Title: Union Action and Educator Welfare as an Overlooked Dimension of Competency-Based Curriculum Implementation: A Study Of Secondary Schools In Uganda
Authors: Dr. Arinaitwe Julius
Musiimenta Nancy
Akampurira Sarah
Volume: 10
Issue: 8
Pages: 163-171
Publication Date: 2026/08/28
Abstract:
This study examined union action and educator welfare as an overlooked dimension of Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC) implementation in secondary schools in Uganda. Anchored in a positivist paradigm, the study employed a quantitative, cross-sectional correlational survey design guided by three objectives: to assess the level of union action among teachers implementing CBC, to evaluate the welfare status of educators engaged in CBC implementation, and to establish the structural relationship between union action, educator welfare and CBC implementation effectiveness. Using stratified random sampling, data were collected from 310 secondary school teachers through a structured questionnaire measuring union action, educator welfare and CBC implementation effectiveness on five-point Likert scales, with instrument validity and reliability confirmed through expert review, pilot testing and confirmatory factor analysis. Data were analysed at univariate, bivariate and multivariate levels using SPSS and AMOS, incorporating descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation and chi-square tests, and covariance-based structural equation modelling. Descriptive results showed a moderately high level of union action (M = 3.37, SD = 0.71), a moderate but comparatively weaker level of educator welfare (M = 2.93, SD = 0.72) dominated by low remuneration adequacy, and a moderate level of CBC implementation effectiveness (M = 3.09, SD = 0.68). Bivariate analysis revealed statistically significant positive correlations among all three constructs (p < .01), while the structural equation model demonstrated acceptable fit (CFI = .951, TLI = .942, RMSEA = .061, SRMR = .048) and showed that union action significantly predicted educator welfare (? = .48, p < .001) and exerted both a direct (? = .21, p < .01) and a welfare-mediated indirect effect on CBC implementation effectiveness, with educator welfare emerging as the strongest proximal predictor of implementation outcomes (? = .53, p < .001), jointly explaining 49% of the variance in implementation effectiveness. The study concluded that union action and educator welfare are not peripheral but central determinants of CBC implementation fidelity, and recommended institutionalised union-government dialogue, targeted welfare improvements, and the integration of welfare and union-engagement indicators into curriculum monitoring frameworks.