Sampling Process

Sampling is an important step in research because it helps to inform the quality of implications emanating from the key findings (Onwuegbuzie and Collins, 2007). Patton (1990) avers that one of the greatest values of purposive sampling is being able to select cases that are ‘information-rich’ (Ibid, 1990, p 169). A sample of schools (n = 27) was selected from different settings in urban, municipal and rural location. It was felt that these settings were ‘information-rich’ from which a great deal of issues on Special Needs Education (SNE) in Kenya would be understood and would illuminate the questions in this study in order to understand the relationship between what is said (say through government reports and other researchers) and known by the teachers about SNE in Kenya. Selecting a sample that would enable an understanding of the research phenomenon and the meaning constructed (Merriam, 1999) by the teachers from different schools in urban, municipal and urban settings would provide a realistic experience. The chosen samples enabled the combination of data about the phenomenon from different contexts and reduced the reliance on the already existing information. This experience provided rich data on how teachers make sense of SNE from the world they live in and from their own experiences. This combination provided a realistic experience from the teachers and the unique interactions in different

135

research sites (Patton, 2002) accumulated rich data which enabled me to gain in- depth understanding of the meaning teachers have constructed and how they make sense of SNE in Kenya. Hence, purposive sampling was chosen. Cohen, Manion and Morrison (2007) maintain that the researcher must resist the temptation to generalise to the wider population where the sample is either too small or insufficient evidence exists regarding its representativeness relating to the context of the study.

Samples were drawn from five of the eight provinces in Kenya. Some schools, in Nairobi and Central provinces, were easy to reach because they were within the vicinity of main towns and accessible from Nairobi where the researcher was based during this study. Considering the financial constraints, timeframe, poor infrastructure and the distances involved in travel, it was considered not feasible to cover all of the eight provinces. The researcher is encouraged to consider feasibility in terms of the resource costs of money and time, practical issues of accessibility and compatibility of the researcher’s work style with the sampling strategy (Miles and Huberman, 1994).

As explained in the literature review chapter, there is a paucity of research on SEN in Kenya and I envisage that there is still a need to explore this area in the future. It is my expectation that the data collected in this study is consequential in underpinning future research in Kenya. The procedure for the selection of schools was not aimed at recruiting a representative sample of schools in these regions, but a sample of schools where teachers might be expected and were ready to volunteer in order to share their opinions about SEN in public primary schools with the researcher. The number of schools and teachers participating in this study was low compared to the total number in the country, implying that the results form an inadequate basis for generalisation.

However, the selection of participants depended on whether they were available, interested and willing to participate in this study. Only questions relating to how teachers view SEN were used in the analysis of the data. Selecting cases for the study is fundamental to a researcher’s understanding of the validity of qualitative

136

research which needs to be addressed rigorously (Miles and Huberman, 1994; Strauss and Corbin, 1998). I considered choosing places which made it possible for me to pool evidence from a broader perspective and where rich information was likely to be generated in line with my phenomena (Miles and Huberman, 1994).

‘Intensive research depends on the collation of thick description’, of the phenomena which are conceptually important’ (Curtis et al., 2011, p1003).

The aim of my research was to seek different teachers’ opinions in order to understand their points of view, from within the world in which they work (Cohen et al., 2007). The study covered 27 primary schools from five different provinces in Kenya. These schools were drawn from urban (U), municipal (M) and rural (R) areas. The details of the provinces including Nairobi, Rift Valley, Eastern, Central and Coast Provinces are provided in the context chapter. However, the given areas represented a reasonably accessible sample of schools that was in manageable proximity to the main towns; this limitation is a bias against the inaccessible remote areas of Kenya. The infrastructure is poor and some areas of the Western and North Eastern provinces insecure. The Mail delivery service is not door-to-door and is sometimes unreliable especially in the rural areas. Relying on postal questionnaires was not possible because of the infrastructure set up (Mutua and Elhoweris, 2002).The questionnaires were therefore hand delivered by the researcher.

The Director of Education from the Ministry of Education in Nairobi provided a frame of schools in different zones. They selected specific schools from the larger population of schools based on the practical considerations above. The District Education Officers provided a frame for the municipal and rural schools which were in close proximity to the towns where accommodation facilities were available. I could then choose from the frame and approach the head teachers. Having taught in Kenya, I knew a few head teachers and teachers in some schools in this study. This implied that I was relatively familiar with the teaching conditions within Kenya and it was more likely I could get honest responses as posited by Thomas and Thomas (2011) from the participants to enhance this study.

137

I relied on purposive sampling with an explicit purpose to address my research aim and answer the research questions. This was compatible with the philosophical assumptions about ontology, epistemology and methodology that underpin the research study design (Marshall and Rossman, 2011). The following table shows the different sites for this study.

Table 10: Summary of survey sites