ABSTRACT
Gathering qualitative data at three school sites through observation and interviewing provided specific insights into the life of parents and children in specific local contexts that do not tend to be captured with quantative surveying and assessment. Out of these qualitative data, multiple stories of communities, families, schools, and children emerged and were mined for improving the effectiveness of literacy approaches. Noanini Primary School was in the low-growth school category. The school showed the lowest growth in reading scores among the 20 treatment schools from pre to post-treatment assessment scores, in fact, the school's results showed negative growth: The students scored lower on the post-treatment assessment than the pre-treatment assessment. The head teacher reported that the village consisted of more Muslims than Christians. Shadakunu Primary School was chosen as the high-growth school. Of the three schools chosen, this site was the furthest from Malindi town, once again challenging the quantitative findings about urban-rural differences.
