Challenges Hindering Effective ICT Integration in the Teaching and Learning of Pre-Technical Studies in Rural Public Junior Schools in Soy Sub-County, Uasin Gishu County, Kenya

Abstract

Despite Kenya's Competency-Based Education (CBE) mandate to mainstream digital literacy across all learning areas, Pre-Technical Studies instruction in rural public junior schools continues to face substantial barriers to effective ICT integration. This study examined the challenges hindering ICT integration in Pre-Technical Studies instruction in rural public junior schools in Soy Sub-County, Uasin Gishu County, Kenya. A mixed-methods descriptive survey design was employed, drawing data from 66 sampled schools, 66 teachers and 267 Grade 7 learners selected through stratified, purposive and simple random sampling, alongside a Quality Assurance Officer interviewed as a key informant. Data were collected using questionnaires, an interview guide and an observation checklist and analysed using descriptive statistics, and thematic analysis. Findings revealed that device scarcity was near-universal, with majority of learners and teachers reporting inadequate computers or tablets, while unreliable internet connectivity emerged as the most severe barrier for both groups. Inadequate funding and unreliable electricity supply were also rated dominant systemic barriers by teachers, alongside a distinct lack of Pre-Technical Studies-specific digital content. Observation data corroborated these self-reported challenges, while school administration attitudes were comparatively supportive, indicating that ineffective ICT integration stems primarily from resourcing and content-development gaps rather than implementation failure. The study concludes that generic ICT provision alone cannot resolve the subject-specific instructional gap in Pre-Technical Studies and recommends that the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development develop offline-compatible, subject-specific digital content, and that the Teachers Service Commission institutionalize sustained, hands-on ICT professional development for rural teachers. These findings offer a grassroots perspective essential for aligning national digital education policy with classroom realities in resource-constrained rural settings.