Teachers’ perception of the effectiveness of the alternative forms of students’ discipline in secondary schools in Kajiado County, Kenya.

Abstract

Corporal Punishment was outlawed in Kenya in line with the Children’s Act of 2001 and recommended alternative forms of discipline be used in its place. The purpose of this study was to investigate teachers’ perception of the effectiveness of alternative forms of discipline in Kajiado County. This study was guided by the following objectives: investigate the alternative methods used to discipline students, teachers’ perception of the effectiveness of alternative forms of discipline and establish the challenges that teachers face in administering discipline by use of the alternative methods in Kajiado County. This study was based on Diffusion of Innovation Theory. The target population was 363 teachers from 42 public secondary schools in Kajiado County. The study comprised of all public secondary school Guidance and Counseling teachers and teachers from the Disciplinary Committee purposively selected. Out of 20 teachers from 10 public secondary schools, 10 were female and 10 were male teachers a ratio of 1:1. The researcher utilized purposive sampling to select 10 Guidance and Counseling teachers and 10 teachers from the Disciplinary Committee from 10 schools. A guidance and counseling teacher and a disciplinary teacher were selected from each school. The research method was qualitative. The data was collected using a structured interview guide. The study employed phenomenological research design. These data were analyzed thematically using thematic analysis. Verbatim analysis was used to report direct quotations from the statements made by the participants to capture their feelings about the phenomenon. The study found out that the following methods were being used; Guidance and Counseling, Keeping school tradition, Mentor-ship, Praising a Student, Dialogue, Suspension, Expulsion and Detention. The study established that these alternative forms of discipline were effective except for suspension, expulsion and detention. The study also found out that, lack of counseling room, uncooperative attitude, an overloaded curriculum, no uniformity in disciplining students, blurred role of the guidance and counseling teachers and untrained Counseling teachers were the challenges faced. Teachers suggested that workshops should be conducted to make them aware of the alternative forms of discipline. The findings of this study will be useful to head-teachers, teachers and policy makers in education in terms of formulation of policy guidelines. The study concludes that the rise of the indiscipline cases in the Kenyan schools today could be attributed to the fact that the teachers were not prepared or consulted by the government on the alternative forms of disciplining students. It can be concluded from the study findings that the Ministry of Education should make sure that every school has a guidance and counseling room and trained guidance and counseling teacher in order to handle low levels of discipline in public secondary schools in Kenya.