An investigation on the similarity between intended curriculum and implemented curriculum in a-level biology in Tanzania

The purpose of this study was to find out whether what is planned and intended in advanced level biology curriculum is fully implemented. It was guided by three objectives namely; to determine the extent to which the mandated advanced level biology curriculum is implemented; to identify challenges pertaining to the implementation of the mandated advanced level biology curriculum; to identify the areas of difficulties experienced by teachers during implementation of the advanced level biology curriculum. The sample of the study involved 125 students studying biology subject and the 08 teachers of biology from five advanced secondary schools in Iringa region. The instruments used for data collection were questionnaires, documentary review and checklist. The findings revealed the mandated advanced level biology curriculum implementation as follows; some topics were implemented to a great extent, that is 76% and above. These were Cytology, Coordination in mammals, and Respiration. Topics that were partially implemented, that is 50% to 75% were Classification, Gaseous exchange, Nutrition (Photosynthesis), Regulation, Transportation, Reproduction, Genetics, evolution, and Ecology. Other topics were partially and or not implemented to less than 49%. These were Coordination in plants, Nutrition (Digestion in mammals), and Growth and Development. It was also found that some challenges influenced the curriculum implementation to a great extent; these included time, teaching/learning resources and human resources. Other challenges were teaching/learning strategies and assessment. Some topics were mentioned to be difficult namely classification, coordination, nutrition (digestion), respiration, evolution and genetics. It is recommended that the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training (MOEVT) should ensure that In-service programmes are conducted to enable teachers to update their content and pedagogical knowledge. MOEVT should also ensure that there is strong support of teaching/learning materials to support curriculum implementation.