ACTS OF TERROR AND LEARNING OUTCOMES IN THE EDUCATION SECTOR: A CASE OF MANDERA COUNTY, KENYA
Abstract
This study determined the relationship between acts of terror and learning results in Mandera County, Kenya. To achieve this, the study specifically aimed to establish the impacts of radicalization, recruitment efforts, and the coordination of attacks on educational sector outcomes. The methodological foundation rested upon conversion and rational choice theories, employing a descriptive research design. Data collection targeted 203 stakeholders—including teachers, parents, PTA members, and education ministry personnel—with a chosen sample size of 134. The study results show a moderate negative relationship between radicalization activity and learning outcomes not statistically significant, implying it does not have a meaningful impact on learning outcomes in the education sector in this model. Recruitment activity is not statistically significant and does not appear to influence learning outcomes in the education sector in this model. The results show a strong positive relationship between coordinating attacks and learning outcomes in the education sector and was statistically significant. The study concludes that radicalization activity (RAA) had relationship between radicalization activity and learning outcomes. The study concludes that recruitment activity is not statistically significant and does not appear to influence learning outcomes in the education sector. The research concludes that coordinating attacks show a strong positive relationship between coordinating attacks and learning outcomes in the education sector. Recommendations include fostering critical thinking skills to counter extremist ideologies, promoting social cohesion and inclusivity in schools to build resilience against radicalization, enhancing teacher capacity to integrate peace education into the curriculum, strengthening community-school partnerships for early detection and prevention, and conducting further research to develop context-specific and effective interventions for Mandera County. Other recommendations include integrating peace studies and counter-extremism education into the curriculum, providing guidance and counseling services for students and families, conducting community-based research to understand local vulnerabilities, involving marginalized groups to reduce radicalization drivers.
References
Ahmed, Z.S. & Jafri, Q.A. (2020): Drivers of violent extremism in higher education institutions of Pakistan, Dynamics of Asymmetric Conflict, DOI: 10.1080/17467586.2020.1821068
Alfano, M., & Joseph-Simon, G. (2023) : Instrumenting the Effect of Terrorism on Education in Kenya, IZA Discussion Papers, No. 16544, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA), Bonn.
Cherney, A., Belton, E., Norham, S. A. B., & Milts, J. (2020). Understanding youth radicalisation: an analysis of Australian data. Behavioral Sciences of Terrorism and Political Aggression, 14(2), 97–119. https://doi.org/10.1080/19434472.2020.1819372
Chitembwe, S.J., Okoth, P.G., & Matanga, F.K. (2021). The Nature, Extent and Impact of Youth Radicalization in Mombasa and Kwale Counties, Kenya. Open Access Library Journal, 8, 1-21.
Cooper, D. R., & Schindler, P. S. (2018). Business research methods (13 th ed.). McGraw-Hill/ Irwin.
Creswell. J. W. (2006). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five approaches. London: Sage Publications.
Dostál, J., Chalupova, M., Martina, C., & Prokop, M. (2018). International terrorism as a threat to student mobility. On the Horizon. 26. 10.1108/OTH-08-2017-0056.
Eldor, D. S., Lindholm, K., Chavez, M. H., Vassanyi, S., Badiane, M. O. I., Yaldizli, K., Frøysa, P., Haugestad, C. A. P., & Kunst, J. R. (2022). Resilience against radicalization and extremism in schools: Development of a psychometric scale. Frontiers in psychology, 13, 980180.
Ellefsen, R., & Sandberg, S. (2022). Everyday Prevention of Radicalization: The Impacts of Family, Peer, and Police Intervention. Studies in Conflict & Terrorism, 47(10), 1342–1365.
Field, A. (2017). Discovering Statistics Using IBM SPSS Statistics (North American Ed.). Sage Publications.
Fielding, M., & Moss, P. (2011). Radical Education and the Common School (London, Routledge), pp. 2, 57.
Frey, B.S., Luechinger, S., & Stutzer, A. (2007) “Calculating Tragedy: Assessing The Cost of Terrorism”, Journal of Economic Surveys, Vol.21, No.1, pp.1-24.
Halevi, G., Djalovski, A., Vengrober, A., & Feldman, R. (2016). Risk and resilience trajectories in war‐exposed children across the first decade of life. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 57(10), 1183-1193
Jones E. (2017). The reception of broadcast terrorism: recruitment and radicalisation. International review of psychiatry (Abingdon, England), 29(4), 320–326. https://doi.org/10.1080/09540261.2017.1343529
Kiyan, C., Mwanda, Z., Rimal, J., Vysyaraju, K., & Zolfo, M. (2024). Guidelines for Integrating actionable A-SMART Learning Outcomes into the Backward Design Process. MedEdPublish. 14. 242. 10.12688/mep.20606.1.
K`Odipo, W. (2017). The causation issues of terrorism in Kenya and their effects on the provision of Education Walter Moi University, Eldoret, Kenya International Journal of Advanced Education and Research ISSN: 2455-5746, Impact Factor: RJIF 5.34 www.alleducationjournal.com Volume 2; Issue 1; January 2017; Page No. 26-29
Kothari, C.R. (2019) Research Methodology: Methods and Techniques. 4th Edition, New Age International Publishers, New Delhi.
Kurtulus, E.N. (2017). "Terrorism and fear: do terrorists really want to scare?." Critical Studies on Terrorism 10, no. 3: 501–522.
Kwame, B. A., & HamiHasbun, J. (2019). “Terrorism and the Military Institution: History and Definitions” International Journal of Political Science (IJPS), vol 5, no.4, 2019, pp. 35-47. doi: http://dx.doi.org/ 10.20431/2454-9452.0504006
Lofland, J., & Stark, R. (1965). Becoming a world-saver: a theory of conversion to a deviant perspective. American sociological review, 30(6), 862–875.
Mahajan, M., & Sarjit, S., & Manvender, K. (2017). Importance and Benefits of Learning Outcomes. IOSR Journal of Humanities and Social Science. 22. 65-67. 10.9790/0837-2203056567.
Marco, A., & Joseph-Simon, G. (2023): Instrumenting the Effect of Terrorism on Education in Kenya, IZA Discussion Papers, No. 16544, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA), Bonn
Marco, A., & Joseph-Simon, G. (2023). Terrorism, Media Coverage, and Education: Evidence from al-Shabaab Attacks in Kenya, Journal of the European Economic Association, Volume 21, Issue 2, April 2023, Pages 727–763, https://doi.org/10.1093/jeea/jvac054
Milad, H., Kuligowski, E., Rajabifard, A., & Lentini, P. (2022). Fifty years of scholarly research on terrorism: Intellectual progression, structural composition, trends and knowledge gaps of the field, International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, Volume 68, 2022, 102714, ISSN 2212-4209, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijdrr.2021.102714.
Moulid, A. (2014).Analyzing Domestic Terrorism as a threat to Pakistan Education and the policy Discourse & Society 23(3) 217-244.
Nacos, B. L. (2016). Terrorism and counterterrorism. Routledge.
Nivette, A., Eisner, M., & Ribeaud, D. (2017). Developmental Predictors of Violent Extremist Attitudes: A Test of General Strain Theory. Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency, 54(6), 755-790.
Odhiambo, E. S.,Wasike, S. & Kimot, S.N. (2015). Learning Institutions Vulnerability to Terrorism. An overview of Issue coverage in Nowadays mwdia and Specialised Literature and a Case Study of Garrisa University College, Kenya. From Journal of Defense Resources Management. Vol. 6 Issue 2 (11)/2015
Onwuegbuzie, A.J. & Leech, N.L. (2006) Linking Research Questions to Mixed Methods Data Analysis Procedures. The Qualitative Report, 11, 474-498.
Ouoba, M., & Lompo, E. (2022). Terrorism violence: assessing the impact of education programs through mass media on the adoption of security measures in Burkina Faso. Multidisciplinary Reviews. 5. 1-14. 10.31893/multirev.2022013.
Pritchett, S., & Moeller, K. (2021): Can social bonds and social learning theories help explain radical violent extremism?, Nordic Journal of Criminology, DOI: 10.1080/2578983X.2021.1889133
Rahman, K. (2023). Role of Primary Education in Promoting Peace in Terrorism Affected Areas: Primary School Teachers’ Perspectives. American Journal of Applied Psychology. 10.11648/j.ajap.20231202.12.
Robinson, M. M. (2022). "Social media recruitment and online propaganda by extremist groups". Honors Program Theses. 531. https://scholarworks.uni.edu/hpt/531
Romero, J. (2022). "A comparative evolution of terrorism". Terrorism: the Power and Weakness of Fear. Routledge Studies in Modern History. Abingdon, UK / New York City: Routledge.
Schlierer, E. (2016). "The Effect of Social Media Use on Foreign Fighter Recruitment for ISIS" (2016). Criminal Justice. 10. https://scholarsarchive.library.albany.edu/honorscollege_cj/10
Sjøen, M. M. (2023). Engaging with the Elusiveness of Violent Extremism in Norwegian Schools – The Promise and Potential of Agonistic Listening. British Journal of Educational Studies, 72(3), 321–340. https://doi.org/10.1080/00071005.2023.2251151
Sukarieh, M., & Tannock, S. (2015). The deradicalisation of education: terror, youth and the assault on learning. Race & Class, 57(4), 22-38.
Tin, D., Issa, F., & Ciottone, G. R. (2022). Attacks on Educational Institutions. Prehospital and disaster medicine, 37(3), 333–337. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1049023X22000590
Wansink, B., de Graaf, B., & Berghuis, E. (2021). Teaching under attack: The dilemmas, goals, and practices of upper-elementary school teachers when dealing with terrorism in class. Theory & Research in Social Education, 49(4), 489–509.
Weisburd, D., Wolfowicz, M., Hasisi, B., Paolucci, M., & Andrighetto, G. (2022). What is the best approach for preventing recruitment to terrorism? Findings from ABM experiments in social and situational prevention. Criminology & Public Policy. 21. 10.1111/1745-9133.12579.
