Description
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
- Back ground to the Study
Secondary education is the education children receive after primary education and before the tertiary stage .Secondary education is very crucial to the development of the nation. Secondary education is meant to prepare the young adult for purposeful organization of oneself, for achieving maximally ones potentials to be able to withstand the complexities of living in the environment. It is also meant to prepare young adults for further training and education, which would lead to the acquisition of some specialized skills needed in different specific operations within the society
( Aderounmu & Ehiametalor, 2009). Over the years, there is a rampant cry by the general populace in the country on the issue of low standard and students’ achievement more, especially in senior secondary schools. The broad aims for secondary education are; (a.) preparing for useful living within the society, and b. Preparation for higher education ( National Policy on Education, 2008:18)
It terms of adequate funding of secondary education in Kogi East Senatorial District . There have been tremendous increase in establishment of senior secondary schools and enrolment of students as well. This increase has necessitated a greater need for adequate funding of schools for the provision and maintenance of school facilities. Unfortunately most of the senior secondary schools in Kogi state are poorly funded, this makes it impossible for senior secondary schools to realize the aims for which they have been established. Taiwo (2000) notes that the physical environment in most senior secondary schools in African countries is literacy aggressive due to poor funding and maintenance of school facilities. However, Nigerian secondary schools have undergone tremendous changes since independence in 1960. These include changes in the number of institutional programme due to the general changes of the entire education system from 7-3-4, 7-3-5, 6-3-3-4 and now 9-3-4 system. Aremu (2006) stated that, the gross funding of education in Nigeria led to deterioration in institutional facilities and service.
In terms of provision of facilities by government Otu (2002) notes that, it is very common to see secondary school classroom with broken windows and doors, collapsed ceiling, damaged roofs, cracked walls, broken furniture, non-functional equipments and damaged infrastructure Teaching and learning could be effective when there is good climate and conducive atmosphere in school. However, the decline in educational achievement may not be limited to the shortcoming on the side of students and teachers alone.,but due to inadequate infrastructural facilities which may have influence on academic performance of the students. Strategies for reposition education means all efforts by all stakeholders of education both private and public targeted at improving all the sectors of education in all ramifications which to a great extent includes adequate government funding adequate infrastructural facilities, teacher in-service training,.curriculum innovation and school supervision and inspection
In-service training refers to encouraging teachers to enhance their pedagogical skills and knowledge of the subject matter through advanced academic studies (Nwachukwu, 2006). It then behooves on education managers in conjunction with the government to provide funding for conferences, workshops, seminars and developing other training opportunities. In Nigeria, most of the leading school reforms as experienced in recent political administration have called for new reforms of professional teachers’ development. Perhaps, it was in line with this that Kogi State Ministry of Education mandated all those teaching in its schools without the requisite qualification to acquire professional teaching qualifications and the response has been tremendous (Otu , 2002).
Nwachukwu (2006) suggestes that for a teacher to improve his productivity, he must possess a natural ability and the will-power to be involved in productive ventures. Nwachukwu believes that, acquisition of skills, compensation, supervision, evaluation and managerial support must be present to encourage job performance of school teachers. Additionally, prompt application of personnel management technique, has an important and influential bearing on productivity.
The place of supervision and inspection as a vital managerial tool need not be undermined in any organizational setting. In school system where better teachers performance remains the watchword, educational supervision involves guiding and coordinating the works of teachers such that learning is facilitated. According to Peretomode (2002) supervision is that phase of school management which focuses primarily upon the achievement of the appropriate expectation of educational system. It is an indispensable function of the school managers. Oleforo (2014) views educational supervision as effort of all designated school officials toward providing leadership to the teaching workforce and other educational workers in the improvement of instructions. She submitted that supervision deals with having a comprehensive view of the activities and problems of the institutions and the assessment of the extent to which the school is fulfilling its basic objectives. To this end, supervision therefore means an activity or exercise in which a professional or a group of professional superiors help in facilitating learning by improving teaching and learning environments in schools through guiding, advising and interest stimulation of both the students and teachers (Nkang, 2002).
In terms of curriculum innovation, globalization has made the whole world to be looked at as a single community. The internet, satellite television, cellular telephones and other advancements in telecommunications, air travels, containerized shipments, and online business transactions and so on have really helped to make the world a global village and a fast changing place. Globalization is also gradually breaking down educational barriers, although local or national differences still remains. If curriculum is a process of preparing children for a living in their own societies and for competition in the global economy of tomorrow ( Aderounmu & Ehiametalor 2009) Then it is only logical that secondary school curriculum, both formal and informal, contents and processes should be dynamic enough to adapt to the new socio- economic, political, scientific and technological realities of the times ( Aderounmu & Ehiametalor ,2009).
Secondary school management could be defined as the systematic arrangement of human and materials resources including activities designed to achieve educational goals at the secondary level of education (Oyewole ,2006).To Akinnubi (2010,P:2 ) management it is “getting things done through others”. It can be more scientifically defined as the co-ordination of all the resources of an organization through the process of planning, organizing, directing, and controlling in order to attain organizational objectives. To the researcher the strategies for repositioning secondary education are various measures put in place for the purpose of quality school administration
Against this background the researcher is investigating the influence of the strategies for repositioning management of secondary schools in Kogi East Senatorial District. The study will cover the influence of curriculum innovation, teacher in-service training, school supervision and inspection, adequate government funding and school adequate infrastructural facilities on management of secondary schools the study will also cover all the secondary schools in Kogi East Senatorial District.
- Statement of the Problem
The Nigerian education system has been facing complex problems and various governments have initiated programs of reforms that have achieved less than attaining the desired goals, thus crippling the system instead of enhancing it. These reforms have been inconsistent, mismanaged and mostly ineffective. The implementation of the National Policy on Education is a typical example of such attempts. Lack or insufficient provision of learning resources and poor management of resources by government and school administrators seem to be responsible for the failure.
. Considering the increase in students enrolment in senior secondary schools, that makes it a necessity for the state government to provide adequate fund for the provision and maintenance of school facilities. In view of the significance attached to funding for the provision and maintenance of school facilities for the attainment of educational aims and objectives, It is noted that, education is an expensive service that requires adequate funding from all three tier of government for a successful implementation of educational programme. Inadequate funding of education has been a fundamental problem facing educational sector in Nigerian Kogi state inclusive. Adamu (2011), Bako (2011) and Okeem (2002) are of the opinion that the level of funding of educational system has never been adequate in Nigeria considering the UNESCO recommendations of 26% National Domestic Product (NDP) to education. .
However, schools cannot survive without adequate provision and maintenance of its facilities. These school facilities refer to those fixed and movable materials. They are materials that facilitate teaching and learning process, these include classrooms, libraries, workshops, laboratories, assembly halls and teaching aids such as films and transparencies. Peremotode (2001) points out that, it is unfortunate that most school buildings especially the public school building set up by the communities in the decade of the 1980’s were just set up as building house for students without regard to adequate provision of fund for their maintenance .
Often time most teachers are seen hawking wares during official school hours, some absent themselves from classes to the detriment of their students while some refuse to write their notes of lesson as well as carrying out other assigned responsibilities. These are testimonies of the alarming rise of poor attitude to work which leads to poor job performance. These problems are evidence of poor or absence of adequate supervision as well as compensation and in-service training exercise in the school system by the school managers.
Our secondary school curriculum appears to have been overloaded as it now stands , because of the number of subjects each student offer, there is the need to infuse global issues into the curriculum. This may imply the elimination of certain curriculum requirements, increasing the scope and depth of certain subjects and adoption of new programmes. Therefore the problem of the study is what is the influence of strategies for repositioning education on the management of secondary schools in Kogi East Senatorial Districts.
1.3 Purpose of the Study
The main purpose of the study is to investigate the influence of strategies for repositioning education on management of secondary schools In Kogi East Senatorial Districts. Specifically the study is seeks to:
- ascertain influence of adequate government funding on management of secondary schools in Kogi East Senatorial District
- find out the influence of adequate school infrastructural facilities on management of secondary schools .
- investigate the influence of teacher in-service training on the management of secondary schools.
- determine the influence of curriculum innovation on management of secondary schools
- assess the influence of adequate school supervision and inspection on
management of secondary schools .
1.4 Research Questions
The research questions below are formulated to guide the study
- How does adequate government funding influence the management of secondary schools in Kogi East Senatorial District ?
- How do adequate school infrastructural facilities influence the management of secondary schools?
- What is the influence of teacher in-service training on the management of secondary schools?
- How does curriculum innovation influence management of secondary schools?
- What is the influence of adequate school supervision and inspection on management of secondary schools?
1.5 Research Hypotheses
The following hypotheses are formulated to be tested at 0.05 level of significance.
- Adequate government funding has no significant influence on management of secondary schools.
- Adequate school infrastructural facilities have no significant influence on management of secondary schools.
- Teacher in-service training has no significant influence on the management of secondary schools.
- Curriculum innovation has no significant influence on management of secondary schools.
- Adequate school supervision and inspection has no significant influence on management of secondary schools?
1.6 Significance of the Study
The study might be of benefit to principals, school proprietors student’s teachers, parents, school administrators and curriculum planners other stake holders.
The results of this study might help principals to select and use the appropriate strategies in order to reposition the management of their school as the situation demands. It will also enable the principals to understand how to manage people in such a way that will ensure their cooperation and in the end achieve better administration of the secondary schools.
The findings of this research might enable the proprietors of schools to be exposed to a variety of strategies in repositioning secondary schools in their domain which could result to better management of their schools.
The findings of this study will also be of benefit to government to sponsor school principals on leadership courses to enable them learn good leadership skills and other strategies to better the management of schools.
Students will benefit from the research because once the recommendations are adhered to, the school system will be more organize and learning will be fun.
Teachers will also benefit in the sense that there will be conducive environment to teach and the might also benefit from in-service training once the recommendations are adhered to.
The research will also be of help to other researchers for further research on related studies because it is the contribution of the researcher to the growth of knowledge in this area of study.
1.7 Scope of the Study
The study is limited to the influence of strategies for repositioning education on management of secondary schools in Kogi East Senatorial Zone..The variable that will be studied includes influence of curriculum innovation, teacher in-service training, school supervision and inspection, adequate government funding and school adequate infrastructural facilities .The study will cover all the secondary schools in Kogi East Senatorial District.
1.8 Operational Definition of Terms
The following words are operationally defined as :
Curriculum innovation: Is a deliberate action to improve a learning environment by adapting a method of presenting material to students that involves human interaction, hands-on activities and student feedback.
Influence:The power to change the cause of things in relation to management of secondary schools in Kogi East Senatorial District .
Strategies for Repositioning Education: A plan that is intended to achieve good management of secondary schools in Kogi East Senatorial District. This includes
curriculum innovation, teacher in-service training, school supervision and inspection, adequate government funding and school adequate infrastructural facilities.
Management: Management in organizations is the function that coordinates the efforts of people to accomplish goals and objectives by using available resources efficiently and effectively in secondary schools in Kogi East Senatorial District .
Teachers in -service. training: Improving teacher performers through seminars or workshops and other remedial instructions efficiently and effectively in secondary schools in Kogi East Senatorial District.
School inspection and supervision: Critical appraisal involving examination, measurement, testing, gauging, and comparison of materials or items. An inspection determines if the material or item is in proper quantity and condition, and if it conforms to the applicable or specified requirements.
Government Adequate funding; A situation whereby government allocate enough money which facilitate the activities of secondary schools in the country
Adequate infrastructural facilities: This occurs when the infrastructural facilities are enough and sufficient to go round
Kogi East: This consist mainly of the Igala speaking people of Kogi state and Bassa it is made up of eight local governments.
