Facilities:
Urban schools are generally better equipped than those in rural areas. This is mainly because parents in urban areas have a superior socio-economic status than their rural counterparts. Accessibility to textbooks and school stationery is easier for learners in urban schools. Some learning equipment such as computers, projectors and photocopying machines cannot be used in most rural schools due to lack of electricity. While most urban schools have well lit and ventilated classrooms, some rural institutions male do with mud walled classrooms. In areas like Budalangi and Wajir, students - particularly in lower classes - still learn under trees.
Teacher motivation:
Teachers in urban schools have more opportunities-for professional career advancement. This boosts their morale. They can attend evening or Saturday classes. More workshops and seminars to help teachers improve their careers are held in urban areas than in rural settings. These ensure that most teachers in urban centers have an advantage over their counterparts in rural areas as far as the quality of teaching is concerned. It should be noted that the quality of teachers' educational background is a significant variable in determining the performance of pupils in national examinations.
Language of communication:
Learners in urban schools come from different language backgrounds unlike their colleagues in rural schools who are largely from the immediate vicinity and may speak the same language. In most rural schools, mother tongue is commonly used outside the classroom. Complaints have been raised about some teachers using mother tongue to teach mathematics and sciences in secondary schools. The use of mother tongue has diluted students' mastery of English, which is the official language of communication in Kenyan schools. In urban areas, English and Kiswahili are the media of communication. Even at home – particularly in high and middle income families-both languages are spoken. Frequent use of Kiswahili and English helps improve the learner’s grammar, thereby giving them an advantage in national examinations.
Parental reinforcement:
Both the environment in which a school is situated and beliefs of the community towards education influence a learner's school attendance and academic performance. Coombes (1974) says that when a child's family and friends have little interest in education and declare that education has no value or that they are better off than the educated, there is a higher likelihood of such a child losing interest in education or dropping out of school. Most parents in rural areas are semi-literate. Since some feel that they are getting by without education, they hardly motivate their children to pursue education. Many are content to have their children employed as house helps, watchmen or casual labourers since this ensures support to the parents. On the contrary, the majorities of parents in urban ar eas are literate and encourage their children to excel academically.
Role models:
Role models play a significant role in educational motivation, whereas in urban areas learners come across many achievers and are challenged to emulate them, those in rural areas may have their school headmaster as the most highly educated person in the community. They may not emulate him, particularly if lie/she is inefficient and cruel. A factor that contributes to limited academic role models in rural areas is that most achievers migrate to urban centers in search of wage employment. Learners in these areas therefore lack educated people to identify with, consult or be challenged by.
Still on classification, some schools are referred to as national schools: others as provincial and district schools. Categorizing schools as national, provincial and district gives some an advantage over others. National schools are the first to recruit secondary school Students. They select the best students countrywide. They are likely to experience few cases Of undisciplined behaviour and to have highly motivated teachers. Provincial schools are Next ill line in selecting students. They too get highly qualified students. They attract teachers of high calibre since they are well established and known.
District schools, particularly those in rural areas and poorly equipped commercial private schools, are the last to recruit secondary school students. In other words, there is no selection but simply admitting students who have failed to secure a place in national and provincial schools. The key criterion for joining these schools is one's ability to pay. This partly explains their poor performance. Most learners in these schools are demoralized. They never bond with the school and spend most of the time looking forward to being transferred to other schools. This affects their performance. Majority have discipline problems since some have been expelled from other schools. Teachers also internalize the concept of handling poor students. They do not deal with these students with the seriousness the situation demands. Sometimes teachers become uncaring since they know they are dealing with weak students. There is little preparation by teachers and minimal monitoring by administrators.
Kenya has distinct regional disparities in education. Regions that got an early lead in education such as Central and Nairobi provinces have tended to perform better besides having more prestigious schools and better facilities than arid and semi arid regions. An example will suffice. In the 2002 Kenya Certificate of Primary Education, of the top 54 candidates nationwide, Central province produced 35 (representing 64%); Nairobi produced 8, Rift valley 6, Eastern 3, Nyanza I and West-em 1. Coast and North Eastern provinces had no student among the top performers (Sunday Nation, 2003).
This example shows that stratification affects education in Kenya by creating various categories of learners. Some are classified as coming from high socio economic backgrounds and are mainly found in national and provincial schools, and expensive private schools within urban areas. They have better school facilities, highly motivated teachers, role models and use English as the language of communication. Most perform very well in national examinations. High income families send their children to school earlier and also motivate them. Going to school at an early age gives such children a head start in education. Rich parents send their children to the best primary schools and then to the best secondary schools. Eventually, the majority of their children join university. They can afford reference books and other materials that enhance learning. On the other extreme are learners from poor economic backgrounds. While their colleagues from high and middle class families enjoy such school facilities as well equipped classrooms, libraries, halls and swimming pools, they make do with mud walled classrooms in poorly equipped schools. In some of these primary schools, mainly in rural areas, pupils learn under trees and write on sand. Classes are usually overcrowded and teacher morale very low. The schools churn out a big percentage of national examinations failures.
francis1897 answered the question on August 19, 2022 at 07:48