Community Participation in the Decentralized Secondary Education in Mtwara Region, Tanzania

Abstract

This study sought to establish the community participation in the decentralized secondary education in Mtwara Region. The study employed the cross-sectional descriptive design. The population consisted of 627 secondary school teachers, 48 councilors, 48 WEOs, two DEOS, two DSQAOs and 119,952 parents and board members. A total of 129 teachers were sampled using a simple random sampling procedure. In addition, 48 councilors, 48 WEOs, DEOs and two DSQAOs were selected using the census sampling method. Furthermore, 50 parents and board members were selected using the convenient sampling procedure. Therefore, the total sample was 279 individuals who filled questionnaires. Data was analyzed through descriptive statistics. The study revealed that parents and community members perceived to be involved in attending village meetings. They also attended school meetings for education matters but were not effectively engaged in budgeting and decision making. They agreed that they participated in monitoring and implementation of school projects but their involvement in setting priorities was minimal. Furthermore, they raised a concern regarding rare feedback from school administrators. On the contrary, teachers and school managers perceived a high participation of parents and community members. Therefore, much as parents and community members were involved in the decentralized secondary education, their involvement still needs improvement in such areas as budgeting, priority setting and decision making.