Bystanders or essential actors of education reforms: Parents’ experiences of the Competency-Based Curriculum education reforms in Kenya.

• In Event: Education Policy, Democracy and Reform (I)

Proposal

The inclusion of parents as essential partners, stakeholders, and decision-makers in designing and implementing education reforms has been cited for advancing democratic education practices, education policy-by-in, and a best practice for successful education system change (Comer & Haynes, 1991; Epstein, 1995). Indeed, multiple studies also reveal a positive impact on children’s learning outcomes related to learners’ home environments, especially parental engagement (Kim, S & Hill, N., 2015; Hayes et al., J & Walker, S.,2016). Despite this acknowledgment of the pivotal role of parents in education reforms and curriculum implementation, multiple factors, including political actions and external pressures, often relegate parents’ engagement to the lowest levels in most national education policies. Moreover, little is understood about how parents understand and experience education reforms, their roles in the reform process, and the implications to curriculum implementation fidelity and quality education. This lack of knowledge is further exacerbated in areas with high adult-level illiteracy and poor living standards. This presentation will share findings from a longitudinal study on parents’ understandings and experiences of ongoing education reforms in Kenya, namely the competency-based curriculum education reforms (CBC).
The presentation will draw on preliminary findings on the CBC implementation fidelity based on qualitative interviews with parents and headteachers in peri-urban and rural settings in Kenya. The research design and data analysis adopt a comparative case study approach (CCS) espoused by Vavrus & Bartlett (2014; 2022). The CCS approach seeks to elucidate relationships at the “macro, meso, and micro levels, or scales” (Bartlett & Vavrus, 2014, p. 131) by offering multiple levels of analysis as a means of stretching the ‘bounded’ case to include the horizontal, vertical and transversal levels (Bartlett &Vavrus, 2014; Vavrus &; Bartlett, 2009). I explore the transversal (historical) aspects of education reforms and change in Kenya, followed by a vertical comparison of parents’ views vis a vis national policy statements of the expected parental duties in the proposed curriculum. The third component compares parents’ understandings of their roles across parents in urban and rural settings of Kenya. Data analysis examines the extent to which parents first understand the education reform process, including parents’ views of the CBC education reforms, what is changing, why that is changing, and understanding their roles in the reform process. I compare parents’ views to what the education policy documents state about the CBC education reforms and what headteachers state as the expected role of parents. Secondly, I examine how parents adapt to the new CBC education reforms and the challenges they experience while paying attention to similarities and differences across regions, peri-urban and rural settings.
The findings from the study are important for education theory and system education strengthening, particularly curriculum theory and practice, by illuminating the gaps between proposed education reform policies versus implementation fidelity about parental engagement. Discussing parents’ place in education reforms aligns with the 2024 CIES conference theme, “The power of Protest in Education.” The findings center voices of marginalized parents from rural and peri-urban communities in Kenya, often under-represented in national policy conversations about education changes. Data on learning outcomes in rural and peri-urban slums show low achievements, often relating to poor school environments and living standards. Understanding parents’ experiences can provide insights into addressing inequalities in learning outcomes. Furthermore, illuminating the voices from the periphery in the education reform process not only exemplifies a protest again the marginalization in education decision-making, policy formulation, and negotiations but is also a protest against epistemic injustice.

Author

• Maurice Sikenyi, University of Notre Dame-Kellogg Institute for International Studies