The role of guidance and counseling in maintaining students' discipline in managing secondary schools in Imenti South District, Kenya

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to establish the role of guidance and counseling in maintaining students' discipline. Other objectives included determining the level of students' discipline, establishing the causes of students' indiscipline, the role played by guidance and counseling in maintaining students' discipline as well as determining attitudes of students towards guidance and counseling in maintaining discipline in secondary schools. The study adopted a descriptive survey design. Data was collected, analyzed and reported on the situation of discipline in schools and the role of guidance and counseling in discipline maintenance without manipulating variables. The target population was 58 secondary schools in Imenti South district, 58 teacher-counselors from each school, 3903 form two students, and 2507 form three students in these schools. All the teacher-counselors from the 10 schools participated in the study. Using random sampling, 20 students were selected from each of the 10 schools to participate in the study making the sample size of 200 respondents. The study employed a questionnaire as the research instillments for data collection. Before the actual data collection, piloting of questionnaires and the interview guide was done on two secondary schools in Imenti South district, which participated in the actual study. The piloting was done using a sample of two teachers-counselors and 40 students. Split half method was used to ensure reliability then the Pearsons' Correlation Coefficient was calculated between the two halves of the test. The co-efficient was 0.80 and hence appropriate. Piloting enabled the researcher to test the validity of the instruments if at all the instillments were to give information needed appropriately. To determine the reliability of tile questionnaire Split half techniques was used at piloting. Ah introduction letter from University of Nairobi was received from the university administration as a research permit from the National Council of Sciences and Technology. An appointment was then booked with the head-teachers of the sampled schools when to administer the questionnaires and carry out interviews with the students and teacher-counselors respectively. Qualitative data which is data from interview guides and questionnaires was organized thematically in line with the objectives of the study or emerging themes 011 the other hand, quantitative data was analyzed using descriptive statistics. To enhance the effectiveness of the teacher counseling department, j t is recommended that more training on teacher counselors and inviting facilitators to directly communicate with the _students. Seminars should also be organized for all teachers as well as implementing all projects suggested by the department of guidance and counseling. In addition, tangible motivation and work recognition were found to be effective ways of making teacher counselor perform their duties well including giving the department of guidance and counseling relevant autonomy in terms of decision making and budgeting. Over and above, guidance and counseling should be included as a subject in the secondary school curriculum and that the subject should be tested at all levels. Teacher counselors should be promoted to the heads of departments to motivate them