Teachers’ Perception Towards Discipline And Motivation And Its Relationship With The Performance Of Students In Public Secondary Schools: A Case Of Nyeri Central Sub-County

Abstract

Education is an investment which fosters social and economic development in the society. Most Kenyan secondary schools are characterised with rampant indiscipline cases. These cases of indiscipline affects the motivation and hence the performance of public secondary schools in Kenya. For instance, Nyeri Central Sub County has been characterised with low performance over previous years. This study sought to establish the teachers’ perception towards discipline and motivation and its relationship with the performance of public secondary schools. To address this the study sought to meet the following objective; to determine teachers’ perception towards motivation on students’ performance in secondary schools; examine teachers’ perception towards students’ discipline and performance of secondary schools; to show the relationship between discipline, motivation and students’ performance. The study was guided by the following theories; Dreikurs model of democratic discipline, Glassers model of con-coercive discipline and Top down Processing Theory. The study used descriptive survey research targeting head teachers; deputy head teachers, guidance and counselling teachers and form four class teachers in Public secondary schools. Since the population of the study was small, the researcher conducted a complete census. Semi structured questionnaires were used in data collection. Data was analysed quantitatively using descriptive and inferential statistics with the aid of SPSS software to ascertain the teachers’ perception towards discipline and motivation on the performance of public secondary schools. Data was presented using tables, charts and discussion. The study may be of benefit to school management, parents, students and local leaders as they may understand the causes and handling of indiscipline among students. The study assumed that respondents would be able to provide information freely and without influence. The study found that teacher’s perception on motivation and discipline had significant relationship with student’s performance in academics. According to the findings of this study, it was recommended that stakeholders in education should focus more on rewarding techniques as compared to punishment in instilling discipline and promoting better performance.