Comparison of leadership involvement competencies rating of owner-head teachers with that of employee-head teachers in private primary schools in Kisumu County, Kenya

Abstract

Owner-managers, tend to be more involved in their business ventures and hence their likeliness to succeed than employee-managers. In this respect, literature attributes such probable successful performance in business to in-depth involvement through leadership availability, visibility, assertiveness, commitment and innovativeness in the business front. However, it is of concern that private primary school smanaged by employee-headteachers, being business ventures in Kisumu County, from 2011-2016,have on average been performing better, with a KCPE average mean score of 349, than those by owner-headteachers with 331. This is despite the fact that owner-headteachers were not only professional educationists and the vision-bearers of their private schools, but were also the ultimate beneficiaries in respect of profit-worthiness of school business. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to compare leadership involvement rating of owner-headteachers with that of employee-headteachers in private primary schools in Kisumu County. The objectives of the study were to compare owner-headteacher with employee-headteacher leadership involvement competencies rating ofavailability, visibility, assertiveness, commitment and innovativeness in management of private primary schools. The study was based on Tannenbaum and Schmidt’s model of leadership (1958). The study employed descriptive research design. The study population consisted of 60 owner-headteachers, 35 employee-headteachers, 587 and 319 teachers in owner-headteacher and employee-headteacher schools respectively. Saturated sampling technique was used to select 54 owner-headteachers, 31 employee-headteachers, and purposive sampling technique for 240 teachers from owner-headteacher and 140 teachers from employee-headteacherschoolsto source data by use of questionnaire. In-depth interview was used to collect data from 20 owner-headteachers, 10 employee-headteachers, 20 teachers from owner-headteacher and 10 from employee-headteacher schools. Face and content validity of instruments were ascertained. Reliability of instruments were ascertained through test-re-test piloting involving 6 owner-headteachers, 4 employee-headteachers, 30 teachers from owner-headteacher and 20 from employee-headteacher schools. Quantitative data from questionnaire was analyzed using descriptive statistics and presented in form of frequency counts, percentages and means. Qualitative data will be analyzed on an on-going process as themes and sub-themes emerge. The study findings were that owner-headteachers rated higher than employee-headteachers in leadership visibility in management but rated lower in respect of leadership availability, assertiveness, commitment and innovativeness in management of private primary schools. The study may be useful in addressing headteacher leadership involvement competencies’ deficiencies for enhanced management of private primary schools, hence improved KCPE performance in Kisumu County.