THE ROLES OF SCHOOL MANAGEMENT TEAM IN IMPLEMENTING NATIONAL POLICY ON EDUCATION IN PUBLIC PRIMARY SCHOOLS IN EBONYI STATE

Abstract

The study investigated the roles of school management team in implementing National Policy on Education in public primary schools in Ebonyi State. Descriptive survey design was used for the study. The area of the study was Ebonyi State. Three research questions guided the study. A sample size of 278 respondents comprising 90 head teachers and 188 assistant head teachers in public primary schools in Ikwo L.G.A were drawn through the use of Multi-stage sampling techniques from a target population of 909. A 4- point rating scale questionnaire (RSMTINPE) with face validity ascertained by three experts from; easurement and Evaluation College of
Education, Ikwo, Education Administration and Planning in the Faculty of Education in Alex-Ekwueme Federal University Ndufu Alike and reliability coefficient of 0.84 as a measure of internal consistency was obtained through Cronbach Alpha method. Research questions were answered using mean ratings. The result of the findings revealed that, the head teachers and the assistant head teachers generally agreed that all the identified items should be the roles school management team should play in implementing the National Policy on education‘s of inculcating permanent literacy, developing in the pupils the ability to adapt to the changing environment and inculcating social and moral norms in pupils of public primary schools in Ebonyi State. The study therefore 
recommends that the school management team should adopt the practicable roles identified in this study, take their responsibility of monitoring the teaching and learning processes in their school seriously and get more dedicated to their duties because they are the key player in the implementation of these policies. The study further recommended that government should employ only professional teachers and adequately motivate them so that they will be in their right state of mind to develop programmes and activities that can develop in the pupils the ability to adopt to changing environment. Lastly it recommends that any head or assistant head teacher of a 
questionable character should be removed, such ones are doing more harms than good by inculcating bad morals to the pupils.