Relationship between principals’ instructional supervision and students’ academic achievement in sciences in secondary schools

Abstract

Abstract: The role of the school principal is to promote academic excellence of their students by focusing on teaching and learning in terms of measurable students’ progress. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between principals’ instructional supervision and their students’ academic achievement in Sciences. Academic achievement was measured in terms of grades obtained in the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE). Descriptive research design was adopted for this study. The target population was the principals and Science teachers in Makueni County and the respondents were selected through proportionate stratified sampling. A total of 68 schools, 68 principals and 272 science teachers were selected for the study. Data was collected using questionnaires administered to the principals and the Science teachers. A correlation test was done between the principals’ degree of practice of instructional supervision and students’ academic performance in the Sciences. A strong relationship was found between the practice of instructional supervision and academic achievement in all the Science subjects. Key Words: Academic achievement, instruction, Instructional supervision, Principal, Sciences