Socio-cultural factors influencing female principals’ participation in managerial duties in public secondary schools in Kathiani sub-county, Machakos County-Kenya

Abstract

In Kenya, available information show that most schools are headed by male teachers. At Kathiani Sub County in Machakos County, 14 schools are headed by female principals out of the 31 public secondary schools. The purpose of this study was therefore to establish the influence of socio-cultural factors on female principals’ participation in managerial duties in public secondary schools in Kathiani Sub-County. Specifically the study sought to establish the influence of: gender stereotypes on female principals’ participation in taking up managerial duties, family-work balance conflict on female principals’ participation in managerial duties, gender socialization practices on female principals’ participation in managerial duties and career development on female principals’ participation in managerial duties in Kathiani Sub-County. The target population for the study consisted of all the 14 female principals, 13 female deputy principals, and 159 female teachers from public secondary schools in Kathiani Sub-County. The sample size was 127 respondents of the target population. Descriptive research design was employed in this study in order to address the study objectives. The research hypotheses were tested using simple regression analysis at the .05 level of significance.The study findings revealed that gender stereotypes do not statistically influence participation of female principals in managerial duties (F (1,100) =2.07; p≥.05). Additionally, the study established that family-work conflict significantly influenced the participation of female principals in managerial duties, F (1,100) = 25.93; R= -.454; p ≤.05. Moreover, socialization practices had a significant influence on female participation in managerial duties within schools in the study area; F (1,100) = 28.192; p ≤.05; R= .469. Finally, the study established that there was a significant influence of career development on female principals’ participation in managerial duties, F (1,100) = 15.041; p ≤.05. The study recommends that government policy of one-third gender rule be enforced strictly so as to help in having more women appointed to leadership positions and act as role models to students. Similarly the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) should institute some in-service programmes aimed at educating female principals to strike a balance between domestic chores and professional duties. Further, the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD) should reorient the school curriculum so that the female story can be fairly presented without connotations that are likely to nurture negative stereotypes and lastly, women should be provided with more opportunities for in-service and networking through seminars and other refresher courses to enable them develop career wise. It is hoped that the findings of this study will be beneficial to education policy makers to help them in making decisions that will be aimed at making female teachers participate actively in managerial duties at the national and institutional levels.