Challenges in the implementation of the Zimbabwe Junior School Visual & Performing Arts Syllabus in Mwenezi District, Masvingo Province

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to find out the challenges encountered by primary school teachers in implementing the Zimbabwe Junior Visual and Performing Arts Syllabus in Mwenezi District, Masvingo Province. Primarily, the aim was to determine the primary school teachers' lived experiences and views on critical challenges of implementing the country's updated syllabus. It was a descriptive survey design in which focus group interviews and an observation checklist were used to collect data, which were then thematically analysed. The sample comprised thirty participants (14 females, 16 males) from ten schools of Mwenezi district. The study targeted teachers only because they were the key implementers of the syllabus. Research findings revealed that the main challenges were lack of infrastructure, instructional resources, training, as well as poor timing of the programme. The most itching challenge was negative attitude by teachers, towards the syllabus. Those issues inevitably resulted in dismal implementation of the Visual and Performing Arts Syllabus in schools. In view of the results which emerged, the study recommends that the government could avail resources to schools, to enable teachers effectively implement the syllabus.