD programmes so that they can have a
humble time at work with out having worries about the well being of their
children.
2.3 Conducive Environment
Kenya’s
early childhood programme has grown because it is rooted in the community.
Through workshops and seminars organized by the DICECE. Parents and
community members have been encouraged and empowered to increase their
participation beyond provision of physical facilities. They provide the
feeding programme and take part in collecting, telling and demonstrating
stories, songs and dances in the mother tongue. The incorporation of
tradition and folklore into the curriculum make the community feel proud of
their contribution to the learning process and development of their
children. The lesson from Kenya is that the community is a very important
resource for the development of the ECCE programme and must continue to be
tapped and appreciated. A larger portion of the costs of the preschools
development are borne by the communities and external donors. For example in
1992, the expenditure on ECCE activities was extremely low. Myers argues
that if it were increased to even 1% of the budget, this allocation could
provide more comprehensive and higher quality services (Myers, 1992:23).
The ECD
center provides a conducive learning environment for the young children age
3-5 years. According to a research carried out by the World Bank in 1989
gives evidence that the Childs fastest growth in physical, mental and social
emotional characteristics takes place during the age of 0-5 years.
In these centers the children
are looked after by well qualified personnel. The teachers who look after
these children have undergone lessons of psychology and sociology of the
early childhood. They are able to identify some of the behavior the children
may tend to have thus knowing the good way of handling them without
interfering with their attitude. This kind of training held by these
teachers motivates most parents to take their kids there, thus increasing
the number of young children enrollment in these centers. This is for the
reason that most parents would like their children to get the best of
foundational classes to help them their future life (UNESCO, 2000).
3.0 Conclusion
In
conclusion, all the members in the society have a big role in the early
childhood education. Starting from the parent back at home to the law making
body all need to work hand in hand together in bringing up this young
children in a good moral and organized manner. More policies should be
created in favor of ECD and also funds to be allocated to these centers
providing ECD so as to improve the facilities that are available with the
modern technology and requirements.
References
References
Kipkorir, L.I., and Njenga,
A.W. (1993). A Case Study of early Childhood
Care and Education in Kenya. Paper prepared for the EFA Forum 1993,
New Delhi, 9-10 September 1993. Available online: http://www.ecdgroup.com/download/
Myers, R.G., (1992).
Towards an Analysis of the Costs and Effectiveness
of Community-based Early Childhood Education in Kenya: The Kilifi
District. Report prepared for the Aga Khan Foundation
NAEYC (2007). The National
Association for the Education of Young
Children.Available
Online: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
UNESCO (2000). Framework
for Action on Values of Education in Early
Childhood. ECF Values, Early Education and Family Education Unit,
UNESCO.
UNESCO (2005). Policy
Review Report: Early Childhood Care and
Education in Kenya. Early Childhood and Family Policy. Series N0. 11,
2005. Available Online: http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0013/001390/139026e.pdf
ECDE IN NAIROBI-CURRENT ISSUES
Subject Area:
Social Sciences and Humanities
Abstract:
Early Childhood Development Education (ECDE)
globally and Kenya in particular has been recognized as a crucial
programme that lays a foundation for a child’s holistic and integrated
education that meets the cognitive, social, moral, spiritual, emotional,
physical and developmental needs. The purpose of this paper is to
analyze the current issues facing ECDE in Kenya. Currently, ECDE is
under the care of parents, community, non-governmental organizations
(NGO), religious organizations and other private providers (MOEST,
2005). This paper is based on the premise as stipulated in the United
Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
declaration on Education for All (EFA) by 2015. Early Childhood
Development Education being the first formal agent of socialization
(Kibera & Kimokoti, 2007) calls the attention of all stakeholders to
critically address the challenges related to issues of access, equity,
quality and relevance of ECDE programmes. However, the private sector
seems to have monopolized most of the ECDE centers compared to the
government. Thus, the public education sector opportunities for ECDE are
lacking, yet available data shows that at later formal education i.e
primary schools, public education cater for well over 90% of Kenya’s
school going age. This paper therefore puts into question why the public
education sector is missing out in this very important domain of
education in its children at this tender age. To address the
aforementioned issues, this paper is guided by the following research
questions: What are the current challenges facing ECDE? What are the
short and long term implications to the educational formation of the
learners? How can this situation be improved? Literature informing this
paper has been sourced from a content analysis approach of various
documents from library search, online sources and Ministry of Education-
Kenya documents i.e. Sessional Papers. Initial findings show that ECDE
is currently facing challenges related to the following: funding, policy
formulation, low participation rates of target age groups including
special learners, lack of curriculum content informed by research based
data, inadequate qualified educators, lack of schemes of service for
educators, rising number of orphans, conflict in medium of instruction
among others. Further, of importance to note is that authors of this
paper also feel that lack of practical approaches to inform the parents
and lack of the Ministry of Education’s funding and implementation
initiatives further complicates the provision of ECDE. Following an
analysis of the current scenario in ECDE, the authors recommend MOE
reform programmes should be informed by systematic policy research and
analyses informed by research, inclusion in terms gender, social
economic status (SES) among others. Further, educational policy makers
and managers should be educationists with reputable professional and
experience records
DIPLOMA IN ECDE IN NAIROBI
The diploma in early childhood development &
education is a two year program. The course is organized in 6 sessions. There
are 23 course units and teaching practice. Teaching practice is treated as 8
units. In addition all trainees will be required to undertake an institutional
attachment of 100 hours (1 month) and a research project of 105 hours. The
final research work will be assessed by the college and the marks forwarded to
KNEC.
The teaching practice attachment and research
projects will be organized by the training college. However, students will be
exposed to external assessment during their final teaching practice.
COURSE STRUCTURE:
- Philosophical, sociological and historical foundation of ECDE
- General psychology
- Curriculum development
- Child growth and development 1
- Child rights and child protection
- General methods of teaching young children and material development
- Child growth and development 2
- Language activities
- Mathematics activities
- Music and movement activities
- Science activities
- Physical and psychomotor activities
- Research, monitoring and evaluation
- Child development 3- pre adolescence and adolescence
- Social studies activities
- Creative activities
- Health, nutrition and care
- Children in need of special protection
- Guidance and counseling
- Community development
- Personality development
- Training and management of ECDE programs
- Teaching practice.
ENTRY REQUIREMENT:
Duration:-18 Months
Entry Requirements:
- KCSE C Plain or KCE Div 3 or the equivalent or;
- A DICECE or kindergarten headmistress
- Association or Montessori certificate at least D+ in KCSE or its equivalent or;
- P1 Certificate or;
- Long service ECDE teacher with a KNEC proficiency examination certificate
CERTIFICATE IN ECDE IN NAIROBI
The certificate course in ECDE is a one year pre service or two year in service program. The course is organized in 4 school terms (3 terms + teaching practice) or 6 school holiday sessions
The certificate course in ECDE aims at equipping trainees with knowledge, skills and attitude required in promoting the physical, emotional, social, intellectual, spiritual, moral and cultural development of the child between 0-8 years
With the provision of the above, it is anticipated that these will help effectively to cater for the needs of all children, to relate to other personnel and to give proper advice to parents. In addition teachers will be able to identify children with special needs and make informed decisions on their needs.
The course in essence intends to introduce the teacher trainees to basic approaches & methods in meeting the needs of children, parents and the community. The course has 23 units and teaching practice.
COURSE STRUCTURE:
Foundation, Administration & Management of ECDE in Kenya
Introduction to child psychology
Child growth & development
Health, nutrition & Care
Early Childhood development & Education
curriculum & Instructional & learning approaches
Children with special needs,
Guidance & counselling
English language
Lugha ya Kiswahili
Language Activities
Mathematics activities
Science activities
Social environmental activities
Music & movement activities
Creative activities
Physical activities
General knowledge
Religious education
Materials development
Introduction to research
Community development
Child rights & child protection
Teaching practice
ENTRY REQUIREMENT:
Entry requirements Trainees enrolling for this course should have A minimum of D+ in KCSE or its equivalent or; A pass in KCPE and MUST have taught for a minimum of 3 years and MUST have passed a proficiency test offered by KNEC
COURSE STRUCTURE:
Foundation, Administration & Management of ECDE in Kenya
Introduction to child psychology
Child growth & development
Health, nutrition & Care
Early Childhood development & Education
curriculum & Instructional & learning approaches
Children with special needs,
Guidance & counselling
English language
Lugha ya Kiswahili
Language Activities
Mathematics activities
Science activities
Social environmental activities
Music & movement activities
Creative activities
Physical activities
General knowledge
Religious education
Materials development
Introduction to research
Community development
Child rights & child protection
Teaching practice
ENTRY REQUIREMENT:
Entry requirements Trainees enrolling for this course should have A minimum of D+ in KCSE or its equivalent or; A pass in KCPE and MUST have taught for a minimum of 3 years and MUST have passed a proficiency test offered by KNEC
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