This study examined the challenges school administrators face in enhancing the implementation of Structured Play Activities in government pre-primary schools in Longido and Monduli Districts in Arusha Region in Tanzania and solutions to address the challenges. The study was guided by the systems theory proposed by Ludwig von Bertalanffy in 1936. Convergent research design was used to collect quantitative and qualitative data, which enabled the triangulation of collected information, thus giving a detailed understanding of the challenges and their solutions. The sample consisted of 268 participants who were obtained through stratified, purposive and simple random sampling techniques. Data were collected through questionnaires and interviews. The instruments were validated by experts in the fields of research, administration, and early childhood education. Reliability was ensured using Cronbach alpha and triangulation techniques. Quantitative data were analyzed descriptively, while the qualitative data were analyzed using thematic analysis. The findings indicated the challenges faced by school administrators in enhancing the implementation of SPA in government pre-primary schools, such as inadequate financial resources and scarcity of highly skilled educators. The study concluded that the implementation of SPA in government pre-primary schools is greatly impeded by financial limitations, which negatively affected the efforts to provide teaching and learning facilities appropriately. Additionally, the scarcity of highly skilled educators with expertise in pre-primary education presents a significant obstacle for administrators in the successful execution of organised play activities in government-run pre-primary schools in the districts of Longido and Monduli. To address these challenges, there is a need for the government to allocate a special budget for early childhood education, to employ qualified pre-primary teachers and to provide professional development to teachers.
Keywords: Challenges, Implementation, school administrators, solutions, structured play activities
