School effectiveness and improvement in selected top Provincial secondary schools in kenya

Abstract

School examination results the world over are arguably perceived to be the most important measure of perceived success or failure of a candidate yet they do not accurately measure a school's or a school system's effectiveness. It had been pointed out by the Nyanza Provincial Education Board that the province's performance in examinations and the quality of education in general is unsatisfactory and inadequate and hence the study sought to; establish the extent to which stated school goals were perceived to be achieved, determine the value-added to students' entry marks upon exit, determine the effect of teachers in-service courses on students' examination scores, determine the relationship between teacher qualifications and students' examination scores, identify the perceived relationship between text books and students' examination scores and assess the perceived effect of the head teacher's professional leadership on students' examination scores. The study adopted the Theory of Organisational Climate which defines organisational climate as the human environment within which an organization's employees do their work. A cross sectional survey design was used. Purposive sampling was used to identify the four schools under study and form three students. The target population is the top ranked provincial secondary schools which were purposefully selected. Simple random sampling was used to select form three and teachers who the respondents of the study. A sample size of 197 respondents was used (49 teachers and 148 students). The analyzed data was both qualitative and quantitative using descriptive statistics in particular percentages and means. The study found out that all the four schools were perceived to have highly achieved their stated goals which are cascaded from the National goals of education though the four schools recorded a negative value addition index, hence failing to add value to students' entry scores upon exit. Teachers' in-service courses were perceived to have a positive impact on students' scores though they were found to be few in the schools studied. Teachers' qualifications affected their teaching ability and text books which were adequate and important in fostering students' academic achievements. School principals' leadership which is very purposeful was perceived to foster students' academic performance. The study recommends that the government shifts focus from rewarding schools and teachers based on raw examination scores to focusing on value added on individual entry scores upon exit. Further, it recommends that the government supports and funds in-service courses for teachers and school principals to enable them build their pedagogical and managerial capacities, respectively.