factors infuencing development of strategic plans in public secondary schools in kitui central district,kenya

Abstract

The objectives of this research project was to establish whether commitment of schools' management, availability of resources, teachers' skills and adherence to government policies influenced development of strategic plans in 25 public secondary schools in Kitui central district. The study used descriptive research design and the target population was 665. However a sample of 75 respondents was selected through stratification technique. The data was collected using self administered questionnaires to principals, B.O.G members and teachers. Descriptive statistics and factor analysis were used for quantitative data analysis. This simplified large amounts of data for example analysing numerical data through frequency distributions, means, standard deviations and percentages. Spearman's rank correlation was used to determine the strength of relationship between variables Qualitative data was captured through open ended questions. Themes that related to the research questions in the study were identified and data was then coded and entered in the computer for analysis using the Statistical Package for the Social Scientists (SPSS). Among findings of study include: in many schools, teaching staff had not attended any education management course, majority of the BOG members do not have relevant skills and rarely attends meeting where ideas on development of schools plans are fronted. BOG employed teachers' lack training on curriculum delivery and this affects negatively schools academic performance. The study showed that factors like school management, teaching staff skills, resources and government policy greatly influenced the development of schools strategic plans in Kitui central District. It is recommended that school administration should encourage and sponsor the teaching staff in attending Education Management Courses, and seminars or workshops on curriculum delivery. Teachers should be more involved in decision making including development of school plans. BOG members need to be educated on the development and importance of schools strategic plans xiii