THIS CHAPTER 2

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GROUP 41
CHAPTER ONE
SUBJECT SPECIALISATION AND PERFORMANCE IN SECONDARY
SCHOOL: A CASE STUDY OF CHICHIRI SECONDARY SCHOOL AND
NJAMBA SECONDARY SCHOOL
1.0 Background of Study
Secondary education began in 1941 in Blantyre, Malawi and has grown slowly over the years.
Although secondary education is critical to meet the educational goals for skill development, there
are still relatively few opportunities and far fewer openings than graduates who would qualify from
the PSLCE. The Malawi Growth and Development Strategy III (MGDS III) targets (1) increased
access to secondary education, (2) improved quality of secondary education, and (3) improved
governance and management of secondary education. It is against this background that the
Government of Malawi intends to implement evidence based interventions and put up some
investments in education to accelerate performance of all the other sectors in Malawi, thereby
achieving sustainable reductions in hunger, poverty, malnutrition, and ill-health in the enlightened
society. The Education Sector Analysis produces such evidence as it outlines achievements in
education, and highlights impediments to the performance of the sector which, if addressed, will
enable the country to fulfil its aspirations in line with its international commitments such as
Continental Education Strategy Agenda (CESA) (2016- 2025), African Union Agenda 2063 (AU
Agenda 2063) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for a period from 2015 to 2030.
The Government of Malawi is keen to translate the 2016 National Education Policy (NEP) into
investable plans in NESIP guided by the stakeholder experiences enshrined in the ESA. Therefore,
I implore all stakeholders in the education sector, including related ministries, to use the ESA
report so that in the future, the challenges highlighted presently should all be addressed and that
access to, and quality of education in Malawi should be substantially improved.
Upon analyzing that academic performance of school pupils in Malawi has continued to elude the
Ministry of Education Science and Technology (MoEST). Therefore, in an attempt to improve
learner performance and that the government want achieve goals by 2030 and be in line with

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Malawi vision 2063, the MoEST circular dated September 7, 2015 addressed to all Provincial
Education Officers in Malawi by the Minister of Education Science and Technology guided as
follows:
[Given], the ministry is asking all schools to start implementing the new syllabus in all the
subject areas expect where facilities for particular subject are not available. “The ministry
wishes to inform the general public that chemistry and physics shall be taught in all national
secondary schools (24), district boarding schools (43), district day (48), and city day (11)
upgraded CDSSs (12) and non-upgraded CDSSs (200) which will be given science kits.
“Private schools are expected to procure their teaching and learning materials from the open market
because books are now being published and printed by the private sector without any control from
government other than the pre-printing selection of manuscripts conducted by Malawi Institute of
Education (MIE).All secondary schools offering the government curriculum are therefore called
upon to adhere to the guidelines which are available to them”, concludes MoEST statement.
Documentation and systematic assessment of learning achievement at the national level in Malawi
can be traced to 2014 when the Ministry of Education Science and Technology (MoEST) assessed
learning achievement nationally and examined how this would be changing over time. This
assessment was conducted in Malawi School Certificate of Education (MSCE).
In terms of the learning achievement of school pupils, Malawi appears to be a nation at risk. The
critical state of learning achievement which the National Assessment has documented is not
confined to MSCE. The MLA (Monitoring Learning Achievement) and SACMEQ (Southern
Africa Consortium for Monitoring Educational Quality) investigations indicate that low levels of
learning achievement are equally characteristic of both public and private secondary schools. The
overall conclusion seems inevitable: levels of learning achievement in MSCE are low right across
the country. However, the performance does not always meet the standards (Kelly & Kanyika,
2000, p. 8).
In the 2019 Malawi Education Sector Analysis report and National Education Standards (2015),
learning achievement at MSCE had not changed from the first edition of 1941 except for the
consolation that there had been no decline despite the 'massive enrolment' at that level (Malawi
Education Analysis, 2019). Several factors impinge learning achievement. They include home

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background, school-home background factors and processes, school background factors and
processes, teacher factors, school head teacher factors, and learner factors (U.S Agency for
international development, 2017). According to some scholars, the teacher factors are the most
significant (Darling-Hammond, 2000 and Hammond, 2014). School home background factors and
processes, especially as embodied in the curriculum, are of great significance too. Regarding the
teacher factor, several large scale interventions have been implemented to enhance teacher
capacity
1.1 Problem Statement
In view of the concerns for quality education, specialization has been perceived as contributing to
quality in education. Subject specialization is one of the best aspect in education system, Robert
(2010) observed that specialization in the 21st century has been as notable a tendency in the social
sciences as in the biological and physical sciences. Mukherjee (2013) provides six reasons why
subject specialization should be introduced in education.
According to, Makhila (1998; p.14) Lack of subject specialization in the education system always
leads into poor performance. However, students are the ones to suffer because their performance
will always be poor. And of course the whole system will suffer the same problem of poor
performance as they are not producing cream of graduates.
Subject specialization is a new development in Malawi schools. It is seen as an integral part of
quality learning and teaching in various subjects and disciplines. Though Abioye (2011) asserted
that area of specialization does have tremendous influence on academic performance of students’
in our educational institutions. The researcher, in this regards therefore, intends to investigate on
both student’s and teachers’ perceptions towards subject specialization in secondary schools in
Malawi.

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1.2 Purpose of Study
The purpose of the study is to assess the extent to which subject specialization has been
implemented at secondary school in Malawi. The study also aims to identify some of the
challenges associated with subject specialization at secondary school.
1.3 Research Objectives
1. Did teachers specialize in the subjects they are teaching?
2. To find out if there has been improvement in student’s performance since the introduction
of specialization at secondary school?
3. To understand both teacher’s and students’ perception on subjects specialization in
secondary schools.
4. To examine challenges associated with subject specialization.
1.4 Research Questions
1. Did teachers specialize in the subjects they are teaching?
2. What kind of improvement which has been there in performance since the introduction of
specialization at secondary school?
3. How teachers and students perceive subjects specialization in secondary schools?
4. What are the major challenges associated with subject specialization at secondary school.
1.5 Significance of Study
This study is of utmost importance because it highlights the importance of subject specialization,
which is one of the key trends being embraced in and recognized by education institutions in the
world today. It is so because subject specialization has been recognized as the key driver of
improving academic performance. Subject specialization is a new development in Malawi
secondary schools. Abioye (2011) asserted that area of specialization does have tremendous
influence on academic performance of students’ in our educational institutions. In this regard, this
study is important for the Malawi education as a country because it will unearth critical knowledge
regarding the parts in which students are specializing, which may influence possible curricula
changes which is in line with the government’s development agenda, thus to have quality education
in Malawi. Further, the findings of this study will contribute to the body of knowledge on subject

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specialization, importance of subject specialization and of course the challenges of the subject
specialization.
Further, this study will also help curriculum designers with insights on pupils’ realistic intentions
on how to go about and emphasizing on subject specialization to selected subject, as well as
implementing it in a manner that will ensure its success in improving academic performance.
1.6 Limitations of the Study
Possible limitations of the methodology and techniques presented above are that information
collected through this approach might omit critical details and ongoing dialogues in the arena. The
approach may also result in underreporting of specific issues. It is also important to acknowledge
that the accuracy and completeness of data may vary from one country to another. Consequently,
the implications and recommendations should be generalized sparingly within the context of the
information presented and based on the documents, reports, and publications included in this
review. By using intentions as a measure of future behavior, a clear risk is not being able to
differentiate between “dreamers” and “doers” (Delmar and Davidsson, 2000) in (Hamidi,
Wennberg, & Berglund, 2008, p. 317).
1.7 Outline of Thesis
The thesis has five chapters. First chapter which provides preamble to the thesis highlighting the
problem under study as well as research questions and objectives. Second chapter gives a literature
review; a discussion of similar studies done on the same topic by different researchers as well as
the theoretical and conceptual frameworks for the study. Further chapter three provides the
methodology for the study highlighting research design, sampling method and sample
characteristics. Chapter four follows with results and discussion. This chapter discusses the
findings of the study relating them to literature and explaining their implications for theory and
practice. Lastly, chapter five provides study conclusions and offers recommendations drawn from
the conclusions.

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1.8 Chapter Summary
Subject specialization has been recognized as a key driver in improving academic performance. It
is for this reason that subject specialization should be introduced in education to students in order
to equip them with knowledge and skills to ensure that students get mastered in the fields they are
studying and at the end became experts in that particular fields. Research has shown however that
the extent to which subject specialization is improving the academic performance of student and
to the extent they became experts in the fields they are studying. This study therefore investigates
the perception of both teachers and students on subject specialization and how this subject
specialization has changed the academic performance in Malawian secondary school level.