COMMUNICATION AS AN ADMINISTRATIVE PRACTICE OF SCHOOL PRINCIPALS AND TEACHERS' JOB PERFORMANCE IN PUBLIC SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN AKWA IBOM STATE, NIGERIA

The study examined how principals’ administrative practice of communication predicts the job performance of teachers in public secondary schools in Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria. The Job Characteristics Model Theory of Hackman and Oldham (1976) was used to guide the study. One research question and a corresponding null hypothesis were formulated to guide the study. A correlational research design was adopted for the study. The population consisted of 254 school principals and 7388 teachers of the public secondary schools in Akwa Ibom State. The sample was 739 teachers from the three Senatorial Districts, selected through the clustered sampling technique. Two research instruments tagged “Principals’ Administrative Practice of Communication Questionnaire” (PAPCQ) and Teachers’ Job Performance Questionnaire (TJPQ)” were used for data collection. The instruments were validated by three experts from the Faculty of Education, University of Uyo. The questionnaires were administered and the data generated in this study were analyzed using Simple Linear Regression analysis. The research hypothesis was tested at a 0.05 level of significance. The results showed that principals’ administrative practice of communication significantly predicts teachers’ job performance in lesson preparation, lesson delivery, classroom management, use of instructional materials and students’ assessment in public secondary schools in Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria. Based on the finding of the study, it is recommended among other things that Principals of schools should be effective and efficient communicators. Instructions and directives should be unambiguously sent to teachers through effective means of communication as agreed upon by the members of the school system