Abstract:
The overarching aim of this study was to assess the effect of head teachers’
curriculum leadership practices on teachers’ performance in public basic schools in
Awutu-Senya East Municipality in the Central Region of Ghana. The study employed
descriptive survey and a quantitative approach grounded on the positivists’ paradigm
to achieve its objectives. The study’s target population was all teachers and
headteachers in public basic schools in the Awutu-Senya East Municipality in the
Central Region of Ghana. The accessible population was made up of 360 professional
teachers and 41 headteachers who had been at post for at least one year. A sample of
401 consisting of 41 headteachers and 360 basic school teachers were drawn from
Awutu-Senya East Municipality using census sampling technique and stratified
random sampling technique respectively. Closed ended questionnaires were used to
collect data for the study. Data was analysed using descriptive statistics (mean and
standard deviation) to achieve objectives one and two. Multiple Regression analysis
was used to examine the effects of headteachers' curriculum leadership practices on
teachers' performance. The findings indicate that the headteachers have played their
curriculum leadership roles effectively and efficiently in the Awutu-Senya East
Municipality. This is because all the indicators such as Curriculum Development and
Instruction, Planning and Preparation of Schemes of Work and Staff Development,
Monitoring of Teaching and Learning across the Curriculum, Teacher Professional
and Curriculum Development Improvement, Teacher Support and Development have
all been adjudged to be very effective. Also, teachers in the Awutu-Senya East were
found to have been very efficient in performing their duties. This was evident in the
four dimensions of teachers’ performance such as Classroom Management, Students’
Academic Achievement, Teachers’ Instructional Management and Improved
Teachers’ Professional and Curriculum Development. Again, headteachers’
curriculum leadership was also found to have statistically significant and positive
effect on teachers’ performance. It is thus, recommended to the government of Ghana
and other key stakeholders in the educational fraternity to ensure adequate resourcing
of the headteachers of public basic schools in a bid to supporting them to continue to
deliver on their mandate as curriculum leaders. Institutional arrangements should be
revitalized to enhance monitoring of schools and ensure regular training of
headteachers in a bid to continually sharpen their curriculum leadership skills.
Description:
A thesis in the Department of Educational Foundations,
Faculty of Educational Studies, submitted to the School of
Graduate Studies in partial fulfilment
of the requirements for the award of the degree of
Master of Philosophy
(Curriculum and Pedagogic Studies)
in the University of Education, Winneba