Browsing by Author "Mutai, Evans Kipkorir"

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    School Administrators’ Skills and their Influence on Student Discipline amongst Public Boarding Secondary School Students in Kericho County, Kenya
    (Kenyatta University, 2024-05) Mutai, Evans Kipkorir
    Student discipline in secondary schools has been termed a major Achilles heel by all stakeholders in the education industry towards the achievement of educational goals. This happens as the backdrop of several intervention measures aimed at curbing or reducing cases of indiscipline behaviour in schools. The purpose of the study was to find out if administrators’ skills in administration influence students’ discipline in public secondary schools in Kericho County, with a view to curbing disciplinary problems in schools. The objectives of this study were to establish the influence of administrators’ organizational communication skills in the management of discipline, the effects of administrators’ problem-solving skills on the management of student discipline, the influence of administrators’ student involvement in decision-making in the management of discipline, and the effects of administrators’ team synergy on the management of student discipline in selected boarding secondary schools in Kericho County. The study made use of Glasser’s’ theory of behaviour modification by choice. The study had a target population of 1,380, comprising 150 student leaders, 115 guidance and counselling teachers, and 115 deputy principals. The researcher sampled 26 deputy principals, 26 guidance and counselling teachers, and 259 student leaders, leading to a total of 311 respondents, as guided by Yamane formulas for approximating the study subjects. Public boarding secondary schools were purposefully selected. To ensure uniform distribution across the six cub-counties, stratified random sampling was deployed; proportionate sampling was used in sampling particular schools; and Google random sampling was further used to sample student leaders, taking cognizance of their genders. A correlation study design was used to establish if there exists a relationship between administrators’ administrative skills and student discipline in schools. Two sets of questionnaires were used to collect information from deputy principals, guidance and counselling masters, and student leaders. To ensure the reliability of the instruments, the Cronbach Alpha coefficient was calculated with acceptable levels pegged at 0.7. Data was analysed using inferential statistics such as Pearson’s correlation coefficient and Chi-square in conjunction with linear regression analysis. The findings showed that 58.1% of respondents believed that there was a link between the administrator's communication skills and student discipline. In addition, 74.2% of respondents agreed that there is a relationship between administrators’ problem-solving skills and the management of student discipline. Some of the issues that were raised that require administrators’ problem solving include peer pressure, drug and substance abuse, student home-related issues that affect students academically and behaviourally, emerging societal issues or trends, and unplanned teenage pregnancy and related relationships. Further, 76.9% of respondents agreed that there is a relationship between team synergy and student discipline. Finally, the study found that 61.7% agreed that there is a relationship between involving students in decision-making and student discipline. The study recommended that administrators adopt a pro-active strategy in problem solving so as to avert student unruly behaviours that affect their discipline before they happen and involve students in the actual process of making decisions.