Association between Years of Teaching Experience and Administrative Effectiveness of School Principals in Imo State

Abstract

This study examined the relationship between principals’ experience as a correlate of administrative effectiveness in public secondary school in Imo State. One research question and one hypothesis guided the study. The study is a correlational study. The population for the study is made up of 305 public secondary schools in Imo State, 211713 subjects distributed as follows, 323 principals, 6144 teachers, 107235 Junior Secondary School Students, 94193 Senior Secondary School Students and 3821 stakeholders of the schools in Imo State. Multi stage sampling procedure was used to sample 4340 respondents, distributed as follows: 60 principals, 286 teachers, 1999 junior secondary school students, 1756 senior secondary school students, and 239 stakeholders of school, representing host communities of the schools. Teachers, students and stakeholders are incorporated into the research to validate and provide a comprehensive assessment of the principals' responses. Two researcher designed instruments titled, Principals Demographic Inventory (PDI) and Principals Administrative Effectiveness Rating Scale (PAERS) were used to collect data from the respondents. The instruments were validated by three lecturers in Measurement and Evaluation and two lecturers in Educational Administration. Split-half internal consistency method was used to test the reliability and a reliability index of 0.78 was realized using Cronbach alpha. The instrument was administered to the respondents using face to face approach. The data collected were analyzed using contingency coefficient and the chi-square statistics at an alpha level of 0.05 significance. The results indicated positive correlation coefficient between Principals experience and their administrative effectiveness. It was recommended that the Ministry of Education should prioritize years of experience when appointing and promoting principals, ensuring that seasoned educators are placed in leadership roles and also establish mentorship initiatives where experienced principals can guide and support less experienced colleagues in effective school management practices.