Influence of Community Learning resource centers on Adult Learners’ Participation in Community Development Projects: the Case of Nyamira North Sub–County, Kenya

Abstract

Many countries across the world have taken steps to address the issue of adult education with the main objective of eradicating illiteracy and giving those who might have missed a chance to get an education in their formative years. The main objective is the empowerment of the individual so that they can effectively participate in personal, community, and national development.Adult literacy has been considered as one of the pillars of development. To enhance its rates in Kenya, the government has made efforts by establishing community learning centers in Nyamira, where learners are equipped with skills for participation in community development. However, the extent to which community resource centers influence graduate learners to participate in community development projects is not known. In this regard, the study sought to investigate the influence of community learning resource centers on adult learners’ participation in community development projectsin NyamiraNorth Sub–County, Kenya. The objectives that guided the study were: To investigate the influence of learner’s involvement in community learning resource centers on their participation in community development projects; determine the extent to which the training and learning methods used at the community learning resource centers influence the participation of learners in community development projects; and, to establish the role of instructional materials used at the community resource centers in influencing participation of learners in community development projects. The study was guided by the Cognitive field and the constructivism theories. This study utilized the descriptive survey design. A simple random sampling procedure was used to select 4 adult instructors, while purposive sampling was used to select 4 Community Learning Resource Centers and 1 County adult education administrator. The sample of the study was 1 Adult educator, 4 adult instructors, and 487 adult learners, across the gender divide. Content and construct validity was applied to check whether the instruments provided adequate coverage of the topic while Cronbach`s Alphacoefficient was computed to determine the reliability of the instruments. A self-administered questionnaire and an interview schedule were used respectively, to get information from the respondents. Data collected were analyzed using the Statistical Programme for Social Sciences. (SPSS Version 20).Descriptive statistics such as frequencies and percentages were used to present the findings.Small scale farming was the major economic activity that influenced learners to participate in CLRC activities. The study recommends, intaallia, that there should be learners’ specific needs assessment before admission into the CLRCs. More learning activities should be included in the centers which are custom to the particular needs of the learners. Diversification of skills is necessary including information communication and computer skills. The Ministry of Education should put in place a robust training mechanism of the instructors to fully carry out this task. More funding of the CLRCs is needed to improve on the state of the equipment available as there is a need for more state of the art facilities to meet the needs of modern technology for the achievement of the development agenda by the Government of Kenya, substitute face to face learning and be a platform for digital learning thus making learning accessible in far to reach and remote arrears. This study also recommends that similar studies should be conducted in other Counties and Sub-Counties across the country to support or derive diversity or generalization of results. It also recommends that researchersshould examine other factors (other than the influence of CLRCs on community projects), that can influence learners’ enrolment into such centers and eventual utilization of the available resources and skills.