Influence of Demographic Variables of Secondary School Principals

The quality of instructional leadership provided by the principal determines the quality and standard of academic activities and students learning outcomes. This study explored the influence of three selected variables on administrative effectiveness of principals in provision of instructional leadership in secondary schools. It is a descriptive research survey covering public secondary schools in Edo State, Nigeria. The sample breakdown comprised sixty principals and 260 teachers drawn from sixty secondary schools in eight local government areas of Edo State. Four research questions were asked and one hypothesis was formulated and tested at 0.05 significant level. Version 22 of the Statistical Package of Social Science was employed in data analysis. The results showed that female principals were more administratively effective in instructional leadership than male principals in major areas. The areas include ensuring that quality assignments are given to students, setting of high standards of expectation for students and constantly monitoring their learning. In addition to prompt preparation of time table prior to resumption, regular classroom visitation, monitoring teachers class attendance and movement during school hours. Male principals were more effective in encouraging innovations among teachers and involving teachers in academic decision making. The results for multiple regression analysis showed that F (df 3, 259) = 3.063, p = 0.03 >0.05 level of significance. Therefore, there is a significant relationship between location, size of school, and gender and instructional leadership of principals.