Influence of church on the implementation of religious education in public secondary schools in Kenya: A case of catholic sponsored schools in bungoma east sub-county, Bungoma county

Abstract

This research was to investigate the influence of the church on the implementation of Religious Education in public Catholic sponsored secondary schools in Bungoma East Sub-County. Objectives of the study were to: Investigate the influence of the church on the provision of learning and teaching resources during the implementation of Religious Education in Catholic sponsored secondary schools in Bungoma East Sub-County ; To determine the influence of the church on staffing of teachers during the implementation of Religious Education in Catholic sponsored secondary schools in Bungoma East Sub-County; To ascertain how motivational mechanisms used by the church influence the implementation of Religious Education in public Catholic sponsored secondary schools in Bungoma East Sub-County ; To examine the influence of the church policies on the implementation of Religious Education in public Catholic sponsored secondary schools in Bungoma East Sub-County. A descriptive survey design was used for this study.The target population consisted of Catholic sponsored secondary schools in Bungoma East Sub-County.The sample size was 241 respondents comprising of 8 principals and 233 students studying Religious Education. Purposive sampling was used for the 8 principals whereas stratified random sampling design and systematic random sampling was used to select the students for the study. Data was collected using structured questionnaires. The data collected was edited, coded and analyzed using descriptive statistics.This involved the use of measures of distributions (frequences and percentages) and presentation of information in tables.The findings of the study indicated that the influence of the church in the provision of the learning and teaching resources is not adequate. It also showed that the church has very minimal influence on staffing of teachers.The study revealed that motivational mechanisms used by the church influence the implementation of Religious Education in Catholic sponsored secondary schools. In addition the study ascertained that church policies influence the implementation of Religious Education in catholic sponsored secondary schools.The study recommends that the church should be involved in the provision of teaching and learning resources. Also the church and other religious organs should be consulted in regard to staffing of teachers in their sponsored schools. Further research should be done on the contribution of other different churches on the management of schools in other counties.