Journal of Emerging Trends in Educational Research and Policy Studies: Home

Abstract:
The main purpose of this study was to determine views about the role and status of Christian Religious Education (CRE) in the school curriculum in Kenya in relation to the prevailing social and moral issues in the country. A survey was conducted in eight schools from one educational zone of Nairobi District. Two hundred and eighty-seven form three CRE students and 14 CRE teachers from the eight schools were used to provide the information using questionnaires. The schools and respondents were selected using stratified and convenience sampling procedures. It was found that the majority of the students chose to take the subject for the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education examination mainly because it could boost their performance in KCSE. Though the majority have a positive attitude towards CRE, most of them were not ready to continue learning it in case they qualified for university mainly because it does not guarantee employment. Most of the CRE teachers were found to be demoralized because they do not receive recognition from the government like the Mathematics, Science and Language teachers. The Majority of the teachers blamed the government for undermining the implementation of CRE again by failing to motivate the CRE teachers through recognition. The government was blamed for being responsible for the decline in the number of students studying CRE at the university because of the emphasis it puts on Mathematics and Science subjects.

Keywords: Status, Role, Social and Moral Issues, CRE, Performance in KCSE.

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