Improving instructional supervision of basic schools through monitoring: A case study of Agona Ashanti Schools

Abstract

In recent times, teaching and learning at the basic schools leaves much to be desired. Lateness, absenteeism and misuse of instructional time by teachers have been the order of the day. The fundamental purpose of the study therefore was to find out whether an effective monitoring system will improve supervision of basic schools at AgonaAshanti. Some of the research questions used include the following: which people are responsible for supervision and how do they understand supervision? To what extent will headteachers keep up-to-date and accurate records in the schools after the intervention? Will management activities be properly supervised in the schools by officers and headteachers after an intervention? and will an effective monitoring system achieve regularity and punctuality on the part of teachers and pupils? Eight he ad teachers and twenty-eight teachers from the basic schools at AgonaAshanti constituted the sample. Four pupils were specially selected from the basic schools taking into consideration gender. Also included were three members of the District Oversight Committee and 17 officers from the District Education Office. Few pupils were selected because it was the intention of the researcher to concentrate on those in authority since they have to deal with the day-to-day supervision of the schools. A questionnaire was prepared and distributed to the various categories of respondents, which was later retrieved through personal contact. In addition to the questionnaire data was also collected from documents and other secondary sources The results were analyzed by computing percentages and mean scores of responses. The major results were that respondents generally agreed on the concept of supervision, which showed an improvement after intervention. In the area of actual teaching and learning activities considerable improvement was recorded. Punctuality, attendance and evaluation of learners improved to a moderate level within the short period of monitoring. Record keeping has also improved, the improvement ranges between 10.0% and 17.0%.