The impact of rapid increase of community secondary schools on the quality of teaching and learning in Tanzania: the case of selected secondary schools in Njombe district

The study aimed at investigating the impact of rapid increase of community secondary schools on the quality of teaching and learning. Specifically, the study sought to assess the qualification and adequacy of teachers in community secondary schools, to examine the availability of teaching and learning materials, to investigate the teaching and learning approaches used in community secondary schools and finally the role of the community in enhancing effective teaching and learning. The sample had a total of 108 respondents. Categorically, there were 6 heads of school, 24 teachers, 60 students and 12 members of the community. The purposive, stratified and simple random sampling techniques were used to obtain the sample. The descriptive survey design was employed where both qualitative and quantitative data were collected through questionnaires, interviews, documentary review and observation. The findings revealed that, firstly, there was severe shortage of qualified teachers in community secondary schools. The condition was worse for science subjects where most of the schools employed form six leavers as teachers. The shortage of teachers had resulted into high teacher – student ratio which forced teachers to use teacher centered approaches in teaching and learning process. Secondly, there was an acute shortage of teaching and learning materials in community secondary schools which led to poor teaching and learning and hence poor academic performance among students. Thirdly, community members participated in creating conducive teaching and learning environment by constructing classrooms, teachers’ houses, hostels, paying school fees and other contributions for their children. However, the community’s contribution did not match with the availability of other variables like teachers and teaching and learning materials. As a result, it was difficult for both teachers and students to ensure effective teaching and learning. The study recommends that, first, the government and private organizations should train and recruit more teachers to meet the shortage of teachers experienced by community schools. Secondly, parents, NGOs and other education stakeholders should be encouraged to buy teaching and learning materials for their children and for the schools at large in order to improve the academic performance