Influence of Principals’ Administrative Practices on Tutors’ Levels of Job Commitment in Primary Teachers Training Colleges, Eastern Region Kenya

Abstract

There is a widespread recognition that education is the key to the well-being of any society. Therefore, school administrators are supposed to influence their staffs, parents and other stakeholders of education to make sure their colleges successfully attain their intended objectives by making sure their tutors remain committed towards work in order to perform their responsibilities well and learners perform well in their academics as expected. The purpose of the study was to investigate the influence of principals’ administrative practices on tutors’ levels of job commitment in primary teachers training colleges in Eastern Region, Kenya. The study was guided by the following objectives: To determine the influence of principals’ provision of incentives, support for tutors’ career progression, tutors’ involvement in decision making by principals, principals’ provision of welfare services on tutors’ levels of job commitment and establish the influence of principals’ support for professional growth on tutors’ levels of job commitment in primary teachers training colleges in Eastern Region Kenya. The Existence Relatedness and Growth Theory of Motivation guided the study. Descriptive survey design was used. The dependent variable was tutors’ job commitment while the independent variables were administrative practices. For this study, the target population entailed five (5) Primary Teachers Training College principals, 260 tutors and 1860 second year students of the 5 public teachers training colleges in Eastern Region. To sample the respondents, the researcher sampled the 5 college principals, 130 tutors (50%) and 223 second year students (12 %). Simple random sampling was therefore used to select the tutors and students using replacement method. Instruments used were questionnaires for tutors and teacher trainees and interview guides for principals. Data was analysed using descriptive (frequencies, means and standard deviations) and inferential statistics (p-values from ordinal logistic regression, correlation analysis and independent sample t-test). The results were graphically presented through frequency distribution tables, bar graphs, pie charts, and tables. Results from the independent t-test established that tutors’ (M=4.0543, SD=0.78372) and teacher trainees’ (M=3.8158, SD=0.82473) mean responses on tutor’s job commitment levels differed significantly t (256) =3.0104, p=0.002869) at 5% level of significance. Tutors reported that their interactions with trainees (22.5%), financial and health wellbeing (16.3%), enabling work environment (12.4%), and good salary with work-life balance (11.6%) were the four major factors that promoted job commitment in the colleges. According to the study, the influential factors on the tutors’ job commitment levels include the following, listed in diminishing importance order: (1) support towards professional growth (R2=0.249), (2) provision of welfare services (R2=0.186), (3) provision of incentives (R2=0.146), (4) involvement in decision making (R2=0.09), (5) support towards career progression (R2=0.057). The Government of Kenya through the ministry of education should invest in primary training colleges by promoting quality administrative practices to improve tutor’s job commitment levels and productivity levels. Teachers Service Commission (TSC) and concerned stakeholders should leverage on supporting administrative policies which motivate tutors in primary training colleges to lower the turnover rates. Principals’ training should be enhanced to enable them support their tutors’ professional growth and create a conducive environment that promotes work-life balance among tutors.