Material Resources Adaptation and Implementation of Cbc for Early Years Learners with Disabilities in Primary Schools in Nairobi City County, Kenya

Abstract

A competency-based curriculum has been adopted in the Kenyan education system. However, learners with disabilities in regular schools would be learning using two separate programs, that is an inclusive education program and a competency-based curriculum program. Implementing the two programs simultaneously to this category of learners could be challenging. Therefore, this study focused on the material resources adaptation influencing competency-based curriculum implementation for Early Years Learners with disabilities in primary schools. The study was premised on the theory of Complexity and Education by Davis and Sumara (2006), which holds that the fruitfulness and range of systems in which ambiguity and uncertainty occur, should be embraced, and accommodated during evaluation. The researcher employed a concurrent embedded design based on the mixed-method approach in data gathering. The study’s location was Nairobi City County, Kenya. The target population was 368 participants and from this target, the study sampled 16 heads of schools, 48 teachers, and 2 Educational Officers who were the respondents. The instruments of data collection were semi-structured questionnaires, an observation checklist, and an interview schedule. The piloting of instruments took place in one school with a special unit. The instruments were only accepted as valid and reliable after the results of Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of r=.75. Data were analyzed through descriptive and inferential statistics. In addition, data were prepared and organized using Statistical Package for Social Sciences into percentages, mean, Skewness, standard deviations, graphs, and tables. The researcher tested the hypothesis by use of the chi-square test at a significant level of α =<.05. Findings revealed that teachers with a high mean score on instructional methods adaptation for learners with disabilities also had high mean scores on implementation of CBC in a regular class. Only about 13(29.5%) of teachers occasionally adapted teaching materials to learners with disabilities. Most of the materials mentioned were missing in the class for the implementation of CBC TO learners with disabilities. Similarly, most of the materials such as tables, charts, graphics, and computers were those used in a standard classroom and therefore lacked adaptation for use by learners with disabilities in a CBC class. most schools had inadequate knowledge of material resources for learning by learners with disabilities. Most school officials failed to understand the difference between the materials used in the standard classroom and the adapted materials for special instruction for learners with disabilities which hampered the proper implementation of CBC. Only about 2(5%) of the teachers from public schools had attended seminars and workshops on special needs education, while about 14(35%) belonged to private schools. Consequently, teachers who had attended the seminars and workshops in special needs education revealed that the knowledge gained during the training improved their skills in material resource adaptation for learners with disabilities. The study recommended the need for mass training of teachers in the use of adapted material resources and adaptation of material resources for the accommodation of learners with disabilities in Nairobi, Kenya.