Social Environment and its Effects on the Implementation of the Curriculum for History in Secondary Schools in Mezam Division, North West Region of Cameroon

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to investigate social environment and its effects on the implementation of the curriculum for History in secondary schools in Mezam Division of the Northwest Region of Cameroon. Three research questions and three hypotheses were formulated to guide the study. More specifically, the study sought to ascertain the extent to which, the social environment of a school affect curriculum implementation in history. The study employed the survey research design with a mix of both quantitative and qualitative techniques. Quantitative data were collected through a questionnaire while a semi-structured interview guide was used to collect qualitative data from a sample of 305 respondents. Questionnaires were completed by 300 history teachers and students while 05 history pedagogic inspectors were interviewed. The purposive sampling technique was used to select the sample of the study. Data were analyzed with the aid of the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 23.0 for Windows. Descriptive statistics such as simple percentages, mean scores and standard deviation, and inferential statistics notably the Pearson Correlation test was used to analyze quantitative data while qualitative data were analyzed using content analysis with the support of ATLAS.ti software version 8.0. The findings revealed that the social environment (r=0.895, p<0.05), have a positive correlation with curriculum implementation. These findings are in consonance with the postulates of scholars such as Cheryan et al (2014), Alvior (2014), and Maxwell et al (2017). Based on the findings, recommendations were made to students, teachers, and school authorities and to optimize the use of social environmental factors to enhance the implementation of the curriculum of history and other subjects in secondary schools in Mezam and beyond. Suggestions for further studies were made.