Joseph G. MungaiPeter N. MuchanjeDube, Aftin K.2024-02-012024-02-012022https://ir-library.ku.ac.ke/handle/123456789/27387A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Award of the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Educational Management) in the School of Education and Lifelong Learning of Kenyatta University.ABSTRACT Although the Kenyan government is dedicated to providing education to all school-aged children, education has received minimal attention in terms of enrolment and retention of pupils with special needs, resulting in poor participation. As a result, it is critical for school leaders to develop tools, techniques and management practices that will help all teachers and pupils succeed. Little information exists on the influence of management practices on participation of the female pupils with special needs in primary school education. This knowledge/information gap has necessitated the carrying out of this study. The study objectives include: to determine the influence of head teachers’ monitoring of performance on participation of female pupils with special needs in primary school in Mandera County; to find out the influence of head teachers’ instructional supervision practices on participation of female pupils with special needs in primary school in Mandera County; to establish the influence of the head teachers’ leadership practices on the participation of female pupils with special needs in primary schools in Mandera County and to establish whether head teachers’ communication practice influence participation of female pupils with special needs in primary schools in Mandera County. The study used convergent parallel mixed research approach, with a total population of 2025 respondents, comprising 68 head teachers and 990 pupils with special needs, 423 parents and 544 teachers from primary schools in Mandera County. The sample size for the study comprised 334 respondents including 11 head teachers, 90 class teachers; 70 female pupils with special needs, 93 boys and 70 parents Questionnaires and Focused Group Discussions were used to collect quantitative and qualitative data which were subsequently analyzed using descriptive statistics and thematic analysis. Multiple regression analysis was used to test the hypotheses. Data was presented in tables, frequencies, mean and standard deviation. The study established that head teachers monitoring performance activities including teachers’ involvement, pupils’ involvement, and parents’ involvement significantly influence participation of female pupils with special needs in public primary schools in Mandera County. The study also found that head teachers’ instructional supervision practices, namely; monitoring pupils’ progress and supervision of pupils significantly influence the participation of female pupils with special needs in public primary schools in Mandera County. Further, the study established that democratic leadership style had a statistically significant influence on participation of female pupils with special needs in public primary schools in Mandera County, Kenya. Similarly, the study revealed that all the head teachers’ communication practices, namely; oral presentation, listening, written communication and digital information skills made statistically significant influence on participation of female pupils with special needs in public primary schools in Mandera County. The study concluded that head teachers’ management practices significantly influence participation of female pupils with special needs in public primary schools. The study recommended that head teachers should embrace the inclusion of all stakeholders including parents, class teachers as well as school management in monitoring participation of female pupils with special needs in primary schools. Second, Ministry of Education should introduce systematic monitoring and supervision of female pupils with special needs in public primary schools.enHead Teachers’ Management PracticesParticipation of Female PupilsSpecial NeedsPrimary SchoolsManagement PracticesThesis