The role of teacher-student interpersonal relationship in determining students' discipline in public secondary schools in Machakos County

Abstract

Students' discipline is an important factor in the attainment of progressive outcomes in institutions of learning. Learning institutions have adversely been affected by cases of student’s indiscipline. Management of students’ discipline through creating a healthy teacher student inter relationship remains a significant panacea to this worrying trend which forms the focus of this study. This study sought to investigate the role of teacher- student interpersonal relationships in students' discipline in Machakos County, Kenya. The study used descriptive survey design. The sample size was 100 principals, 350 teachers and 380 students. The sample size was obtained by stratified sampling and simple random sampling procedures. The study used questionnaires and interview guide as the research instruments. Pilot study was done on the research instruments. Test-retest technique of reliability was used to test the reliability of the instruments. Data was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics and presented in frequency tables. Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient and Pearson Chi Test was used to test the hypothesis of the study. The study revealed that teacher student interpersonal relationships had a significant positive relationship with levels of students' discipline in public secondary schools in Machakos County at (r) value of 0.831 significant at (p) value of 0.003. From the findings, the study concluded that the role of teacher student interpersonal relationships was critical to students’ discipline in public secondary schools in Machakos County. The study the recommends that educators and education administrators should strive to encourage cordial teacher student interpersonal relationship in their interaction in the school.