SUPERVISION AND QUALITY INSTRUCTION IN SENIOR SECONDARY SCHOOLS
ABSTRACT
The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between supervision and the quality of instruction in secondary schools in Lagos state. To accomplish this, five research questions and hypotheses were proposed to guide the study. The study used a descriptive research design.
The study’s sample consisted of 200 teachers from five different schools. They were chosen using a random sampling method. To collect relevant information from the sample, a researcher-designed and validated questionnaire was used.
The research questions were analyzed using descriptive statistics, while the five hypotheses were tested using inferential statistics such as Chi-square (X2). According to the findings of the analysis, adequate supervision has a significant relationship with educational quality. The level of education of teachers has a significant relationship with the quality of education.
Inadequate instructional materials have a significant impact on educational quality. The attitude of students toward learning is related to the quality of education. Parental responsibility has a significant relationship with educational quality. As a result of these, a conclusion was reached and recommendations were made.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
The Study’s Background
It is well known that education is a tool for economic empowerment and the development of a sustainable economy. It’s no surprise that one of the national education goals is “the acquisition of appropriate skills, as well as the development of mental, physical, and social abilities and competencies as equipment for the individual to live and contribute to the development of society” (FRN, 2004).
According to Nwangwu (2007), what children learn, retain, and practice after they leave school has a direct impact on the nation’s competencies and skills.
Thus, what an individual learns both formally and informally determines his or her ability to contribute to national development. Aghenta (2006) defines trained or educated human resources as manpower and personnel that contribute to national development. As a result, the level of development of any nation is determined by the quality of education received by its citizens.
The Nigerian educational system is increasingly confronted with a slew of complex issues. There is widespread concern that educational standards are deteriorating and morale is deteriorating (Ayeni, 2012). Some blame students for the apparent decline in educational quality and moral values.
A few astute observers believe it is due to the nature of changes in all directions. The majority of people blame teachers for the problems in our schools. They claim that today’s teachers are not as devoted to the cause of education as their predecessors were.
Teachers, as a group, blame parents and students. They also blame the government for unappealing working conditions and inadequate educational facilities in some parts of the educational system. This research project does not intend to place blame on educational policy or the system (Arong and Ogbadu, 2010).
The study does not believe that children, parents, teachers, or inadequate educational facilities are to blame for the country’s declining educational quality. What the study wants to emphasize to everyone is that the entire blame should be placed on a lack of adequate educational supervision in our educational system, particularly at the public senior high school levels.
Aside from educational supervision factors, the research identifies corruption or a lack of integrity on the part of some education stakeholders as a major factor contributing to the country’s declining educational quality. Two facts about education in the country are self-evident.
These are the facts: only a few people understand the value or importance of education in the development of a country, and only a few people understand the true magnitude of the decline in the quality of education in the country, with special reference to selected schools in Lagos state.
Education is the foundation of any country’s development. It equips men with the tools they need to navigate the world. What joy do parents feel when they see their children receive a high-quality education? It is shocking to learn that the quality of education today (particularly in Lagos state, the case study for this research work) is poor. The quality of education has significantly deteriorated from primary to tertiary levels.
Primary school graduates are unable to write their own names, and secondary school graduates are unable to copy notes on chalkboards with correct spellings (Ayeni, 2012; Aghenta, 2006). It is equally repugnant to hear our tertiary institution graduates reduced to glorified secondary school graduates. Some graduates find it difficult to write standard formal letters of application for jobs. There is no doubt that the overall quality of our education has declined.
It is not an exaggeration to say that if there is one issue that bothers, burdens, and is frequently debated among educational stakeholders and the general public in Nigeria today, it is the issue of declining educational quality.
According to African News, V.O.A of the 15th of February, 2009, only 20% of Nigerian graduates have quality (sound) education to compete for jobs in the labor market; the remaining 80% do not have sound education. The question of who is to blame occupies the minds of the majority of Nigerians, particularly educators.
While many media writers blame teachers, others blame students and their parents for a lack of discipline at home. A larger proportion placed the blame squarely on the government (FRN, 2004). Whatever perspective one takes, uncovering the circumstances surrounding education’s declining quality will not be an easy task.
The need to improve educational quality is high on the agenda in most countries, both developed and developing. With a greater emphasis on student achievement, countries are focusing more on the operation of schools and the performance of teachers, as well as how these can be monitored and improved (UNESCO/IIEP, 2011).
The school supervision service is the primary actor in almost all countries in charge of controlling and supporting schools and teachers. Supervisors’ actions are expected to contribute to quality improvement. However, the effectiveness of this service is frequently questioned and criticized by decision-makers and schools.
The criticisms focus on the frequency of supervision visits, the lack of follow-up on reports, and the lack of impact of supervision on the quality of teaching and learning. As a result, several countries have implemented significant reforms in order to transform school supervision into a true quality improvement service (UNESCO/1IEP, 2011).
This focus on schools and teachers’ supervision and support is bolstered by the current trend toward increased school autonomy. Once in the classroom, teachers have always had a high degree of autonomy.
However, in many countries around the world, schools have recently been given more leeway in making critical decisions such as curriculum, staff management, and budget (FRN, 2004). The ability of schools to effectively use this increased freedom will be heavily reliant on the support services on which they can rely, while supervision may be required to guide them in their decision-making.
The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of supervision on the quality of instruction in senior secondary schools in the Oshodi-Isolo Local Development Area of Lagos State.
Statement of the Issue
A major contributor to the problem of declining educational quality is a lack of adequate educational supervision. The result of inadequate supervision is, for example, as a result of the following factors, which contribute to the decline in educational quality:
Lack of qualified teachers, insufficient instructional materials, a scarcity of library facilities, students’ attitudes toward learning, insufficient teacher remuneration, parental responsibility, misplaced priority, and corruption or lack of integrity among some educational stakeholders
Furthermore, most principals do not meaningfully supervise and evaluate teachers, actively plan and coordinate curriculum, manage innovation and change, or spend time in the classroom. On the other hand, according to Maranga (1993),
inspectors visit schools on a sporadic basis, and when they do, the inspectors are less knowledgeable than the teachers about how to handle certain curriculum issues. Schools continue to face teacher shortages, poor performance, low retention and completion rates, and indiscipline among teachers and students (UNESCO, 2005).
Nonetheless, Anukam (2009) believes that the country is looking for ways to improve school supervision in the face of presumed falling standards of learning, increased school enrollment, and increased recruitment of unqualified teachers. The study will highlight the significance of supervised instruction in schools as a predictor of students’ ‘positive’ academic performance.
The study’s problem arose from the background information that the field of supervised instruction has been duly neglected for one reason or another in the midst of modern secondary school complications. According to Adesina (2008), schools are not regularly visited by Ministry of Education inspectors, and when they are, the inspections are not thorough. Inspection reports are rarely made available, and there are no follow-ups to ensure that the flaws identified are addressed.
Knowing that principals of schools and Ministry of Education inspectors are supposed to be instructional leaders, it becomes critical to conduct a comparative study on the instructional supervisory roles of these two key instructional leaders to see if there is any relationship between their supervisory roles.
This study, on the other hand, seeks to bridge the gap between effective supervision and the quality of instruction in Lagos state’s public senior secondary schools.
The Study’s Objectives
The purpose of this research is to look into the effect of effective supervision on the quality of instruction in senior secondary schools in Lagos state. As a result, the following are the study’s objectives:
1. Determine whether adequate supervision has a significant relationship with educational quality.
2. Determine whether the level of education of teachers has a significant relationship with the quality of instruction.
3. Determine whether inadequate instructional materials contribute to the decline in educational quality.
4. To determine whether students’ attitudes toward learning contribute to the decline in educational quality.
5. Determine whether parental responsibility has a significant relationship with declining educational quality.
Research Issues
The following questions will be attempted to be answered in this study.
1. To what extent does a lack of adequate educational supervision contribute to declining educational quality?
2. To what extent does a lack of qualified teachers contribute to a decline in educational quality?
3. To what extent does a lack of instructional materials contribute to a decline in educational quality?
4. To what extent does students’ attitude toward learning contribute to the decline in educational quality?
5. To what extent does a lack of parental care contribute to a decline in educational quality?
Hypotheses for Research
To guide the research, the following hypotheses were developed.
1. There is no significant relationship between adequate supervision and quality education.
2. The level of education of teachers has no bearing on the quality of education.
3. Inadequate instructional materials have no relationship with educational quality.
4. The attitude of students toward learning has no relationship with the quality of education.
5. There is no link between parental responsibility and educational quality.
The Study’s Importance
The study is intended to benefit all stakeholders in our educational system in the same way that adequate educational inspection and supervision would have. The following, on the other hand, are intended to benefit from the research:
It will benefit teachers, the government, students and pupils, as well as society as a whole. Educational planners will benefit; pupils and students will be able to learn effectively and intelligently; the government will try to prioritize education projects by funding them;
teachers will improve on themselves by acquiring necessary professional skills, even as good remuneration for them is worked out; schools will begin to excel in their examinations; the quality of education will be greatly improved; corruption will be reduced, and some wit will be retained.
The Study’s Scope
The research focuses on adequate educational supervision, instructional materials, students’ attitudes toward learning, parental responsibility for quality education, qualified teachers, and declining educational quality.
The scope of the study will only include selected public senior secondary schools in Lagos state’s Oshodi-Isolo local council development area. The research is limited to the state of Lagos in Nigeria.
Furthermore, the study seeks to ascertain the relationship that exists between school supervision and the quality of instruction in a Lagos state public senior high school.
Term Definitions
Certain words are used to describe specific situations during the course of study, and their definitions are provided below:
Supervision is a method of advising, guiding, refreshing, encouraging, stimulating, improving, and supervising specific groups in the hope of gaining their cooperation in order for supervisors to be successful in their supervisory tasks.
Quality Instruction: This aims to promote improvements in academic achievement standards, quality, and attainment through first-hand and independent evaluation.
Performance is defined as the net wealth after deducting the inputs (processing work activities) from the outputs or final results.
Language is defined as the system of human expression through the use of words; a specific system of words used to express meaning or feelings
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