Institutional Management Practices For Enhanced Comprehensive Guidance And Counseling Services In Public Secondary Schools In Kahuro District, Murang’a County, Kenya

ABSTRACT

The study sought to find out the institutional management practices that enhance the delivery of guidance and counseling services in public secondary schools in Kahuro District, Murang’a County. The objectives that guided the study were:- to find out how the delivery of comprehensive guidance and counseling services was enhanced by the availability of trained guidance and counseling teachers , the policy framework, the availability of materials for guidance and counseling and parental involvement. The study was motivated by failure by most of the public secondary schools to provide comprehensive guidance and counseling services as confirmed in a pre-survey. The study employed a descriptive survey design and the stratified random sampling method was used for sampling purposes. The target population was the head teachers, teachers and students of public secondary schools in the district. The sample size was one hundred and thirty nine comprising of twelve headteachers and one hundred and twenty seven teachers. The pilot study was carried out in the neighbouring Murang’a East District. Data was collected by use of questionnaires which were administered to the target population which entailed secondary school principals and teachers. The students were reached by way of focus group discussions and an interview schedule was administered to the District Education Officer. The researcher equally employed a checklist and interrogated secondary data to confirm the findings on the ground. Data was analyzed by use of descriptive and inferential statistics. The study found out that most principals were of the opinion that there were enough trained guidance and counseling teachers while the teachers had a different opinion. The principals were aware of the policy framework guiding the management of guidance and counseling services in secondary schools but the teachers were not. The provision of guidance and counseling services materials was confirmed by most principals to have been irregularly done in their schools and the teachers shared similar views. The principals confirmed that the schools had put in place modalities for parental involvement in guidance and counseling services. The study recommended that the Ministry of Education should strive to ensure that the provisions for trained guidance and counseling teachers are made by way of giving the teachers incentives to attend training programmes for their personal growth and development. The Ministry of Education should place a greater emphasis on the policy guiding the management of guidance and counseling services provision in the public secondary schools. The Ministry of Education should put in place mechanisms which assure the schools of capacity to access materials for guidance and counseling services provision in a subsidized manner. The public secondary schools should put in place provisions to ensure all parents are involved in guidance and counseling programmes. This will assure the schools of better capacity in delivery of comprehensive guidance and counseling services.