EFFECTS OF TEACHER RE-TOOLING IN INQUIRY-BASED LEARNING ON GRADE EIGHT LEARNERS’ NARRATIVE PARAGRAPH WRITING SKILLS IN ENGLISH IN PUBLIC JUNIOR SCHOOLS IN BOMET CENTRAL SUB-COUNTY, KENYA

Kiprono Robert Kosgey, John W. Wayong’o, Waweru Muriithi

Abstract


This article reports findings from the first objective of a study that examined the effects of teacher re-tooling in Inquiry-Based Learning (IBL) on Grade Eight learners’ narrative paragraph writing skills in English in public Junior Schools in Bomet Central Sub-County, Kenya. The study was motivated by persistent weaknesses in English writing among learners entering Junior School and by the implementation of government-supported teacher re-tooling in IBL under Competency-Based Education. The objective was to determine the effects of teacher re-tooling in IBL on learners’ narrative paragraph writing skills in English. The study adopted a causal-comparative mixed-methods design. The wider study involved 365 Grade Eight learners and 10 English language teachers drawn from public Junior Schools in five educational zones. Data for the objective were generated through teacher questionnaires, classroom observation checklists, learners’ written tests and triangulation of the three sources. Quantitative data were summarized using means and changes in performance, while a paired-samples t-Test was used to establish whether the difference between performance before and after re-tooling was statistically significant at α = .05. The findings showed gradual improvement in narrative paragraph writing. Teacher ratings increased in introduction writing from 0.60 to 0.80 and body development from 0.60 to 0.70, while the overall teacher-rating mean increased from 0.56 to 0.60. Classroom observation showed an overall increase from 3.217 to 3.312, and written-test performance increased from 3.286 to 3.311. However, title writing remained largely stable, while conclusion writing and coherence continued to present challenges. The paired-samples t-test showed that the difference was not statistically significant, t (364) = -0.952, p = .342. The article concludes that teacher re-tooling in IBL was associated with positive descriptive changes in learners’ narrative paragraph writing, but sustained implementation, guided practice, formative feedback and continued teacher professional development are needed to produce statistically significant improvement.

Keywords


teacher re-tooling, inquiry-based learning, narrative paragraph writing, grade eight learners’ writing skills, competency-based education, Kenya

Full Text:

PDF

References


Alshumaimeri, Y. A., & Almasri, F. A. (2021). The effects of using inquiry-based learning on EFL students' writing achievement. Arab World English Journal, 12(2), 267–283. https://doi.org/10.24093/awej/vol12no2.18

Centre for Mathematics, Science and Technology Education in Africa. (2023). Teacher capacity building for competency-based education in Kenya. CEMASTEA.

Chen, Y., & Zhang, L. (2023). Inquiry-based writing instruction and learners' narrative writing performance. Journal of Language Teaching and Research, 14(3), 612–624.

Creswell, J. W., & Creswell, J. D. (2023). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches (6th ed.). Sage. Retrieved from https://books.google.ro/books/about/Research_Design.html?hl=id&id=Rkh4EAAAQBAJ&redir_esc=y

Darling-Hammond, L., Hyler, M. E., & Gardner, M. (2020). Effective teacher professional development. Learning Policy Institute. Retrieved from https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED606743

Desimone, L. M. (2009). Improving impact studies of teachers' professional development: Toward better conceptualizations and measures. Educational Researcher, 38(3), 181–199. https://doi.org/10.3102/0013189X08331140

Ferris, D. R., & Eckstein, G. (2020). Writing correction, feedback, and revision in second language writing: Trends and future directions. Routledge.

Hyland, K. (2021). Second language writing (3rd ed.). Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511667251

Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development. (2023). Basic education curriculum framework: Guidelines for implementing competency-based education. KICD.

Kolb, D. A. (1984). Experiential learning: Experience as the source of learning and development. Prentice Hall. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/235701029_Experiential_Learning_Experience_As_The_Source_Of_Learning_And_Development

Piaget, J. (1972). The psychology of the child. Basic Books. Retrieved from https://books.google.ro/books/about/Psychology_Of_The_Child.html?id=jtV-AAAAMAAJ&redir_esc=y

Teachers Service Commission. (2023). Teacher re-tooling for competency-based curriculum implementation: Junior school training manual. TSC.

Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes. Harvard University Press. Retrieved from https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctvjf9vz4




DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.46827/ejel.v11i4.6944

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


Copyright © 2015 - 2026. European Journal of English Language Teaching (ISSN 2501-7136) is a registered trademark of Open Access Publishing Group. All rights reserved.

This journal is a serial publication uniquely identified by an International Standard Serial Number (ISSN) serial number certificate issued by Romanian National Library (Biblioteca Nationala a Romaniei). All the research works are uniquely identified by a CrossRef DOI digital object identifier supplied by indexing and repository platforms.

All the research works published on this journal are meeting the Open Access Publishing requirements and can be freely accessed, shared, modified, distributed and used in educational, commercial and non-commercial purposes under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).