Community participation and support to classroom construction and the effectiveness on access the secondary education: the case of community secondary schools in Dar es Salaam Region

The aim of this study was to investigate areas or stages, types and extent to which community members in Dar es Salaam region participate and support classroom construction in community secondary schools and the effects of such extent towards access to secondary education as goal set by SEDP (Secondary Education Development Plan). The study was conducted in six wards in three municipalities of Dar es Salaam region, namely Kinondoni, Ilala and Temeke with a total of 63 respondents, sampling techniques included purposive and snowball were employed so as to get desired respondents. The study employed qualitative research approach and Descriptive Evaluative research design using interview and documentary Review as methods for gathering relevant data. The study revealed that community members in Dar es Salaam participate and support classroom construction in CSSs (community secondary schools) in two area or stages, namely decision-making and resources mobilizations. The extent of community member’s participation and support to classroom construction was found to be low. That level was found to be contributed by a number of factors including lack of community belongingness or ownership, low community members trust to their village and ward leaders, community members occupation and high mobility of people; and low educational level of community members, other factors included lack of communities understanding of their role in Secondary Education Development, lack of teachers and other school infrastructure in existing CSSs as well as poor relationship between community members and CSSs. It was found out by the study that low level of community members participation and support to classrooms construction to CSSs led to deficiency of classroom in some CSSs, delaying of classroom construction that causes late admission of newly recruited students, presence of incopleted classroom buildings as well as low access to secondary education for a number of students passed their primary school leaving examinations. The study recommended that in order to improve communities, participation and support to classroom construction in CSSs in order to achieve access improvement community members are to be activity involved in all stages including decision making, planning, implementation as well as management and monitoring stages at the villages / ward and at school level. The government’s focus should not be on forcing villages and ward leaders to build more CSSs but should ensure that existing CSSs are well equipped with the required infrastructure as well as employing the required number of teachers. In addition good governance rules are to be observed by readers at all level in order to increase community trust to their leaders and the introduction of bylaws to enforce community members who willingly do not want to participate and support secondary education development.