INFLUENCE OF INSECURITY ON PUBLIC SECONDARY SCHOOLS ADMINISTRATION IN ENUGU STATE

Abstract

The study dwelt on influence of insecurity on public secondary school administration in Enugu State. The content scope of the study focused on internal and external insecurities as well as ways for curbing insecurities in school administration. Two specific purposes, two research questions and four hypotheses based on location guided this study. Descriptive survey research design was adopted to carry out this study in Enugu State. Population for the study consisted of 8,116 teachers in 295 public secondary schools in Enugu State. The sample size for this study 381 was determined using Taro Yamane formula while multistage sampling procedure comprising of proportionate, purposive and simple random sampling technique were adopted. Valid and reliable questionnaire was the instrument for data collection. Data was collected through direct distribution and collection of questionnaire with the help of three research assistants. Data collected were analyzed using mean, standard deviation and t-test. The analysis revealed that respondents agreed that internal insecurities (3.87) and external insecurity (3.30) influence the school administration in secondary schools and there was no significant difference in the mean responses of the respondents in rural and urban location. Nevertheless, respondents identified numerous ways of curbing internal (3.73) and external (3.35) insecurities in the administration of public secondary schools in Enugu State and there was no significant difference in the responses based on location. The study concluded that insecurity poses a significant challenge to school administration in Enugu State, Nigeria, affecting both internal and external factors in secondary schools. The findings of this study indicate that teachers uniformly acknowledge the negative impact of insecurity on their administrative functions, irrespective of whether they work in rural or urban settings. This consensus highlights the urgent need for collaborative and adaptive strategies to effectively address these challenges. Teachers have identified key approaches for curbing insecurities, underscoring their active role in safeguarding the educational environment. The shared responses of educators from varied contexts suggest that a broad-based, inclusive strategy could effectively mitigate insecurity. The study recommended that there is need to tailor security strategies to the unique challenges faced by rural and urban secondary schools, ensuring that all school stakeholders are involved in the conversation. As well as organize workshops and training sessions focusing on best practices in crisis management, conflict resolution, and risk assessment to equip teachers with the skills necessary to handle security threats among others.