INFLUENCE OF PHYSICAL INFRASTRUCTURE AND WATER AND SANITATION SAFETY STANDARDS ON THE WELL-BEING OF PUBLIC SECONDARY SCHOOL COMMUNITIES IN WEST POKOT COUNTY, KENYA
Abstract
Purpose of the Study: The study examined the influence of physical infrastructure and water and sanitation safety standards on the well-being of public secondary school communities in West Pokot County, Kenya.
Statement of the Problem: Despite existing national school safety policies, public secondary schools in West Pokot continue to experience ageing infrastructure, overcrowding, inadequate maintenance, poor waste management, and unreliable water and sanitation facilities.
Methodology: Guided by the Health Belief Model, the study used a convergent parallel mixed-methods design, collecting data through questionnaires, interviews, observations, and documents, then applying statistical and thematic analyses for interpretation.
Findings: Physical infrastructure safety standards recorded a mean of 3.88, while water and sanitation standards recorded a mean of 4.16. Physical infrastructure had a strong positive relationship with school community well-being (r = .741, p < .05). Water and sanitation standards also had a positive significant relationship with well-being (r = .342, p < .05). Qualitative findings confirmed these results but highlighted implementation challenges.
Conclusion: Improved physical infrastructure and effective water and sanitation management enhance the well-being of school communities.
Recommendation: Education stakeholders should fund infrastructure, water, sanitation, waste management, and safety monitoring.
Keywords: Keywords: School safety standards; physical infrastructure; water and sanitation; school community well-being; public secondary schools; West Pokot County; Kenya.
References
Barrett, P., Treves, A., Shmis, T., Ambasz, D., & Ustinova, M. (2019). The impact of school infrastructure on learning: A synthesis of the evidence. World Bank.
Becker, M. H. (1974). The Health Belief Model and personal health behavior. Charles B. Slack.
Creswell, J. W., & Plano Clark, V. L. (2018). Designing and conducting mixed methods research (3rd ed.). Sage Publications.
Hair, J. F., Black, W. C., Babin, B. J., & Anderson, R. E. (2022). Multivariate data analysis (9th ed.). Cengage Learning.
Ministry of Education. (2008). Safety standards manual for schools in Kenya. Government Printer.
Republic of Kenya. (2013). The Basic Education Act, No. 14 of 2013. Government Printer.
Rosenstock, I. M. (1974). Historical origins of the Health Belief Model. Health Education Monographs, 2(4), 328–335.
United Nations Children's Fund. (2023). The state of the world's children 2023: For every child, vaccination. UNICEF.
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. (2021). Reimagining our futures together: A new social contract for education. UNESCO.
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. (2023). Global education monitoring report 2023: Technology in education—A tool on whose terms? UNESCO.
United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction. (2022). Comprehensive school safety framework 2022–2030. UNDRR.
World Health Organization. (2023). Global status report on road safety 2023. WHO.
World Health Organization, & United Nations Children's Fund. (2023). Progress on drinking water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) in schools: Special focus on COVID-19. WHO & UNICEF.
Yamane, T. (1967). Statistics: An introductory analysis (2nd ed.). Harper & Row.
