INFLUENCE OF IN-SERVICE TRAINING ON THE CAPACITY BUILDING OF PUBLIC SECONDARY SCHOOL TEACHERS IN ENUGU EDUCATION ZONE OF ENUGU STATE

ABSTRACTS

This study was on influence of in-service training on the capacity building of public secondary school teachers in Enugu Education zone of Enugu State. The major purpose of this study was to  investigate the extent  in-service training  influence capacity building needs of public secondary school teachers on the knowledge of subject matter, method of teaching, relationship with the school micro community and classroom management. The study employed ex-post facto research design. Four research questions and two null hypotheses were formulated to guide the study and were tested at 0.05 probability level. The population of the study was 1871 teachers and 31 principals. The sample size was 310 teachers randomly selected from 31 public  secondary  schools  in  Enugu  Education  zone.  The  instrument  for  data collection was questionnaire to be completed by teachers and interview schedule to be completed by the principals. The instrument was validated by three experts in the field.  The  reliability  of  the  instrument  was  determined  using  Cronbach  Alpha method. The method of data analysis was Mean (X), Standard Deviation (SD) and t- test analysis. The study found that in-service training influence teachers to perform better in their service delivery especially in the area of subject matter, method of teaching, relationship and classroom management among others. Ministry of Education through Post-Primary School Management Board should encourage in- service training, seminars, workshops and conferences for teachers periodically to update their knowledge in the areas required. Finally, in-service training influences secondary school teachers’ capacity building to a very large extent in Enugu Education of Enugu State.

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CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

In the school system, the most important asset is the teaching force. In other words, teachers’ continuous development is sine qua non to every effective teaching and classroom managements, especially where the use of current methods and materials are concerned because teachers cannot give what they don’t have. They need to update their knowledge of subject matter, method of teaching, relationship with school micro community and classroom organization. Developing these competencies will help them face the challenges ahead. Continuous high quality professional development is essential for achieving high academic standard and for the realization of sustainable development through education (Chukwu, 2009). Teachers professional development improves students’ achievement when it focuses on teachers’ knowledge of subject matters and how students understand and learn it will depend on how the teachers deliver their lesson competently (Research point,

2005).

It is widely recognized that resources, including school plant, curriculum and evaluation, effective administration constitute important factor in academic achievement however, teacher effectiveness cannot  be compromised  in any way because without the teachers, other resources cannot be effectively utilized (FGN,

2005). This study will be carried out in Enugu State, which consists of Enugu East, Enugu North and Isiuzo local governments. Influence in this study means impact or effect of in-service training on the capacity building of public secondary school teachers in Enugu Education zone. The researcher has chosen Enugu Education zone

as her study area because of the poor student performance in the zone in both internal

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and external examination (See Appendix F) for evidence. The researcher sampled two results from two schools each in the three local governments that  make up Enugu Education zone, and one of the results is used here as an evidence of poor students performance.

Public secondary schools are those schools owned by state governments. They include comprehensive, technical and grammar school in the zone. Teachers are those whom the society delegate the education of the children to in a formal setting. They are specifically selected, trained and educated for the job of dispensing knowledge to others according to their needs and capabilities. They are the mediator between the learners and the object of knowledge (Onah, 2010). This study will try to find out number of teachers that have benefited from in-service training in the zone, extent in-service training, influence teachers knowledge of subject matter and the training teachers received help them to develop their subject matter.

The teacher must continuously find ways of making teaching and learning process more meaningful for learners and promote effective use of innovative methodologies in classroom situation thereby sharpening their pedagogic skills in the school system (FRN, 2004).

This requires a continuous professional development in the form of in-service training.  Pre-service  training  is  the  training  one  get  before  starting  a  job.  For example, Teachers Training College, (TTC) National Certificate in Education (NCE) Association Certificate in Education (ACE) while in-service training is the training one  received  after  getting  a  job  or  while  working,  for      example  Bachelor  of Education (B.Ed) (B.Sc.) M.Ed, Ph.D among others. Pre-service training provides teachers with basic needs in content, and pedagogy for their service delivery.

However, in no way can it provide novice teachers with all that is needed for effective service delivery. Even if it is able to provide the teachers with all that is required to be effective and efficient in teaching, the fact still remains that teachers need to continuously develop themselves. This enables them be in tone with the modern methods, contents and pedagogy in service delivery. Justifying of teachers, Tsiakkiros (2005:5) observes that, “today, the initial education and training workers acquired before joining an organization are not enough to generate enough progress. Everybody must be ready to adapt and apply current information to new situations and  be  able  to  meet  the  changing  demand  of  work,  therefore  members  of organization need access to continuing education and development opportunities and re-retraining of teachers becomes imperative while their in-service training comes on mark since study leave with or without pay for teachers has become a mirage in many parts of the country.

In-service training is structured training activities intended to increase the skills and abilities of the trainees, in a definite way to improve the quality of his/her performance  when  still on  the  job.  It  emphasizes  skill  development  on the  job especially  in  specific  aspects  of the  job  (Dembele,  2005).  Most  typically,  it  is conducted in the school system during school breaks or holidays. In-service training is  increasingly  being  regarded  as  a  strategy  for  effective  change  through  the education system (Aitken 2002). It is therefore a very important staff development programme for teachers. Academic Dictionary of Education (2002, p.158) described the in-service training of teachers as job related instruction and educational experiences that are available to employees. It is designed to improve the knowledge and skills to employees and the quality of services especially the instructional practices.

Staff development programmes have over the years organized for teachers in the form of sandwich programme, conferences, demonstration, teaching, correspondence courses, workshops, teachers orientation programmes, radio and television programmes, seminar among others (Ogundele, 2001). In-service training develops teachers’ skills, knowledge of subject matter, method of teaching classroom control, management and organization and evaluation skills. Some of the well known in-service training programmes for teachers include, the National Teachers’ Institute of Nigeria; Colleges of Education all over the country; some of the colleges are College of Education Eha-Amufu, College of Education Nsugbe, College of Education Technical, IMT Enugu, in affiliation with universities, faculties and institute of Education, University of Nigeria Nsukka, IMT and ESUT have mounted the programme for serving teachers to upgrade them to NCE, B.Ed, B.Sc teachers. National Certificate in Education (NCE) is now the minimum teaching qualification in  Nigeria  (FGN,  2005)  and  first  degree  (B.Ed)  and  Post  graduate  degree  in education respectively.

The in-service training programme for teachers usually take place during long vacation and are formally sandwich programme for the fact that the programme is usually sandwiched between regular school calendar and holiday periods. Beneficiaries of this programme are usually teachers teaching in primary and secondary schools seeking to  update themselves to  NCE and Degree levels. In- service training in this study is the training provided as a vital supplement to the regular educational process for people that are seriously engaged in one job or the other.

Federal Republic of Nigeria (FRN, 2014) in the National policy on Education

(NPE) stipulated that no educational system can rise above the quality of its teachers.

In other words, teachers must continuously find ways of developing themselves so that  teaching  and  learning  processes  will  be  more  meaningful  for  teachers  and learners and promote effective use of innovative methodologies in the classroom. As teachers are expected to be in the school daily, except during holidays, they may not find time for any full time or regular programmes, so that next option left to them for this important continuous professional development, is in-service or sandwich programme. This is probably why (Fafunwa, 1990) observed that professionalization of teachers will require the introduction of in-service professional training programme.

Knowing the critical role of continuing professional development of teachers by way of training and re-training programme, the Enugu State Basic Education Board and Post Primary School Management Board (PPSMB) commenced various type of in-service training programme for teachers in Enugu in 2004. They organized workshops, seminars, conferences among others specifically, the programme was targeted at uplifting the quality of education through the professional development of teachers in key areas like lesson planning, contents delivery, teachers methodological skill, classroom management and control, knowledge of subject matter, relationship with school micro community, record keeping and evaluation techniques, improvisation and effective use of instructional materials among others. It has been noted that significant number of teachers throughout the world are under-prepared for the profession. Village – (Reimars, 2003), observed that the major set back in teaching is the problem of inadequate preparation of the teachers as professionals. He therefore, advocated for the capacity building of professional teachers. Operational definition of in-service training refers to acquiring professional development while working or updating one’s self and academically.

Capacity is the process by which individuals, groups, organizations, institutions and societies increases their abilities to perform core functions, solve problems, define and achieve objectives (Paul, 2004). According to Enemark (2002), capacity has to do with collective ability, that is, the combination of attribute that enable an individual to perform, deliver value, and establish relationships and to renew  itself.  He  further  said  that  capacity is the ability that  allows  individuals, groups, or organization, to do something with some sort of intention and effectiveness. Capacity building is defined as the ability of individual, organizations or other systems to perform appropriate functions effectively efficiently and sustainably (The International Institute of Educational Planning, II, 2006). The first thing in capacity building approach is to focus on the identification of core competencies that the individual needs to have in other to fulfill the assigned tasks. The core competencies once spelt out will form the backbone of the curricular. The essential aspect of capacity building for teachers is enhancing their ability to cope with change and unforeseen challenges in the classroom, which is a means to an end (for example in the improvement of performance), capacity building has an intrinsic value on its own in fostering  job satisfaction and self-esteem (IIEP, 2006). The united Nation Development Programme (UNDP, 2007) defined capacity building as a long term continual process of development that involves ministries, local authorities,  non-governmental  organization,  professional  communities  and academics. Capacity building is therefore an investment in the future sustainability of manpower. Capacity building is a concept which is broader than organizational development in that it includes an emphasis on the overall system, environment or context within which individuals, organizations and societies operate and interact (and not simply a single organization (UNDP, 1998).

Capacity  building  which as  has  been  identified  by HEP  (2004)  as skills development, defined it as development of skills and knowledge needed by excluded groups in order to participate fully in the labour market. Capacity building is an active process beginning with an assessment of individual or organization needs. Such assessment is usually vigorous and systematic resulting in a capacity building plan. According to (Garriga, 2009), capacity building is much more than training. It includes human resource development and the process of equipping individuals such as teachers with necessary skills, attitudes and knowledge to enable them to perform effectively.

Capacity building of teachers also enables them to offer students the best learning opportunities that will prepare them to attain world class standard in any given circumstance and to successfully assume adult responsibilities for citizenship and be able to add necessary value work like coming to work early, preparing their lesson  notes,  using  teaching  aids  in delivering  their  lessons and  mastering  their subject matter among others. Igboke (2008) noted that teachers occupy prominent position in the learning process and he enumerated certain essential qualities that good teachers must possess which include:

Being knowledgeable and experienced in the subject he teaches; heaving vast knowledge of relevant teaching methods in his subject area; being capable of and understand and motivating the learners; possessing good personality, friendliness and ability to perform his role as a   professional;   being   resourceful   and   capable   of improving  industrial  material  adequate for  his  lessons. Operational definition of in-service training refers to acquiring professional development while working or updating one’s self academically.

The above can only be achieved and sustained through capacity building of the teachers.   When teachers capacity are built on the above mention points student’s performance in class work will improve and learning will progress.

There   are   different    methods   of   teaching   namely   lecture   method, experimental, creativity, discussion, demonstration, discovery, project and field trips among others.   Teachers are expected to master these methods and know when to apply each in the classroom situation to make teaching and learning interesting. Teachers’ capacity building will enable them become very versatile in the different methods  of  teaching.    The  use  of  Information  Communication  Technology  is expected  to  broaden  their  knowledge  and  make  their  service  delivery  more interesting and educative.  It will also help them to find more information about the subject matter.   This will enable them to impact the right facts and student performance will improve.

Classroom management is another area teachers’ capacity need to be built.  A classroom is the geographical space occupied by a group of students.  For the sake of effective  learning,  there  is  need  for  proper  and  effective  management  of  the classroom by the teacher, (Ademola and Waheed 2006).   Classroom management involves the proper organization for the geographical space called classroom, that is, teacher’s tables and chairs, students’ tables/lockers and chairs, book shelves, cupboard) wall decoration among others and the arrangement of students for appropriate  instruction.    This  implies  that  the  classroom  needs  to  be  in  order, teachers will create conducive atmosphere for effective classroom instruction.

Highlighting on classroom management, teachers as class managers perform different management functions, just like managers in other organizations like class control,   class  arrangements,   class  conflict   resolution,   administering   first   aid treatment when the need arises, class discipline and class coordination among others. Classroom management refers to the mobilization and organization of resources to achieve the expected objectives of the school system.  It involves the utilization of

materials, resources and securing the cooperation of students for performing the functions of planning, organizing, directing and coordinating at classroom level by the teacher (Ademola & Waheed, 2006).  The knowledge built in this area by teacher will help him to create conducive environment for learning.

In the classroom situation, the teachers are leaders.  Their capacity has to be built in leadership.   They (principals, supervisors from Ministry of Education and Local Government Officials) will find the extent teachers’ capacity in classroom management has been built  in the knowledge of their subject matter, method of teaching, relationship with school micro community and classroom management. Class control is one of the prerequisite for classroom teachers to achieve school objectives.   Control of students by teachers tends to be regarded as the goal of classroom discipline, Edward (1994) noted that emphasis on control is so pervasive that control by teachers is often seen by educators as more important than learning that goes on in the classroom.  When the teachers manage the classroom resources and programme effectively and control the student in the class, it would assist the school  system  to  yield  maximum  result.  The  school  management  alone  cannot realize the school objectives, both teaching and non-teaching staff have their own significant input, (Ademola & Waheed 2006).  The personality trait on the leader of management will determine the kind of relationship that  exists among staff and management.  A school head that believes his staff are lazy fellows, have inherent dislike for work will have his actions tailored towards this direction.  Therefore, he prefers to direct, issue command, enforce and control the staff indiscriminately.  This study will find out the extent teachers capacity has been built in this area.

In other to realize the school objectives there is need for healthy relationship between  the  teachers  and  the  school  management.  Management  should  regard

teachers and  non-teaching staff as partners in progress through which their own effort will be fruitful.  Also, the teaching and non-teaching staff needs to understand the complexity in the school system.  There should be due respect for the constituted authority.  Staff should not look for undue favour at the expense of other teacher’s job.  The head of the school should be friend of all staff but not a special friend to any of the staff.  There is bound to be conflict but if any happens, both parties should endeavour to settle their differences amicably.

School micro community is made up of the principal, tutorial and non tutorial staff, students and PTA of the school community.  Evaluation of learning outcome is another component of capacity building needs of teachers.   Teachers’ capacity on how to evaluate students learning outcomes need to be built.  They are expected to set  questions  that  will  access  students’  cognitive,  affective  and  psychomotor domains.  For such examination result to be dependable or reliable, there is need for effective planning that will include decision on when examination will come up, accurate data on the number of students intended to do the examination, arrangement of resources needed, the venue, the supervisors and the timetable among others. With regard to evaluation and record keeping, capacity building enables teachers have clear view of areas and types of evaluation techniques to be used in assessing their students.  The knowledge built on the above point will enable the teacher judge the students according to their performance and will enable him award marks justly i.e. no favouritism.

There  are  certain  factors  that  may  influence  teachers  capacity  building. Factors like location and experience. Location is where the school is sited. We have rural and urban schools. Most teachers like to teach in urban schools because of social amenities existing in the urban. When they are transferred to rural schools,

they will start playing truancy, thereby making students to miss their lessons. This act will result in poor student performance because they will not cover their scheme of work. Experience is knowledge gain for being in a system for long time. A teacher that has been in a system for a long time will have more ideas, on how to do work in that particular system than some body that is new in the system. Therefore, teachers that have spend from 11 years and above will have more experience about the job than those from 1 – 10 years of experience. Experience teachers know how to handle the students’ behaviours and treat certain issues that may arise in the classroom.

Studies (data from PPSMB 2015 see Appendix C.) indicate that there are more experienced and qualified teachers in urban than in the rural schools.  In terms of equipments, the urban schools have more equipment and are even more exposed to the information communication technology that now exists in every hook and corner of the society.  Teachers in the urban schools seem to be more exposed to in- service training through workshops, seminars and conferences, thereby having their competencies better improved in their respective subject areas, more than those in the rural schools.  The data collected from PPSMB (2015) showed that teachers in urban schools are more than teachers in rural schools and because of that, many schools in the rural areas lack teachers, while urban schools are overpopulated with teachers.  This is because of social amenities that exist in the urban areas. Moreover, teachers in the urban collect information faster than those in the rural, they attend refresher courses and workshop more than those in the rural due to lack of information, by the time information will get to them, the workshop will be over. These contribute to poor performance of the students in the zone under study (see appendix C for rural and urban teachers in the zone). Teachers in the rural schools are not  as well information  as their  counterparts in urban areas due to  lack of Information Communication Technology (ICT) facilities.  This study will find out if there is significant difference in the extent to which in-service training influence the

capacity building needs of urban and rural teachers as well as less experienced and more experienced teachers.

The researcher now wants to find out the influence of location and experience on the capacity building of public secondary school teachers in Enugu Education Zone of Enugu state. This study will find out if there is significant difference on the extent to which in-service training influence the capacity building needs of urban and rural teachers as well as less experienced and more experienced teachers.

Statement of the Problem

Education is an instrument for national development. Its importance to national growth and development is inestimable. This instrument and its importance, however, have not been adequately harnessed in Enugu-Education zone of Enugu State. This has resulted into non-challant attitude of people concerned with the direct proper Educational upbringing of the students (principals) parents do not supply the needed materials to their children, wards, teachers play truancy and principals weakness ineffective management and coordination of school activities have affected the smooth running of the school activities. This problem has put many questions into people’s mind. Does it mean that teachers are no longer working? Do they not improve from the in-service training they received? Why all these poor performance of students year after year? Therefore this study sets out to explore the influence of in-services  training  on  the  capacity  building  of  these  public  secondary  school teachers in Enugu Education Zone of Enugu State Results  of two schools each from the three Local Governments that make up Enugu Education zone was collected from Post Primary School Management Board, and one of the schools result from Enugu North Local Government Area was attached as an evidence (See Appendix F).

Purpose of Study

The major purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of in-service training  on the capacity  building  of public  secondary school teachers  in  Enugu Education Zone of Enugu State. Specifically, the study will;

1.   Find  out  the  extent  in  which  in-service  training  influence  the  teacher’s knowledge of subject matter.

2.   Ascertain the extent  in-service training  influence the teachers’ method of teaching.

3.   Determine the extent in-service training influence the teachers’ relationship with school micro community.

4.   Investigate the extent in-service training influence classroom management.

Significance of the Study

The findings of this study have both theoretical and practical significance. This study is hinged on the Capacity Building Theory – Theory of Change (TC) that believes that  capacity development  should  be understood as a systemic learning approach that promotes how individuals understand how change occurs especially in the   contribution   of   effective   emergent,   social   change   in   highly   complex environments through a mix of societal world views.  It also assumes that the nature of change determines one’s roles in affecting societal change.   Consequently the findings of this will be used to authenticate this theory in that it will show how the mixed views of the respondents on the impact of in-service training of the professional roles of the teachers can determine world class standards of their respective schools.

Practical significance of the study will be of help to teachers, students, education planners, future researchers, employers and government. The study will

help the teachers in their professional development by extending refresher courses, seminars, workshop and conferences. It will help them get employment if not employed before. Teachers will be promoted as a result of in-service training they received.

Students will increase their knowledge and learn more when their teachers are professionally developed. Students’ performances will also improve because they impart right stuff to them as a result of in-service training they received. Educational planners will benefit, since this will help them in determining the statistical data on human resource development in the educational sector. The data will help the state determine her preparedness for and her implementation of the world class standard education in the state.

Future Researchers will benefit  from this study because; they will gather information from the study when they go to research in the school library. The information they get will help them in their present study. Employers of labour will benefit in this study because when teachers are professionally developed as a result of in-service training they received, employers of labour will like to employ them because they have received adequate training concerning the work. They will like to employ competent teachers in their schools so that students’ performances will be good.

Scope of the Study

The geographical scope is Enugu Education Zone of Enugu State. The study will focus on the public secondary school teachers in Enugu Education Zone of Enugu State. The public secondary schools include both comprehensive, technical and grammar secondary schools in the zone.  Public secondary schools are chosen

for this study because they are directly under the state government administration and are being targeted for world class standardization.

The content scope of this study include, the influence of in-service training on the capacity; teachers’ knowledge of subject matter; method of teaching; relationship with school micro communities; classroom and organization.

Research Questions

This study will be guided by the following research questions.

1.   To what  extent  does in-service training  influence teachers’ knowledge of subject matter?

2.   To  what  extent  does  in-service  training  influence  teachers’  method  of teaching?

3.   To what extent does in-service training influence teachers’ relationship with school micro community?

4.   To  what  extent  does  in-service  training  influence  teachers’  classroom management?

Hypotheses

The following null hypothesis are formulated to guide the study and will be tested at 0.05 level of significance.

Ho1:     There  is  no  significant  difference  between  the  mean  ratings  of  less experienced and more experienced teachers with regards to the extent in- service training influence their capacity building needs.

Ho2:     There  is  no  significant  difference  between  the  mean  ratings  of  less experienced and more experienced teachers with regards to the extent in- service training influence their classroom management.

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