School Leadership and Curriculum Implementation: Challenges and Constraints in the Zimbabwean Education System

School Leadership and Curriculum Implementation: Challenges and Constraints in the Zimbabwean Education System

Francis Matowo¹, John Tenha^2
1Chimoyo School, Box 60. Mutoko. Zimbabwe.
²Faculty of Education, Zimbabwe Open University, P. O. Box MP 1119, Mount Pleasant, Harare, Zimbabwe

DOI: https://doi.org/10.47772/IJRISS.2023.70519

Received: 11 April 2023; Revised: 21 April 2023; Accepted: 27 April 2023; Published: 29 May 2023

ABSTRACT

The research examined the challenges that rural school heads faced in implementing the new curriculum in Zimbabwe. Six primary school heads participated in this study. Curriculum changes were initiated as a key focus to restructuring the educational system with a strong emphasis placed on its implementation. The changes were intended to improve the quality of education for the benefit of learners. Qualitative and quantitative research approaches were employed, and the case study research design was used. The population comprised of twenty-eight primary schools in Mutoko district and from these six primary schools were purposefully selected. Interview guides, observation guides and document analysis schedules were used in this research study. The use of the three methods of gathering data was meant to increase the validity and reliability of the findings. The data from interviews were transcribed word for word and that from observations and document analysis were coded and then classified into different categories of themes. Findings revealed that teacher expertise, inadequate resource materials and lack of parental involvement in school activities were challenges that school heads faced in implementing the new curriculum. It was found out that Ministry involvement was greatly needed to equip schools with the requisite teaching staff and adequate resources for effective implementation of the new curriculum to take place.

Key Words: curriculum, curriculum implementation, learning areas, attitudes

INTRODUCTION

Regular curriculum review is important in the school education system to ensure that it remains responsive to the ever-changing environment. Factors such as knowledge expansion, societal interactions and changes, technological advancements, and the need to understand and resolve emerging challenges and issues are but some causes for the need for curriculum review. After the review, the implementation of the curriculum follows. Ornstein and Hunkins (2014) advocate that this is the most critical and at times the most difficult stage of the curriculum development process. Curriculum implementation has been defined by Nevenglosky (2018:17) as, “… how teachers deliver instruction and assessment through the use of specified resources provided in a curriculum.” The aspect of resources is prominent in this definition thus indicating their importance in the process of curriculum implementation. The implementation process enables educational planners to reflect on the effectiveness of the teaching and learning methods to achieve the goals of the curriculum. Effective curriculum implementation can be a challenge if proper planning on how the implementation process is to take place is not done. Karakuş (2021) advocates that even though a curriculum might have all the necessary features, teacher and learner characteristics, and technical challenges may prevent effective implementation of the curriculum.

Background of the Problem

This study sought to investigate the challenges faced by rural school heads in implementing the new curriculum. It looked at the factors that militate against the successful implementation of the new curriculum in schools. This was necessitated by the fact that very little or no attention was paid by the ministry of education authorities to find the causes for failures of planned educational programmes in rural schools. In addition, Njagu (2017) pointed out that even though most articles in the press justified the need for curriculum reform, there was little said about the way these reforms were being implemented in schools. Curriculum reform in Zimbabwe emanated from the 1999 Nziramasanga Commission which stressed the need for the Zimbabwean education system to conform to global standards. It was discovered that education in Zimbabwe since the colonial era was, “… overly academic in nature and did not cater for most learners, among other things (Marume, 2016).Thus the need for its review. The new curriculum framework 2015-2022, “… sets out what learners are expected to know, understand, value and be able to do as a result of their learning experiences in schools and non-formal education settings from Early Childhood Development (ECD) to secondary level” (Curriculum Framework for Primary and Secondary Education 2015-2022:2). New in this curriculum framework is the introduction of learning areas. Whereas teachers were used to subjects taught in schools, these were replaced with learning areas which the Curriculum Framework (2015-2022:30) defines as “… cluster(s) of knowledge domains around which related themes and topics are constructed.” Eight learning areas were identified at Junior School level by the Curriculum Framework which constitute the curriculum. The learning areas are languages, mathematics, heritage, and Life-skills Orientation Programming – social studies, science and technology, agriculture, visual and performing arts, family, religion and moral education, physical education, sport, and mass displays. These were particularly new to teachers who by then were used to subject areas. Thus, for effective implementation of the new curriculum, teachers with a strong belief in their capacity to produce the desired educational outcomes and schools were needed. In addition, a stable socio-economic status is also needed (Bryk et al., 2010).  It was with this in mind that the researchers were motivated to find out that which affected the effective implementation of the new curriculum in schools.

Statement of the Problem

Most educational programmes, projects and even policies fail at implementation stage because of several challenges. The implementation stage is the most critical stage in the planning and development of educational programmes. However, there has been minimal research focusing on teachers’ enactment of the new curriculum instructional policy like the current initiative to have learner-centred pedagogy. Such scarcity of research on curriculum implementation processes signaled the need for the present research.

Research Questions

1. What are the revenue inflows of schools like in relation to the implementation of the new curriculum?
2. What are the competency levels of teachers in schools towards effective implementation of the new curriculum?
3. What is the role of parents in curriculum implementation?
4. How can school heads rectify the challenges that schools face in the implementation of the new curriculum?

LITERATURE REVIEW

This section reviewed related literature to develop a deeper understanding of the study. Literature was reviewed under the following topics.

Implementing the new curriculum.

The ministry of primary and secondary education in Zimbabwe introduced a new curriculum in 2017 (Curriculum Framework, 2015 – 2022) with philosophies that guide instructional activities. The curriculum framework emphasises the engagement of learners in addressing real life problems. The curriculum is more technologically biased. It is called the competence-based curriculum that aims to equip the learner with practical skills in areas that the learner shows competence such as specialising in computers if the child shows talent in that direction. The new curriculum considers course work and examination results to determine learners’ pass mark. Learners conduct research in different areas during their learning and teachers assess the learners’ work continuously in a process they call continuous assessment learning activities (CALA). It regards school leaders as key actors who provide safe, pleasant, and learner friendly learning environments in schools. The process of the implementation of the curriculum involves both the school heads and teachers. It is the teachers who spend more time with learners in classrooms than the principals. In a study carried out by Gondo et al., (2019) on curriculum implementation in Zimbabwe, they found out that teachers and heads lacked consultative engagement by the curriculum planners before the introduction of the new curriculum. This prompted this study where the researchers sought to find out the challenges that rural primary school heads faced in effectively implementing the new curriculum.

Teacher expertise and attitudes

The success of curriculum implementation depends on the ability of teachers to understand the new curriculum (Nsibande, 2002). Karakuş (2021), states that this is so because it is the teacher who turns the written curriculum document into practice therefore the influence of teachers in the success of curriculum implementation cannot be ignored. The lack of relevant skills in areas like Information and Communication Technology (ICT) implies mediocre performance by teachers assigned to teach those learning areas. With no electricity and computers in rural areas it proves difficult to effectively implement the new curriculum thus making teachers leave out some important aspects in the curriculum because of not understanding them. Cheung and Wong (2012) point out that the better teachers understand a curriculum, the better they would implement it. When they know what they should do, Ekawati (2017) argues that the teachers would try hard to implement the curriculum properly.

Since the interpretation of the curriculum and putting it into practice depends essentially on the teachers, it requires that teachers have adequate knowledge, skills, a positive approach, and passion for teaching. Some teachers may willingly contribute to the process of new innovations, and some may not easily accept change. Zhou, a leader of a teachers’ union in Zimbabwe (cited in Moyo, 2018) argued that teacher pupil ratio is big in schools so much that teachers have challenges managing such huge numbers. The high teacher/pupil ratio of 1:6o in some cases make it unworkable argued Moyo (2018). When the government froze the recruitment of teachers citing budgetary challenges, it left rural schools with insufficient specialised teachers in different areas. In their Hong Kong study Cheung and Wong (2012) found out that the workload on teachers impacted on curriculum implementation.

Teacher education provides a platform for teachers to acquire the required knowledge, skills and develop positive attitudes, beliefs, and values. Most teachers were trained in the old curriculum thus the gap in knowledge and expertise in implementing the new curriculum. Nevenglosky (2018) argues that teachers require additional information and an understanding of the demands on their personal time before the start of the curriculum implementation process. Kosgei (2015) contends that staff development and training is needed to equip teachers with new teaching methodologies and skills necessary for effective teaching and for the performance of other duties. Since teachers interpret policy statements into actual activities, they should have a positive mind of whatever they deliver. Cobbold, (2017) believes that training teachers is useful in socialising them since they can communicate with each other. Professionally training teachers also increases their content knowledge and teaching skills thus being able to offer richer content to learners. Rahman et al., (2018) sums up saying professionally training teachers help them to understand the curriculum fully. This is likely to enable them to effectively perform their duties in a dynamic education system. The acquisition of new skills and knowledge help increase both quantity and quality of work output by the teachers.

Teachers’ attitudes also need checking. Without changing teachers’ attitudes towards the implementation of the new curriculum, change is very difficult. According to Cheung and Wong (2012) professional development workshops prepare workers for the impending change. They believe teachers should be guided to change and fit to tackle new challenges. Teachers must have new norms, beliefs, and attitude if they are to implement the new curriculum successfully. Fullan (2005) believes that educated personnel are needed to manage resources. Trained workers are a vital human resource that can transform other resources. Cheung and Wong (2012) agree that quality teaching and learning is guaranteed if workers are skillful and knowledgeable. Therefore, school heads need to recruit qualified teachers who can deal with the demands of the new educational programmes. School heads need to mentor teachers, manage their welfare, and treat stakeholders properly to ensure successful implementation of new educational programmes.

Teaching and learning materials

Resources are an important support structure because curriculum achievements largely depend on their availability in schools (Department of Education, 2000). No meaningful teaching and learning can take place without adequate resource materials. Muskin (2015) emphasises the importance of material resources by saying a lack of these in classrooms, results in difficulties in the implementation of a curriculum, no matter how talented a teacher might be. The new Zimbabwe curriculum calls for teaching and learning materials particularly ICT tools. Most rural schools do not afford these due to lack of electricity and the financial background of the parents. This can cause stress and strain on teachers leading to low morale on the part of teachers and ultimately to ineffective curriculum implementation. In line to this, Singh, (2012) advocates that the lack of resources necessary for the execution of teaching and learning inhibits effective curriculum implementation. Thus, governments should provide the necessary materials to schools (Kurniawan, 2015) to support curriculum implementation. Adequate teaching and learning materials such as textbooks, teachers’ guides, computers, and other relevant equipment must be availed to schools. The belief is resources must be identified before implementing any educational programme. Cameroon et al., (2003) concur when they point out that schools need to be ready when they want to implement new educational programmes by putting in place physical resources such as playgrounds and infrastructure. Fullan (2005), who has done research on the challenges faced in curriculum implementation believes that besides material resources schools need financial support. He believes that no school project can be done successfully without enough financial backing. Finances are needed for the purchase of equipment, teaching, and learning materials, paying wages and to start new projects. In the same vein, Cheung and Wong (2012) believe that adequate finances positively influence curriculum reform success. This points at the need for government grants to schools and for schools to supplement these through school-initiated projects.

Parental involvement

For the success of school projects, it needs parental involvement in school activities. This explains the importance of involving parents in school activities as it becomes easier for school heads to ask parents to contribute to school activities when parents are in the know of school projects.

Research states that parental involvement in the implementation of educational programmes is very important (Fullan, 2005) since it aids effective school performance. Parents have different cultural backgrounds, beliefs, and norms. Such factors influence the successful implementation of educational programmes. In some cultures, girls are not allowed to wear shorts and play soccer. Whereas some religious leaders do not allow their children to be vaccinated. Thus, parents and stakeholders need to be consulted before implementation. If not involved, resistance may be experienced during the implementation. Parental involvement involves the participation and support of parents at school and at home, which directly and positively impact on the educational performance of their children. Ng Soo Boon (2018) expresses the importance of parental involvement by stating that curriculum implementation involves extensive and intensive involvement of many stakeholders. This therefore shows the importance of involving different people in the implementation of school curriculums to ensure its success.

Infrastructure     

Infrastructure is needed in the teaching and learning process since it gives children the academic environment that is suitable for positive teaching and learning. A Report by World Bank (2017) states that strong high-quality infrastructure facilitates better instruction, improves results, and reduces dropout rates among other benefits. Zimbabwean rural schools are far behind in meeting the required standards and in some cases, learning takes place in old farmhouses and tobacco barns. Ojuok et al. (2020) advocate that good quality education is found where schools are adequately and equitably resourced, with safe and environmentally friendly and easily accessible facilities and in addition well-motivated and professionally competent teachers. Improved school infrastructure and school environments thus boost learning potentials. Achievements and failure outcomes in schools are usually associated with differences in the socio-economic status, professional background, and parental education. Schools from marginalised areas, and students attending rural schools face challenges and are more disadvantaged as they lack adequate infrastructure. This is the situation in Zimbabwean rural schools where physical facilities such as laboratories are non-existent.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

The researchers employed both the qualitative and quantitative research approaches to gather data on the challenges rural school heads face in the implementation of the new curriculum. Minichiello and Kottler (2010:12) state that “— qualitative researchers observe people in their natural settings so that they can learn from them about what they are thinking, and more importantly, why they think and act the way they do”). Cohen et al (2018:304) posit that “Quantitative research can tell us correlations, how much, whether and ‘what’, whilst qualitative research can tell us the ‘how’ and ‘why’ – the processes involved in understanding and explaining how things occur.” It is because of the characteristics of each of these research approaches that they were employed in this study.

Case study

The case study research design was used by the researchers to gather data to answer the research questions. The case study research design is useful for studying a limited number of cases, thus the researchers made use of this research design. Creswell, (2013) advocates that this design enables researchers to focus on participants as separate individuals, and not as groups. Researchers were also able to investigate every aspect of the phenomena and see patterns and causes of behavior in examining the challenges that school heads face in implementing the new curriculum in their schools.

Population

Twenty-eight primary schools in Mutoko rural district formed the population and of these six primary schools were purposefully sampled. The heads of the selected schools were the participants in the study. The selection of a sample was meant to enable a deeper understanding of the challenges school heads encounter in their efforts to effectively implement the new curriculum. A common similarity in the schools was that they were all in Mutoko district thus the learners had about the same socio-economic backgrounds. In the selection of the cases, the researchers took account of the different school contexts. The schools had variations in terms of school size and their history. Six school heads from six different schools participated in the study.

Research instruments

Interviews, document analysis and observations were conducted during the visits to the schools. This was to get a deeper understanding of the feelings of school heads towards the implementation of the new curriculum. Interview guides, observation guide and document analysis schedules were used during to collect data. Interviews were recorded and later transcribed verbatim. The field work was conducted over a period of six months with the researchers. Data analysis was started after the first visit and continued to the end of the field visits. All the gathered data were manually analysed by the researchers who employed a thematic analysis to encode the data and extract themes and patterns from the data. The use of the three methods of data gathering was meant to increase the validity and reliability of the gathered data.

FINDINGS AND CONCLUSION

This section presents the research findings. The data is presented and discussed in tables and as narrative reports. The research was carried out to establish the challenges encountered by rural primary school heads in implementing the new curriculum in Mutoko district. To start with, the presentation of the participant’s demographic data is done.

Demographic data

Data was collected from six primary school heads who were the participants in the study. It was important to determine gender of the participants. All the participants were males. This is indicative of the staffing position in Zimbabwean rural schools. More males as compared to females are found in rural schools than in urban areas.

Table 1: School heads’ highest qualifications    (N= 6)

All the heads were qualified to teach in primary schools as they were all primary school trained and had appropriate qualifications. Table 3 shows the qualifications that the school heads held. The knowledge about the school heads’ qualifications was quite important since it helped determine the heads’ ability to interpret policies and apply management skills.

Table 2: Length of service as heads (N = 6)

 The school heads had experience of school leadership. One school head had two years’ experience as a head, the other two had five years’ experience each and the remaining three ten years’ experience as school heads.  The school heads’ experience suggested that they had knowledge of their environment’s socio-economic status.

Actual Research Results

To find out the challenges faced by the schools in implementing the new curriculum, researchers started by examining the revenue streams of the schools. This was to find out how well financially resourced the schools were in terms of the fees paid by the parents. Researchers analyzed the financial documents and came out with the data shown in table 3 below.

Table 3: Cash inflow of six schools (N=6)

 The first school had an enrolment of 440. At this school 15% of the learners had paid their levies at the time of the visit whereas 85% had not yet paid. When researchers asked why there was a low rate of payment by learners the head  said, Parents are not paying levies and it is government policy that no child shall be returned home for failure to pay levies, so there is no way we can push them to pay.  The situation was the same at the second school, the greater number, 90% had not paid their levies. When asked, the head responded saying, the parents are complaining of poor harvest. The parents have no other source of income besides farming. They get their money through selling farm produce. The third school had an enrolment of 120 learners and of these only 25% had paid their levies and 75% had not. The head also cited a similar problem to school number two of poor harvest by parents. Four hundred learners were in the fourth school. Of these only 30% had paid and the majority 70% had not yet paid. .When asked why learners were not paying the head said that most parents survived on selling their products on the market, thus it took them long to raise enough money to pay for school levies on time. The fifth school had an enrollment of 600 learners and out of these only 20% had paid their levies and 80% had not paid. When asked what the possible cause could be the head cited lack of commitment by parents. The head said, they don’t value education much. Their children spend most of the time growing and delivering tomatoes to Harare. They are satisfied with farming and want their children to take farming as their full-time job without going to school. The sixth school had 800 children and only 280 pupils had paid levies which is 35%. Five hundred and twenty pupils had not paid that is, 65%. From the analysis done of the levy payments, no school recorded above half of levy collection.

The data suggests financial challenges in the schools as revenue inflow was very little. There was not enough financial support to implement the new curriculum. It indicates that the school heads struggle to get money to buy resource materials that enhance the smooth flow of the implementation of the new curriculum. Cheung and Wong (2012) believe that lack of financial support hinders progress in school activities.

  Table 4: Availability of material resources and facilities. (N=6)

When researchers focused on the availability of material resources the first school indicated that it had no agricultural equipment, science kits and no adequate stationery. When asked about the availability of material resources at the school the first school head responded as follows; our school has no money to buy agricultural equipment and parents were not willing to give their children agricultural tools fearing that the children may lose them. The lack of agricultural materials to use in the teaching and learning process implies that teachers have difficulty in implementing the curriculum. The importance of resource materials was emphasized by Muskin (2015), who stated that a lack of resource materials in classrooms, creates difficulties for teachers to effectively implement the curriculum.

According to the data collected, and as indicated in the table above, only two schools had computers. The computers were a donation from the president when he visited the schools. The other four had no computers. When asked about computers at their schools the second school head said, our school has no computers, teachers rely on friends from other schools who send them information through their personal phones. Another school head said, Learners were being asked to bring cellphones from home to use in some of the lessons that is those who have them.

The schools did not have science kits except for only one school which had a kit. The heads indicated that the kits were expensive and that their schools could not afford them. The response given by the first school head when he said, our communities are poor and cannot raise money to buy the science kits, instead, the Ministry of Education should give schools some kits, was a common statement among all the heads who had no science kits. The third head was fortunate enough to have a science kit pointed out that their school had received a science kit from their Member of Parliament.

According to the data shown in table 4 above, four schools had textbooks. The school heads indicated that the books had been donated to them by the United Nations International Children’s Education Fund  (UNICEF). However, they complained that the books were shallow, with the contents of the books not covering the syllabus. The fifth school head said, although we received books from UNICEF, the books have shallow information and do not cover all areas as indicated in the syllabus. Two school heads indicated that they had no textbooks and that teachers shared information through the WhatsApp platform. As indicated in the table, most of the school heads had stationery. School head number six said, we are assisted by some funds from the government. Data from the table indicate that school heads in rural primary schools have challenges in sourcing material resources especially science equipment and computers to effectively implement the new curriculum. They struggle to acquire material resources for their schools. Research indicates that a lack of material resources causes implementation problems. It further states that the availability of material resources in schools indicate their preparedness to implement new educational programmes. Even though material resources are important to schools, heads are facing challenges in sourcing these resources to implement the new curriculum effectively. Fullan (2005) pointed out the need for material resources and in addition the need for financial provision so that school projects can be run successfully.

Table 5: Teacher competency (N=6)

 The table shows teacher competencies at the six schools. The first school had eleven teachers and of these, two were qualified to teach the new learning areas such as Visual and Performing Arts, Information Communication Technology, and Heritage and Mass Displays. Nine teachers had not received any training in the new learning areas. The school heads indicated that the teachers were neither staff developed nor in-serviced in the new learning areas. The second school cited similar challenges. Out of the five teachers at the school, only one was qualified .The head said, our teachers lack competence, they have little knowledge and skills to teach in the new learning areas and the school has no resources to train or send the teachers for in-service training, The third school head said that his teachers were near retirement age and were reluctant to go for training. All the three teachers were not specialised to implement the new curriculum. The fourth school had 12 teachers but only one teacher was specialised in early childhood education. The other eleven had not received any training in the new learning areas. The fifth school had 15 teachers.  The school head blamed the Ministry of Education for failing to in-service teachers before rolling out the new curriculum. The head said, the cause of the shortage of qualified teachers solely rests with the Ministry of Education because it was supposed to have planned for the change beforehand. The last school had only two teachers who had knowledge and skills in the new learning areas. The other 20 teachers were not specialised.

The data shown in the table shows that all the six schools had challenges of specialised teachers who had the knowledge and skills to effectively implement the new curriculum. Cheung and Wong (2012) advocate that competent workers with relevant skills and knowledge are needed for successful implementation of new educational programmes. It thus means that failure to have competent and specialised teachers may in turn affect learner academic outcomes.

 Table 6: Parental involvement in implementing the new curriculum.

On the aspect of parental involvement in school programmes it was noted that parents got involved in some school activities and not all. Five school heads indicated that parents attended meetings when called by school development committees, however the challenge was on the practical activity of paying levies on time. All the schools had school development committees which assisted school heads in developing and running school development activities. The third school head indicated having challenges with parents not attending to meetings when called upon by the school development committee. In an explanation on the possible causes why parents did not attend SDC meetings the head said, the parents are not cooperative. They don’t come when you call them for meetings. They say that they are busy in their gardens. The response suggests that planning of development activities at the school is a challenge since parents do not attend meetings. This is in line to Fullan’s (2005) argument that a lack of parental involvement in the implementation of educational programmes affect effective school performance.

Feeding programmes were not available at the schools. Although most of the schools held meetings with the SDC, they did not support the feeding programme. According to the data collected, no school had a feeding programme where learners are given food. The sixth head explained why the feeding programme did not exist by saying, parents in this area depend much on donations. When donated food is finished the feeding programme also stops. Parents have a dependence syndrome. This indicates how some programmes fail, it’s because people do not want to chip in and ensure the continuity of programmes that would have been started by others or donor organisations.

Three schools indicated that parents came for consultation with teachers to check on the progress of their children on consultation days. The other three schools indicated that parents did not come to school on consultation days. The heads of those schools cited illiteracy on the part of parents as one of the causes. They said that parents argued that they could not contribute anything during consultation because of their inability to read and write. Concerning parental involvement in schools only two schools indicated that they were satisfied with parental involvement especially in assisting children with homework. Parents in those two schools assisted their children with their homework. The other four schools had challenges. The heads pointed out that parents indicated that the work their children brought home was too challenging for them especially those on the continuous assessment learning activities. The study found out that parents in Mutoko rural primary schools paid little attention to educational programmes, they left all schoolwork for the school heads and teachers.

Different responses emerged on the efforts the heads were employing to rectify the challenges they face when implementing the new curriculum. The school heads indicated that they were continuing with the  engagement exercise of parents till they appreciated the importance of their involvement in school activities, their gaining of a few parents at a time seemed great achievements to them since they believed after some time most parents would appreciate the school efforts. Others indicated that they made greater use of their school clusters to train teachers on the teaching of the new learning areas. In this programme, specialist teachers from different schools made presentations on implementing the new curriculum to teachers at workshops done at selected venues. Other heads pointed out that they were planning school projects with school development chairpersons that would assist them generate funds. The funds were meant for to buy materials for use by teachers in the implementation of the new curriculum. It was found from the study that innovative strategies were needed on the part of school heads to raise resources that would aid them in effective implementation of the new curriculum.

 CONCLUSION

Basing on the findings the following conclusions were made:

• The lack of a strong financial base in rural schools greatly affected the effective implementation of the new curriculum.
• Material resources are an important element in schools. Their unavailability affects the effective implementation of the curriculum.
• Qualified and specialised teachers have a bearing on how teaching and learning takes place in schools, thus it is crucial that such teachers are available in schools for effective teaching and learning of all subject areas.
• Parents placed more focus on other personal activities than on the education of their children thus leading to nonpayment of fees for their children. This in turn affected the revenue that schools greatly needed to buy materials for the effective running of school programmes.

RECOMMENDATIONS

The following recommendations were drawn up from the research findings.

• The Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education should give a sufficient budget for the effective implementation of the new curriculum with a focus particularly to rural schools where parents have low incomes.
• The parent ministry should ensure that all schools are staffed with qualified teachers who can effectively implement the new curriculum.
• It is important that workshops are held at district and school level to staff develop teachers on new developments in the curriculum and the teaching of the new learning areas. An improvement of teacher attitudes towards the implementation of the new curriculum needs to be cultivated before new programmes are set in motion.
• Schools need to start income generating projects to supplement the revenue that comes from parents.
• Further study is needed on what sustainable income generating projects can be done in this district that can boost the revenues of the schools

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