TEACHERS’ EMPOWERMENT AND SCHOOL MONITORING AS CORRELATES OF SECONDARY SCHOOLS QUALITY ASSURANCE IN ANAMBRA STATE

Abstract

Teachers’ empowerment and monitoring are presumed to be important factors in attaining school organizational goals and guaranteeing secondary schools quality assurance. Empowering teachers and implementing effective school monitoring is more likely to enhance the quality assurance of secondary schools by fostering professional development and ensuring adherence to educational standards. Therefore, this study specifically investigated teachers’ empowerment and school monitoring as correlates of secondary schools quality assurance in Anambra State. Three specific purposes, three research questions and three hypotheses guided the study. Correlational research design was adopted for the study. The population of the study comprised all the 266 public secondary schools’ principals in Anambra State; which was used as sample for the study hence, the study employed census technique. Structured rating scale: Teachers’ Empowerment Rating Scale (TERS) structured by the researcher; School Monitoring Rating Scale (SMRS) and Quality Assurance Rating Scale (QARS) adapted from Akporehe and Asiyai (2021) and Bassey et al. (2019) were used for data collection. The instruments were face and construct validated. Internal consistency co-efficient of 0.89, 0.85, 0.90; 0.91; and 0.93 were obtained for TERS, SMRS and QARS respectively; using Cronbach Alpha statistical method. Data were analyzed using Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient, and t-test of correlation. The p-value was used to determine the significant difference at 0.05 level of significance for all hypotheses. The findings of the study revealed there is positive and significant correlation between teachers’ empowerment (teachers’ continuous professional development, teachers’ involvement in decision-making, and provision of instructional resources) and secondary schools quality assurance in Anambra State, (R-value = 0.89). The findings also revealed that school monitoring positively and significantly correlates with secondary schools quality assurance in Anambra State, (R-value = 0.78). However, the study concluded that teachers’ empowerment and school monitoring are important variables that improve educational standards and overall quality in secondary schools in Anambra State. Based on the findings, the study recommended among others; that school management should establish structured teachers’ empowerment programmes that are tailored to the specific needs and challenges of their teachers. School principals should implement regular and structured programs that involve both qualitative and quantitative assessments of teaching quality, student outcomes, and overall school environment.