| dc.description.abstract | Education given to children during their formative years has been widely recognized as
being crucial not just because of its ability to make the recipients literate but because of its
ability to foster learners’ holistic development. Availability of both indoor and outdoor
educational resources, and the teacher requisite skills are crucial for attainment of
preschool children holistic development in terms of all the learning domains- physical,
social, intellectual, emotional, spiritual and even in creativity. The purpose of the study
was to evaluate the factors that determine the preschoolers’ holistic development in public
ECDE centres in Eldoret West Sub County. The study objectives were to establish the
availability of indoor educational resources for preschoolers’ holistic development, to
examine the availability of outdoor educational resources for preschoolers’ holistic
development, and to find out the teachers’ preparedness for preschoolers’ holistic
development in public ECD centers in Eldoret West sub-County. The study was anchored
on Bruner’s Discovery Learning theory. A descriptive survey research design was adopted
for the study. The target population comprised of 180 head teachers and 180 senior
preschool teachers from 180 ECDE centres. However, 11 head teachers and 54 senior
preschool teachers were sampled through simple random and purposive techniques. The
study employed preschool teachers’ questionnaire, head teachers interview schedule, and
educational resources observation check list to collect data. The research instruments were
validated through the scrutiny of the two university supervisors. Cronbach alpha coefficient
was computed to ascertain the reliability of the preschool questionnaire. Quantitative data
was analyzed by descriptive statics while thematic analysis was used to analyze qualitative
data. The findings revealed significant deficiencies in essential indoor resources.
Computers, which are crucial for interactive learning and basic digital literacy, were
notably absent in 74% of the surveyed preschools. Professional development showed
mixed engagement, with 75.9% of teachers attending refresher courses and 72.2%
attending seminars and workshops. However, there were significant gaps in access to
instructional materials, with 44.4% of teachers reporting difficulty in accessing materials
on curriculum changes and 29% not familiar with current government policies in ECDE.
Educational policymakers should consider subsidies or grants to support the purchase of
educational aids, ensuring that every preschool has adequate resources to support visual
and interactive learning. The study might be of significance to the Ministry of Education
in the formulation of policies that will ensure the provision of quality and adequate
educational resources for the learners’ holistic development in ECD centres in Kenya. | en_US |
