Textbook Evaluation Criteria and Learning Achievement in Secondary Schools in Kenya and Japan: Addressing Instructional Content and Pedagogy

Knowledge and skills are enhanced if instructional content support lively learning experiences for increased learner achievement. Study presents literature review of related literature on textbook evaluation criteria in secondary education in Kenya and Japan. Assessing quality of instructional content has enhanced effective teaching and learning in secondary schools in Kenya promoting self-efficacy among learners. However in instances where techniques of presenting instructional content do not accommodate learner centered approach learning outcome is propelled resulting in success in learning. Research question for this study is focused on relationship between evaluation criteria in Kenya and Japanese system of education. The study dimensions include teaching methods and instructional content. The purpose of this desk review is to establish suitability of evaluation criteria in promoting learning achievement in Kenya and Japanese system of education. Design adopted for this study is systematic literature review in the area of pedagogy, instructional content and evaluation Criteria. The articles reviewed are those published in the last five years from global view point and African perspective. The study concluded that both Kenya and Japan offer business studies at secondary level and that both of the countries encourage learner centered pedagogical technique to enhance academic outcome. The study recommends that Kenya improves on content presentation to integrate digital textbooks to enhance online learning for lifelong learning experience.


Introduction
When they are correctly constructed, the instructional approaches that are employed for teaching and learning of business studies speeds up learning and increases information retention among students throughout the educational system in Kenya. It is possible that students will have a greater chance of understanding the concepts in business studies if instructors use a variety of teaching strategies that promote continuous education in order to get higher test scores (Ganira, Odundo, Gatumu & Muasya, 2019). The effective creation of knowledge is facilitated by the use of a variety of strategies for the delivery of instruction in business studies. These strategies offer the learner with fascinating and alive situations. Nevertheless, a learner's academic performance in business studies might suffer when the techniques used to build skills do not correspond to their own preferences, blocking the learner's progress. According to the viewpoints expressed in Ito and Kawazoe's (2015) textbook, which advocates for approaches such as conversation as a way to enhance student engagement and improve classroom excitement, When teaching business studies concepts, including role play in the process leads to the production of lively episodes and concerted effort in understanding instructional content, paving the way for new discoveries and promoting When learning information is offered to the student in small increments, the learner is able to make the transition from what is known to what is unknown, which ultimately leads to the steady growth of a concept in a particular learning result. According to the opinions of Bekele, Odundo, Mwangi, and Ganira (2022), business studies textbooks that convey information in a reasonable manner have the potential to be a source of motivation for the creation of knowledge by students. Textbook on business studies with a presenting style that emphasizes the progressive development of knowledge, facilitates learning, and ultimately leads to an improvement in learning accomplishment and promotion of topic mastery. According to Mori (2018), an effective and fruitful learning experience may be achieved via the use of an active learning method, which entails meticulously creating learning goals within a defined learning result. This is based on the belief that presenting material in a chronological order helps learners to more easily transition from previously acquired skills to newly acquired information, which in turn improves the quality of their educational experiences. When new ideas are coherently connected to the learner's previous experiences, it is much simpler for them to be internalized. A business studies textbook that does not take into account the logical presentation, on the other hand, inhibits learning and discourages reading culture among students. According to Matsushita (2018), the dissemination of instructional information that does not auger well with the cognitive traits of learners is likely to impair the development of skills and the acquisition of new knowledge in schools. According to the ideas presented by Demir and Erdogan (2017), academic achievement may be attributed to the well-structured instructional material included in a business studies textbook. Articulation of sounds, which is a prerequisite for proper form of speech, empowers communication abilities, and ushers in an environment conducive to selfdriven learning at higher grade levels. According to Waniek and Nae (2017), well designed content sequencing that takes into account the cognitive qualities of the learner makes it easier for the learner to attain their goals via the use of textbooks. A business studies textbook that has a content presentation approach that is straightforward and precise is likely to be able to accommodate the individual variances that may arise within the classroom. The development of the learner's thinking capacity is facilitated by a presentation that is simple and exact, which in turn makes it possible to study from the business studies textbook without having to necessarily reference a more knowledgeable peer or adult. According to Bekele, Odundo, Mwangi, and Ganira (2021), the material presentation should represent learner interest in circumstances when business studies textbooks allow learner movement from known to unfamiliar beliefs. When new ideas are connected to previously acquired skills and experiences, the search for information is facilitated, which contributes to a rise in the learners' mean score in business studies. However, learning is impeded in situations in which the presentation does not create a connection to the information that the learner already has.

Instructional Content and Learning Achievement
The interaction between the learner and the learning materials fosters the development of abilities in a given activity, which speeds up the attainment of learning goals. According to the opinions of Bekele, Odundo, Mwangi, and Ganira (2022), a source of incentive for students' building of new knowledge may be found in business studies textbooks that offer information in a step-by-step way. Textbook on business studies with a presenting style that emphasizes the progressive development of knowledge, facilitates learning, and ultimately leads to an improvement in learning accomplishment and promotion of topic mastery. According to the  (2018), an effective and fruitful learning experience can be had by using an active learning method and meticulously formulating learning goals in the form of particular learning outcomes. A learner is able to transition from previously acquired skills and experiences to newly acquired information thanks to the material being organized chronologically. When new ideas are coherently connected to the learner's previous experiences, it is much simpler for them to be internalized. A business studies textbook that does not take into account the logical presentation, on the other hand, inhibits learning and discourages reading culture among students. According to Matsushita (2018), the dissemination of instructional information that does not auger well with the cognitive traits of learners is likely to impair the development of skills and the acquisition of new knowledge in schools.

Pedagogical Technique and Learning Achievement
When they are appropriately structured, instructional approaches employed for teaching and learning of business studies via textbook enhance learning and knowledge retention among learners throughout the school system in Kenya. It is probable that students will have a greater chance of acquiring an understanding of business studies principles by adopting a variety of instructional strategies that promote prolonged education in the sake of achieving higher test scores (Ganira et al., 2019). Instruction in business studies may be given in a number of different ways, each of which provides the student with new and interesting experiences that can lead to the effective creation of knowledge even in the absence of the subject instructor. In spite of this, skill development is stymied and the learner's academic performance in business studies suffers when the approaches used in the classroom are not tailored to the preferences of the individual students. According to the textbook written by Ito and Kawazoe (2015), which expresses their belief that approaches such as small group discussion boosts learner interest and keeps the newbie fascinated while they are in the process of learning, these methods are advocated for. Learners in secondary schools may boost their creativity and innovativeness by participating in accelerated subject mastering and the learning of inner creative abilities. This boosts the learners' drive to study while in the classroom. According to Bekele, Odundo, Mwangi, and Ganira (2021), appropriate instructional content is able to keep learners mentally and physically active in their learning through activities that involve them in gathering information, thinking, and problem solving. This was the conclusion reached by these researchers in their study.

Rationale of the study
The purpose of the study is to compare textbook evaluation criteria in secondary education in Kenya and japan. The main dimensions of the study are instructional content and pedagogy. The study aimed at finding out extent to which instructional content and teaching methods have influenced learning in Kenyan and Japanese schools.

Research Objectives
The specific objective of this study is to assess the relationship between textbook evaluation criteria in Kenya and Japan.

Research Question
• What is the impact of instructional content in supporting learning in Kenya and Japan

Theoretical framework
Lev Vygotsky (1978) is credited as being the originator of this theory, which maintains that each individual learner is capable of acquiring knowledge with the help of direct support provided by a fundamental textbook. The term "zone of proximal development" refers to the gap that exists between what the learner is capable of doing without assistance and what the learner is capable of doing with assistance in order to attain the learning goals that have been set. The ZPD consists of a sequence of exercises that are too difficult for the kid to do on his own; yet, it is possible that learning will be accomplished with the support of a business studies textbook even in the absence of the instructor. According to Vygotsky, the activities that make up the simple level are ones that learners can successfully handle on their own, without the assistance of a teacher or another more competent adult. In contrast, in the zone of proximal development, learning is accomplished with the assistance of a textbook, a teacher, or one's peers, and one is unable to create knowledge without the use of a scaffolding tool. In addition, Vygotsky proposed an exceptionally challenging degree of education. At this level, the learning experience that is offered to the learner contains activities that are above the student's capabilities; even with help, it is possible that the learner will not be able to complete these tasks successfully.

Perceived framework of Evaluation Criteria and learning achievement
The independent; instructional content and pedagogical technique interact through teaching and learning process to contribute to quality learning material to promote effective learning both in Japanese education system and Kenya.

Figure 1. Perceived framework of Evaluation Criteria and learning achievement
Perceived conceptual framework provides a prototype for apprehending relationship between independent and dependent variable (Berman, 2013). Specifically, instructional content and pedagogical approaches when implemented effectively, learners are likely to master and articulate concepts in Business Studies. This is achieved when the learning environment supports appropriate classroom learning and effective study habit.  The research design adopted for this study is systematic review to investigate the effectiveness of textbook evaluation criteria and learning achievement in Kenya and Japan. The articles reviewed are those published in the last five years from global view point and African perspective. The systematic review, unveils a reliable evidence for recommendations for policy, practice and further research (Dixon-Woods, Bonas, Booth, Jones, Miller & Sutton, 2006). The study gathered and summarized findings that sustain textbook evaluation criteria which were anchored on the work of UNESCO (2015). Most of the studies reviewed used predominantly qualitative data and systematic process for assessing impact of instructional content and pedagogy on learning achievement among learners. Data were based on primary and secondary sources. Secondary data was sourced mainly from the internet, focusing on textbook evaluation in Japan and Kenya.

Conclusion
Appropriately structured business studies textbook supports learning for accelerated learning outcome. However inappropriate use of textbook may delude the learner into boredom inhibiting academic excellence. Subject teacher play a crucial role in boosting efficiency of the textbook in enlighten parts of textbook that may have abstract concept that learner may not grasp or content being very wide that may take learner too long to unravel the concepts therein. The study also concluded that learner centered pedagogical technic is very instrumental in Copyright © 2022, Journal La Edusci, Under the license CC BY-SA 4.0 increasing learning achievement however if learners are not properly guided then it may result into confusion rather realizing learning and skills acquisition. Incorporation of variety of learning assignment boosts learner motivation and interest in the learning material. Providing introductions for every topics in textbook supports clarity of ideas that may be new to learners hence yielding increased learning in specific subject are. Additionally when using the textbook working in small groups or pairs makes learner be engaged to think critically or even act out a section of the topic to help the learner relate with and apply the concept learnt.