Corruption in Secondary Schools: Administrative Strategies for Its’ Management

Abstract

Corruption is one of the global issues impeding systems effectiveness which has permeated the education system in Africa and Nigeria in particular. This study examined corruption in public secondary schools with the purpose of indenting the forms of corruption prevalent, the perpetrators of corruption, the effects of corruption and the administrative strategies for managing corruption in schools. Ex-post facto research design was employed in this qualitative  research. The perceptions of 1160 respondents made up of students, teachers and principals were sought by the use of questionnaire.  Descriptive and inferential statistics were employed in analysis of data. The results revealed that several forms of corruption were prevalent in secondary schools in the state. The perpetrators of corruption were identified. The effects of corruption showed that it lowers the quality of teaching and learning, lowers the quality of students learning outcomes and dents the public image of the institutions. The study indentified several administrative strategies for curbing corruption in secondary schools as ensuring that teachers are paid good salary commensurate with the standard of living in the society, formation of anti-corruption clubs, proper value re-orientation, character education and by check mating the movement of teachers during school hours. In conclusion, the study recommends that to increase the awareness of students and staff, principals should encourage the formation of anti-corruption clubs and encourage debates and essay writings on corruption related topics in order to help sensitize staff and students about corruption and the evils associated with it.