The Influence Of Headmaster’s Managerial Skills On Effective School Management
[A CASE OF PUBLIC SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN ENUGU URBAN]

1.0 INTRODUCTION

Every organisation strives to enhance the effectiveness through focused attention on managerial effectiveness aimed at helping managers to get best out of their team as well as themselves. Olorisade (2011) argues that any organisation exists to accomplish a purpose in the larger society which is usually stated in the form of objectives or goal. This is also the same in public secondary schools.

According to Mintzberg et al, (2010), a manager is everyone who has an influence on others in the organisation, can be the president, prime minister, administrator, official, headmistress/ headmaster, director, executive of an institution and so forth. The head of the school in this matter is the manager that requires a set of qualities to manage the school to achieve its intended goal.

Managers may directly influence the workers’ attitude, interest, and change their behaviour towards commitment to work and objectives. A school can stand to bear changes only if there are right managerial styles and behaviour since the performance of an organisation depends on the entire support of employees, customers (students), community and investors. To deal with them effectively requires special skills which make the manager successful in their task.

The Head of school occupies a position of great importance in the set up of an educational institution. He/she is an educator with executive authority and ought to have a clear vision for the future of his school. Therefore, he/she seeks the support of the faculty to channelize their professional energies towards the achievement of clear objectives of the schools and learning needs of students. His/her role is important and his/her intervention counts in school improvement efforts. It is his/her leadership role that makes different from manager because a manager just plans, organizes and controls the resources available to him. Leaders have ability to influence and motivate others to achieve organizational goals, influences minds of subordinates who follow their leaders duly inspired by their personalities.

One of the key factors which may influence school effectiveness is the ability of the headmaster /mistress to perform managerial functions. Effective school management are key to improve school performance, particularly of students in both academically and discipline wise. Therefore, the head has to learn some special skills which has effect on employees’ behaviour and attitudes so that the organisation can be much benefited by their labour. The special skills required by the headmaster/mistress are what is referred to here as managerial skills.