School Principals’ Administrative Functions and Their Influence on Students’ Learning Outcomes in Secondary Schools in Rangwe Sub County, Kenya
Abstract
The success of the schools in terms of students’ learning outcomes rests on the
principals’ ability to steer the school by implementing administrative functions
effectively. The study aimed at probing the association between these functions and the
resultant effects in schools. The research will enlighten the school principals on how
their actions may influence their student outcomes. The general objective of this study
was to establish the influence of school principals’ administrative functions on
students’ learning outcomes in secondary schools in Rangwe Sub County, Kenya. PathGoal
leadership
theory
guided
the
study.
The
study
employed
an
ex-post
facto
research
design.
Forty-one
secondary
schools
in
Rangwe
Sub
County
were
involved
in
the
study,
and
the
targeted
respondents
were
secondary
school
principals.
A
purposive
sampling
technique
was used to select the respondents. A self-structured questionnaire and a
document analysis guide were used for data collection. The collected data was analyzed
using descriptive and inferential statistics using Statistical Package for Social Sciences
version 23. The descriptive findings were presented in tables of percentages, means,
and standard deviations. The regression analysis was used to test the hypotheses. The
study found that planning function, directing function, and controlling function had a
statistically significant relationship with students’ learning outcomes in secondary
schools in Rangwe Sub County, Kenya. The study concluded that school principals’
administrative functions have a statistically significant relationship with students’
learning outcomes in secondary schools. The study, therefore, recommended that
school principals should ensure effective implementation of the administrative
functions as school success statistically rests upon their ability to steer the school by
implementing these functions effectively.