The Influence Of School Climate On Classroom Instruction In Public Secondary Schools In Tanzania: The Case Of Iramba District

ABSTRACT

This study examines the influence of school climate on classroom instructions in secondary schools in Tanzania. Systems and condition for learning perspectives were used as theoretical frameworks. The study specifically examined the type of school climate found in Iramba district; explored the influence of school climate on classroom instruction, and the stakeholders’ views on the best ways to make school climate more effective for enhancing classroom instructions in public secondary schools. The study involved 40 teachers, 8 heads of secondary schools, 8 parents, and 80 students who participated voluntarily. Both quantitative and qualitative approaches were employed. The organizational Climate Descriptive Questionnaire-Revised for Secondary schools (OCDQ-RS), Organization Healthy Inventory (OHI-S), Pupil Control Ideology (PCI) and Classroom Instruction Questionnaire (CIQ) were used as instruments for gathering quantitative data. On other hand, interview and participant observation were employed to gather qualitative data. The five subtests of OCDQ-RS (teachers behaviour, headmaster behaviour, engaged, frustrated, and intimate behaviour), seven subtests of OHI-S (Institutional integrity, principal influence, consideration, initiating structure, resource support, morale, and academic emphasis) and two subtests of PCI (humanistic & custodial) which served as independents variables were examined to identify the type of school climate existing in Iramba district and their influence to the scores obtained from subscales of classroom instructions (physical structure, teacher-teacher interactions, teacher-student interaction, student-student interaction, learning materials, teachers’ behaviours and students’ behaviours) which served as dependent variable. Among the other things obtained in the main text, the study revealed that, most of the selected schools in the district have a non-conducive climate. The study recommends improvement of physical structures such as provision of water services in public secondary schools, construction of teachers’ houses, classes and hostels. Also, HOS need to provide more support to their teachers than being harsh to them. These will reduce the stress of teachers and students within their schools and classroom instruction shall be improved.