Secondary School Head Teachers Research Articles

A Case Study on Effective Secondary School Head

The purpose of the study was to examine the effectiveness of a secondary school head teacher. This study was a case study and delimited to one successful secondary school which was selected purposefully for which fulfill the three basic criteria fixed by the researcher; The highest score opted in Managerial Effectiveness Scale (MES), Results in the tenth board examination and tenure of service in the particular school of the head teacher, during the survey conducted by the researcher in his previous study on forty (40) secondary school head teachers. In this case study unstructured observation and semi-structured interview schedule were used for data collection and the data were analysed through content analaysis. The finding of the study were the head teacher shows positive attitude towards his profession, enthusiastic, innovative, knowledgeable. techno-savvy, honest and sincere to his duties.

Exploring Teachers' Perspectives on Effective Leadership Styles at Secondary Level in Karachi, Pakistan

This research explored the teachers' perspective on the effective leadership style of public secondary school head-teachers of District Korangi Karachi. Leadership is important in every aspect of life, including in schools. This was a simple descriptive survey research. The target population consists of all District Korangi, Karachi, Pakistan secondary school teachers. The quantitative method was used in this study to collect data from teachers. A leadership-style questionnaire for teachers was used to collect data. The responses of teachers were quantified as Strongly Agree =5, Agree=4, Have no opinion=3, Disagree=2 and strongly disagree=1. Using stratifies random sampling, 140 secondary school teachers were selected, including 77 male and 63 female teachers from public sector secondary schools. Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics, including mean, standard deviation, frequency, percentage, independent sample t-test, and one-way ANOVA in SPSS version 22. According to the results, the teachers showed that the democratic leadership style was the most effective style of leadership, which enhanced the motivation of teachers' motivation, suggested that more attention should be focused on enhancing awareness about different leadership styles to enhance their motivation and student performance at the secondary level.
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English headteacher perspectives on school responses to protect student and staff mental wellbeing in the later stages of the COVID-19 pandemic

Objective: The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on pupils and staff in English schools. This study aimed to provide an in-depth understanding of the challenges schools faced and the processes they implemented to protect the mental wellbeing of students and staff in the later stages of the pandemic, focusing on January–June 2022. Design: Qualitative study. Setting: Primary and secondary schools in England from April to September 2022. Method: Ten semi-structured interviews were conducted using Zoom with six primary and four secondary school headteachers (or other members of the senior leadership team) in England. Results: Mental wellbeing programming for students and staff was scaled up in both primary and secondary schools amid concerns that the COVID-19 pandemic would impact on mental health. Headteachers perceived changes in the behaviour of students, including increased dysregulation, and staff struggling with fatigue and a sense of being devalued as professionals. Schools scaled up the supports they offered to students and staff, but challenges remain in maintaining such increased support due to the perceived additional needs of staff and students within the context of funding constraints. Despite initial concerns that there would be tension between promoting mental wellbeing and academic catch-up among students, headteachers identified work addressing these two priorities as synergistic. Conclusion: Mental wellbeing impacts of the pandemic on pupils and staff required increased provision of support programmes. Ongoing efforts to monitor the wellbeing needs of students and staff is required. Formal and informal methods to enhance the mental health for pupils and staff should continue into the recovery period.

Awareness of Sustainable Development Goals: Perception of Head Teachers of Secondary School

The member states of the United Nations agreed on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015. These goals were established to address issues such as poverty, hunger, health, education, gender equality, clean water, sanitation, clean energy, economic development, infrastructure, inequalities, sustainability, responsible production, climate change mitigation, and the preservation of life on land. The agreement was reached unanimously by the member states of the United Nations. By the year 2030, the mission is to make it possible for every person on the planet to live in peace and prosperity. Regarding the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the awareness of head teachers in secondary schools was investigated in a study. According to the findings, a sizeable percentage of secondary school head teachers know the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), however there was no discernible variation in levels of awareness based on geography, gender, or district. According to the study's findings, head teachers should consider participating in community engagement activities centered on Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), such as awareness campaigns, workshops, and events involving the participation of local NGOs and the government.

FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT COMPETENCE OF HEAD TEACHERS, UTILIZATION PRIORITIES AND RELATIONSHIP WITH SCHOOL PERFORMANCE

The study aimed at finding the impact of school Head teachers’ budget management competencies, utilization priorities and relationship with school performance. The objectives of the study were; (i) to identify the budget management competencies among Head Teachers of secondary schools, (ii) to explore the priorities of head teachers regarding the utilization of Budget in secondary schools and (iii) to find out the relationship of secondary schools Head teacher’s budget management competency on school performance. The population consisted of 431 head teachers (202 male & 229 female) working in secondary schools of district Sargodha. All 352 head teachers were taken as sample. Two research instruments i.e., questionnaires for head teachers on a five-point rating scale and a checklist on three points were developed. The reliability coefficient Chronback Alpha value was .904. The major findings of the study were; Majority of Headteachers were good enough in budget management competencies and there was a positive and moderate correlation between the financial competencies of head teachers and their school performance. It is recommended that a committee of senior Head Teachers may be notified by the competent authorities for guidelines on financial issues.

WORKING UNDER PRESSURE: HOW ARE HEAD TEACHERS INHIBITED AND CHALLENGED WHILE PURSUING THE HEADSHIP IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS?

This study explored what experiences head teachers had while pursuing secondary school headship when they were inhibited by various pressure groups inside and outside of the school. The study aimed at understanding, describing, and interpreting how do secondary school head teachers manage their headship role, and what are the storied experiences that they had while working as head teachers. The participants of the present study were head teachers (n=13) with a minimum of five years’ headship experience in public sector secondary schools within Sahiwal Division, Province of Punjab, Pakistan. By using of a narrative qualitative inquiry approach, data were collected from participants through semi-structured interviews who were selected purposively. Two main themes were identified after the data were recorded, transcribed and analyzed. The key findings pointed out that the head teachers of Public Secondary Schools continuously faced obstacles from pressure groups during their routine work. These pressure groups comprise of both internal and external pressure groups. The results of the study affirm the need to address these issues to enable the head teachers to work freely to foster quality education in the schools.

Effectiveness of Female Head Teachers Managerial Skills in Improving Teachers Performance

This paper intends to examine public secondary school head teachers competencies and their influence on teacher’s instructional decisions as well the overall school culture. This research paper endeavor to unravel secondary school principal’s managerial competencies and their influence on the performance of secondary school principals and such influence will help to stimulate and transform sophisticated school environment that will make strengthen student’s cognitive, affective as well psychomotor domains. Current study will cover following objective: “To determine the effectiveness of head teacher’s managerial skills on teacher’s academic performance at secondary school level”. Research design utilized for this study is of descriptive qualitative nature. Respondents of the study were secondary school principals/head Masters and secondary school teachers. Population of this research composed of all the 83 females’ secondary and 37 higher secondary schools. Sample of the study extracted from the population were 60 principals/ head masters and 120 secondary school teachers. Through proper consultation the researchers developed data collection instrument titled: “Principals’ Managerial Skills Scale”. Mean, Standard deviation was employed as a statistical data analysis tools. Data analysis was followed by conclusion to render realistic recommendations for the establishment of sophisticated school management.

Perceptions of Head Teachers about Whole School Development Plan in the Province of Punjab

The present study aimed to check the perception of head teachers about the whole school development plan in the province of Punjab. The research design was qualitative in nature and the main objectives of the study were; to know the perceptions of head teachers of the whole school development plan, to find out the role of head teachers in implementing of whole school development plan, to identify the factors affecting the implementation of whole school development plan and to find out the impact of school development plan on quality education. The population of the study was all the head teachers of high and higher secondary schools in Punjab. The sample was randomly selected and consisted of ten (10) head teachers. An interview schedule was developed by the researchers following the three sections i.e. planning process, implementation and evaluation. Data were collected by the researchers through face-to-face interviews with the head teachers. Data were analyzed by interpreting the results in schematic form. The main finding of the study was that the Whole School Development Plan (WSDP) was designed for 2-3 years on the basis of the need assessment of the school and by setting priorities in order to achieve the set targets. The WSDP was implemented under the leadership of the head teacher with community engagement and proved to be a very effective activity in order to meet the quality of education.

Inhibiters of Positive Interpersonal Relationships among Teachers

This study examines inhibiters of positive interpersonal relationships among senior high school teachers in the Tamale Education Metropolis. The study made used of qualitative research methodology, as such, case study design was adopted. Purposive sampling technique was used to select fifteen (15) teachers and five (5) secondary school head teachers. An interview schedule with open-ended questions was developed to conduct face-to-face in-depth individual interviews. Data collected through pen-and-paper personal interviews were analysed using deductive thematic analytical method. Findings were that tribal differences, religious diversity, superiority complex, gender differences, political ideologies, gossiping and backbiting, poor leadership styles and student-teacher intimate relations were some of the inhibiters of positive interpersonal relationships among teachers in the secondary schools of the Tamale Education Metropolis. Recommendations made were that senior high schools heads should work with the Regional Metropolitan Education and the Ghana Education Service to organize workforce diversity management training to educate all teachers and school managers on the need to embrace all the differences that exist among them and to also confront their own ethnic, cultural, political and gender stereotypes. School heads should foster in teachers a school culture that is characterised by positive teacher-teacher interpersonal relations and to appeal to all teachers who practice superiority complex to desist from such an act as it inhibits good teacher-teacher relations. School heads in their official meetings should sincerely talk to teachers to do away with all forms of gossips and backbiting. Heads of senior high schools should work with the Regional Metropolitan Education and the Ghana Education Service to organize workshop on the Code of Conduct for all teachers. In the same workshop, the need for teachers to desist from teacher-student intimate relations should be emphasised and the kind of relationship that should exist between teachers and students should also be highlighted.

The influence of gender personal and professional qualities of heads of general educational institutions on the effectiveness of management

Introduction. The relevance of the study is due to the fact that it is necessary to study the characteristics of male and female managers in order to develop ways to form general professional personality traits, as well as to compile programs for improving the skills of managers. The process of developing personal and professional qualities is especially important for a leader in the education system, as it affects the effectiveness of management in education. At the same time, the personal and professionally significant features of male and female managers from educational institutions have not been studied enough. Materials and methods. The experimental study was conducted on the basis of the Republican Center for Extracurricular Work (Russia, Kazan). Principals and head teachers of secondary schools, as well as methodologists and inspectors of the district departments of education of the Republic of Tatarstan of the Russian Federation took part in the experiment. A sample of 120 male and female principals were studied (30 persons in each group). The subjects ranged in age from 35 to 65 years old. The work experience was not less than 3 years. The components of self-attitude and professionally important personal qualities of male and female managers were evaluated. Gender differences were determined. Methods of mathematical statistics: Student's t-test and Pearson's χ2 agreement test. The results of the study. A comparative analysis of the data showed that female heads of educational institutions have high values of self-confidence (Хave=7.4) and self-leadership (Хave=8.6). Male managers have high values of self-confidence (Xave=7.2), self-leadership (Xave=8.3) and reflection of self-attitude (Xave=8.3). Female leaders are less diplomatic, collected, with a high super-ego, they have high intelligence, strength of I. Male leaders are less practical and conformal than female leaders. Conformity and practicality distinguish female managers from managers of the opposite sex (at p<0.05). Conclusion. The materials of the article are of practical value for the heads of general educational institutions. The results obtained will enrich the theoretical material on the problem of professionally important qualities of female and male leaders in general. At the same time, the results of this study can help improve the quality of retraining of managers in the system of professional development. They will help the selection, recruitment, and placement of personnel. Keywords: education, manager, management

The decline in breaktimes and lunchtimes in primary and secondary schools in England: Results from three national surveys spanning 25 years

AbstractBreaktimes are ubiquitous in English schools. Research suggests they have social value for children, but school staff often have a range of concerns about breaktimes and tend to undervalue them. However, there is little understanding about these times, not least because data are not collected about their organisation and characteristics. This paper brings together data from three national surveys undertaken in 1995, 2006 and 2017 of head teachers of primary and secondary schools to provide an understanding of the nature, organisation and staff attitudes towards breaktimes and how they have changed over 25 years. At each survey point, completed questionnaires were received from representative random samples of over 1000 primary and secondary schools. Results showed marked reductions in the average total amount of time for breaks, the virtual abolition of afternoon breaks and a decline in time available for lunchtime breaks. The reductions were largely for behavioural reasons and to increase time for learning. Results also show variations in the length of breaktimes across school types and in relation to socioeconomic disadvantage, and changes to the amount of supervision provided by schools. Attitudes towards breaks varied across primary and secondary phases, and the withholding of breaks was used by schools to address poor pupil behaviour and disengagement. Schools continued to have concerns about the management of behaviour during breaktimes, even when breaks had already been shortened. It is suggested that staff undervalue the potential contribution that breaktimes afford the development and wellbeing of children and young people in school.

Teacher Motivational Strategies on Students’ Academic Performance in Day Secondary Schools in Saboti Sub-County,

Teachers motivation has become an important issue given their responsibility to impart knowledge and skills to learners. Consequently, the purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of teacher motivation strategies on the students’ performance in day secondary schools of Saboti Sub-County, Trans Nzoia County, Kenya. Specifically, the study sought to establish how staff development, recognition, advancement and incentives influence students’ academic performance in day secondary schools. This study was conducted in 20 day secondary schools. The study was limited to the information the respondents gave. Simple stratified sampling technique was used for sampling with each stratum being represented by a sample size using the Kreijcie and Morgan table of sample determination.The data collection instrument was the questionnaire which was tested for validity and reliability before being used in the study. Structured questionnaires were administered to the teachers and head teachers of the day secondary schools in Saboti Sub-County. Data was analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS).The findings of the study were that most teachers lacked motivation in their work and this accounts for the low performance in these schools. Motivation strategies such as recognition, training and development, incentives and career advancement were minimal in the schools. The study recommends that a variety of motivational strategies be consistently employed by the Teachers Services Commission to enhance teachers’ morale and subsequently students’ academic performance. Keywords: Teacher, Motivational Strategy, Students, Academic Performance DOI: 10.7176/JEP/14-12-01 Publication date: April 30 th 2023

Head Teachers’ Instructional Supervisory Practices and Teachers’ Motivation in Teaching

The study determined the relationship between Government Secondary school head teachers’ instructional supervisory practices and teachers’ motivation in teaching. The study was correlational and survey technique was used for data collection. The population of the study was all the male and female head teachers and teachers working in the Government Secondary schools of District Sargodha.

ENSURING STUDENTS’ ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENTS: A CASE STUDY EXAMINING HEADTEACHERS’ LEADERSHIP STYLES

This study aimed to develop an understanding of secondary school headteachers’ practices related to their leadership styles for ensuring students’ academic achievements in Kashmiri schools. Leadership styles to be studied in this research were three named Autocratic, Democratic, and Laissez-faire. This study used a qualitative research approach, and data were gathered through semi-structured interviews. The criterion sampling technique was used to select 12 secondary school headteachers from Mirpur city. The research instrument used to collect the data from research participants was a self-constructed interview guide consisting of 20 open-ended questions. Most of the headteachers held the conception that instead of a single leadership style, the use of multiple leadership styles is effective for managing teachers in order to improve students’ academic achievement. Moreover, these Headteachers were keen to improve the academic achievement of the students. For this purpose, they use different leadership styles. It is also clear from the data that most Headteachers prefer a democratic leadership style to use for their staff and students. However, sometimes they rely on other leadership styles—but with the aim of improving the academic achievement of the students. Keywords: leadership, headteachers, school, Kashmiri, academic achievement

Causes of Students’ Dropout in Public Secondary Schools of Balochistan, Pakistan

The study was determined to investigate the causes of secondary school dropouts in the district of Kech Balochistan. The main objective of the study was to find out the reasons behind the dropouts of secondary school students. A sample is taken from the population, of 30 teachers, 15 head teachers of public secondary schools, and 60 students with their parents were selected as a random sample for the research study. All the data were analysed by the use of SPSS. The findings of the study revealed that parents’ weak monitoring, parents' socio-economic status, transportation problems, parents’ migration, teachers' harsh behaviour, corporal punishment, and no preparation for exams, are the causes of students’ dropout at the secondary school level. On the basis of the findings, it was recommended that the government should take an initiative to conduct awareness programme with help of electronic and print media to reduce the students’ dropout rate in district Kech, Balochistan.

Perceived Support and Teacher Engagement in Secondary Schools in a Rural District in South-Western Uganda

Hard to reach schools in rural districts experience many challenges including harsh environmental conditions, financial difficulties, lack of school buildings and shortage of teachers due to their locality. Teachers who accept to join such schools tend to be disengaged because of poor working environments. This study sought to identify factors related to teacher engagement in secondary schools in rural hard-to-reach areas in Uganda. Generally, the study assessed the relationship between head teachers perceived support and teacher engagement in secondary schools in Buhweju district a hard-to-reach rural district in south-western Uganda. Specifically, the study tested whether perceived support in terms of training, pay and promotion related teacher engagement. This correlational study used a sample of 220 teachers. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire and were analysed using the quantitative approach. Data were analysed using Partial Least Square Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) using SmartPLS 4 testing the link between the study variables. The findings revealed that while pay and training had a positive and significant relationship with teacher engagement, promotion support had a positive but insignificant relationship with teacher engagement. The conclusions of the study were to the effect that while pay is essential for teacher engagement and training is imperative for teacher engagement in hard-to-reach secondary schools in rural districts, promotion is not a probable requirement for teacher engagement in the hard-to-reach secondary schools in rural districts. Therefore, it was recommended that head teachers of secondary schools should provide pay support to teachers, and prioritise providing training to teachers but promotion should not be overemphasised

Fiscal cuts in education and their effects: Politicising learned helplessness as a disciplinary technology in education leaders in Catalonia. An exploratory research study

The paper aims to explore how head teachers and other education service leaders and their teams have been experiencing shifts in their identities during the last decade of education cuts in Catalonia (Spain), and the possible effects during the current COVID-19 crisis on educational leaders. Our exploratory hypothesis covers the crisis years (2008–2015) and on into the non-recovery years (2015–2020) until the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. During these years, through what Ball (2008) describes as a “ratchet effect,” education cuts and their everyday effects in schools produced learned helplessness (LH) in head teachers and leaders. Theoretically, we propose to examine this malaise from a political angle, seeing it as a disciplinary technology to transform education leaders’ identity and practices. To corroborate this, we conducted four interviews with head teachers of different public primary, secondary, and special education schools, and a psychopedagogical service leader in the same semi-rural area in Catalonia. The exploratory results show that the incremental and selective cuts soon became a new normal and created feelings of (political) learned helplessness that may be seen not as negative side effects but as a disciplinary technology that reshaped leaders’ subjectivity. At the same time, education leaders carried out some (ir)responsible practices of resistance that can be understood as care of the self and others. More research needs to be done with different agents to capture the complexity and ambiguity of cuts and LH as a political phenomenon.

Relationship between Teacher Turnover and Students’ Academic Performance at Uganda Certificate of Education Level in Bugangaizi County West, Kakumiro District, Uganda

Teacher turnover could have a negative effect on students’ academic achievement, and teaching workload. The aim of this paper was to investigate the relationship between teacher turnover and students’ academic achievement in selected secondary schools in Bugangaizi County West, Kakumiro District, Uganda. The target population was 19 secondary school head teachers while 14 head teachers were used as the sample size. Data was collected using document analysis and interview guide. The instruments were tested to see if the questions were relevant, clear and unambiguous. Research experts who had content in the area under investigation were consulted and their comments used to improve the questions in the interview guide as a way of ensuring face validity. For quantitative data obtained, they were first edited for completeness, coded and entered into the Statistical Package for Social Scientists (SPSS) version 20.1. The data was tabulated to generate descriptive statistics in addition, Pearson Correlation analysis was used to test the relationship between independent and dependent variables. Qualitative data was organized, interpreted, patterns in the data identified, data patterns related to research themes. Some important prepositions from the participants was quoted verbatim in the appropriate sections of the discussion. The data was finally used as a basis for informed and verifiable conclusions. The paper found out that there was a significant negative correlation between teacher turnover and students’ performance (r = -.729 ; p = .007). The paper concluded that high teacher turnover affects students’ academic performance negative. The paper recommended that Ministry of Education and Sports in Uganda should put in place a system that captures the statistics of teacher turnover and make right decision through replacements. Keywords: Relationship; Teachers; Turnover; Academic Performance DOI: 10.7176/JEP/13-33-10 Publication date: November 30 th 2022

Status of Teacher Turnover in Selected Secondary Schools in Bugangaizi County West, Kakumiro District, Uganda

Teacher turnover could have a negative effect on students’ academic achievement, and teaching workload. The aim of this paper was to investigate the status teacher turnover in selected secondary schools in Bugangaizi County West, Kakumiro District, Uganda. The target population was 19 secondary school headteachers while 14 headteachers was used as the sample size. Data was collected using document analysis and interview guides. The instruments were tested to see if the questions were relevant, clear and unambiguous. Research experts who had content in the area under investigation were consulted and their comments used to improve the questions in the interview guide as a way of ensuring face validity. For quantitative data obtained, they were first edited for completeness, coded and entered into the Statistical Package for Social Scientists (SPSS) version 20.1. The data was tabulated to generate descriptive statistics. Qualitative data was organized, interpreted, patterns in the data identified, data patterns related to research themes. Some important prepositions from the participants was quoted verbatim in the appropriate sections of the discussion. The data was finally used as a basis for informed and verifiable conclusions. The paper found out that teacher turnover was an issue in many schools. Majority of head teachers openly reported that some teachers quit teaching from their schools either for green pastures or to other professions. The study concluded that there was low teacher turnover of 4.7% that is approximately 11 teachers per year. The paper recommended that Ministry of Education and Sports in Uganda should put in place a system that captures the statistics of teacher turnover and make right decision through replacements. Keywords: Teachers; Turnover; Status; Secondary; Schools DOI: 10.7176/JEP/13-33-09 Publication date: November 30 th 2022

Head Teachers’ Level of Morality in Relation to their Age and Experience

The study was designed to determine the relationship between head teachers of secondary schools’ level of morality with their age and administrative experience. Data were collected from 200 head teachers of secondary schools selected as sample of the study from Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces of Pakistan. Kohlberg’s Form A of MJI -Moral Judgment Interviews- was used as an instrument for data collection. Standard Issue Scoring Manual was used to determine head teachers’ GS Scores and Weighted Average Scores (WAS). It was concluded that there was significant negative relationship between moral reasoning and age of head teachers of secondary schools. It means the younger head teachers secured the better stage of moral reasoning as compare to male heads. However, no relationship was detected between moral reasoning stage and administrative experience.