Abstract:
Although, the Kenyan Ministry of Education requires all teachers to effectively implement curriculum, studies show that curriculum is not effectively implemented in preschools. This study investigated the teacher related factors influencing effective implementation of the ECDE curriculum in Kisii Central Sub-county. The study objectives were to establish how academically and professionally preschool teachers are prepared to effectively implement ECDE curriculum, to establish how preschool teacher¶s motivation influence effective implementation of ECDE curriculum, to establish how in-service teacher or short courses preschool teachers attend influence effective implementation of ECDE curriculum and to establish how teacher¶s attitude influence effective implementation of ECDE curriculum. This study was guided by descriptive survey design and too was guided by Fullan Curriculum Implementation Model. The target population consisted of 58 primary head teachers and 174 preschool teachers in preschools in the Kisii Central Sub-county. A saturated sampling technique was used to select primary head teachers while a simple random sampling technique was used to select preschool teachers from both public and private preschool. The sample included 58 primary head teachers and 52 preschool teachers. The validity of the instruments was determined through the expert judgement by the university lecturer. Reliability was ensured by internal consistency using cronbach¶s alpha formula and reliability of 0.826 was reported. The questionnaires and interview schedule were used to collect data, for a period of 3 months. The quantitative data was analyzed using descriptive statistics such as frequencies and percentages. Qualitative data from interviews was analyzed thematically. The study findings were; that most preschool teachers had the necessary academic qualification as a foundation for training in ECDE curriculum implementation. The study also found that there was low continuous professional training among preschool teachers in Kisii Central Sub-county. Further, the study found that low level of motivation among preschool teachers in the aspects of poor physical facilities, poor pay and lack of support from the community is a hindrance to effective implementation of the ECDE curriculum; it was also found that there was low reach and extent of in-service training among preschool teachers. The Kenyan Ministry of Education should design policies and programs that encourage inservice training of the preschool teachers to enhance their service offering techniques for effective implementation of the ECDE curriculum. The preschool teachers should be encouraged to develop positive attitudes towards their job as this would increase job satisfaction, service delivery and productivity.
