Kipsigis local native council efforts in the developmentof education in colonial Kenya since 1924

Abstract

Colonial education policies in Kenya mainly favoured Europeans and Asians. Africans were neglected and left with no space to influence their education. Up to the 1920s, their interests were represented by missionaries. The advent of Local Native councils provided a platform for Africans to air their grievances including their educational needs that were to be addressed by the colonial government. The purpose of the study was to investigate Kipsigis Local Native Council (LNC) efforts in the development of education in colonial Kenya from 1924 to 1964. The study was guided by the following objectives; to investigate Kipsigis LNC education resolutions and initiatives in the development of education in Kericho, to evaluate Kipsigis LNC role in the growth and development of teacher training and post-secondary education in Kericho District, and to trace Kipsigis LNC role in establishment, growth, and development of primary and secondary education in Kericho. The study adopted a theory of Marcus B. Weaver-Hightower entitled; An Ecology Metaphor for Education Policy Analysis. The theory states that policy creation is a complex and contradictory process. Ecology can be broken down into four categories namely; actors, relationships, environments, and structures. The theory applied to the study because it enhanced interrogation of actors and their interaction in policy enactment and implementation in Kipsigis LNC which was the focus of the study. Purposive sampling and snowball sampling techniques were employed which enhanced the selection of information-rich respondents. The historical method of research was used which is mainly anchored in the interpretive philosophical paradigm. Sources of data were both primary and secondary data obtained through oral interviews that were guided by interview schedules. The researcher also visited Kenya National Archives for archival data. The study established that Kipsigis LNC used a multi-pronged approach to push its agenda on education. Several committees and councils were established to advance its educational agenda which included; Kericho District Education Board, African District Council, General Purposes and Finance Committee, and Bursary Education and Schools Committee. The study also established that Kipsigis LNC was not curious to interrogate the reasons why no students from Kericho had been selected for admission to secondary schools. The main role the LNC played in the development of education was a provision of grants for improving school infrastructure it also enacted resolutions that aided the development of education in Kericho. It was deduced from the study that subtle collaborations enabled Kipsigis LNC to firmly assert its dissatisfaction on some educational issues without necessarily channelling them through associations although such associations existed in Kericho District. It was such forged collaborations that made its demands partly addressed by the colonial government.