THE INFLUENCE OF THE HEADTEACHERS’ ADMINISTRATIVE STRATEGIES ON RETENTION OF GIRLS IN COMMUNITY DAY SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN MCHINJI DISTRICT, MALAWI
Date
2022-08-31
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Tangaza University College
Abstract
The aim of this study was to investigate the influences of the headteachers’ administrative
strategies on the retention of girls in community day secondary schools in Mchinji district in
Malawi. The study was triggered by the concerns emanating from the teachers on increase of
school dropouts among girls in community day secondary schools in Malawi. The study was
guided by the following research objectives: (i) To investigate whether provision of security
measures by the headteachers influence retention of girls in community day secondary schools.
(ii) To find out whether provision of school sanitation facilities as a strategy employed by the
headteachers influence retention of girls in community day secondary schools. (iii) To investigate
if provision of guiding and counseling services as a strategy influences retention of girls in
community day secondary schools. (iv) To examine whether community involvement as a strategy
influences retention of girls in community day secondary schools in Mchinji district, Malawi.
The study was anchored on Tinto’s theory of retention and System theory. The study employed
explanatory sequential mixed method research design. The target population included: the
students, teachers, headteachers, education officer and chief elders. The study purposively sampled
15 headteachers, one education officer and five chief elders. The researcher sampled 80 teachers
and used simple random to sample 315 girls with a total sample size of 416 (12.4%) of the target
population. The study instruments used were questionnaires, semi-structured interviews and
document analysis. Experts in the field of education from Tangaza University College were given
the questionnaires to assess for content validity. Test- retest was used to assess the reliability of the
instruments. Quantitative data was analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS)
software Version 21. The researcher used Cronbach’s Alpha to test the reliability of the tools. A
score of 0.81 for the teachers and 0.78 for the students were determined and were above 0.7 which
showed that the tools were reliable. The study used descriptive statistics such as frequencies and
percentages to summarize the data and present it in form of tables. Qualitative data were manually
analyzed by organizing into themes and interpreted in a narrative form and direct quotes. The
findings showed that the strategies headteachers employed do not influence the retention of girls
due to lack of school facilities, security measures, women role models, experts in providing
guiding and counseling and cooperation between the headteachers and the community members.
The study recommends that headteachers should improve the security measures and sanitation
facilities in order to retain girls in Community Day Secondary Schools in Mchinji. Further studies
should be carried out in the following areas: Strategies employed to retain boys in community day
secondary schools in Malawi. Challenges faced by community members when participating in
school activities
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Keywords
THE INFLUENCE OF THE HEADTEACHERS’ ADMINISTRATIVE STRATEGIES ON RETENTION OF GIRLS IN COMMUNITY DAY, SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN MCHINJI DISTRICT, MALAWI