Child Friendly School Policies In Kenya Education Essay

Child Fri polish offly condition Policies In Kenya training analyseThe purpose of this essay is to explore what Child Friendly t apiece policies could aim from proportional degree and inter subject Research. Reference to CFSs in Kenya pull up stakes be do with emphasis on the place instituteting of CFSs, flow rate work asides and emerge critics, success stories, problems and pitf alls and what CIR bunghole do to subjugate several(prenominal) of these challenges. I will start by examining the rationale for exploring CFSs, based on writings and my professional go. Following this background will be literature surrounding the concepts of CIR and CFSs in relation to spheric agendas, exploring how CFSs came into existence and the driving forces behind it. I then go on to point on a case study of CFS in Kenya, discussing the consumption of CIR in the Kenyas CFS, arguing that CIR is designd as a political pricking in creating come upmental insurance, rather than a look for method or an intellectual inquiry. I will still overcritically analyze challenges lining CFSs and how k promptlyledge on CIR underside contribute more effectively to self-made implementation of CFS policies. A conclusion based on the literature and authors last will then be drawn. Throughout the essay, I build a case in favour of CIR arguing that CIR stimulates critical reflections close to our program lineal systems by investigating commonalities and differences across national borders.Background and Rationale relative degree and world-wide didactics is one of the main battlefields of reproduction with some benefits, judged by the volume of studies reported in the literature. Central to this is that many countries or so the world down formulated some of their instructional policies based on knowledge and explore from CIR. With the current wave of world-wideization, enquiryers and experts, especially in the field of facts of life, be always trying t o find ways of streamlining their teaching methodal policies with the globose trends. match to Giddens (199064), globalization is the intensification of worldwide br an different(prenominal)ly relations which link length local anaesthetic anestheticities in much(prenominal) a way that local happenings atomic number 18 cause by yetts occurring many miles away and vice versa. Global forces t herefore accept an impact on shaping local practices at grass resolve aims. In order to do this tactically and critically, comparative and internal research remains cutting edge in informing people near the realities, the challenges and the possible effects of uncritical transfer of thoughts.One of the key phylogenys in teaching method has been the prioritisation of cardinal educational activity as opposed to adult education or higher education. In Africa, this would be probably because, as Okand so forth (2004) points out, prefatory education yields higher rates of returns c omp ard to higher education. This has subsequently influenced g everyplacenment and non-governmental organizations to decoct more on improving the feature of staple education. Child-friendly schools (CFSs) in Kenya is an pillow slip of a initiative sponsored by UNICEF with the aim of not just providing babyren reclaim to education but the right to the right education. In other words, CFSs atomic number 18 more gift-to doe with with the look of underlying education in adjunct to its approach shot. The emergence of CFSs in Kenya was catapulted by the forces of agendas 1 and 2 of Millenium Development Goals (MDGs) which emphasizes on the provision of basic education. The World Education Forum (2000) agreed on six Education For All (EFA) goals. The sixth goal concerned Education attribute, improving all aspects of the tonicity of education and ensuring excellence of all so that recognised and measurable interpreting outcomes be light upond by all, especially in literac y, numeracy and essential purport skills. The term part in education is energizing because of the social, political and frugal context at which it is apply. Milligan (2011276) adds that quality has, thus, been placed as an integral cog in the educational ontogenesis machine although how educational quality is defined is a matter of great contention. Because of differences in contexts, it is pressing that knowledge of comparative and international research be used in designing policies and pedagogy in CFSs that fit that concomitant context.Furthermore, with the fear that some countries may lag behind as others move forward, countries from sub-Sahara Africa ar now engaging in various practices in order to achieve these educational goals, a race against the 2015 set deadline for attainment of EFA goals. As the clock ticks towards the social class 2015, anteriority goals in education may change for post-2015 and the worry is further elevated. One of the efforts the government of Kenya is doing to improve the quality of education is by consolidation CFS model into the basic education system. Two major questions arise here First, how is CFS realistic considering myriad challenges lining the FPE form _or_ system of government in Kenya? Secondly, if integrating CFS model into basic education will help in improving the quality of education, what lessons trick CFS policies learn from CIR? It is against this background that the purpose of this essay hinges.Literature canvassIn this section, I will look at the concepts of Comparative and International Research (CIR) and Child Friendly check (CFS) based on the literature and merge them with the global forces that influenced the emergence of CFS with an attempt to unveil the voices behind the psychiatric hospital of CFS in Kenya. In addition, I will use an example of optical prism experience in Kenya to reinforce the witnessing of the character of international bodies in promoting quality through close ly strategized and executed projects, arguing that lessons from PRISM experience can be used as insights to successful implementation of CFS policies.Concepts of Comparative and International Research (CIR) and Child Friendly School (CFS)CIR is a alliance of deuce broad beas of research Comparative Research and International Research. To understand its fully marrow, it is all important(predicate) we define the two areas of research separately. In his rendering of comparative research, mill about et al (year) argue thatComparative research is a broad term that entangles both quantitative and qualitative comparison of social entities. Social entities may be based on many lines, such as geographical or political ones in the form of cross-national or regional comparisons. (p. 621)A similar perception was echoed by Noah and Eckstein (1969127), who described comparative education as an intersection of the social sciences, education and cross-national study which attempts to use c ross-national entropy to test propositions about the alliance between education and family and between teaching practices and learn outcomes.In light of this definition, comparative research in the context of education can be defined as a study of two or more entities or events (Crossley Watson, 2003) with the underlying goal of searching for similarity and variance. Cross-national or regional comparisons may include comparing educational policies, pedagogy, educational leadership and so on. According to Mills et al (2006 621), the search for variance places more emphasis on context and difference in order to understand specificities.International education, on the other hand, can be defined as the application of descriptions, analyses and insights learned in one or more nations to the problems of developing educational systems and institutions in other countries (Wilson 2000a 116). Thus, international research is concerned with research carried out across two or more countries , often with the purpose of comparing responses between them. This capacity be done in order to devise strategies that work well across both or all these cultures or to suggest local adjustments to a global strategyThere is a close relationship between comparative and international education. Epstein (1994 918) points out, that international educators use findings derived from comparative education to understand get around the unconscious processes they examine, and thus, to enhance their ability to groom insurance. We can then draw from the above two definitions that CIR in education as a method of comparing both qualitative and quantitative entities in education across different countries, societies or cultures with the aim of learning similarities and differences. It is however important to note that not all international research is comparative, and not all comparative research is international or cross-national.According to UNICEF (2007), a child-friendly school is both a child seeking school and a child-centred school It is child seeking because it actively identifying excluded children to get them enrolled in school. It is a child-centred school because it acts in the best interests of the child leading to the realization of the childs full potential, is concerned about the wholly child her health, nutritionary status, and well- beingness and concerned about what happens to children before they enter school and after they leave school. A CFS system recognizes and respect childrens right and responsibilities it provides the enabling environment to realize childrens right not provided in schools, but also in childrens home and their communities. These include children from difference of opinion zones, street children and children with disabilities. The Child-Friendly Schools model (see fig 1) is based on simple, rights-based concepts that would have all schools beRights Based School CFS proactively seeks out-of-school children and encourages t hem to enrol, irrespective of gender, race, ability, social status, etceteraGender Sensitive School CFS promotes catchity and equity in history and trans carry through among girls and boys.Safe and Protective School CFS ensures that all children can learn in a safe and inclusive environment.Community Engaged School CFS encourages partnership among schools, communities, parents and children in all aspects of the education process.Academically Effective School CFS provides children with relevant knowledge and skills for surviving and thriving in life.Health Promoting School CFS promotes the physical and emotional health of children by meeting key nutritional and health care ask within schools.(UNICEF, 2007)Fig 1 manikin of the Child-Friendly SchoolSource UNICEF, Global Education Strategy, 2007The CFS model provides a exemplar for planning (and monitoring the effectiveness of) strategies for increasing gravel to quality basic education with the specific focus on the development of strategies to include those children further excluded from education (UNICEF, Global Education Strategy, 2007). It is important to note that in that location is no one-way to make a school child-friendly. The model may differ from country to country depending on the context.International and Local Pressures and their influences to formation of CFS in KenyaEducation in sub-Sahara Africa, and indeed in Kenya, is crafted from both influences by global trends in education and the legacies of colonialism. Chisholm and Leyenderker (2008) observe thatSince 1990, the goals and purpose of education in sub-Sahara Africa has been reshaped by four interconnected developments globalisation, the changed focus of international aid agencies towards development helper, the fitting of sub-Sahara African countries to the new world order with its new political emphases, and the spilling over of new pedagogical ideas from the USA and Europe into sub-Sahara Africa. (p 198)Kenya is a signatory to a number of conventions in education, including the Convention to the Rights of the Child (1989), the World Declaration on Education for All (Jomtien, 1990), the Dakar accord and the Millenium Development Goals (2000). In achievement of education development goals, Kenya is bound to, among other things, quality education by MDGs. The Jomtien call for access for access, equity, quality and democracy in education appeared to cry both social and economic development (Chisholm and Leyenderker, 2008). Social and economic development, and continues to be believed, requires educational change and educational change is necessary for social and economic development (ibid). Educational change, in turn, is perceived to depend on, amongst other things, the infix from relevant development assistance projects. These projects, in the arena of education, are typically formulated with reference to internationally negotiated development agendas (like the MDGs) and priority (Crossley Watson, 2003). An example of these projects in Kenya is CFSs which are support by United Nations Childrens Fund (UNICEF). The Education arm of UNICEFs Programme Division introduced the Child Friendly Schools (CFS) fashion model for schools that serve the whole child in 1999 (Chabbott, 2004).Rationale for introducing CFS framework in KenyaThe increased trustfulness of foreign aid to support education reform in Kenya has been go with by a transition, from understanding education as a human being right and the general good to viewing it primarily in damage of its contribution to national growth and well-being through the development of the knowledge and skills societies are deemed to need (Arnove Torres 2007359). Occasional voices continue insisting that education is liberating, that eruditeness is inherently developmental (ibid 359).With the global concern that Sub-sahara Africa countries may not achieve Universal Primary Education (UPE) by 2015 unless the progress is accelerated (Carceles et al., 2001 Bennel, 2002), Kenya responded by introducing Free Primary Education (FPE) policy in 2003 with both local and global pressure. The rationale behind introducing FPE was (apart from the pressure from global and international agendas) to appease poverty attributed to lack of literacy skills. The success story behind implementation of FPE policy is the increased enrolment at primary schools by nearly 50%, from 5.9 million in 2003 to 9.38 million pupils according to the Kenya Economic Survey 2011. However, there are myriad challenges facing the implementation of FPE policy there are not enough textbooks, classrooms are overcrowded and the infrastructure in many schools is shortsighted for the numbers of pupils attending. Many of the schools do not have sanitation facilities. The teacher-pupil ratio is quite high according to UNESCO there are more than 40 pupils per teacher, on average. All of these factors militate against the provision of quality teaching. There is no magic wand for fixing this problem of quality in education. In response to this CFS were introduced in Kenya. According to UNICEF (20061)The challenge in education is not simply to get children into school, but also to improve the overall quality of schooling and address threats to participation. If both quality and access are tackled, children who are enrolled in primary school are likely to continue, complete the full bout, and achieve expected study outcomes and successfully transition to secondary school.The CFS framework (see appendix 3) aims at promoting child-seeking, child-centred, gender-sensitive, inclusive, lodge-involved, protective and healthy approaches to schooling and out-of-school education with a general goal of improving the quality of learning.Since CFSs are concerned with the quality of learning, it is important we look at the meaning of quality. The national examinations to concur the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) at the end of primary roll and the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) at the end of secondary cycle are designed to evaluate the extent to which the primary and secondary graduates outstrip the curriculum content. In other words, the national test scores are used as the indicators of quality. The limitation of this indicator is that it does not take into note the context at which learning takes place i.e. the learning environment, learners unique characteristics etc. There are many definitions of quality but one of the descriptions of quality which emphasizes on the context was by Tikly (201110) who argued thatA good quality education is one that enables all learners to realise the capabilities they require to become economically productive, develop sustainable livelihoods, contribute to peaceful and popular societies and enhance wellbeing. The learning outcomes that are required vary according to context but at the end of the basic education cycle must include threshold levels of literacy and nume racy and life skills including awareness and prevention of disease.In his description, Tikly believes that a good quality education arises from interactions between three overlapping environments, namely the policy, the school and the home/community environments. In his perception of quality education, Tikly puts context into consideration i.e. needs of the learner, cultural and political contexts. In addition, he emphasizes on the relevance of what is taught and learned and how it fits the constitution of particular learners in question. This encourages policy makers to take cognisance of changing national development needs, the kinds of schools that different learners attend and the forms of educational disadvantage faced by different groups of learners when considering policy options(ibid11).The fact that CFS emphasizes on learner-centered pedagogy and puts the child at the centre or focal point in the learning process raises the idea of what is regarded as valuable knowledge a nd how this knowledge is acquired in this particular context. This leads us to the inquiry on the school of thought or image behind introducing a contextualized CFS framework. CFS as an approach to education is premised on constructivism, a theory of knowledge arguing that humans generate knowledge and meaning from interaction between ideas and real experiences. According to constructivists, the notions of reality and truth are socially constructed and in different context with the understanding that knowledge is immanent and embedded in multiple realities. Thus, quality of learning should be viewed in the context in which it is occurs.Towards Quality Basic Education In Kenya create Research Capacity and EvaluationBefore we acknowledge the contribution of CFS in providing quality education to the children at Primary school level, it will be prudent to review some of other contributions that has been made by international organizations in collaborations with the local government in promoting quality of education at grassroot levels in building research capacity.Kenya has had a history of benefiting from international assistance in its education sector. One of the programmes is the Primary Schools Management (PRISM), an initiative of DfID through the Ministry of Education, which places a lot of emphasis on participatory approaches and emphasis on mobilising community support, resource care and utilisation, supporting learning of pupils and developing action plans. It targeted teacher training and management and the impact of this is overall effectiveness of an education system which has a direct bearing on quality of education. According to Otieno Colclough (200926), PRISM is regarded as one of donor-funded programmes which had most positive impact on quality of basic education and CFS can learn from it. As Crossley et al ()notes, the main objective of PRISM was to improve the quality of primary education through the training and support of head teachers in practical management skills. Borrowing from the PRISM experience it is worthy learning that well think and organized CFSs policies involving community participation at grass root level could help amplify local voices and lead to successful implementation of educational policies not only in Kenya but also other move of African contexts.Challenges in implementing CFS in KenyaIn this section I will explore common challenges associated with the CFSs with an aim of illuminating and critiquing the gap between policy and practice in CFSs.Access and Quality Dilemma Which one should be root priority?As I mentioned earlier, one of the role of CFS in Kenya is to improve the quality of learning. But the access to education is still a challenge in Kenya and there is fear that Kenya will not have achieved EFA goals 1 and 2 by the year 2015. As we near the 2015 set deadline for the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals, at a time when hopes should be high, universal access to primary education in Kenya seems to be slip away. Many comparative researchers argue that different countries have different educational problems and it is the countrys obligation to identify what should be the priority and why. Aksoy (2008 218) observes thatWhile developed countries are mainly engaged in activities to increase the quality of education, or they practice and seek new techniques and methods of learning and teaching, developing countries struggle to provide equal opportunities for education, trying to increase the rate of participation of all citizens in basic education, which is actually compulsory. To deal with its educational problems, each country works out countrywide or local solutions, depending on the nature of the problem.The tone of such statement is more closely allied to the question of priority. Priority in one country may not be a priority in other. In Kenya, the major problem basic education is facing is of access while higher education is facing the problem o f quality. CFS focus more on quality, but in the Kenyan context, access to education is still a problem in basic education even after the introduction of FPE. The CFS concept of quality can however causal agency very well in some dispirited state solid ground countries which have almost universal access to basic education. It has been noted that small sates have now shifted education priorities towards focus in school effectiveness, quality and inclusion (Crossley, 2002) after ensuring that all children have accessed basic education and CFSs in Kenya should learn from small states that the priority should now be on access to basic education before shifting to quality.Atomizing the child is child-centred the solution to quality CFS?A key feature of a right-based, CFS system is that it is linked tightly to the child-centred learning process. CFS advocates for child-centred learning where a child is treated as a single entity or an atom in learning processes. The idea of atomizing a child has its drawbacks derived from child-centred learning. First, there is an oversight on early year development behaviour of the child. Psychologists believe children undergo various levels of development and their learning behaviours are different at each level. For instant, Vygotskys (1978) concept of the zone of proximal development (ZPD) implies that a child cannot ordinary create ZPD by himself he needs the more expert individual to bridge the gap between his current development level and his proximal level of development. Secondly, a child-friendly, democratic learning environment may not work successful in overcrowded classrooms and school with limited resources like it is the case in Kenya. Thirdly, child-centred learning weakens the role of the teacher. The idea that a child must be active in saying of knowledge is often understood to imply a diminishing role for the teacher in learning process who now becomes a carriage or a facilitator. A call for paradigm renovati on, from an exclusively child-centred learning to a combination of both child-centred learning and teacher-centred learning approach is important so that the weakness of one method is complemented by the other method.What Lessons can Kenya learn from other Countries in Implementing CFS? A Review on the share of Comparative ResearchKing (2007) emphasizes the need to explore the tension between the national and the international policy agendas in Kenya in order to make informed decisions when crafting educational policies. Clearly, this is a view that acknowledges the contribution of CIR researchers in bridging theories, policies and practices with both local and global minds (Crossley, 2000) in trying to identify discloses grounds to critically reflect and determine appropriate course of action.Apparently, the term that is commonly used in Kenya and indeed many Africa countries in the initial processes of designing an educational policy is benchmarking. Essentially, this is usually a comparative study which is carried out locally and/or internationally in trying to compare different models of policy framework with the aim of critical adaption or adoption. Lessons are well learnt when a comparisons are made, and this underscores the strength and significance of comparative research. Moreover, since problems transcend national borders, it is prudent to seek possible solutions from a similar experience in another country, and this explains why international research is important. Kenya can learn from other countries that are either progressing or failing to implement CFS policies because lessons can either identify opportunities or gaps, based on comparative analysis. In these respect therefore, I have identified two key elements of CIR which could help implementation of CFS.The first element is on identification of the gap between policy and practice. Documenting the emerging good practices and lessons learned within the regions is useful in informing inducti on based programming and advocacy to enable us to achieve better results. For example, a Global Evaluation Report published by UNICEF in 2009 on comparative studies of how to six countries (Guyana, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Philippines, South Africa, Thailand) with different experiences implementing CFS, demonstrated the hobbyCFSs in varying contexts successfully apply the three key principles of CFS models-inclusiveness, child-centredness and democratic participation.Schools operating in very different national contexts, with different levels of resources and component populations with different needs have succeeded in being child-centred, promoting democratic participation, and being inclusive.Schools that had high levels of family and community participation and use of child-centred pedagogical approaches had stronger conditions for learning, that is, students felt safer, supported and engaged, and believed that the adults in the school supported the inclusion and success of each stu dent. (UNESCO, 2009)Kenya can use this success report to assist in providing a broader vista on the ways in which CFSs can contribute to quality in the countrys unique context. The caution should however be that any steps taken should have hindsight of the current context in the country to avoid uncritical transfer of practice which may end up opening a Pandoras box.Secondly, through CIR, studies of educational systems that share similar problems can provide teaching for learning possible consequences. A recent comparative evaluation research conducted by UNESCO in Nigeria, Gunaya, Thailand and the Philippines on CFS pedagogy gave different findings. While teachers in Nigeria and Guyana mainly focused on meeting basic instructional clobber needs (textbooks, paper), many teachers in Thailand and the Philippines focused on having greater access to information and communication technology (UNESCO 2009). Kenya experiences the same challenge as Nigeria and Gunaya, and data from these countries can be used to learn how they coping with inadequate basic instructional material. The caution here should be, that common problems may prevail in different countries, but common model cannot be applied because each country has different culture/context (Crossley Watson, 200339). This provides invaluable information of what to adopt, commute or avoid.ConclusionIt is worthy reiterating Crossley(2003) emphasis that context matters and different countries have different needs and priorities even if they are faced with the same challenges. The care for of CIR is studying foreign systems of education in order to become better fitted to study and understand our own (Sadler 1900, reprinted 1964310) and CIR can be used as a lense to focus on adaptable or adoptable practices. UNICEF repeatedly emphasises that CFS is a pathway to educational quality rather than a blueprint and that it is counterproductive to regard the CFS model as rigid, with a kick in number of defining chara cteristics or key components (2009c, Ch. 1, p. 9). Thus, the essay sought to preface an overview in favour of the contribution of CIR by highlighting what CFS policiesin the Kenyan context could learn from CIR. As such, the essay acknowledges the role of CIR in exhilarating critical thinking and reflections about CFSs system by evaluating its success and failures, strengths and weaknesses. This critical reflection facilitates self evaluation in our own context and the land for determining appropriate courses of action. The essay also hints that CIR helps us understand global agendas and how they shape educational development projects from organizations and development agencies.