An Assessment of Curriculum For Behaviour Change Among Learners With Emotional And Behaviour Disorders In Selected Juvenile Schools In Kenya

International Journal of Research and Scientific Innovation (IJRSI) | Volume VIII, Issue I, January 2021 | ISSN 2321–2705

An Assessment of Curriculum For Behaviour Change Among Learners With Emotional And Behaviour Disorders In Selected Juvenile Schools In Kenya

James Muthomi Rintaugu
Kenyatta University, Kenya

Abstract: In a global, regional and Kenyan perspective, there is a challenge as to the best curriculum to use for behaviour change among learners with Emotional and Behaviour Disorders (EBD). This study assessed curriculum for behaviour change among learners with EBD in selected Juvenile Schools (JS) in Kenya. The study was based on the social learning theory. Cross sectional descriptive research design was used. Target population comprised of all the learners in the selected JS and their managers in selected JS in Kenya. There was a total of 646 respondents. Probabilistic sampling techniques were used to select the sample. Questionnaires, interview schedules, focus group discussion, document analysis and observation schedules were used for data collection. Quantitative and qualitative data was collected, analyzed and presented. The study found that the adapted curriculum for learners with EBD was missing in JS despite being referral institutions for behaviour change. Similarly, the curriculum did not address problem solving and coping skills. The study recommends adaptation of the curriculum to address behaviour change.

Keywords: Curriculum, Adapted, Juvenile Schools, Special Needs Education.

I. BACKGROUND

In a global view, Kauffman and Polloway (2017), in a study on demographic trends in educational programs for students with EBD in USA, established that learners with EBD have significant difficulties in adjusting to school environment. As a result, educators are challenged on how best to provide for their educational needs.

In Germany, about 10% of children and about 18% of adolescents are considered to have EBD related challenges (Clinic for Child Psychosomatics, 2005). Learners in this context are remedied through early interventions and specialized interpretations of their problems.
Das and Shah (2014), in their study on Special Education today in India, points out that learners with EBD are mainly educationally deprived due to social-economic reasons and curriculum not addressing learner’s needs.
In Kenya, EBD is the least supported category of learners with disabilities with only 2% support (Kenya Institute of Special Education (KISE, 2017)). Thus, the question of behaviour change support through the appropriate curriculum is at stake.

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