Journal Research in Peace, Gender and Development (JRPGD) Vol. 3(5) pp. 68-74, July, 2013
Available online http://www.interesjournals.org/ JRPGD
Copyright © 2013 International Research Journals
Full Length Research Paper
Decentralization and emerging political scenarios:
implications to school leadership in Kenya
Kiptoo L. Kiboiy and *Ndiku Judah
Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology, P. O Box 190, Kakamega
Abstract
In the early 90’s through to date, the Kenyan education sector witnessed key policy changes that
resulted in the delegation of several responsibilities to the school level. For example, the cost sharing
policy implied that the management of school resources, i.e. the raising of revenue and expenditure
shifted to the Board of Governors (BOG), Parents, Teachers Association (PTA) and the head teacher.
The recruitment and appointment of teachers was also delegated to the Boards of Governors. As a
result there has been increased political activity at the school level where numerous interest groups
actively attempt to influence key decisions in these areas through various political means such as the
use of power, compromise, negotiation, lobbying among others. This study investigated the person’s
affected by the emerging scenarios. School heads, teachers, workers, BOGs and PTA members
constituted the study population in Nandi District of Kenya. Qualitative and descriptive statistics were
used in the analysis of data. The study found that heads are increasingly negating themselves in
balancing acts where they perpetually attempt to strike a balance between the numerous demands by
several interest groups through negotiation, lobbying, use of force, compromise, cooperation as well
and agenda control, setting. Many teachers felt they did not have strong bargaining powers hence loss
of morale. The study recommended that if there is to be increased professional input from the
teachers, then their bargaining power be strengthened through the formation of a professional
association. It also recommended that similar studies by conducted or replicated in other regions.
Keywords: Decentralization, politics, leadership styles.
INTRODUCTION
One of the key recommendations of the report of the
presidential working party for education and manpower
training for the next decade and beyond (Republic of
Kenya, 1988) was the introduction of the cost sharing
policy in Kenyan Secondary Schools. Through the
sessional paper No.6 of 1988 (Republic of Kenya (1988)
this policy was adopted.The idea behind the “cost sharing
policy” was to identify a beneficiary from a particular
service for the purpose of making him/her to contribute as
a way of sharing the cost of the service by paying a
portion of the fees and not the full amount. In the case of
the school the adoption of the policy required that the
school raises income to develop facilities, plant and meet
the greater proportion of the recurrent expenses while the
government would henceforth only pay teachers’ salaries.
Prior to this, schools were categorized as “Government
*Corresponding Author Email: ndikuyuda@yahoo.com
maintained”, “Harambee” and “private”. Government
maintained schools received full government support in
terms of capitation to finance capital and recurrent
expenses. All that principals of these schools did was to
draw a budget that factored in revenue from government
and forward it to the ministry which could then meet its
obligation. “Harambee” schools on the other hand
received no support from the government.
These
schools raised all its revenue from fees collected and
from the community as well as other projects to finance
all its operations both capital and recurrent. Private
schools as the name suggests were and are still schools
run by private businessmen and entrepreneurs and some
organizations. The categorization of schools as
“government maintained” and “Harambee” effectively
ceased with the adoption of cost sharing policy. Current
schools are either public or private.
The import of this was that school heads have found
themselves in schools that have the power to make
decisions about resources. They have to make decision
Kiboiy and Judah 69
on say what amount of resources would be spent where,
the number of staff to be employed in various sections of
the schools. Hence, the role of education officers is
becoming less of giving directives but rather to support
the decision of the school.This decentralizationhas given
more say to interest groups at the school level such as
principals, teachers, parents, sponsors and the local
community in critical decisions at the school level.
This decentralization process was further advanced
recently when the Teachers Service Commission (TSC),
the national teacher recruitment and employing body,
through a circular empowered the school boards to
recruit teachers. Under this arrangement, the head
teacher, using a standard criteria designed by the
commission shortlists candidates (this is normally after
the posts being advertised by the commission) to be
interviewed by the school board. The board will then
appoint the successful candidate(s) who fill(s)
employment forms for onward transmission to the
commission. At the primary school level, decentralization
has come in the form of allocation of grants by the
government which should be managed at the school level
in order to sustain the free primary education policy that
was adopted after the free primary education policy
through the sessional paper No. 5 of 2003 (Republic of
Kenya, 2003).
As a result of these developments, the management of
education at the school level takes a political dimension
where numerous groups with a diversity of interests
assert pressure on the decision-making organs to capture
the values of significant policy decisions.
These
participants or interested parties include elected
representatives of central, regional or local political
structure, of
employers association; trade unions,
university authorities; groups of teachers and the
associations; professional bodies, parent or community
groups (Hosen and Posterlithwante, 1985).
Most issues at the schools level elicit several varying
reactions or responses from the numerous interest
groups. Their views or proposed solutions are most often
contradictory and not easily reconcilable. This often
leads to lobbying and canvassing by these various
groups to have policy decisions that favour their value
systems and benefits. At the centre of these hustles and
jostling by the various groups is the head teacher or the
principal of the school who attempts to steer the school to
achieve its objectives. This paper attempts to establish
how these principals or heads of schools manage to
sustain calm in this political scenario and focus the
resources towards goal achievement.
Statement of the Problem
Local studies on schools as centers of political activity
are not forthcoming. However early studies conducted
elsewhere characterize the schools as centers of political
activity. Vidich and Bensmon (1960) highlight the intense
political activity at the school level. In their study, they
observe that the school board is faced with making
important decision on issues with far reaching
consequences in the local community. The school
boards decisions were seen to centre on; the budget,
curriculum and plant facilities; appointments of teachers
and support staff and school food and supply purchases.
The study observed that all these are crucial issues in the
community and decisions made in connection with them
have extensions into many other sections of community
life. The study further observed that in the particular case,
there was rural dominance at the school level, but also;
where local school policy affects business, conflicts arise
and businessmen bring pressure to bear on the school
administration in an effort to protect their business.
Other studies however reveal that, at any level, policy
or major decisions are largely a compromise between
select elite, representing major interest groups. For
instance, Housego (1975) observes that at the provincial
level, policy development is the architect of “quasi-official
organizations that is made up of interest groups that are
intensely self-centered and they work, in a form of
“coalition that is largely initiated and maintained by the
department of education. The departments object is to
force on the select interest groups some form of
cooperative decision making. Baldridge (1971) in his
study of the university conceptualizes the university
through a simple political model with five points of
analysis; social structure feature, interest articulation and
interests where these differences often lead to conflict for
what is in the interest of one group may damage another.
Baldrige further observes that it is important to examine
the social setting with its fragmented groups, divergent
goal aspiration and conflicting claim on decision makers.
This view of organization is upheld by Bacharach and
Lawler (1980) who observe that; organizations are
neither rational, harmonized entities celebrated in
managerial theory nor the arenas of apocalyptic class
conflict projected by Marxists. Rather it may be argued, a
more suitable notion lies somewhere between those two;
a concept of organization as politically negotiated orders.
This concept about organizations therefore leads to the
observation that organizational actors in the daily
transactions perpetually bargain, repeatedly forming and
reforming coalitions and constantly availing themselves of
influence tactics. Thereforeschools are organizations
characterized by intense political activity characterized by
survival tactics and articulation of interest. Stakeholders
such as head teachers Board among others hatch
survival strategies as a result of increased political
activity in schools due to decentralization to the school
level of majority policy issues cited earlier. This study
investigated the emerging political scenarios in schools
and their implications to leadership styles of head
70 J. Res. Peace Gend. Dev.
teachers in Kenya.
FINDINGS
Interest Groups and Pertinent Issues
Objectives of the Study
Given the political scenarios in schools that have been
observed, this study explored studies that have revealed
the delicate position held by school principals or those
that are similar.
METHODOLOGY
There are two broad structures of administration of
education in Kenya. First, at the headquarters of the
Government ministry is an established hierarchy with
several officers and departments working under the
overall direction of the cabinet secretary. Secondly, at
the field level there are county directors of education in
charge of counties. These officers are responsible for all
educational matters within the county; these are normally
the administrative (political) boundaries.
There are
several administrative (political) districts within one given
county. These districts each have a District Education
Officer who is responsible for all education matters and
schools within the district. The study was conducted in
Nandi North in Nandi County.This district has 84
secondary schools in various categories. For example
there are schools categorized and “county ” which means
they can admit students from the entire county at
specified proportions from the district in which the school
is situated and “other districts within the province.
“District schools” on the other hand admit students only
from the district in which the school is situated.Through
stratified and simple random sampling techniques the
study obtained 30 schools, 10 of them categorized as
county and 20 district schools. Of these, were mixed
boarding schools, girls boarding and boys boarding.
Data were collected by use of questionnaires and
interview schedules for head teachers, teachers and
Parents’ Teachers Association (PTA) Board members.
The researchers also spent long time in the schools
making observations and attending many of the meetings
by the boards, PTA and staff. During such meetings, the
researchers analyzed the procedures used, and how
decisions were arrived at. They also spent long hours
talking to the subjects in informal lessons during which a
lot of information was collected. Researchers also
clarified items in the interview schedules and explored
issues that kept coming up during informal sessions with
the
subjects.Descriptive
techniques
involving
frequencies, percentages and means were used to
analyze data.
Prior to the study the researchers identified the most
likely interest groups and attempted to identify informal
groups that may not have been identified. The formal
groups include the teachers, the Board of Governors
(BOG), the Parents’ Teachers Association (PTA) the
school sponsors, the Ministry of Education and the
students, the neighbors, the community was also found to
be an interest group with significant influence on matters
affecting the school.
On being asked to identify whether there were other
interest group that researchers had not identified, five of
the 27 (18.5%) of the heads mentioned “the local MP and
or politicians. This was interpreted to mean the political
establishment had influence.
Unlike in research
conducted elsewhere however, party affiliations did not
feature.
Seventy per cent (70%) of the schools
responded that they had sponsors. These were identified
to be the main stream churches. In this study 62%
schools were catholic sponsored and 47% protestant.As
far as “the community” as an interest group is concerned,
it emerged that there are several divisions, especially
along religious affiliates, 62% of the heads reported that
during nominations into the boards there was a clear
clash between the mainstream churches; that is catholic
and protestant that dominated the research area. Class
differences did not feature, except that 20% of the heads
mentioned that businessmen attempt to influence the
tendering procedure to favour them directly with promises
of “kickbacks” and other favours.
In order to identify the pertinent issues of concern to
the various interest groups the head teacher and each of
the respondents representing the interest groups were
asked to mention the areas of concern. Head teachers
were asked to mention the people involved in crucial
areas of school management operations of budgeting,
admissions, recruitment of teachers and non-teaching
staff development of school plant, curriculum issues and
discipline.
In terms of frequency, curriculum matters (teaching and
instruction contributed a major area of concern for
teachers (51%), 14 5 of teachers are concerned with cocurricular activities, 11.5% are interested with discipline
and guidance and counseling, while 3,7%are concerned
with lack of teaching facilities and work load.
Out of school, in terms of frequency, teachers were
most concerned with remuneration 36%, curricular
development 18.8%, and the role of the school sponsor in
the management of the school 9.09%. The issue of the
role of the sponsor, as a concern was captured also
Kiboiy and Judah 71
severally when both teachers and head teachers
expressed their distaste for the need of having school
sponsors.
One head teacher in expressing his
dissatisfaction had this to say:
‘Initially sponsors would support schools by donating
grants and other forms of support and that is when the
use of the term sponsor had meaning.
Currently,
sponsors are pre-occupied with making unrealistic
demands for our students to follow their religious beliefs
in complete disregard for their religious diversity in our
schools’.
Boards of Governors (BOG) and Parents Teachers
Associationwere found to be concernedwith development
of school plant and facilities, improved academic
performance of the students and their discipline. Board
members generally, felt they had responsibility of
representing the community’s feelings and demands
especially as far as employment of teachers and nonteaching staff. One case witnessed by one of the
researchers demonstrates how the school board can be
pressured by the local community to press for its
demands.
A position for and English and literature teacher was
advertised by the TSC in one of the sampled schools. In
following TSC’s short listing criteria the principal, who
was not a resident of the area included an applicant who
happened not to be a local resident. During the interview
by a select board, where the substantive chairman was
absent the said applicant was recruited, leaving out two
shortlisted candidates who were local residents. Two
weeks after the exercise the substantive chair convened
another panel of the board during which the appointment
of the applicant was nullified. During this board meeting
all the present members condemned the head teachers’
act of ‘using dubious means to employ an “outsider and
leaving out deserving local residents”. The chairman in
criticizing the head teacher’s action wondered how the
earlier meeting was convened without his knowledge and
confessed receiving pressure from the community. In an
interesting turn of events, the local qualified applicant
was recommended for appointment, and thereafter, the
head teacher was transferred to another school as an
assistant teacher.
Head teachers reported also that parents often
demanded high academic performance adequate
facilities and high standards of discipline. The Ministry of
Education also demanded results, discipline, strict
observance of regulations especially in procurement,
implementation of reforms and accountability.
Findings also indicated that head teachers involved
interest groups in the performance of most delegated
responsibilities. For example, heads indicated that the
DEO, area MP, BOG, sponsor and PTA were involved in
budget preparation. BOG, sponsor, DEO, PTA were
involved in admission that BOG, the area Member of
Parliament, community sponsor and principal and
principal were involved in the employment of both
teaching and non-teaching staff. Development of school
plant was mainly found to be the concern of the parents,
PTA and BOG.
Methods and Strategies used by Interest Groups
Findings indicated that the most commonly used methods
of pressing for and articulating their issues are the
opportunities created during meetings. Staff meetings
are used by teachers to air views or pertinent matters
affecting them. Board and PTA members use board
meetings and PTA meetings respectively. The sponsors
as well use the board meetings since they are
represented.
Where sponsors have an education
secretary, there were instances where policy decisions
were communicated from the headquarters. At least this
was reported by three head teachers. This however, did
not often go down well with the heads that saw it as
interfering with their professional autonomy.
Ministerial directives through circulars to schools
featured as a very effective means, used by the ministry
to give policy decisions. The legal provisions also put
ministry officers in very powerful positions of imposing
crucial policy decisions upon heads of schools. Lobbying
and canvassing was also witnessed where individuals
attempted to influence decisions by soliciting support of
the colleagues before or during meetings.
While head teachers indicated that there were channels
for students to air their views, there were at least two
cases during the research that students marched in
protest to the District Education Officers office to
complain about several issues they thought were not
being addressed. For example in one of the instances
the students grievances included: - lack of teaching
facilities, laxity among teaching staff (syllabus not being
covered) and chronic absence from the school by the
head teacher.
Unlike in the earlier times however, student protests
witnessed during the study were generally peaceful with
little or no violent destruction of property. In many
instances such protest marches take the school
unawares because the students leave the school in the
dead of the night in order to arrive at the education
offices in the morning (many schools are located far from
their offices).
As for the teachers, as indicated earlier, their main
avenue of influencing decisions was staff meetings and
60% of the teachers reported they were able to influence
decision within the school through such meetings.
However, 80% responded these major policy decisions
were made outside the schools and they had no influence
at all. These major decisions were imposed on them and
in an interview with one of them, she asserted that “we
are just on the receiving end and our feelings and
attitudes as professionals do not really matter at all, we
only have to implement policy decisions by people whose
72 J. Res. Peace Gend. Dev.
professional competence we do not even know, we have
no professional autonomy.
In one encounter, a long serving chemistry teacher in
one of the schools was so incensed when he learned that
in a new prescribed syllabus certain topics that he had
considered fundamental in the discipline had been
removed. Expressing anger, the teacher said he would
rather do something else than teach what he knows was
not sufficient for his students
Ina similar incident, several geography teachers
expressed dissatisfaction with the introduction of certain
topics that they felt were too complex for learners at form
two. They however knew that they could do nothing
about it.
Although teachers were members of organizations
such as the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT)
and Kenya Union of Post Primary Teachers (KUPPET)
70% of these members did not see their membership as
enabling them to influence policy.
Head teachers Techniques/Styles
Most heads (80%) reported that education and
explanation or guidance as the most effective way of
handling demands from the various groups. This was
stated both in writing and verbally to the researchers.
Many head teachers say that they use meetings to give
explanations to why demands could not be met. It was
observed that this calls for strong communication skills
and use of several communication channels.
During discussions with the researchers, most heads
(67%) acknowledged that persuasion is the only available
powerful too especially in dealing with “informed parents,
teachers, employees and students.” Other strategies
most frequently used by heads in order of most frequently
mentioned and observed include lobbying, negotiation,
control of agenda and use of communicational co-option
and use of bureaucratic resources including sanctions.
Lobbying was mainly observed in staff and board
meetings prior to the actual meetings. Heads would
tactfully sell an idea they wanted adopted to a few
teachers or board members who were likely to support
them. During meetings, this idea would tactfully be
brought up by a member from the floor and would gain
support. Being the chair during staff meetings, the
principals would give opportunity the teacher to sell the
idea.
This would easily get the support of other
members. Controversial issues would on the other hand
receive little attention; most often they were not likely to
be in the main agenda and would only come at the end of
the meeting as “any other business”. More often than
not, these would end up being postponed to a later date.
This also applied to the board meetings where the
agenda was often set by the head teacher. Occasionally
however this failed to work when a partisan group used
radical methods to present their issues. In one of the
schools when the non-teachingstaff was extremely
dissatisfied with the manner in which the head teacher
was handling their remuneration grievances, the board
had no option but to discuss the matter as a priority when
all the subordinate staff walked into the venue of the
meeting. The head teacher had all along avoided putting
the issues as an agenda item. When the staff walked in,
the board chairman intervened and insisted that the issue
be discussed as an agenda item urgently.
Co-option was evident in several cases. In one of the
schools, the head confided that he had appointed one of
the language teachers who were always critical of his
style whenever he had staff meetings. And the head put
it aptly that “I would rather he pees from inside to the
outside thanvice-versa”. He confessed that there were
fewer troubles since his appointment.
In dealing with what heads perceived as unworkable
directives from the Ministry, the PTA and the boards were
quite handy for the heads in varying the decisions. . A
case in point is the issue of fees. In the recent past, the
Ministry has been giving fees ceilings chargeable by
various categories of schools (national, county and
district) but through Board and PTA meetings ministry
decisions were usually varied.
Because parents actually finance all the capital and
recurrent expenses, most heads would first meet PTA
officials and discuss at length matters of finance. Details
of expenses and revenue are analyzed and most often,
the officials seeing the head teachers point would agree
to some increments, often beyond the ministry’s
recommendation. The next stage would be during the
parents’ days where the head elaborately gives a record
of the income and expenses for the past year, all the time
demonstrating with detailed figures how the school
cannot operate at the current or ministry guidelines. This
always gets approval especially due to the complex
nature of the detail and the fact that the day is always a
busy one with most parents pre-occupied with many
concerns such as academics, touring the school and
even travelling back home which may be long distances.
Once the parents approve the proposals, the Board will
always not object. In this way, the head has effectively
exonerated himself from blame and tactfully used the
parents and boards to push for his agenda. As a result,
many schools do not comply with ministerial directives as
far as chargeable fees are concerned.
Formal authority also emerged as an effective means
of containingteachers. While many teachers may have
views on many issues that are contrary to the heads, the
knowledge that the head has formal authority by virtue of
his office made them agree with the head teachers’
opinions. The head is the secretary to the TSC agent,
the board, at the school and disciplinary action among
staff is normally initiated by him as the CEO. In many
cases however heads resorted to influencing the transfer
of teachers if they perceived them to be opposed to their
views.
Kiboiy and Judah 73
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION
group seems to be largely silent under the firm grip of the
head teacher.
Political Scenario at the School Level
Findings indicated that indeed with the decentralization
policy, schools have become centres of increased
political activity. The study confirms findings of earlier
research which led to the perception of organizations as
politically negotiated orders. There are several formal
and informal interest groups. Major decisions at the
school affect the community to a large extent and
therefore this attracts a lot of interest from all sectors of
the community, parents, teachers, students, politicians,
businessmen, the church and sponsors.
The various numerous players have radically differing
attitudes, values and viewpoints that are often quite
irreconcilable. Parents, for example want the schools
that they perceive belong to them admit students
irrespective of the grades attained at primary level and at
the same time would like the head teacher to post
excellent result. Sponsors of schools would like all
students to practice the faith of sponsoring church while
at the same time accept the admission of students to
different faiths.
Parents want schools to provide
adequate facilities but maintain minimum fees charged.
Local businessmen see it as a right to be awarded
tenders to supply goods and services at favorable prices
yet the government through the ministry demand strict
observance of their procurement procedures through
open tendering. Here the rule of at least three quotations
for the tendering to be considered competitive was found
to be difficult to implement. This is because of several
reasons. First, it was always difficult to obtain three
quotations. Secondly the open tender system proved to
be expensive because the businessmen always quote
prices that are higher than the market price and thirdly
heads found it better for some parents unable to raise
fees to pay through the supply of goods especially
foodstuff.
On the whole it emerged that in most schools the local
community had a strong hold or influence most decisions
of the schools. And this is especially so where there is
relative homogeneity in the population in terms of
religious affiliation.
Where most of the inhabitants
ascribe to one faith e.g. protestant or catholic, then other
factors such as class did not seem to emerge. What this
meant was that most board members most likely have
similar attitudes and views, which would also capture the
local community’s values and therefore their influence
would be strong. Visible conflict would however be
witnessed in areas where there was absence of a
dominant group for example the existence of several
denominations with almost equal influence strength.
Future research however needs to explore more on this.
Teacher influence seems to be confined to insignificant
policy decisions at the school level and only on curricular
and instruction as well as co-curricular activities. This
Strategies and Styles of the Head teacher
By and large this study corroborates findings in other
studies where it emerged that the heads werequite
powerful and can manage to impose most of their
decisions on the teachers’ board, members and the other
interest groups by employing several strategies and
techniques in a tactful manner. Although many heads
view themselves as democratic, their techniques were
more of tact in manipulating the “democratic process”.
This was often done through lobbying, negotiation, cooption, compromise, agenda control and communication.
Use of bureaucratic resources such as sanctions was
also found to be handy. Effective use of communication
is also important just as the bolder and firm personality of
the head who often said they had to be abrasive with
especially sponsors making unrealistic demands or
dictate terms with compromise.
Heads who are unable to read carefully the significant
interest views, attitudes and positions of influence often
lost their positions. Heads who were found to have
retained their positions for a relatively long time seemed
to have mastered these techniques. Future research
needs to focus on urban centres.
CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
From the findings, it was concluded that schools are
political entities where stakeholders use various methods
to articulate their interests.
It was also concluded that several methods such as
lobbying, negotiation, co-option, compromise, and
agenda control and communicationare were used by
school heads in the management of stakeholders and
their interests.
It was recommended that more research needs to
focus on particular issues and how interest groups
attempt to influence them in their favour.
REFERENCES
Baldridge JV (1971). Power and Conflict in the University. Toronto:
John Wisley and sons.
Baldridge JV, Deal TE (Editors) (1975). Managing Change in
Educational Organizations. Berkeley, California, McCutchman
Publishing Corporation
Brent D, Linda W, Allan O, John W (1990). Education Management for
the 1990s. London, Longman Group Ltd.
Castertter WB (1986) The Personnel Function in Education
th
Administration (4 Edition).
New York, Macmillan Publishing
Company.
Eicher JC (1984). Educational Costing and Financing in developing
Countries; Focus on Sub-Saharan Africa. World Bank staffing papers
No. 655
74 J. Res. Peace Gend. Dev.
Fullan M (1982). The Meaning of Educational Change. New York:
Teachers College Press.
Gravenir FQ (1991). An Assessment of Trends in Public Financing of
Education in Kenya, Kenya J. Educ. Vol. 5(1) pp. 1-17
Housego L (1975). Pluralist Politics in Education Decision Making.
Integrated Quality Education and Training (TIQET) Report of the
Commission of Enquiry into the Education System of Kenya. (August
1999).Totally. Nairobi: Government press.
Kamunge, James Mwangi (1988). Report of the Presidential Working
Party for Education and Manpower Training for the Next Decade and
Beyond. Nairobi: Government Printer. 174p.
Kilemi M (1995). Educational Research and policyFormulation in Issues
in Educational Research in Africa.Nairobi: East African Educational
Publishers Ltd.
Nguru GM (1975). The Crisis of Recurrent Educational Expenditure.
The Kenya Experience Paris UNESCO II EP
Olembo J, Wanaswa E, Omokah H (1985). Problems of Financing
Primary Education in Kenya Nairobi Bureau of Educational Research,
Kenyatta University
Republic of Kenya (1988). Sessional Paper No. 6 of 1988 on Education
and Manpower Training for the Next Decade and Beyond. Nairobi:
Government Printer.
Song M, Nuskel C (2001). Interest Groups in National Reading Policy;
perceived influence and beliefs on teaching reading in research and
theory. Education Administration, 1:2002
The 8.4.4 System of Education (1984). Nairobi – Government Printer.
The Education Act Chapter 211 of the Laws of Kenya (1980). Nairobi
Government Printer
The national Committee on Educational Objective and policies (1976).
Nairobi Government Printers.