FACTORS INFLUENCING IMPLEMENTATION OF PERFORMANCE CONTRACT IN PUBLIC SECONDARY SCHOOLS: A CASE OF IGEMBE SOUTH SUB COUNTY, MERU COUNTY, KENYA
Beatrice Wagatwe Muriithi - Master of Arts in Project Planning and Management, University of Nairobi, Kenya
Prof. Harriet Kidombo - ODeL Campus, University of Nairobi, Kenya
ABSTRACT
Performance contract has been introduced in secondary schools. Performance contract is generally influenced by the poor analysis of organization’s procedure that is in appropriate, invalid and unreliable. Even though, the proponents of PC have identified a number of secondary school preconditions for successful implementation of PC in any school. In effective performance contracts have been contributed by lack of critical management tools which are pre-requisite for effective performance management. The purpose of the study was to determine the factors that influence implementation of performance contract in public secondary schools in Igembe South Sub County, Meru County, Kenya. The study was guided by the following objectives; to determine the influence of availability of resources, level of awareness, teacher’s attitude, training and communication from the principals/county director’s on implementation of performance contract in public secondary schools in Igembe South Sub County, Meru County, Kenya. The study was grounded on human capital theory, stakeholder theory and Resource based theory. The study was carried in 23 secondary schools in Igembe South Sub County, Meru County, Kenya where the target population was 208 comprising of principal and deputy principals, teachers and ministry of education officials in Meru County. A sample size of 135 for the study with the population of 208 is obtained using Morgan and Krejcie (1970) model. The study selected the respondents using stratified proportionate random sampling technique. For the purpose of this study, the researcher used a semi structured questionnaire as the primary data collection tool. The questionnaire was structured to include both closed, open-ended and matrix questions to allow variety. Unstructured questions were open-ended and present the respondent with the opportunity to provide their own answers. A pilot test was conducted to detect weakness in design and instrumentation and to provide proxy data for selection of a probability sample. A construct composite reliability co-efficient (Cronbach alpha) of 0.7 or above, for all the constructs, is considered to be adequate for this study. Data was analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS Version 25.0). All the questionnaires received was referenced and items in the questionnaire was coded to facilitate data entry. After data cleaning which entails checking for errors in entry, descriptive statistics such as frequencies, percentages, mean score and standard deviation was estimated for all the quantitative variables. Inferential data analysis was done using multiple regression analysis to determine the relative importance of each of the independent variables and information presented inform of tables. The study deduced that transport infrastructure, consistency of funds, information communication and technology and that budget allocation greatly influence implementation of performance contract in public secondary schools in Igembe South Sub County, Meru County, Kenya. Moreover, it was revealed that stationery have a moderate influence on implementation of performance contract in public secondary schools in Igembe South Sub County, Meru County, Kenya. The study concluded that availability of resources had the greatest influence on implementation of performance contract in public secondary schools in Igembe South Sub County, Meru County, Kenya in Kenya followed by training, then level of awareness then communication from the principals/county director’s while teacher’s attitude had the least influence on the implementation of performance contract in public secondary schools in Igembe South Sub County, Meru County, Kenya. The study recommended that the Government of Kenya conducts workshops and other forms of training for head teachers to enable them share their experiences on the implementation of performance contracting in their respective public schools. The head teachers, school committees and parents should be organized to raise funds for building and equipping libraries and for provision of suitable teaching facilities.
