DEMOGRAPHIC VARIABLES AS DETERMINANTS OF PRINCIPALS’ CONFLICTS MANAGEMENT STRATEGY IN AWGU EDUCATION ZONE ENUGU STATE

ABSTRACT

This work  focused on demographic variables as determinants to  principals’ conflict management strategies in public secondary schools in Agwu education zone. The main purpose of this study was to find out the relationship between demographic variables and conflict management strategies, a correlation research design was adopted to guide the study.  Four  research  questions  were  formulated  to  guide  the  study  and  two  null hypotheses which were tested at  0.05 level of significance. The instrument for data collection was a  structured questionnaire, the population of the study comprised 54 principal and vice principals and 1568 teachers. 168 were used as a sample size using simple sampling technique. Findings show that younger principals manage conflicts in school more than older principals. It is also the opinion of the respondents that experience principals attend to duties at when due than inexperience principals. It is also posited that qualified principals handle conflict in school professionally than unqualified principals. It is as a result of female principals in the secondary school than conflict is at its pick. Based on the findings, it was recommended among others that ministry of education should constantly inspect schools to know how cordial the principal and staff are managing conflict in school. Also school administrators should be at least attend administrative conferences to enable them acquire leadership skills on how to manage conflicts.

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CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Background to the Study

People have always existed and co-existed as groups. These could be cultural, ethnic, social, and political or work groups. Schools when seen as organizations exist as groups but also with sub groups. These groups are made up of individuals with multivariate background. The background of people in the sub groups could have resulted from ethnic, cultural, religious, educational or political consideration (Omoike, 2014). Omoike posited that when this coverage in an organization such as a school, there is the likelihood of the existence of issues that can cause misunderstandings likes and dislikes, among others which lead to conflict.

Conflict is an integral part of human life. The level of the historical events shows that conflict is one of the most prominent aspects of human life. So the existence of different people with the personality characteristics, needs, beliefs, expectation and different  perceptions inevitably causes conflict  in  organization (Balay,  2006).  Belay suggested that when there is a conflict in an organization, programs and policies become stagnant. The researcher further opined that these situation demands urgent intervention from stakeholders to ensure that the reputation of the organization.

Conflict in academic settings is a daily occurrence because a consensus opinion concerning rules governing the secondary schools among the participants — principals,

teachers,  students,  and  parents  is  lacking.  These  parties,  particularly Principals  and

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teachers, see one another as adversaries, not as those working toward a common goal, as is generally the case in other organizations (Adeola, 2003). However, in this context, conflict is seen as all forms of opposition, disagreement, friction between two or more parties and it manifests in the forms of arguments, protests, demonstration, aggression and other destructive behaviours.  Conflicts in school always manifest but management of these conflicts at the right time will help to promote understanding in their teaching and learning.

Conflict is a recurring decimal in all human relationships, be it in the family, institution or organization, conflict is bound to exist. The school, like any other modern institution is not without negative features, incompatible behaviours and conflicts which might   be   counter-productive   and   give   rise   to   inefficiency,   ineffectiveness   or dysfunctional consequences in the achievement of goals and objectives (Adeola 2003). Adeola further states that school as a bureaucratic organization with division of  labour, line of authority in terms of teacher-principal, subordinate-super ordinate relationships, rules and regulations, communication flow – upward, downward, horizontal, is bound to have conflicts. In view of this, Albert (2001) states that the conflict may be between staff and staff, staff and student or staff and the school administrator resulting in teacher- teacher  conflict  (TTC),  teacher-student  conflict  (TSC)  and  principal-teacher conflict (PTC). Albert stated further that conflict in schools takes different forms; for example teachers seem reluctant to obey the principals, they do not seem to follow rules or accept extra work, they do not easily get along with their principals; principals too adopt an authoritative approach, for example they pressurize teachers for an uninterrupted working of the school activities; while students/learners may accuse teachers of sexual abuse and

harassment, corporal punishment as well as being unprepared and uncaring.  It therefore, becomes common that conflict between teachers, the school principal and students occur frequently at any time in the school.

Conflict refers to perceived or experienced incompatible differences within the individual or between two or more individuals, which may lead to some or other form of opposition (Gilman, 2002). Gilman states that conflict is the natural tension that arises from differences. Furthermore a conflict exists whenever people are in disagreement and opposition. Coser, (2009) views conflict as a disagreement between two or more individuals  or  groups.  Moran  (2001)  sees  conflict  as  an  expression  of  hostility, antagonism and misunderstanding between the staff members. Moran opines that Conflict is inevitable and often good, for example, good teams always go through a “form, storm, norm and perform” period. Getting the most out of diversity means often-contradictory values, perspectives and opinions.

Divergence often means that the chosen course of action is tested at an early stage, thereby reducing the risk of missing an important flaw, which may emerge later. Consequently, according to Swart (2001), conflict can be constructive, thus improving work performance and overcoming staleness. The researcher further argues that discord is of value  in that  it  makes the  school as  an organization dynamic and  vulnerable to misunderstanding. In this part of the study different types of conflict will be discussed to give a clear understanding of how the divergent types of conflict influence the school as a social system. This types are include, interpersonal conflict, intrapersonal conflict, intra group and intergroup conflicts, inter organizational conflict among others

Intrapersonal Conflict:  This  is  a  conflict  within  the  individual  (intrapersonal),  can indicate the presence of simultaneous, opposing, divergent and conflicting ideas, feelings and activities. Characteristics of such tension are uncertainty, hesitation, stress, anxiety, depression and inability to sleep. For example, a principal might be task orientated at the expense of human relations; this can cause stress within the principal if he/she has to decide whether to admonish an educator whose work is not up to standard (Kroon, 1991).

Interpersonal Conflict: Interpersonal conflict is broadly defined as disagreements, incompatible interest  concerning goals,  policies,  rules and  discordant  behaviour that create anger, distrust, fear and rejection or resentment among individuals. This is the most common and visible type of divergence in schools and other organisations where people are involved. Interpersonal conflicts in an organisation like a school are often not so visible. The origin of such discord can also lie outside the school organisation, for example, two colleagues may be competing for the chairmanship of a tennis club and this can be transferred to school activities (Van der Westhuizen, 1991).

Intragroup Conflict: Saddler (1998) describes intragroup conflict as largely interpersonal conflict between persons in a group. Interpersonal conflict is always present in groups because individuals differ in terms of values, beliefs, attitudes and behaviour. As a result some  people  are  more  attracted  to  some  than  to  others.  The  better  underlying relationships, the easier it is for people to work together. Conflicts in small groups can, however, play a constructive role since it can stimulate creativity and renewal in that they start to communicate and work together as a unit.

Intergroup Conflict: Intergroup conflict occurs between different groups in the school, such as different departments, especially if they are competing for scarce resources like number of educators, time allocation for extramural activities, textbooks and other learning material, teaching aids and so on (Van der Bank, 1995).

Intra-organisational Conflict: Intra-organisational conflict occurs when management and staff disagree about working conditions, goals, authority and decisions (Swart, 2001). He further stated that this type of conflict can also originate between certain groups in a school or school system, it can occur between members of a certain subject interest group, for example between history teachers, concerning a certain approach to the work. When more than one person is involved, coalitions are created within the interest groups.

Individual Institutional Conflict: According to Prinsloo (2001), school management is a social process. The concept brings along the realization of how radical conflict can be, between an  individual’s expectations and  the  demands of the  school as  a  dynamic organisation. No two individuals are alike. Each brings his specific needs and personal preference into the social system. The institution itself also has its own role to fulfil. This role is determined by its broader aims and motives. When the ideal and aim of the two parties concerned differ greatly, an ideal climate for possible discord is created.

Conflict between School and Community: Particular interest groups in the community often attempt to involve the school in order to facilitate the achievement of their aims. Sometimes these aims embody religious, social and political ideals. Nigerian’s education has been repeatedly and violently disrupted by school boycotts, unrest and violence. Such school/ community conflict upsets the whole system and because school activities cannot

function normally; there is an unavoidable drop in standards which affects the culture of learning and teaching as well as learner discipline (Saddler, 1998).

In every organization such as business organization, industries and schools, management is required in order to co-ordinate both the human and material resources. Management is seen as a group of people or as a team of individual in an organization who perform specific functions (Mgbodile, 2004).  Management is seen as a profession with certain responsibilities like special training, guided by code of conduct with benefits from well spelt out conditions of service (Heinz and Harold, 2005). The researchers opined that management in school ensures a life-long vocation/career, permanent membership  and  possession of  self-authority to  control admission,  recruitment,  and training, qualifying examinations, license and certification, standards of practice and retention of members. Ndu and Anagbogu (2007) define management as an executive function which involves the strategic process of designing and maintaining an environment in which individuals, working together in groups, efficiently accomplish selected aims.

Management is a collaborative effort geared towards the utilization of human and material resources for the attainment of organizational objectives. Nwachukwu (1990) viewed management as the coordination of all the resources of an organization through the process of planning, organizing, directing and controlling in order to attain organizational goals. Nwachukwu maintained that it  is the process of designing and maintaining an environment in which individuals working together efficiently to accomplish selected aims. In this context, management means leadership which is aimed

at influencing group activities towards goals achievement. This influence in group activities in discharge of their duties in an organization will help in solving conflict in school.

In any organization which the school is not an exception, the crucial issue is, how to react to, respond to and manage conflicts so that positive changes will be realized and negative effects minimized. Poor management of conflict in school administration may result to deficiencies in the performance of the school. This may be in the area of poor management by principals, poor academic performance on the side of the students and disunity among the teaching and non- teaching staff.   Conflict management refers to programs that teach individuals concepts and skills for preventing, managing and peacefully resolving conflicts (Jones, 1994). According to Johannsen and Page (1996), conflict management refers to the identifying of divergences of interest between groups or individuals and the constructive reconciling or balancing of these divergences so that they   are   acknowledged  and   expressed.   Robbins   (2000)   stipulated   that   conflict management entails maintaining the optimum level of conflict  in a group.   Robbins opines that too little conflict creates stagnation; too much conflict creates disruption and indigestion. Both are dysfunctional because they undermine group performance. Moran (2001) stated that conflict management is “a philosophy and a set of skills that assist individuals and groups in better understanding and dealing with conflict as it arises in all aspects of their lives.

It  is  expedient  to  devise  appropriate  strategies  for  effective  management  of school conflict to enhance school effectiveness. Developing an effective strategy for

conflict  management  in the school requires major actors in the education enterprise working in harmony, unity and with some measurable similarities in patterns of conflict management strategy. According to Lombard (1991) strategy is an action which involves two or more individuals coordinating, planning, implementing and evaluating an activity in pursuit of a goal. It can also be viewed as a plan aimed at achieving something. Jeong (2000) defined strategy as a predetermined comprehensive course of action which can be taken in order to attain a specific goal or aim. A strategy is therefore a well-planned action which has been identified and developed as most effective in reducing a phenomenon. However, strategy according to  Fildler  (2002)  is  the  broad or overall direction that an organization wishes to move in, so as to bring about positive improvement. In this context, Strategy as a direction set for an organization and its various components to achieve a desired state in the future. Thus, principals, proprietors of educational institutions, members of the board of education as well as teachers, who are proximal stakeholders in the education industry, should have a common purpose and focus on strategies for conflict management in the school.

The aim of conflict management strategies is a process of conflict self-reflection where participants can take part to ensure that it is solved. Rahim (2002) defined conflict management strategy as a set of options or plans designed to minimize the dysfunctions of conflict  and enhancing the constructive functions of conflict  in order to enhance learning   and   effectiveness   in   an   organization.   Fildler   (2002)   defined   Conflict management  strategy as  the  internal  mechanisms used  by the  various authorities in resolving conflict. However, the researcher further stated that the principals of secondary schools  need  to  adapt  various  conflict  management  strategies  such  as  dialogue,

communication, mediation among others in order to achieve the objectives of secondary education.

Dialogue is one of the conflict management strategies that the principal use in the school system  dialogue  is  an  exchange  of  ideas  or  opinions on  a  particular  issue, especially a political or religious issue, with a view to reaching an amicable agreement or settlement. Oboegbulem (2004) defined dialogue as a composition in which two or more characters are represented as conversing. Oboegbulem opined that dialogue will accommodate different opinion and proffer solution to the existing problem. In this context, dialogue means a situation where two or more people come together to discuss in order to resolve a problem.

Communication is the act of passing on news from one person to the other. Ikediugwu (2001) defined communication as the imparting or exchanging of information by   speaking,   writing,   or   using   some   other   medium.   Ikediugwu   posited   that communication is very important in solving conflict in an organization. The researcher further suggested that communication will unite the parting members in order to achieve one goal. In this context, communication means the act of conveying intended meanings from one entity or group to another through the use of mutually understood signs and semiotic rules.

Mediation is way of resolving disputes between two or more parties with concrete effects. Oboegbulem (2004) defined mediation is an effective way of resolving disputes without the need to go to court. Oboegbulem opined that it involves an independent third

party called a mediator. In this context, mediation is an informal process for helping people who have a dispute to sort it out for them without going to court.

The principal as the chief executive in the secondary school is charged with the onerous responsibility of day to day management of both human and material resources under his care. The principal has the complex task of utilizing and directing the behavior of the human resources of his school towards the accomplishment of the school goal. The principal requires the operation and attitudinal commitment of the teachers to succeed. FGN (2004) posited that no educational system can rise above the quality of its teachers. It is the teachers that translate the educational programme of any nation into practical learning experiences through teaching and research to solve conflict in the school system. It is the responsibility of the principal of a school to adequately handle conflict in their school.

For principals to perform efficiently and effectively, it is presumed that demographic variables could be essential. They also need to adopt certain management strategies (Oredien, 2004). Peretomode (2001) noted that demographic variables such as age, gender, educational qualification, and experience could be advantageous or disadvantageous in the principals’ performance of duties.   Demographic variables according to Anam (2009) are personal statistics that include such information as income level, gender, educational qualification, location and ethnicity. Anam further opines that in   the   school   system,   principals’   demographic   variables   become   important   in management efficiency. The author further noted that an experienced principal performs well than that of inexperience one especially in the area of conflict management. Bordan,

(2006) defines demographic variables as an evaluation of one’s natural information such as educational qualifications, experience, gender, age, ethnicity among others. Bordan maintains that  for an administrator to be appointed especially in the school certain, demographic variables should be considered in appointing school administrators.

In the Nigeria setting, according to Ibukun (2011), age has been considered with other factors like qualification and experience in the appointment of teachers into position of principalship with the believe that these factors would make some individuals to be more effective than others. Therefore, there  is  the need to  examine the relationship between these variables and principals performance. Age is viewed as the length and time a man has lived from birth (Sturman, 2000). The general proposition is that younger principals exhibit better management capabilities than the older principals since individuals tend to gradually disengage from active work with age (Feldman, 1990). The age of a person could also enhance his performance since age and experience go together. Some believe that aging principals cannot perform well in a school that full with stubborn students and boys schools where there is a recurrent cult activity. Therefore, age can be advantageous or disadvantageous to principals’ conflict management strategy.   Due to these inconsistencies, it has become necessary to determine the relationship between age and principals’ conflict management strategy.

Gender  is  described  as  the  behavioral  characteristics  distinguishing  between males and females in any society. Gender according Onyeonoru (2005) refers to the differentiation  in  roles  between  men  and  women  which  is  different  from  sex  but construed by society through socialization. Sex is the biological differentiation between

the roles of men and women. There are contrasting views over which gender performs better in the management of conflict in the society. This work seeks to contribute in resolving this controversy on gender as it affects principals’ performance in the management of conflict in secondary schools. Research shows especially in the area of this study that male principals perform better than the female ones. This is because; many of the male principals have lesser commitment in their families than the female ones. Okon, (2009) was of the opinion that female principals’ attach more importance to their family problems thereby placed lesser interest to conflict in school.

Professional qualification  is  the  requisite knowledge and  skills  a  person  has acquired from training to enable him carry work proficiently in his occupation. Akpan (2007) described professional qualification as the knowledge and skills acquired after a period of training and instruction by seasoned experts. Akpan asserts that professional training could expose one to knowledge, skills,  and values needed for effective  job performance. Akpan further advocates that professional has promoted effectiveness and efficiency in the school system by the high performance in external examinations across the nation.

Experience is another demographic variable that is important in conflict management in schools.   Sturman (2000) opines that experience is the culmination of context based events that a person perceives. It is the professional growth as a result of a period of continued work, training and retraining on the job and other related processes. Sturman further noted that experience has some level of influence on principals’ job performance.  It  has  been  suggested  by  Nwangwu  (2006)  that  experience  assists  in

developing the required social and intellectual skills, in learning how to work closely with other people and in finding out about individual interests and differences. This indicates that experience may be related to performance. However, Achunine (1998) opined that the length of time one stays on a job does not necessarily make one efficient; and  argued  that  professional  training  is  a  more  important  factor  than  on-the-job experience in an administrator’s job performance in secondary schools.

Secondary education according to (FRN 2004) in her National Policy on Education is the form of education children receive after primary education and before the tertiary stage. According to Oboegbulem and Onwurah (2011), secondary school is splinted into two; three (3) years junior secondary school (JSS) and three (3) years senior secondary school (SSS). The JSS emphasizes both academic and vocational (technical) curriculum. Student who complete junior secondary school enter into: Senior secondary school, technical college, out-of-school vocational training centre and apprenticeship scheme. The SSS is comprehensive with a core curriculum designed to broaden the student’s  knowledge  and  out-look.  Education  at  this  stage  has  two  broad  aims: Preparation for useful living within the society and Preparation for higher education (FRN, 2004).

In Agwu education zone, consistent conflicts in schools have  been alarming. Conflict between principals and teachers, principals and the community, teachers and students to mention but a few tend to exist. It has been clear that with this, principals in these areas seem to be incapacitated to manage conflicts in their respective schools. It has been indicated in the last external examination released that the high increase of females

and unqualified personnel in managing schools seems to be affecting students in their academic performance. Also  important is that those that are not females tend to be inexperienced principals thereby forming the highest population in the zone. These have generated a lot of problems to the school and the community. Based on this foregoing, the researcher is interested in investigating demographic variables as determinants to principals’ conflict management strategy in Agwu education zone.

Statement of the Problem

The  ultimate  goal of secondary school is  to  develop the  individual’s mental capacity and character building for higher education and useful living within the society. In spite of the societal demand for this goal in schools, there is a growing concern about the realization of secondary education objectives due to doubt that the school board did not take into consideration the demographic variables of principals before posting them to the area. Due to inexperience and their qualification they used to see conflict as nothing. Sometimes principals’ attitude to teachers and students may not be cordial, teachers and students may engage in conflict which demands the principals’ administrative experience in handling the issue. For the fact that many of them are females, they use to be absent in schools due to family engagement leaving the school vulnerable to conflict. Many that are not females are inexperienced and over aged which hamper the administrative balance in school.

Based on these, there seems to be insufficient empirical evidence on the proper conflict management strategies by the principals of secondary schools in Agwu education zone.  This  is  because  it  seems  that  principals  in  Agwu  education zone  are  mainly

females,  unqualified and  inexperience  in  managing conflict  and  these  have  affected students’ academic performance which their poor performance in the last senior school certificate examination released is a reference. It is in view of this that this study intends to determine demographic variables as determinants of principals’ conflict management strategy in Agwu education zone.

Purpose of the Study

The general purpose of the study is to investigate the demographic variables as determinants of principals’ conflict  management strategies in  Awgu education zone, Enugu state. Specifically, the study sought to:

1.  Determine the relationship between experience of the principal and conflict management strategies in secondary schools.

2.  Ascertain   the   relationship   between   qualification   and   principals   conflict management strategies in the secondary schools.

3.  Find   out   the   relationship   between   gender   and   principals   and   conflict management strategies in secondary schools.

4.  Determine the relationship between age of the principals conflict management strategies in secondary school.

Significance of the Study

The study has both theoretical and practical significance.

Theoretically,   this   anchored   its   significance   on   contingency   theory   of management. Contingency theory assumes or proposes that the nature of school conflict

determines the  management  strategy to  be  used  by  the  principals  for  the  effective teaching and learning.

However, the contingency theory is based on the premises that situations dictate managerial action and that; there is no single best way of solving problems in situations. This is true since conflict is of different types in the school system and therefore demands different strategies for its management for effectiveness and efficiency in the school system.

Practically,  this study will be of a great  significance to the following set of people:    the  secondary  school  principals,  post  primary  school  management  board, teachers,  educational  administrators and  planners,  students  and  the  community.  For secondary school principals, the findings of this study will educate the principals to appreciate and use their experiences in applying the varieties of conflict management strategies in solving any challenges of conflicts in schools so that the effective teaching and learning will be achieved.

To the educational administrators and planners, the findings of this study will be of good significance as it will enable them to understand and appreciate that there is always conflicts in school prior to the appointment of principals and propel them to be equitable and corrupt free in appointment of principals.

The findings of the study will be of a great help to teachers who are sometimes involved in the school conflict. Through the findings of this study, the teachers will know the capability of the principals they are working with and the same time collaborate with

the principals conflict management strategies through consistent having of meeting with the principal which will help in creating enabling environment for teaching and learning.

On the side of the students, the study will help the students to obey the school rules and regulations through moral lesson and at the same time cooperate with the school authority especially the experienced, male principals that look diplomatic sometimes. The findings of the study will also help in increasing the academic performance of students in both internal and external examinations.

Finally, the state secondary education boards will know through the findings of this  study the  levels of principals to  be  posted in an area  by first  examining their experience and qualifications.

Scope of the Study

The study covered all the public secondary schools in Agwu education zone of Enugu state, Nigeria. The study focused on demographic variables as determinants of principals conflict management strategies of secondary school in Agwu education zone Enugu State, considering the relationship between age of the principals and conflict management strategies in schools; the relationship between gender and principals conflict management  strategies,  the  relationship between qualification and  principals  conflict management strategies and the relationship between experience and principals conflict management strategies.

Research Questions

The following research questions were formulated to guide the study.

1.  What is the relationship between the experience of the principals and conflict management strategies in Agwu education zone?

2.  What   is   the   relationship   between   qualification   and   principals   conflict management strategies in Agwu education zone?

3.    What is the relationship between gender and principals conflict management strategies in Agwu education zone?

4.  What is the relationship between age of the principals and conflict management strategies in Agwu education zone?

Research Hypotheses

The following null hypotheses were formulated to guide the study and were tested at 0.05 level of significance.

H01:  There is no significant deference on the mean rating scores between Principals and teachers on gender of principals  and  conflict  management  strategy in  Agwu education zone.

HO2:  there is significant deference between Principals and teachers on qualification of principals and conflict management strategy in Agwu education zone.

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