SU+ Digital Repository

SU+ is an online repository for the preservation and promotion of assorted digital content at Strathmore University

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[ISSN 2519-5883]
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A Philosophical critique of the Marxist utopia through Dostoevsky’s notes from underground
(Strathmore University, 2025) Muthomi, K.
Going back to antiquity to the present, men have dreamed of an ideal state that provides the necessary conditions for the flourishing of universal happiness. From the biblical Garden of Eden to Xenophon’s Krypoaedia and Plato’s Republic, men have advanced the notion of the ideal state purposely designed to assure mankind eternal bliss. The 19th Century witnessed utopian narratives that sought to situate utopia within the course of history as the final act. The course of history would culminate in a utopian society. The construction of utopia entails the total subordination of society to human will. This refers to man's capacity to dominate his external environment and exert conscious rational control over his external environment. The realization of utopia will usher in the kingdom of freedom. The unity of mankind would be restored as human individual existence would be reconciled with human species essence. However, what started as the promise of collective earthly salvation degenerated into tyranny. The conscious striving to implement the perfect future edifice led to totalitarianism. Unrestricted freedom quickly transformed into unrestricted despotism. This research examines The Communist Manifesto in relation to Dostoevsky’s Notes from Underground. The analysis aims to establish a correlation between Dostoevsky’s ideas and the unethical malevolence of The Communist Manifesto. The Manifesto’s utopian character is based on its advancement of a visionary system of social perfection. The analysis is based on the form of existentialism known as the anarcho-psychological tradition.
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Effect of integrating 21st Century skills in the curriculum on teachers’ pedagogical competence: a study of selected private colleges in Kiambu County
(Strathmore University, 2025) Kisiang'ani, G.
Integrating 21st-century abilities into teacher education has become an essential component of preparing educators for modern classrooms. Specifically, incorporating integrating the 21st Century Skills such as communication, critical thinking, collaboration, problem-solving is crucial to the teaching and learning processes, hence need to be part of teachers’ pedagogical competence. This study looks into the effect of incorporating 21st-century abilities, notably critical thinking, collaboration, and innovation, on teachers' pedagogical competency in selected private colleges in Kiambu County, Kenya. The study was guided by three objectives: (i) determining how critical thinking skills influence teachers' instructional practices, (ii) assessing the impact of collaboration skills on effective teaching strategies, and (iii) investigating the role of innovation skills in improving teachers' adaptability and instructional effectiveness. The study used a descriptive survey research design with questionnaires and interviews to collect data from 93 pre-service teachers chosen at random from six private colleges in Kiambu County. The data was examined using descriptive and inferential statistics, as well as multiple regression analysis. The study found that critical thinking abilities, particularly problem identification and logical reasoning, greatly improve instructors' capacity to create learner-centred instructional techniques. Collaboration skills, such as classroom management and course development, also help teachers increase their efficacy by creating inclusive and engaging learning environments. Furthermore, innovative skills, such as technology integration and digital resource usage, have been shown to improve instructional adaptability, making learning more engaging and efficient. The study concludes that incorporating 21st-century skills into teacher training programs is critical to improving pedagogical competence. It suggests that teacher education institutions should improve experiential learning methodologies, enhance digital literacy, and implement organized cooperation frameworks to better educate pre-service teachers. These findings add to the continuing debate on teacher education reforms and provide practical insights for curriculum authors, legislators, and educational stakeholders trying to improve teaching standards in Kenya and worldwide.
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A Study of the impact of dual career on marital relationships and stability with special reference to Nairobi
(Strathmore University, 2025) Ogallo, F. J.
The growth of dual-career marriages is one of the most pervasive changes in family and labour force structure around the world. It is generally anticipated that dual-career couples with high double incomes will have a relatively comfortable and happy marriage, as they can easily afford the family's current basic needs and make provisions for their future requirements. While doing so, it is anticipated that these couples would attain a significantly higher level of marital satisfaction. Even though these marital arrangements have financial benefits for the spouses and can provide opportunities for personal self-fulfillment, they also create intricate problems that affect marital quality and stability. Empirical data shows that dual-career couples face new and different challenges that affect what would otherwise have been marital bliss. This study examined the impact of dual careers on the quality and stability of marital relationships of professional couples regarding the three aspects of role overload and stress-coping mechanisms, gender role perceptions, and family financial management. The study is grounded in an African urban setup and sought to understand to what extent the African outlook on marriage influenced these three aspects of marital life. The researcher used a qualitative design approach for the interviewees to share their expectations, experiences, and challenges. The interviewees, who were professional individuals from diverse sectors, were carefully selected to meet age, religion, career, and income diversity. The qualitative data underwent thematic analysis to capture and interpret lived experiences. The findings suggest that role overload coming from competing professional and domestic responsibilities significantly increased marital dissatisfaction and led to emotional exhaustion. Gender-role perceptions also proved a strong influence on the marital relationship, where more egalitarian couples reported much greater levels of marital happiness. Disagreements over financial management, especially on long-term investments, due to differing priorities and asymmetry of financial information, were widespread. Intentional effort to create time for each other away from children paid dividends in remaining connected emotionally. Spending time with either set of parents enhanced the marital bond of the couple. Attending parenting and marriage classes together enhanced communication skills between couples and led to marital harmony. The role of the man as a breadwinner cannot be replaced without serious consequences to the stability of the marriage because men are defined by what they do. In contrast to African traditional marriage, which places a high value on having many children, dual career couples prefer to have few. Many of them claim they would not be impacted by childless marriages and would reject any worldview that sets procreation as the primary marital goal. In general, the study indicates that while dual-career marriages can enhance relationships through shared goals and financial security, they also require active negotiation, equitable role sharing, and good communication to sustain marital quality and minimise instability. The study's theoretical framework was Von Hildebrand's Nature of Love, which does not differentiate the genders as is typical of the philosophy of man. The philosophy of love, such as Von Hildebrand’s, provides an ethical or normative picture of what couples should strive for, but is not adequate in analyzing the political, structural, and pragmatic realities that characterize dual-career marriages in the modern world. The study recommends a theoretical framework that combines philosophical ideas with social, feminist, and economic perspectives for a more effective analysis of dual career marriages. The study provides useful insights for marriage counsellors, policymakers, family therapists, Human Resource Officers, Church ministers, pastors and dual-career couples dealing with the stresses of modern professional life. The research adds to a nascent body of knowledge on work-family dynamics.
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Teachers’ use of ICT in implementing Competency-Based Curriculum in Public Junior Secondary Schools in Kisumu West Sub-County in Kenya
(Strathmore University, 2025) Mwita, F. R.
Integration of digital literacy in Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC) is a significant step towards the 21st century skills in the education system in Kenya. Global, regional, and local findings suggest that the world is rapidly changing and digital economy continues to gain traction in many societies. This study investigates the effectiveness of teachers' integration of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in implementing a competency-based curriculum in public junior secondary schools in Kenya, focusing on whether current ICT usage aligns with curriculum goals and enhances learning outcomes. Through a mixed-methods approach, incorporating both qualitative and quantitative data, the study captured teachers' experiences, evaluated curriculum implementation strategies, and analyzed student performance metrics. Key findings indicate that while ICT is used in varied capacities, significant gaps remain in its alignment with competency-based curriculum objectives. Teachers demonstrated a generally positive attitude towards ICT integration; however, challenges such as lack of training, inadequate resources, and infrastructural limitations were prevalent, hindering effective implementation. Various challenges in integrating ICT into the curriculum have been reported in previous research, especially in Kenya. There is limited focus on public junior secondary in rural areas such as Kisumu West Sub-County. It is against this background that this study interrogates teachers’ use of ICT in implementing CBC in public junior secondary schools (JSS) in Kisumu West Sub-County in Kisumu County, Kenya. The objectives of the study are: (i) to determine the availability of ICT infrastructure for implementation of CBC in public junior secondary schools, (ii) to establish teacher capacity for ICT use in the implementation of CBC in public junior secondary schools, and (iii) to examine the influence of teachers’ perceptions on the use of ICT in the implementation of CBC in public junior secondary schools. This study is premised on the constructivist learning theory (Elliott, Kratoch will, Littlefield & Travers, 2000) and the Technology Acceptance Model (Davis, 1989). An embedded mixed methods design was adopted in this study. The study targeted a total of one hundred and fifty (150) teachers in all the public junior secondary schools in Kisumu West Sub-County, from whom a simple random sampling was used to identify one hundred and nine (109) to complete questionnaires. Interviews were used to complement data drawn from closed-ended questionnaires. Data was analysed empirically, thematically and inferentially. This study concluded that public junior secondary schools in Kisumu West Sub-County did not have enough ICT resources and teachers were not sufficiently capacitated on ICT use. Besides, there were hardly any school-based ICT policies necessary for sustaining the use of ICT in implementing CBC in junior secondary schools in this area. Concerted efforts are required to address the ICT infrastructure and teacher capacity gaps. Additionally, heads of these institutions should be sensitised to introduce school-based ICT policies to entrench digital culture(s). The outcomes and recommendations in this study are useful in facilitating effective implementation of CBC and informing future curriculum reviews.
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Assessment of sustainable electricity generation scenarios in Burundi using multi-criteria approaches
(Strathmore University, 2025) Igiraneza, N. L.
With an 11% electrification rate, Burundi is one of the countries in the sub-Saharan region still facing significant energy access challenges in the region. This has considerably impacted the economic development, energy security and technical advancement of the country. The country primarily relies on hydroelectric power, with 49MW installed out of a potential 1700MW, as well as diesel thermal plants, solar, biomass, peat, firewood, coal, bagasse, although on a smaller scale. Due to a poor energy mix and inadequate maintenance of existing hydro infrastructure, technical issues, like insufficient capacity, supply disruptions lead to low-quality electrical supply. Moreover, the increasing reliance on traditional biomass has led to deforestation, and environmental degradation. There have been nevertheless attempted initiatives to close the energy supply and demand imbalance, while promoting renewable energy integration. Burundi is boosting energy generation through public and private initiatives, including rehabilitating existing hydropower infrastructure, developing rural electrification with mini-hydro, solar, and wind power, extending electric networks and building regional plants with neighbors. Feasibility studies for solar and wind power investments are also in progress. Despite this, there is no data and structured modeling tool available to support evidence-based decisions about these investments. This study aimed to assess the pathways to electricity generation by developing and testing an energy planning tool, that integrated available resources and the future energy demand in Burundi, to close the existing gap between supply and demand. It will serve as a resource for the relevant stakeholders as they tackle the issues of energy access, affordability, security, decarbonization and decentralization, and support potential investors in their decision making.