The Impact of Bureaucratic Structures on the Performance of School Principals in Public Secondary Schools

  • Innocent Nnochiri Nwafor Department of Educational Management, Ignatius, Ajuru University of Education, Rumuolumeni, Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria
  • Prince Nwachukwu Ololube Department of Educational Management, Ignatius, Ajuru University of Education, Rumuolumeni, Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria
Keywords: Administrative Skills, Bureaucratic Principles, Educational Management, Leadership Performance, School Effectiveness

Abstract

The study investigated into bureaucratic role of principals’ leadership performance in public senior secondary schools in Rivers State. The study adopted the descriptive research design. The population of the study consisted of the two hundred and ninety six (296) principals in all the two hundred and ninety-six (296) public senior secondary schools in the 23 Local Government Areas of Rivers State. The sample of this study comprised the two hundred and ninety-six (296) principals selected from the two hundred and ninety-six (296) public senior secondary schools in the twenty three (23) Local Government Areas in Rivers State, representing 100% of the population using the census sampling technique. Out of the 296 copies of questionnaires distributed 275 representing 96% of the total number of copies, were duly completed and returned. The instrument for data collection for this study was a 30 item self-structured questionnaire titled ‘Bureaucratic Role of Principals’ Leadership Performance Questionnaire (BRPLPQ)”.  The instrument was structured using the modified 4-points Likert Scale model of; Very High Extent (VHE) – 4 points; High Extent (HE) =3 points; Low Extent (LE) = 2 point and Very Low Extent (VLE) =1 point. 

References

R. Marion and M. Uhl-Bien, “Leadership in complex organizations,” Leadersh. Q., vol. 12, no. 4, pp. 389–418, 2001, doi: 10.1016/S1048-9843(01)00092-3.

B. Shamir and J. M. Howell, “Organizational and contextual influences on the emergence and effectiveness of charismatic leadership,” Monogr. Leadersh. Manag., vol. 9, no. 2, pp. 255–281, 2018, doi: 10.1108/S1479-357120180000009020.

M. D. Mumford, S. T. Hunter, T. L. Friedrich, and J. J. Caughron, “Charismatic, ideological, and pragmatic leadership: An examination of multi-level influences on emergence and performance,” Res. Multi-Level Issues, vol. 8, no. 2, pp. 79–116, 2009, doi: 10.1108/S1475-9144(2009)0000008004.

J. H. Stronge and X. Xu, Qualities of Effective Principals. ASCD, 2021.

J. L. Bess and P. Goldman, “Leadership ambiguity in universities and K-12 schools and the limits of contemporary leadership theory,” Leadersh. Q., vol. 12, no. 4, pp. 419–450, 2001, doi: 10.1016/S1048-9843(01)00090-X.

F. Damanpour and J. Daniel Wischnevsky, “Research on innovation in organizations,” J. Eng. Technol. Manag., vol. 23, no. 4, pp. 269–291, 2006.

F. Damanpour and S. Gopalakrishnan, “Theories of organizational structure and innovation adoption: The role of environmental change,” J. Eng. Technol. Manag. - JET-M, vol. 15, no. 1, pp. 1–24, 1998, doi: 10.1016/S0923-4748(97)00029-5.

H. Mintzberg, “Rethinking strategic planning part I: Pitfalls and fallacies,” Long Range Plann., vol. 27, no. 3, pp. 12–21, 1994, doi: 10.1016/0024-6301(94)90185-6.

D. I. Jung, C. Chow, and A. Wu, “The role of transformational leadership in enhancing organizational innovation: Hypotheses and some preliminary findings,” Leadersh. Q., vol. 14, no. 4–5, pp. 525–544, 2003, doi: 10.1016/S1048-9843(03)00050-X.

V. J. García-Morales, M. M. Jiménez-Barrionuevo, and L. Gutiérrez-Gutiérrez, “Transformational leadership influence on organizational performance through organizational learning and innovation,” J. Bus. Res., vol. 65, no. 7, pp. 1040–1050, 2012, doi: 10.1016/j.jbusres.2011.03.005.

M. Fullan, The principal 2.0: Three keys to maximizing impact. John Wiley & Sons, 2023.

H. C. Hsiao, M. N. Chen, and H. Sen Yang, “Leadership of vocational high school principals in curriculum reform: A case study in Taiwan,” Int. J. Educ. Dev., vol. 28, no. 6, pp. 669–686, 2008, doi: 10.1016/j.ijedudev.2007.12.002.

M. Taylor, J. Goeke, E. Klein, C. Onore, and K. Geist, “Changing leadership: Teachers lead the way for schools that learn,” Teach. Teach. Educ., vol. 27, no. 5, pp. 920–929, 2011, doi: 10.1016/j.tate.2011.03.003.

A. Y. N. Cheng and E. Szeto, “Teacher leadership development and principal facilitation: Novice teachers’ perspectives,” Teach. Teach. Educ., vol. 58, pp. 140–148, 2016, doi: 10.1016/j.tate.2016.05.003.

L. Hellström and C. Hagquist, “School effectiveness in Sweden: psychometric properties of an instrument to measure pedagogical and social climate (PESOC) focusing on pedagogical leadership,” Int. J. Leadersh. Educ., vol. 24, no. 6, pp. 855–875, 2021, doi: 10.1080/13603124.2019.1623921.

A. Mizala and M. Urquiola, “School markets: The impact of information approximating schools’ effectiveness,” J. Dev. Econ., vol. 103, no. 1, pp. 313–335, 2013, doi: 10.1016/j.jdeveco.2013.03.003.

M. Rutter and B. Maughan, “School of effectiveness findings 1979-2002,” J. Sch. Psychol., vol. 40, no. 6, pp. 451–475, 2002, doi: 10.1016/S0022-4405(02)00124-3.

K. Leithwood, K. S. Louis, S. Anderson, and K. Wahlstrom, “Executive summary How leadership influences student learning,” Education, p. 15, 2004.

R. J. Marzano, T. Waters, and B. A. McNulty, School leadership that works: From research to results. ASCD, 2005.

M. Weber, “Bureaucracy,” in Social theory re-wired, Routledge, 2023, pp. 271–276.

D. B. Tyack and L. Cuban, Tinkering toward utopia: A century of public school reform. Harvard University Press, 1997.

T. McCowan, “Quality of higher education in Kenya: Addressing the conundrum,” Int. J. Educ. Dev., vol. 60, pp. 128–137, 2018, doi: 10.1016/j.ijedudev.2017.11.002.

L. Kyriakides, B. P. M. Creemers, P. Antoniou, D. Demetriou, and C. Y. Charalambous, “The impact of school policy and stakeholders’ actions on student learning: A longitudinal study,” Learn. Instr., vol. 36, pp. 113–124, 2015, doi: 10.1016/j.learninstruc.2015.01.004.

S. K. Dhillon, R. Ibrahim, and A. Selamat, “Factors associated with scholarly publication productivity among academic staff: Case of a Malaysian public university,” Technol. Soc., vol. 42, pp. 160–166, 2015, doi: 10.1016/j.techsoc.2015.04.004.

M. Perkmann, Z. King, and S. Pavelin, “Engaging excellence? Effects of faculty quality on university engagement with industry,” Res. Policy, vol. 40, no. 4, pp. 539–552, 2011, doi: 10.1016/j.respol.2011.01.007.

K. Ruthven, S. Hennessy, and R. Deaney, “Incorporating Internet resources into classroom practice: Pedagogical perspectives and strategies of secondary-school subject teachers,” Comput. Educ., vol. 44, no. 1, pp. 1–34, 2005, doi: 10.1016/j.compedu.2003.11.001.

V. Fernandez, P. Simo, and J. M. Sallan, “Podcasting: A new technological tool to facilitate good practice in higher education,” Comput. Educ., vol. 53, no. 2, pp. 385–392, 2009, doi: 10.1016/j.compedu.2009.02.014.

J. H. Sandholtz and S. P. Scribner, “The paradox of administrative control in fostering teacher professional development,” Teach. Teach. Educ., vol. 22, no. 8, pp. 1104–1117, 2006, doi: 10.1016/j.tate.2006.07.006.

T. J. Kowalski, The School Principal: Visionary Leadership and Competent Management. Routledge, 2010.

K. Leithwood, A. Harris, and D. Hopkins, “Seven strong claims about successful school leadership,” Sch. Leadersh. Manag., vol. 40, no. 1, pp. 5–22, 2020, doi: 10.1080/13632434.2019.1596077.

S. T. Bossert, D. C. Dwyer, B. Rowan, and G. V. Lee, “The Instructional Management Role of the Principal,” Educ. Adm. Q., vol. 18, no. 3, pp. 34–64, 1982, doi: 10.1177/0013161X82018003004.

P. Hallinger and R. H. Heck, “Exploring the principal’s contribution to school effectiveness 1980-1995,” Educ. Manag. Major Themes Educ., vol. 2, no. 2, pp. 215–245, 2013, doi: 10.4324/9780203463383.

S. Goldwyn, School Leadership that Works: From Research to Results, vol. 45, no. 3. ASCD, 2007.

L. Lashway, “Developing Instructional Leaders,” 2002.

M. Fullan and S. Khushal, Leading in a Culture of Change, 2nd ed. John Wiley & Sons, 2021.

A. Walker and H. Qian, “Beginning principals: Balancing at the top of the greasy pole,” J. Educ. Adm., vol. 44, no. 4, pp. 297–309, 2006, doi: 10.1108/09578230610674921.

I. Oplatka, “The principalship in developing countries: Context, characteristics and reality,” Comp. Educ., vol. 40, no. 3, pp. 427–448, 2004, doi: 10.1080/0305006042000274872.

J. W. Creswell, Research Design : Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Method Approaches, 4th ed. Thousand Oaks, California: SAGE Publications, Inc., 2014.

R. Bogdan and S. K. Biklen, Qualitative research for education. Allyn & Bacon Boston, MA, 1997.

R. Nirel and H. Glickman, “Sample Surveys and Censuses,” in Handbook of Statistics, vol. 29, no. PA, Elsevier, 2009, pp. 539–565.

J. W. Creswell, A concise introduction to mixed methods research. SAGE publications, 2021.

B. Davies, C. Bowring-Carr, and L. Ellison, School leadership in the 21st century: Developing a strategic approach: Second Edition. Psychology Press, 2005.

G. Anderson and N. Arsenault, Fundamentals of educational research. Pearson, 2005.

K. Leithwood and D. Jantzi, “Linking leadership to student learning: The contributions of leader efficacy,” Educ. Adm. Q., vol. 44, no. 4, pp. 496–528, 2008.

N. E. Fraenkel, Jack R., Wallen, How to Design and Evaluate Research in Education. McGraw-Hill Higher Education, 2009.

H. N. Boone Jr and D. A. Boone, “Analyzing likert data,” J. Ext., vol. 50, no. 2, p. 48, 2012.

J. M. Islamia, “Research Design,” Res. Soc. Sci. Interdiscip. Perspect., vol. 12, no. September, pp. 68–84, 2016.

A. Field, Discovering statistics using IBM SPSS statistics, vol. 58. sage, 2013.

G. J. Privitera, Statistics for the behavioral sciences. Sage publications, 2023.

J. Stevens, Applied multivariate statistics for the social sciences, vol. 4. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Mahwah, NJ, 2002.

J. W. Creswell and V. L. P. Clark, Designing and Conducting Mixed Methods Research, 3rd ed. Beverly Hills, CA: SAGE Publications, 2018.

E. E. Iroegbu and E. Etudor-Eyo, “Principals’ Instructional Supervision and Teachers’ Effectiveness,” Br. J. Educ., vol. 4, no. 7, pp. 99–109, 2016, [Online]. Available: www.eajournals.org.

L. Rosen, School Discipline: Best Practices for Administrators. Corwin press, 1997.

J. Blase, J. Blase, and D. Phillips, Handbook of School Improvement: How High-Performing Principals Create High-Performing Schools. Corwin Press, 2014.

K. Leithwood and D. L. Duke, A century’s quest to understand school leadership, vol. 4. 2013.

M. Fullan, The Principal: Three Keys to Maximizing Impact, vol. 18, no. 1. John Wiley & Sons, 2014.

G. R. Ferris, W. A. Hochwarter, M. Ronald Buckley, G. Harrell-Cook, and D. D. Frink, “Human resources management: Some new directions,” J. Manage., vol. 25, no. 3, pp. 385–415, 1999, doi: 10.1177/014920639902500306.

D. L. Stone and D. L. Deadrick, “Challenges and opportunities affecting the future of human resource management,” Hum. Resour. Manag. Rev., vol. 25, no. 2, pp. 139–145, 2015, doi: 10.1016/j.hrmr.2015.01.003.

B. Mahapatro, Human resource management. New Age International (P) ltd., 2021.

M. Beer, S. C. Voelpel, M. Leibod, and E. B. Tekie, “Strategic management as organizational learning: Developing fit and alignment through a disciplined process,” Long Range Plann., vol. 38, no. 5, pp. 445–465, 2005, doi: 10.1016/j.lrp.2005.04.008.

S. Corrall, “Information literacy strategy development in higher education: An exploratory study,” Int. J. Inf. Manage., vol. 28, no. 1, pp. 26–37, 2008, doi: 10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2007.07.002.

A. Smith and E. Smith, “The role of training in the development of human resource management in australian organisations,” Hum. Resour. Dev. Int., vol. 10, no. 3, pp. 263–279, 2007, doi: 10.1080/13678860701515208.

M. Gradstein and M. Justman, “Human capital, social capital, and public schooling,” Eur. Econ. Rev., vol. 44, no. 4–6, pp. 879–890, 2000.

J. L. Trilk et al., “Do physical activity facilities near schools affect physical activity in high school girls?,” Heal. Place, vol. 17, no. 2, pp. 651–657, 2011, doi: 10.1016/j.healthplace.2011.01.005.

D. J. Fiore, School-community relations. Routledge, 2015.

Published
2024-08-21
How to Cite
[1]
I. N. Nwafor and P. N. Ololube, “The Impact of Bureaucratic Structures on the Performance of School Principals in Public Secondary Schools”, Int. J. Environ. Eng. Educ., vol. 6, no. 2, pp. 96-106, Aug. 2024.
Section
Research Article