Journal of Education Research and Behavioral Sciences Vol. 2(9), pp. 135-142, September, 2013 Available online at http://www.apexjournal.org ISSN 2315-8735 ©2013 Apex Journal International Full Length Research Paper Challenges and prospects of teaching selected work skills (WSs) in primary schools: Experiences from Iringa Region, Tanzania Bryson D. Kinyaduka, Department of Education and Teaching Management, Education University of Dodoma, Mzumbe University, Box 5 Mzumbe, Morogoro Tanzania. Email: kinyadukabry@yahoo.com Accepted 26 August, 2013 The purpose of this paper is to explain the interpretation of the Work Skills (WSs); assess the WSs teaching context in Teacher Colleges; assess the teaching-learning process in schools; identify challenges of teaching work skills; identify outcomes of skills teaching and determine skill costs for training a pupil. A multiple case study design was adopted. Data were collected using questionnaires, interviews, observation and documentary review. The study found that interpretations on WSs varied; WSs teaching was superficial and costs for teaching the skills were high. It is recommended that the MoEVT: introduce joint WSs teacher training programmes to retrained and trained teachers. Key words: Work skills, selected work skills (work skills). INTRODUCTION For a long time, there have been complaints that work skills (WSs) as a subject in primary schools in Tanzania is taught by teachers who are not well trained. This may hinder achievement of the learning objectives of a given subject. It is well known that the implementation of a curriculum can not be independent from quality and quantity of teachers (Ndala, 2006). However, in many parts of the world the teachers who teach in schools are under qualified (Korthagen, 2004). Furthermore, The United Republic of Tanzania (URT) (2001) asserts that there is a shortage of teachers and incapacity to prepare teachers to teach Work Skills, Music, Fine Art, Theatre Arts, Physical Education, Agricultural Science, Technical Education, and Home Economics. The Ministry of Education and Vocational Training (MoEVT) in Tanzania understands the problem of lack of qualified teachers for WSs, nevertheless the subject is still taught in primary schools and Teacher Colleges. This situation casts some doubt on the implementation of the curriculum. The noble curriculum learning objectives, to make a class VII leaver self-reliant, self-employable or even employable and/or develop entrepreneurial traits (see URT, 1995; MoEC, 1996 and MoEVT, 2005) may not be achieved. Indeed, WSs is not independent from the long-standing philosophy of Education for Self-Reliance that was launched in 1967 in Tanzania. That is to say a well planned education always results in work, production and self-reliance (Ishumi and Nyirenda, 2002). The purpose of education at any level must be to make the graduate secure a job, become a productive and self-reliant mem- ber of society. Work Skills have the purpose of molding pupils for outcomes of this kind. Many studies have been conducted on the status of WSs teaching in primary schools. Most of these studies were more or less unfocused, and thus their conclusions may have been vague (Mwasandube, 1999; Macha, 2007; Moshi, 2006; Kaiza, 2008). The studies have done a good job on identifying the problems of teaching WSs in a general sense, but did not suggest the solutions for the problems. The current study provides a general picture on the teaching of WSs as a subject and then focuses on few selected skills to provide a clear image on the tea- ching status of the selected skills. Also, it evaluates the learning objectives of the curriculum to determine if they are achieved, and it suggests solutions to challenges facing the teaching of selected skills and the subject