Jul 2026· International Journal of Studies in Inclusive Education· 0 citations
Abstract
Competency-based curriculum (CBC) reforms have increasingly been adopted across Southern African education systems as governments attempt to improve learning outcomes, develop practical skills, and align schooling with contemporary socio-economic demands. Despite these policy ambitions, evidence from several education systems suggests that CBC reforms remain unevenly implemented, particularly in resource-constrained secondary schools, where institutional capacity and instructional resources are limited. This study examines the policy–practice gap in the implementation of competency-based curriculum in selected Southern African secondary schools by synthesising recent scholarly and policy literature. It employed a systematic literature review guided by PRISMA procedures to identify and analyse relevant studies published between 2020 and 2025. Search was conducted across major academic databases and policy repositories, yielding 25 studies that met the established inclusion criteria. The reviewed studies focused primarily on teachers, school administrators, and policy implementation in African secondary education systems. The findings indicate that although CBC reforms are widely supported at the policy level, implementation at the school level is constrained by several interconnected factors. Key challenges include limited teacher preparedness, inadequate professional development opportunities, shortages of textbooks and teaching materials, infrastructural limitations, and weak institutional support mechanisms. Teachers often interpret and adapt curriculum policies to fit classroom realities, leading to inconsistent implementation of competency-based pedagogies. The study concludes that effective implementation of competency-based curriculum reforms requires sustained investment in teacher training, improved allocation of instructional resources, and stronger institutional coordination across education systems. Policymakers and education administrators should prioritise context-sensitive implementation strategies that strengthen school-level capacity and support teachers in adopting competency-based pedagogical approaches. Future research should explore classroom-level experiences of CBC implementation and evaluate long-term impacts of curriculum reforms on teaching practices and learner outcomes.
Uganda's transition to competency-based education and training represent one of the most significant pedagogical and regulatory reforms in contemporary African education policy. This article critically examines the legal and policy frameworks underpinning this transition at national, regional, continental, and international levels. Through a qualitative case study design employing document analysis and the IRAC framework for legal analysis, the study draws on parliamentary records, assessment data, labour market surveys, and recent scholarly literature. The findings reveal a fundamental implementation paradox: institutional compliance with regulatory mandates coexists with persistent deficiencies in applied competencies that competency-based education was designed to cultivate. Despite possessing one of the most progressive legal frameworks in Sub-Saharan Africa, Uganda faces significant challenges including definitional ambiguity in the Technical and Vocational Education and Training Act 2025, delayed issuance of subsidiary legislation for the Skills Development Levy, inadequate teacher preparedness, resource disparities across institutions, and weak industry engagement mechanisms. The study identifies three interrelated gaps: legislative ambiguity, institutional capacity deficits, and absence of outcome-based accountability. These gaps are compounded by regional and gender disparities, with labour underutilization reaching 58.3% among youth aged 15-19. The article concludes that sustainable reform requires moving beyond regulatory compulsion toward outcome-based accountability, genuine industry partnership, equitable resource distribution, and policy coherence across national, regional, and international frameworks. Evidence from across Sub-Saharan Africa confirms that legal mandate alone is insufficient without congruent resource allocation, pedagogical transformation, and sustained stakeholder engagement. The article offers targeted recommendations for legislative amendment, regulatory development, and equity sensitive implementation.
Mpaata Ibrahim Kaziba, Richard Wemesa, Joshua Mwesigye et al.· Journal of scientific report...· 0 citations
Kenya’s introduction of the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC) in 2017, renamed Competency-Based
Education (CBE) in 2024, marks a significant reform of the country’s basic education system. The reform
replaced the 8-4-4 structure with a 2-6-6-3 model designed to promote competency development, values
formation, and learner-centered teaching. Nearly a decade into implementation, a growing body of research
has examined the reform across diverse educational contexts; however, findings remain dispersed across
empirical studies, policy documents, government reports, and graduate theses. Using PRISMA-informed
review procedures and thematic synthesis, 198 records were identified and screened, yielding 62 sources
for analysis. The review draws on Fullan’s theory of educational change, Tikly and Barrett’s framework for
quality education in the Global South, and the capability approach of Sen and Nussbaum. Six recurring
implementation challenges were identified: teacher preparedness and pedagogical capacity; infrastructure,
instructional resources, and digital access; assessment design and integrity; parental engagement and
household economic burden; equity and inclusion for learners in marginalized settings; and governance and
policy coherence in the transition to Junior Secondary School. Evidence from Tanzania and Rwanda indicates
that many of these challenges extend beyond Kenya and reflect broader constraints associated with
competency-based reforms in East Africa. The findings suggest that the long-term success of CBE will depend
on sustained investment in teacher development, equitable resource allocation, credible assessment
systems, and meaningful stakeholder engagement. The review contributes to the literature by synthesizing
current knowledge of CBC/CBE implementation in Kenya and identifying areas requiring further research,
policy attention, and leadership support.
Kennedy O. Ongaga· Journal of Education and Hum...· 0 citations
Education policy reforms across Asia have sought to improve the quality, accessibility, equity, and effectiveness of public school systems through curriculum updates, teacher professional development, decentralized school governance, expanded digital infrastructure, and increased funding. Despite widespread reform efforts, empirical evidence reveals persistent gaps between policy design and classroom-level implementation, with countries such as the Philippines, India, and Indonesia experiencing uneven gains in student learning outcomes, equity, and school performance. This study employs data mining integrated with a systematic literature review to synthesize findings from empirical studies, policy reports, and academic publications on education policy reforms across Asian public school systems. Guided by Fullan’s Theory of Educational Change, Systems Theory, and the Political Economy Theory of Education, the analysis identifies recurring themes including curriculum reform, funding disparities, teacher quality, school governance, infrastructure limitations, and technology integration. Findings indicate that teacher training exerts the strongest influence on student achievement and reform sustainability, while insufficient funding, weak management capacity, and urban-rural disparities remain the most significant barriers to effective implementation. The study concludes that successful education reform in Asia requires coordinated investment in teacher capacity, equitable resource allocation, strengthened monitoring systems, and evidence-based policymaking tailored to local contexts. Recommendations are offered to guide future educational policy development toward more inclusive, effective, and sustainable outcomes across the region.
Ma. Elena Sentasas, Jordan Yagong, Regina P. Galigao· International journal of hum...· 0 citations
Despite South Africa's progressive inclusive education policies, such as Education White Paper 6 and the SIAS policy, a significant gap persists between policy ideals and classroom practice, a gap frequently attributed to the inadequate preparation of in-service teachers. While higher education institutions (HEIs) have increasingly offered Continuous Professional Development (CPD) programmes to address this, the curriculum design and effectiveness of these initiatives remain critically under-examined. This study investigates how the curriculum content and structure of a university-led Short Learning Programme (SLP) on inclusive education equips (or fails to equip) in-service teachers with the knowledge, skills, and values required for inclusive practice in South African schools. This qualitative case study was guided by an interpretivist paradigm, seeking to understand participants' lived experiences and meaning-making within their specific contexts. The study employed a case study design to explore the bounded system of the SLP offered by a South African university to in-service teachers. Ten teachers were purposively selected from five education districts in Limpopo Province: Vhembe, Capricorn, Mopani, Waterberg, and Sekhukhune, with two teachers representing each district. Data were collected through in-depth, semi-structured interviews (45–60 minutes each) and document analysis of the SLP curriculum guides, module outlines, and relevant policy texts. Thematic content analysis, following Braun and Clarke's (2006) six-step process, was used to analyse the data, with findings interpreted through Luckett's (1995) Modes of Learning and Shulman's (1986) Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK). The findings reveal that while the SLP provided foundational knowledge of inclusive education policies and concepts, it significantly lacked practical strategies, context-responsive tools, and opportunities for critical reflection. Teachers described the curriculum as abstract, decontextualised, and misaligned with the realities of under-resourced, multilingual, and overcrowded classrooms. Facilitation was similarly limited, relying on lecture-based delivery with minimal interactive or reflexive engagement. The curriculum failed to progress beyond Luckett's foundational mode (Mode 1), neglecting practical competence (Mode 2), personal engagement (Mode 3), and reflexive competence (Mode 4), and failed to integrate Shulman's PCK by failing to bridge theory and classroom practice. These findings have critical implications for curriculum transformation in university-led professional development. They suggest that professional development for inclusive education must move beyond content dissemination to embed experiential learning, foster critical reflection, and centre teacher agency. Without such pedagogical and epistemological shifts, CPD risks reinforcing the very inequalities it seeks to address. This study concludes that for CPD to be transformative, HEIs must co-design curricula with practicing teachers, embed African epistemologies and local knowledge, and strengthen university-school partnerships to bridge the theory-practice divide. The study contributes empirical insights into the curriculum gaps in university-led CPD. It offers concrete recommendations for curriculum designers, teacher educators, and policymakers working toward inclusive, socially just education in South Africa.
Unknown authors· International Journal of Stu...· 0 citations
This study provides a narrative review of contemporary challenges in teaching English as a Foreign Language (EFL) in higher education across diverse international contexts. It synthesizes evidence from peer-reviewed studies published between 2020 and 2025. The analysis identifies six interrelated domains of difficulty: student-related factors (proficiency, motivation, anxiety), cultural and linguistic diversity, pedagogical and methodological constraints, community attitudes and perceptions, curriculum and assessment systems, and teacher, technological, and institutional limitations. Rather than representing isolated barriers, these challenges interact across policy, institutional, pedagogical, and learner levels. Positive attitudes toward English often coexist with critiques of inequality; Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) is endorsed in policy but undermined by exam-driven curricula; and technology promises innovation yet exacerbates inequities without adequate training and infrastructure. The review argues that sustainable improvement depends on systemic coherence across policy, institutional governance, curriculum design, teacher development, and learner-centered practice rather than isolated interventions. Future research should expand comparative research across underexplored regions, employ longitudinal designs to assess the durability of reforms, and critically examine the role of emerging tools such as artificial intelligence (AI) in language instruction. By integrating evidence across diverse educational contexts into a coherent multi-level framework, the study contributes a holistic perspective on improving EFL teaching in higher education.
School inclusion constitutes one of the main challenges of contemporary education, particularly given the need to transform access to school into effective opportunities for participation and learning. This study aimed to analyze how recent scientific literature has addressed school inclusion, considering the relationships among educational policies, pedagogical practices, and the guarantee of the right to learning. An integrative literature review was conducted, covering publications from 2020 to 2026 and searches in selected educational databases. After applying the eligibility criteria, ten articles comprised the final sample. The results showed that effective inclusion depends on the articulation among educational policies, institutional conditions, teacher education, and pedagogical practices capable of responding to diversity. The studies also demonstrated that students' presence at school alone does not ensure inclusion; conditions that promote participation, equity, and learning are also required. It is concluded that advancing inclusive education requires bridging the gap between rights established by educational policies and concrete experiences within schools, recognizing inclusion as a shared responsibility among education systems, institutions, and education professionals.
Yêda Danniely Quintiliano Almeida, Elson Max Fernandes da Fonseca, Jane Alves Cardoso et al.· Veredas do Direito· 0 citations
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