Influence of Community Participation on School Learning Environment in Public Primary Schools in Nandi North Sub County

Abstract

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) was adopted in Kenya in the year 2002 with the aim of ensuring education access by all children. The main aim of the study was to establish the influence of community participation on learning environment in Public Primary schools Nandi North Sub County. The study adopted Albert Bandura's Social Learning Theory (SLT) and based on pragmatic philosophical research paradigm. It employed concurrent mixed methods research design which uses both qualitative and quantitative approaches to answer the research questions. Yamane's formula was used to determine the sample size from one hundred and seventy-five Public Primary schools. Stratified and simple random sampling techniques were used to select ninety four schools from the eight zones of the area selected for the study. Purposive sampling technique was used to select one teacher from each sampled schools and all the eight zonal Quality Assurance and Standards Officers. Finally snow-ball sampling technique enabled the selection of one parent from the sampled schools. The tools which were used in data collection were: questionnaire and interview guide. The collected data was analyzed using both descriptive and inferential statistics and presented in form of frequency tables. The community participated in the following ways in strive to promote CFS in their schools: attended school events, made direct contact with families whose children dropped out of school, had PTA's which comprised of diverse communities. However, the community failed in making decisions which affect their children's learning, assisting the school teachers or the school in making the teaching and learning materials and finally it also failed in rendering of voluntary services to school. The government should provide more funds for community mobilization progammes as this will equip the community with knowledge on their roles in the provision CFS.