10th U6+ Consortium of African Universities International Conference

Competency-Based Education (CBE) has significantly reformed the education sector. This new approach not only requires well-prepared but also adequate teacher workload. Teachers being frontline implementers of the curriculum, directly shape how learners experience CBE, and their perceptions significantly influence both the delivery process and learning outcomes. In Trans-nzoia West Sub-county, just like the other parts of the country, the transition to CBE and the establishment of junior schools have come along with new demands and challenges. Part of the challenges that this study sought to examine was teacher’s perception regarding workload in supporting CBE implementation. Teacher student ratio, and the number of lessons handled by a teacher not only affects a teacher’s perceptions but also influences the teaching approach one is likely to adopt. The study was anchored on constructivist learning theory, which emphasizes on learner-centered learning. The study made use of concurrent mixed method design. The study targeted 60 junior schools in trans-nzoia west sub-county comprising of 288 teachers involved in CBE implementation from which a sample size of 64 teachers was selected. Data collection involved teacher’s questionnaire, and interview guide. Content validity for research items was reviewed by experts while a pilot study was conducted to ascertain reliability with Cronbach’s Alpha reliability. Study findings indicated that learners in relatively smaller class sizes perform better than those in large class sizes. This was supported by majority of teachers with mean of 3.58, and standard deviation (SD) of 0.696 acknowledging that they used limited learning approaches in large class sizes. Chi-square tests indicated significant associations between teacher perception on workload and CBE implementation (ꭓ2=80.07, p=0.000).