PRINCIPALS’ ADMINISTRATIVE SAFETY STRATEGIES INFLUENCING DISASTER MANAGEMENT IN PUBLIC SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN NYERI COUNTY, KENYA

Abstract

Disasters are very common occurrences within Kenyan secondary schools. This study sought to explore principals’ administrative safety strategies influencing disaster management in public secondary schools in Nyeri County, Kenya. This study was prompted by the many disasters that have affected schools in Nyeri County especially fire disasters, therefore the need to determine how well prepared the schools are to handle disasters. The study sought specifically to: determine the influence of principals involvement in staff awareness of safety strategies on disaster management; establish the influence of adherence to infrastructure standards on disaster management; find out the extent of the influence of staff training on safety strategies on disaster management; examine the influence of safety policy implementation on disaster management; determine the extent of the influence of monitoring and evaluation of safety standards on disaster management in public secondary schools in Nyeri County, Kenya. The study adopted the descriptive survey research design. This work targeted 208 public secondary schools which comprised of 208 principals and 1040 heads of departments in Nyeri County. 15% was used to select 21 principals and 21schools for interviewing and observation checklist respectively. To validate research instruments, a pilot study was carried in 21 schools (10%) of the targeted 208 Schools. Reliability of the research instruments was done using test-retest method. The same instruments were used by the same individuals at two different occasions; the correlation was established to determine the suitability of the use of the instruments. A sample of 30% for heads of department and 10% for principals was considered effective to the study. Stratified sampling method and a mixed method approach were used. Qualitative data was collected from the principals using interview schedule while Quantitative data were collected using questionnaires from head of departments and the checklist was used to confirm the availability of safety policies, infrastructure and equipment. Pearson Correlation Coefficient was used to analyze all the five hypotheses and were tested at 0.05 alpha levels while SPSS was used to compute the data. All ethical issues pertaining to research were observed. The study established that staff awareness of safety and adherence to infrastructure standards were positively statistically significantly correlated to disaster management p<.05. Training of staff and policy implementation of safety standards had a statistically significant contribution to disaster management p< .05. Monitoring and evaluation of safety standards were positively statistically significantly correlated to disaster management p<.05. It was concluded that principals’ involvement in staff awareness of safety strategies influence disasters management, that principal’s involvement in the adherence to infrastructure standards influence disaster management. Finally, it was concluded that principal’s involvement in monitoring and evaluation of safety standard influence disaster management in public secondary schools. The following recommendations were made: Sensitization on disaster management ought to be done more frequently to ensure teachers are well aware of the importance of preventing disasters in order to promote learning and save lives. The MoE and TSC ought to ensure that the principals implement the safety policy in schools which may lead to adherence to infrastructure standards on disaster management. The Ministry of Education and Teachers Service Commission should ensure that principals monitor and evaluate the safety standards in schools to prevent disasters from happening. The study may benefit principals in that it will assist them in devising disaster management strategies. It may also assist the Ministry of Education in policy formulation and implementation in disaster management.