Managing the Implementation of a School Curriculum in Malawi: Challenges and Policy Implications

Abstract

The study was conducted to investigate how the implementation of the Malawi senior secondary school revised curriculum was managed by exploring the underlying factors behind the students’ poor academic performance in Social and Development Studies (SDS) national examinations. To accomplish this purpose, the study examined the challenges faced by teachers in their teaching of SDS and assessed the effectiveness of the supervisory and advisory support provided to teaches by heads of department and head teachers. The study further explored the policy implications of the experienced challenges for curriculum implementation. The study took a qualitative approach and used face-to-face interviews to collect data from teachers, Heads of Department and Head teachers in eight secondary schools in South Eastern Education Division. The findings revealed that the implementation of SDS faced a number of challenges such as lack of teaching and learning materials including textbooks, lack of trained teachers, and lack of in-service training for the practising teachers who were assigned to teach the subject. In addition, teachers were not given adequate supervisory and advisory support by heads of departments, head teachers and school inspectors. The study concluded that the introduction of the revised senior secondary school curriculum was poorly managed such that the schools did not have adequate capacity to successfully implement the teaching of newly introduced subjects like SDS. The study recommends that the Ministry of Education should ensure that, in future, implementation of a new curriculum is adequately planned for in terms of availability of instructional materials, specialised teachers and in-service training for teachers as well as provision of adequate teacher supervisory and advisory support by heads of department, head teachers and school inspectors. Keywords: