| dc.description.abstract | The study was on class Integration of Faith and Learning (IFL)
practices at Mupapa Adventist Academy (MAA), Kabwe Adventist Secondary (KAS)
and Chimpempe Adventist Mission Secondary Schools (CMSS) of the Northern
Zambia Union Conference. It was observed that there was a weak emphasis on the
Integration of Faith and Learning practice in the classes, but not much was known
apart from that. The purpose of the study was therefore to explore the extent to which
the IFL was being practiced in the classroom and the factors that are associated with
the practice.
The study used a descriptive design. Data was collected from 60 teachers from
both the primary and secondary sectors. The instrument was a self-designed
questionnaire that inquired, apart from the demographic variables (age, years of
teaching, academic qualification, religious affiliation and sector of employment),
about the level of IFL practice of the teachers, and whether they were trained in IFL teaching. The whole population was chosen for the three schools, that is, 65 teachers.
The schools involved were MAA and KAS of the Copperbelt and Midlands
Conference respectively and then CMSS of Luapula Conference in Northern Zambia
Union Conference in the Luapula Province. Only 60 questionnaires were returned.
The data was analyzed with the use of descriptive statistics—frequency distribution,
simple correlation and t-test for independent samples.
The study showed that the majority of the respondents were male (58%), and
are more than 30 years old (70 %). 82% of the respondents had between 0-15 years of
teaching experience, 53% have an undergraduate degree or above and 47% have
either a certificate or a diploma. Seventy-five percent of the participants were
baptized Seventh-day Adventists, 53% teach in secondary schools and 47% teach in
primary schools. A crosstab analysis revealed that 64% of the primary school teachers
are females and 78% of the secondary school teachers are males. The latter also hold
an undergraduate degree and above, whereas their female counterparts hold either a
diploma or a certificate. The findings revealed that the respondents did practice
Integration of Faith and Learning mainly in the form of praying, reading the Bible in
class and using the Bible as a textbook for all subjects. “Praying” scored a slightly
higher mean than the other three forms. Use of the Bible during the lesson
presentation rated second and reading the Bible during class came in third position.
The overall score indicated a mean of 3.3, with a standard deviation of 1.21. The
analysis also examined if there was a significant difference in the practice of
Integration of Faith and Learning based on the demographic variables. In order to
answer this question, a mean comparison using t-test was done. The findings indicated
that female teachers seem to practice more Integration of Faith and Learning than
their male counterparts. For the demographic variable “age” the finding indicated no significant difference. Also there were no significant difference in the practice of IFL
based on years of teaching, and religious affiliation. However, for the last two
variables: academic qualifications and sector there was a significant difference. Those
who have certificates and diplomas and who are in the primary school sector practice
seem to practice more Integration of Faith and Learning than those who have first
degrees and above and who work in the secondary school sector.
Further analysis was done to find if there is a relationship between the level of
spirituality of the respondents and their level of practice of Integration of Faith and
Learning in the classroom. The study revealed that the teachers had a fairly high level
of spirituality. The correlation analysis showed a strong correlation between the level
of spirituality and the level of practice in the classroom. Nevertheless it was found
that in the secondary sector, even if the teachers seems to have a high level of
spirituality, they do not practice IFL that much in the classroom. This finding seems
to suggest that there are other factors that can affect the actual practice of IFL.
Finally, an analysis was done to see if there was a significant difference in the
practice of Integration of Faith and Learning based on the attendance to the training
and orientation seminars on IFL. Using independent samples T-test, the results
showed that there was a significant difference between the practices based on the
training and orientation received by the participants. Those who have attended the
seminar on IFL and obtained an orientation on how to integrate faith and learning
during the lessons as well as during the social games tend to practice it more than
those who had not obtained the training. Based on the findings four major
recommendations were made. First, the teachers of the Primary schools who happen
to the mostly female teachers should be encouraged to keep up IFL practices, while
the secondary school teachers need to be encouraged to do so. Second, given the fact that those who got the training tend to practice it more in the classrooms, the school
administrators need to ensure that all the teachers get an opportunity to attend training
seminars on ILF. Third, the use of the Bible during lesson presentation be encouraged
further. Fourth, the teachers should be encouraged to nurture their level of spirituality
as this will drive them to practice their faith more in the classroom. | en_US |
