Improving Learning Of Water Management For Economic Development: Efforts To Enhance Geography Learning In Tanzania Secondary Schools

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to identify, develop, test and observe learners’ learning through the related exemplary materials to improve teaching and learning of Water Management Education (WMED) in Geography in Tanzania secondary schools. The design and development of the materials was influenced by the fact that the current syllabus is competence based while the available materials do not enhance competence and lack learner’s relevant examples. Thus, there was a need to prepare the reliable materials with the skills related to learners’ environment to improve the quality of learning Geography secondary schools. `The developed WMED materials follow from the behaviorist and constructivist approach. Learners were required to construct their own understandings through motivating activities while the role of the teacher was a facilitator. The developmental research approach was employed to develop the materials using a quasi-experimental design where four Geography lessons were developed. Three schools, i.e. namely school A where the materials were tried, and thereafter the materials were subjected to the experiential school, namely school C, while school B was used as a control school which was taught using the conventional materials. The respondents were the Form two Geography teachers and learners from sampled secondary schools in Dodoma Municipality where qualitative and quantitative data were collected. The findings indicated that teachers and learners enjoyed teaching and learning with the new Geography materials. An independent-sample t-test and paired t-test indicated the change in performance in school C where the materials were implemented compared with learners from school B who were subjected to conventional teaching. These findings suggest that other materials for teaching and learning in secondary schools need to be developed following similar designing and development procedures to enhance learners’ competence. vi TABLE OF CON