International Journal of Elementary Education

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Use of Instructional Media in Elementary Schools in Kenya: Understanding Teacher Attitude and Perceived Pedagogical Value of Picture Books

Received: 04 December 2017    Accepted: 14 December 2017    Published: 18 January 2018
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Abstract

Picture books are instructional materials normally designed as learning aids. They combine visual and verbal narratives in a book format. The images in picture books use a range of media such as oil paints, acrylics, watercolour, and pencil, among others [1]. Teachers resort to use of picture books for instruction as a method through which the standard classroom environment could be minimized. The purpose of this study was to assess teachers of English’s attitudes and beliefs about the pedagogical value of using picture books for teaching English oral skills to pre-school pupils. The study was guided by the Two Factor Theory developed by Herzberg (1968) which suggests that people are influenced by two factors which motivate their performance namely motivators and hygiene factors. Thus the interplay of factors which influenced pre-primary school teachers of English to use picture books as instructional materials in this study included, attitude, perceptions of effectiveness, availability and perceived pedagogical value of the materials. The study used descriptive survey design to get information from all the elementary school teachers in the study area. The data was analysed using descriptive statistics which involved tabulation of data into frequencies, percentages, mean and standard deviations. Analysis of the results revealed that teachers were aware and appreciated the pedagogical value of picture books for training but however had mixed attitude towards its use. The study revealed a need to develop policy frameworks by Ministry of Education (MoE) and the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD) to ensure accurate planning for better remuneration, integration of instructional materials in the curriculum and availability of infrastructure conducive for better elementary education and other similar studies in different areas utilizing qualitative or mixed methods to delve into other underlying issues for poor utilization of picture books as instructional materials.

DOI 10.11648/j.ijeedu.20170606.11
Published in International Journal of Elementary Education (Volume 6, Issue 6, December 2017)
Page(s) 47-54
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Pedagogy, Attitude, Picture Books, Learning Outcome

References
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Author Information
  • Department of Educational Communication and Technology, University of Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya

  • Department of Educational Communication and Technology, University of Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya

  • Institute of Anthropology, Gender and African Studies, University of Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya

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  • APA Style

    Florence Chacha, Samwel Mwanda, Ronnie Midigo. (2018). Use of Instructional Media in Elementary Schools in Kenya: Understanding Teacher Attitude and Perceived Pedagogical Value of Picture Books. International Journal of Elementary Education, 6(6), 47-54. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijeedu.20170606.11

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    ACS Style

    Florence Chacha; Samwel Mwanda; Ronnie Midigo. Use of Instructional Media in Elementary Schools in Kenya: Understanding Teacher Attitude and Perceived Pedagogical Value of Picture Books. Int. J. Elem. Educ. 2018, 6(6), 47-54. doi: 10.11648/j.ijeedu.20170606.11

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    AMA Style

    Florence Chacha, Samwel Mwanda, Ronnie Midigo. Use of Instructional Media in Elementary Schools in Kenya: Understanding Teacher Attitude and Perceived Pedagogical Value of Picture Books. Int J Elem Educ. 2018;6(6):47-54. doi: 10.11648/j.ijeedu.20170606.11

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  • @article{10.11648/j.ijeedu.20170606.11,
      author = {Florence Chacha and Samwel Mwanda and Ronnie Midigo},
      title = {Use of Instructional Media in Elementary Schools in Kenya: Understanding Teacher Attitude and Perceived Pedagogical Value of Picture Books},
      journal = {International Journal of Elementary Education},
      volume = {6},
      number = {6},
      pages = {47-54},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ijeedu.20170606.11},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijeedu.20170606.11},
      eprint = {https://download.sciencepg.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijeedu.20170606.11},
      abstract = {Picture books are instructional materials normally designed as learning aids. They combine visual and verbal narratives in a book format. The images in picture books use a range of media such as oil paints, acrylics, watercolour, and pencil, among others [1]. Teachers resort to use of picture books for instruction as a method through which the standard classroom environment could be minimized. The purpose of this study was to assess teachers of English’s attitudes and beliefs about the pedagogical value of using picture books for teaching English oral skills to pre-school pupils. The study was guided by the Two Factor Theory developed by Herzberg (1968) which suggests that people are influenced by two factors which motivate their performance namely motivators and hygiene factors. Thus the interplay of factors which influenced pre-primary school teachers of English to use picture books as instructional materials in this study included, attitude, perceptions of effectiveness, availability and perceived pedagogical value of the materials. The study used descriptive survey design to get information from all the elementary school teachers in the study area. The data was analysed using descriptive statistics which involved tabulation of data into frequencies, percentages, mean and standard deviations. Analysis of the results revealed that teachers were aware and appreciated the pedagogical value of picture books for training but however had mixed attitude towards its use. The study revealed a need to develop policy frameworks by Ministry of Education (MoE) and the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD) to ensure accurate planning for better remuneration, integration of instructional materials in the curriculum and availability of infrastructure conducive for better elementary education and other similar studies in different areas utilizing qualitative or mixed methods to delve into other underlying issues for poor utilization of picture books as instructional materials.},
     year = {2018}
    }
    

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    AU  - Florence Chacha
    AU  - Samwel Mwanda
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    AB  - Picture books are instructional materials normally designed as learning aids. They combine visual and verbal narratives in a book format. The images in picture books use a range of media such as oil paints, acrylics, watercolour, and pencil, among others [1]. Teachers resort to use of picture books for instruction as a method through which the standard classroom environment could be minimized. The purpose of this study was to assess teachers of English’s attitudes and beliefs about the pedagogical value of using picture books for teaching English oral skills to pre-school pupils. The study was guided by the Two Factor Theory developed by Herzberg (1968) which suggests that people are influenced by two factors which motivate their performance namely motivators and hygiene factors. Thus the interplay of factors which influenced pre-primary school teachers of English to use picture books as instructional materials in this study included, attitude, perceptions of effectiveness, availability and perceived pedagogical value of the materials. The study used descriptive survey design to get information from all the elementary school teachers in the study area. The data was analysed using descriptive statistics which involved tabulation of data into frequencies, percentages, mean and standard deviations. Analysis of the results revealed that teachers were aware and appreciated the pedagogical value of picture books for training but however had mixed attitude towards its use. The study revealed a need to develop policy frameworks by Ministry of Education (MoE) and the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD) to ensure accurate planning for better remuneration, integration of instructional materials in the curriculum and availability of infrastructure conducive for better elementary education and other similar studies in different areas utilizing qualitative or mixed methods to delve into other underlying issues for poor utilization of picture books as instructional materials.
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