A Community Based Approach towards Holistic Learning

• In Event: Citizen and community involvement

Proposal

Learning for students is not only isolated to the classroom. It is rather influenced by an amalgamation of several factors including teachers, family, community and friends. In this respect, a student’s social and emotional setting therefore become important contextual determinants of their education outcomes. It is out of these realization that there is a global push for education systems to be more holistic in nature by graduating students who have both the academic and psychosocial skills to help them adapt to the demands a of the 21st century.

This qualitative paper will highlight the social and emotional outcomes of a community based after-school support program targeting adolescents in two urban informal settlements in Kenya. The intervention comprised of numeracy and literacy homework support, life skills mentoring, leadership training, and parental counselling. The qualitative study that included focus group discussions with parents, dialogues with students, in-depth interviews with implementers, and key informant interviews with community leaders.

Based on the collaborative for academic, social and emotional learning integrated (CASEL) framework, the qualitative results indicate discernible intervention effects on student’s self-awareness, self-management, social-awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision making skills. These positive results are two-fold in their importance. One, they indicate the important role community based after-school support programs can play in promoting holistic learning. Two, the results provide much needed evidence that feeds into the ongoing competency based curriculum (CBC) reforms in Kenya.

Authors

• Nelson Gichuhi Muhia, African Population and Health Research Center (APHRC)

• Benta Abuya, African Population and Health Research Center (APHRC)

• Patricia Kitsao-Wekulo, African Population and Health Research Center (APHRC)