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Education curriculum transitions in Kenya—an account and progress to competency-based education policy

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Abstract

Curriculum is a foundation of educational reforms and framework that is aimed at achieving high-quality learning outcomes through a conscious and systematic selection of knowledge, skills and values. The scoping review seeks to examine the nature of education curriculum reforms and transitions in Kenya—an account and progress to the contemporary competency-based education policy. Informed by factors that influenced change at various phases such as missionaries’ entry, colonization, social and economic development aspirations, it is evident, government policy planners and partners have been alive to the fact that an adaptive and responsive education curriculum is core for the national capacity to empower its citizens with the essential knowledge, skills and values to attain social and economic development. Even though the nature of Kenya education curriculum reforms and transitions seem to be local, it is decidedly international affirming that the transformative role of education in internationalization is not only political, social and intellectual but also historical and cultural. The transitional factors also point to globalization influence to destabilize internal processes of school organizations motivating education stakeholders to innovative fundamental curriculum evolvement and change strategies alongside policy framework as witnessed in the curriculum changes in Kenya.

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Author notes

  1. Francis Maina Gichuru, Christopher Khayeka-Wandabwa and Wu Yuanyue contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Education, Central China Normal University, Wuhan, Hubei, China

    Francis Maina Gichuru, Reuben Sitonik Olkishoo & Wu Yuanyue

  2. School of Pharmaceutical Science and Technology (SPST), Health Science Platform, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China

    Christopher Khayeka-Wandabwa

  3. National School of Development, Peking University, Beijing, China

    Reuben Sitonik Olkishoo

  4. Department of Food Science and Nutrition, School of Agricultural Sciences, The University of Zambia, Lusaka, Zambia

    Pamela A. Marinda

  5. College of Chinese Language and Literature, Tianjin Normal University, Xiqing District, Bin Shui West Road No. 393, Tianjin, 300387, China

    Methody Florian Owaki & Mercy Mweni Kathina

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  1. Francis Maina Gichuru
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Gichuru, F.M., Khayeka-Wandabwa, C., Olkishoo, R.S. et al. Education curriculum transitions in Kenya—an account and progress to competency-based education policy. Curric Perspect 41, 153–162 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s41297-021-00137-5

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