CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Background to Study

The quality of Educational outcome is the product of effective and efficient utilization of human, material, financial and time resources. Of these, the contribution of the human resources particularly the principals and teachers cannot be overemphasized. The Principals and teachers are the active agents of production who utilize the other resources and skills in a manner that can produce the desired results. The attitude of Principals towards their teaching sta was well articulated by the Federal Government in the National Policy of Education(2004) which states that ‘The success of any system of education is hinged on proper planning, eicient administration. Administration is a function of organization and structure, proprietorship and control, inspection and supervision.’ For teachers the policy also states that ‘teachers are the main determinants of the quality of education.’ Furthermore, UNESCO (2000) was categorical in stating that, improving the quality of education depends first, on improving the quality of educational administrators and, also improving the status and work conditions of teachers. Nigeria’s educational system is presently undergoing various reforms. Among the reforms is the introduction of Universal Basic Education which shall be of nine-year duration comprising six years of primary education and three years of junior secondary education. It also includes adult and non-formal education programmes at primary and junior secondary levels for the adults and out of school youths (FGN 2004). The reform aims at providing free and compulsory education for all Nigerian children. This reform initiative no doubt requires significant capacity development on the part of all education stakeholders. It requires high levels of motivation and commitment on the parts of individual to solving the oen complex problem associated with the implementation. In Education, any discussion on reforms of teaching and learning focuses attention on school principals who as leaders of schools are responsible for ensuring effective learning culture in the schools. The importance of the role of principals on the school organization cannot therefore be over looked. Principals are very unique is school organizations. This was confirmed by Amoloye (2004). He called them school managers.

The job of managing according to him, involves amongst other things, the provision of leadership for men and women, coordinating both human and material resources to ensure the achievement of organizational goals. In the school system, the principal as an administrator influences his teachers to achieve the goals and objectives of the school and also to provide job satisfaction. The fundamental goal of the school is to enhance the teaching and learning process. Hence, the school Principal should endeavor to influence the behavior of the teachers in order to achieve the goals of the school. Transformational approaches to leadership have been advocated for eective management of the school system. A transformational leader is the leader who inspires people to excel and articulates meaningful vision for the organization. A leader acts in both formal and informal ways to motivate and build employee commitment in the organization. Olaleye (2001), Leithwood, Tantzi and Steinbach (1999) have cited empirical evidences suggesting that transformational leadership contributes to a range of organizational outcomes including motivation, commitment and capacity for teachers to develop new approaches to education and most importantly, job satisfaction. School principals are expected to exhibit this leadership qualities to enhance teaching and learning in the school. The success of a leader depends on the readiness, the willingness, commitment and the ability of the followers to follow as well as the ability, the style, skills and behavior of the leaders. Consequently the success of educational administrators depends on their effectiveness as well as their efficiency and the ability to bring about job satisfaction of teachers.

This will in turn speed up the actualization of the goals and objectives of the school. The school as an institution is a routinized pattern of social positions established by the society to accomplish certain imperative functions in order to ensure its survival. The school has become an institution devoted to educating young minds through a well structured, systematic pattern of training. Education business is one of the largest concerns of the society. The importance attached to education is predicated on its role in the formation of human capital in effecting national development. The failure or success of education is aected largely by its managerial efficiency and effectiveness. Educational systems are social systems. Peretomode (1991) emphasized that, the human component of the social system is very vital to the attainment of its goals and objectives. He also pointed out that, the behavior of individuals is shaped by two important factors viz: the uniqueness of the individual and the sociological attributes of the environment (organization or setting). The role of the Principal is an important unit, the analytical sub-unit of an educational institution. A role is the dynamic aspects of positions, offices within the institution. In short, it is a position within an institution associated with a set of rights and obligations. Roles may vary in scope ranging from functionally diffuse to functionally specific (Coladarci and Getzels, 1995). In a school setting, greater cognizance is given to the role of the principal which stands out as top rated in the school’s organogram. Therefore, there are certain expected behavioural patterns for persons occupying these roles.

Expectations are preconceptions people have about how anyone in particular position, within the school system, should behave. Traditionally, the Principal is the middle manager suggested in William Whyte’s 1950’s classic The Organization Man – an overseer of buses, boilers and books. Today, in a rapidly changing era of standards-based reform and accountability, a different conception has emerged– one closer to the model suggested by Jim Collins’ 2001 Good to Great, which draws lessons from contemporary corporate life to suggest leadership that focuses with great clarity on what is essential, what needs to be done and how to get it done.