Head teachers, teacher counselors and students’ perception of the implementation of guidance and counseling programme in secondary schools in Kamariny Division of Keiyo District, Rift Valley Province, Kenya

Abstract

The guidance and counselling programme is important and need be availed in all secondary schools and other places of human interaction. This programme need be introduced and strengthened in schools and colleges to help in the total development of the students. This will enhance discipline and proper choices regarding careers and vocational development. The purpose of the study therefore was to assess the perceptions of head teachers, teacher counselors and students on the implementation of guidance and counselling programme in secondary schools in Kamariny Division of Keiyo District. The researcher employed a descriptive survey design. The study targeted the head teachers, teacher counselors and students. The population of the study was 3,160 students, 10 head teachers and 10 teacher counselors. An accessible population of 1,455 students, drawn from Form Three and Four classes was used to determine the sample size of student respondents from each of the ten schools. Purposive sampling was used to select the head teachers, teacher counselors and form three and form four students; stratified random sampling was used to sample the students in co-educational schools and the schools with more than a single stream and simple random sampling method to sample the students in their respective classes. One for the teacher counselors and another for the students and an interview schedule for the head teachers were used to collect the data. A sample of 230 respondents was drawn from the population. The data collected from the field were analyzed with the aid of Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 12.5 for Windows. Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics in the form of frequencies and percentages. The study findings indicated that guidance and counselling programme had been established in all the schools in Kamariny Division but majority of them lacked the requisite resources. The research recommended that each secondary school in Kenya should have a well-trained guidance and counselling teacher to assist the students deal with existing and emerging challenges. The government should provide the necessary resources and policy structure on the implementation of the guidance and counselling programme in schools. The study is expected to reveal the implementation of guidance and counselling programme in Kamariny Division. The findings from this study may be of importance to the education stakeholders in the District in formulating policies and giving necessary advice on how guidance and counselling can be effectively implemented in secondary schools.