Influence of Institutional Capacity on Preferred Mode of Learning in the Public Service in Kenya: A Study of Kenya School of Government, Embu Campus

Abstract

Training institution administrators face challenges in fully integrating institutional capacity considerations into the selection of appropriate learning modes for public servants. This is largely due to varying levels of awareness among learners regarding continuous professional development and the availability of diverse learning options, which hinders the development of cohesive and inclusive learning strategies. This study aimed to determine the influence of institutional capacity on the preferred mode of learning among course participants at the Kenya School of Government (KSG), Embu Campus. The study was anchored on Organizational Learning Theory and adopted a cross sectional research design. A target population of 40 participants was used, with data collected through online questionnaires and analyzed using descriptive statistics. The findings revealed that availability of learning resources (29.7% strongly agreed and 32.4% agreed) was established to be a strong indicator of influencing the choice of mode of learning for participants in KSG Embu. Further, availability of technology (45.9%) and institutional infrastructure (43.2%) were established to be averagely important indicators for influencing the choice of the mode of learning for participants in KSG Embu Campus. The choice of the preferred mode of study for majority of participants in KSG Embu Campus was not influenced by the location of the institution (64.9 %). Further, 75.7% of the respondents, indicated that the course structure was not an influential indicator in determining the mode of learning. The study concluded that institutional capacity, particularly in terms of availability of learning resources, availability of technology and institutional infrastructure plays a significant role in shaping the preferred mode of learning among participants at KSG Embu Campus.