A STUDY OF INFORMATION ADMINISTRATION IN PRIMARY AND SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN AHMADU BELLO UNIVERSITY, ZARIA

ABSTRACT

This research was carried out to assess Information Management in Primary and Secondary Schools in Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria. To achieve the objectives of the study, eight research questions and four  hypotheses were formulated, raised and answered. The research questions raised include among others what types of information are available in Staff School and Demonstration Secondary School, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria and to what extent the available information in staff School and Demonstration Secondary School affects teaching in the schools. The hypotheses formulated for this study include that there is no significant relationship between availability of information and accessibility to information in Staff school, there is no significant relationship between availability of information and accessibility to information in Demonstration Seccondary School.  A Survey Research Method was adopted for the study while structured questionnaire was the instrument used for data collection. The population comprised of the personnel of the schools. A sample of 194 respondents was sampled from a population of 358. Data collected were analyzed descriptively for the research questions and inferential statistics were used to test the hypotheses. It was discovered that the two schools hardly use the available information and communication technology for information processing and organization. It was also discovered that not all the available information in the two schools were used for teaching, most of the available information were used for decision making, planning and reporting. It was therefore recommended that information and communication technology literacy be taught to teachers, and that management information systems be provided for the two schools for timely and relevant information provision.

 

 

 

 

TABLE OF CONTENT

CONTENTS                                                                                                           PAGE

Declaration                                                                                                                    ii

Certification          iii Dedication          iv

Acknowledgement                                                                                                         v

Abstract                                                                                                                          vii

Table of Content                                                                                                            viii

List of Tables                                                                                                                 xii

List of Appendices                                                                                                         xiii

CHAPTER ONE: Introduction

1.1          Background to the study                                                                                 1

1.2          Statement of the problem                                                                               8

1.3          Research questions                                                                                         10

1.4          Hypotheses                                                                                                     10

1.5          Objective of the study                                                                                     11

1.6          Significance of the study                                                                                13

1.7          Scope of the study                                                                                          13

1.8          Limitation of the study                                                                                   14

1.9          Operational definiton of terms                                                                        14

References                                                                                                      16

 

CHAPTER TWO: Review of Related Literature

2.1          Introduction                                                                                                    17

2.2          Primary and Post Primary Education                                                             17

2.3          School Management                                                                                       20

2.4          Information Management in Organizations                                                   23

2.5           School Management Information Systems                                                    27

2.6           Assessment and Evaluation of information systems .                                   32

2.7          Summary of Review                                                                                       36

References                                                                                                      38

CHAPTER THREE: Research Methodology

3.1          Introduction                                                                                                    46

3.2          Research Method adopted for the study                                                         46

3.3          Population of the study                                                                                   47

3.4          Sample and sampling technique                                                                     47

3.5          Instrument for data collection                                                                         48

3.6          Validaty of the instrument                                                                              48

3.6.1       Reliability of Instrument                                                                                 49

3.7          Procedure for data collection                                                                         49

3.8          Procedure for data analysis                                                                            49

References

CHAPTER FOUR: Data Presentation, Analysis and Discussion

4.1          Introduction                                                                                                    53

4.2          Response Rate                                                                                                53

4.3          Data presentation and Analysis                                                                      54

References                                                                                                      76

CHAPTER FIVE Summary, Conclusion and Recommendations

5.1          Introduction                                                                                                    78

5.2          Summary of the Study                                                                                    78

5.3          Summary of Findings                                                                                     79

5.4          Conclusion                                                                                                      82

5.5          Recommendations                                                                                          83

5.6          Suggestions for further research                                                                     84

Bibliography                                                                                                   85

APPENDICES

• Introduction letter                                                                         95
• Questionnaire                                                                                  96

LIST OF TABLES

Table 4.1:              Response Rate

Table 4.2a:            Types of information available in Staff school, A. B. U, Zaria

Table 4.2b:            Types of information available in Demonstration Secondary School,

1.                                B. U, Zaria

Table 4.3a:            Formats of the available information in Staff School, A. B. U, Zaria

Table 4.3b:            Formats of the available information in Demonstration Secondary

School, A. B. U. Zaria.

Table 4.4               Information Resources available in Staff School and Demonstration

Secondary School, A. B. U. Zaria

Table 4.5:              Information organization in Staff School and Demonstration

Secondary School, A. B. U, Zaria

Table 4.6:              Information Retrieval in Staff School and Demonstration Secondary

School, A.B. U, Zaria

Table 4.7:              Ways of accessing information in Staff School and Demonstration

Secondary School, A.B. U, Zaria

Table 4.8:              Information Dissemination in Staff School and Demonstration

Secondary School. A. B. U, Zaria

 

Table 4.9:              Purpose of use of Information in the Schools

 

Table 4.10             Effect of available information on teaching in the two schools

 

Table 4.11	Pearson Product Moment correlation (PPMC) statistics to test the relationship between availability of information and accessibility to information in Staff School, A. B. U, Zaria
Table 4.12	Pearson Product Moment correlation (PPMC) statistics to test the relationship between availability of information and accessibility to information in Demonstration Secondary School and Staff School.
Table 4.13	One Way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) to test the difference in the organization, retrieval and dissemination of information in Staff School, A. B. U, Zaria
Table 4.14	One Way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) to test the difference in the organization, retrieval and dissemination of information in Demonstration Secondary School, A. B. U, Zaria

 

 

 

 

 

 

 APPENDICES

 

APENDIXA: Letter Introduction

APENDIXB: Questionnaire.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1         BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY

Education plays an important role in the well-being of any nation that wants to sustain its prominence in the global scene. It is broadly viewed as a lifelong process spanning the years from infancy to adulthood. According to Balogun (1999) education not only liberates, it is a vital tool for empowerment that allows meaningful contributions to society. As a result, each nation has a policy on education which provides guidance on the type and quality of education that citizens should acquire.

The bedrock of education is the pre-primary and primary levels. These stages of development are crucial for the development of future adult citizens and workers. Just as a child cannot stand up and walk from birth, so one cannot develop without primary education. It is the foundation upon which the rest of educational system is built. Durosaru (2000) remarked that there is no gainsaying the fact that education is very vital to the pace of social, political and economic development of any nation. This is why most nations of the world strive to devote a sizeable proportion of their Gross National Income to develop the educational sector. He further opined that in Nigeria, between 7.6% and 9.9% of the national budget annual expenditure is devoted to education. This annual budget expenditure has been used over the years to establish primary, secondary and tertiary programmes all over the country.

The education system in Nigeria is based on the National Policy of Education (NPE) document of 1977. The policy document addresses the issues of imbalance in the provision of education in different parts of the country with regards to access, quality of resources and girls‟ education. Mojo (2000) stated that the education in Nigeria is organized into 6 years of Primary education, 3 years of junior secondary school, 3 years of senior secondary school education and 4 years of university/polytechnic/college of education. Similarly, according to the FRN (2004) document, the educational system in Nigeria has been delineated into different levels mainly pre-primary, primary, secondary and tertiary levels. The increasing development of educational system at all levels brings greater demands on educational practitioners such as curriculum planners, evaluators and teachers in their bid to move along with the information technology of this 21^st century.

The Federal Government of Nigeria on September 30, 1999 launched the Universal Basic

Education (UBE) programme, which is aimed at promoting literacy in Nigeria. Durosaru (2000) observed that the blueprint for UBE defines it as the foundation for sustainable lifelong learning that provides reading, writing, and numeracy skills. It makes provision for a wide variety of formal and informal activities and programmes designed to enable learners to acquire functional literacy. Moreover, it is meant to prepare the children for the future, with the ability to think rationally and to solve problems creatively, to manage and retrieve information, in addition to communicating effectively. He further opined that it is also designed to instill lifelong learning as a habit, since lifelong learning is the organizing principle for education. The mission of education for children and youth is the development of skills for self-directed enquiry rather than the mere inculcation of subject matter.

Information is a critical resource in the operation and management of organizations. Timely availability of relevant information is vital for effective performance of managerial functions such as planning, organizing, leading, and control. According to Lucey (2005) the concept of information in an organizational sense is more complex and difficult than the frequent use of this common word would suggest. Information is facts that have been processed into meaningful and useful context for a specific purpose to meet the information needs of any given establishment. The pool of data available to an organization, from external and internal sources is limitless; thereby making organizations to be selective in what is relevant. Hence the need for adequate information management.

Information management is a way of monitoring and providing key members of an organization with data, facts and ideas used in its operation. Information management recognizes the fact that information is a resource which needs to be managed like any other resources such as human, material and money. Information management ensures that the value of information is identified and exploited to support organizations. Choo (2002) opined that  information management describes the means by which an organization efficiently plans, collects, organizes, uses, controls, disseminates and disposes of its information, and through which it ensures that the value of that information is identified and exploited to the fullest. Robertson (2005) is of the opinion that information management is an umbrella term that encompasses all the systems and processes within an organization for the creation and use of corporate information. He added that information management, in terms of technology, encompasses systems such as web content management systems, document management, records management, digital asset management, learning management systems, learning content management systems, and many more. Information management, according to him is however, much more than just technology, it encompasses people, processes, and content. Each of these must be addressed if information management projects are to succeed.

From the foregoing, information management can be construed as the provision of the right information, in the right format, at the right time. This will include the generation of the right information, in the right format and granting the right people access to it at the right time.

The role of information management in the Schools

Herman (1988) opined that schools, administrators and the teachers within them are constantly bombarded with vast amount of information that is potentially useful in instructional planning and school improvement. Students‟ test scores, attendance, grades, information about curriculum goals and standards, are just samples of the data that are regularly collected and transmitted to schools. Other sectors of the economy apply the computer‟s capacity to store, organize and analyze information to create information systems to support their decision making. More so, Davies and Ellison (1990) opined that if managerial functions are to be carried out both efficiently and effectively, then it is a prerequisite that high quality information is available for informed decision-making at the various management levels and information systems that provide the information should be reliable and provide:

1. the right information
2. to the right place
3. at the right time
4. in the right way
5. to achieve clear objectives”.

The availability of computer technology makes such information systems a reasonable possibility in Schools as well. This will help teachers and administrators sort through, analyze and apply the right information about their students, community, instructional process and outcomes to improve their schools.  The school Administrators at all levels of learning in Nigeria is constantly pre-occupied with the job of utilizing available human, material and financial resources to obtain maximum level of teaching and learning activities in the institutions. However, to adequately take decisions involving proper mix of these resources to obtain optimum results, the required information must be available, properly kept, accessible and utilized.

The failure of the implementation of the National Policy on Education was blamed on the inadequate data base in which the programme was planned. Nwagwu (1995) identified the first problem in the implementation of the National Policy on Education as the inability of the educational functionaries to obtain detailed and up-to- date information needed for effective planning of the educational system. Nwagwu(1995) further added that the educationist solicited the implementation Task Force of the National Policy on Education to obtain accurate data of school enrolment from the nation‟s primary and secondary school levels.

The role of information management in schools include:

1. To facilitate research activities that will promote efficiency and effectiveness of the school system.
2. To ensure that accurate and proper record of students‟ achievements and growth during their school days are kept.
3. To ensure that an up-to-data information on any school matter of students is made available to users when requested for.
4. To provide useful information to the educational planners and administrators
5. To provide useful information to an employer of labour who may want to recruit pupils for jobs as required in testimonials, transcripts, Certificates and reference letters.

BRIEF HISTORY OF DEMONSTRATION SECONDARY SCHOOL, AHMADU BELLO UNIVERSITY, ZARIA   The Demonstration Secondary School (D. S. S), Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria is coeducational and non-residential. It is situated between the Main and the North Gate, facing directly the First Bank and Union Bank along Zaria- Sokoto highway. An entrance to the School through the Main Gate leads through Amina Hall via Suleiman Hall while an entrance through the North Gate leads through Abdullahi Muhammed Public Library (by the North

Gate) via Suleiman Hall.

The present site of the School, initially designed as a temporary site, has gradually become its permanent site in view of the harsh economic situation in the country at the inception of the School. The Kongo Annex, established in the year 2004/2005 academic Session is situated in the Kongo Campus of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria. The School is located opposite the Federal College of Education (F. C. E) Zaria and beside the former Women Teachers College (W. T. C), Zaria. The School at its inception had Mrs. P. K. Ityokyaa as the first Vice Principal.

The 10^th Anniversary Magazine of the School notes that in 1969, the first indigenous Vice Chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Professor Ishaya Audu conceived of the idea of a secondary school for the University. He then set up a committee under the chairmanship of Professor Adamu Baike to conduct a feasibility study on the establishment of the school.    The School existed in its incubation stage until 1980 when Professor Ango Abdullahi set up a steering committee under the chairmanship of Professor Jonathan Ndagi to work towards translating this dream to reality. The Committee‟s untiring efforts culminated in the birth of the School. On April 28, 1982, the School commenced its official function when it opened its doors to the first intake of 85 students with Mr. Paul Turton (a Briton) as the first Principal and five academic Staff. Three non-academic staffs including a driver, a typist and a messenger were also appointed at the commencement of the School.

The Management Board of Demonstration Secondary School, Ahmadu Bello University,

Zaria was inaugurated on the 16^th June, 1984 to take over the affairs of the School from the

Steering Committee under the Chairmanship of Professor Samuel Aleyideno, the then Director of Institute of Education. The Board is not meant to play an advisory role, but a fullfledged Management Board with executive powers.

 

 

 

BRIEF HISTORY OF THE AHMADU BELLO UNIVERSITY, ZARIA STAFF SCHOOL     The A. B. U, Zaria Staff School was started in 1958 as a private Nursery class of 10 Children of the Staff of the Nigerian College of Arts, Science and Technology. It was later assisted by the College Council with equipment and furniture and then occupied what was called the „Tin tabernacle‟ near the old sculpture school. It was taken over by the College and later by the University. In 1960 it was moved to the Old St Peter‟s (now Demonstration School) near the North Gate. The School remained there for six years. In 1967 when it was moved to the present site, the number of pupils was 102. In 1987, twenty years later, the pupil population became 2,938 with three branches of the School.

The Staff School caters mainly for the children of ABU Staff, and, as the University grew, the school expanded. The school building expended from 5 classrooms, an office, two stores and toilets to 9 blocks of classrooms on the Main Campus with a total of 50 classrooms, 3 stores, 3 offices and a library in 1987.

Today, the ABU Zaria Staff School is a complex, consisting of the Main Campus, Kongo Campus, Area BZ, and an affiliate from ABU Campus. In the three branches of the A. B. U Staff School, there were approximately 3,038 pupils and 113 staff. The Staff School has a management Board responsible for the formulation and implementation of policy matters concerned with the running of the school. The Board is responsible to the A. B. U Council through the Vice-Chancellor. The School has an Administrative Head responsible for the day to day running of the School.

1.2    STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM.

One of the greatest challenges confronting the world now is how to effectively and economically control and utilize an ever-growing information repository. This is because both technological and social changes have imposed on us the need to create and disseminate an endless array of information in various formats. This trend permeates all levels of government, industries and businesses.

The expectations of information consumers go beyond accurate and factually correct data. According to Mathieu and Khalil (1997); Strong, Lee and Wang (1997) Information consumers expect the information custodians (Information Service professionals responsible for managing the organization‟s data and information resources) to provide (1) systems  that are responsive, (2) that deliver relevant and easily interpreted information, (3) that provide flexible, easily aggregated, and easily manipulated data, and (4) that are secured and robust enough to prohibit accidental or intentional data corruption. Galbraith (1977) is of the view that one of the main propositions of organizational theory is that firms process information in order to reduce uncertainty.  Uncertainty is associated with lack of information, the difference between the amount of information required and the amount of information already possessed by the organization. In order to deal with uncertainty, organizations must collect, gather and process information.

Schools and their administrators are also bombarded with vast amounts of information that is potentially useful in instructional planning and school improvement. Schools have the task of teaching and providing a learning environment. In so doing, teachers and other members of staff are employed, materials are acquired, pupils are admitted, tested, examined and so forth. According to Saint (1995), as schools become determined to bolster their capacities for strategic planning and management, they are confronted with decision-making constraints posed by lack of appropriately organized and accessible information on key aspects of school administration. Nwagwu (1995) proposed that educational planners and administrators need to have adequate and accurate data on school enrolment, infrastructural facilities, personnel, and other school data for effective planning and management .Consequently, the need for increased information management capacity in schools becomes imperative.

The researcher therefore wondered how information is managed and utilized in the individual schools in the study and by whom and for what purpose.

   1.3    RESEARCH QUESTIONS

The following are the research questions for this study:

1. What types of information are available in Staff School and Demonstration Secondary

School, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria?

2. What information resources are available in Staff School and Demonstration

Secondary School, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria?

3. How is information organized in Staff School and Demonstration Secondary School,

Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria?

4. How is information retrieved in Staff School and Demonstration Secondary School,

Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria?

5. How is information accessed in Staff School and Demonstration Secondary School,

Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria?

6. How is information disseminated in Staff School and Demonstration Secondary

School, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria?

7. For what purpose is information used in Staff School and Demonstration Secondary

School, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria?

8. To what extent does the available information affect teaching in the Staff School and

Demonstration Secondary School, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria?

1.4    HYPOTHESES

The following Hypotheses have been formulated for the study;

1. There is no significant relationship between availability of information and accessibility to information by the users in the Staff School.
2. There is no significant relationship between availability of information and accessibility to information by the users in Demonstration Secondary School.
3. There is no significant difference in the organization, retrieval and dissemination of information in Staff school.
4. There is no significant difference in the organization, retrieval and dissemination of information in Demonstration Secondary School.

 

1.5          OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

The following will constitute the objectives of this study:

1. To identify the types of information available in Staff School and Demonstration

Secondary School, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.

2. To identify the information resources of information in in Staff School and

Demonstration Secondary School, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.

3. To ascertain how information is organized in Staff School and Demonstration

Secondary School, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.

4. To ascertain how information is retrieved in Staff School and Demonstration

Secondary School, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.

5. To determine how information is accessed in Staff School and Demonstration

Secondary School, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.

6. To determine how information is disseminated in Staff School and Demonstration

Secondary School, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.

7. To ascertain the purpose of use of information by the users in the two Schools.
8. To ascertain to what extent information management affects teaching in Staff School and Demonstration Secondary School, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.

1.6   SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

This study will be significant in the following ways:

It will enable the school administrators rationalize the decision-making process and resource management by way of better communication, feedback and control. The inevitable consequence of introducing a computerized information system is to move the information required for school management and decision-making down through the organization. This will be opening up opportunities for streamlining and speeding-up the decision-making process, educational planning in the aspects of instructional planning, curriculum design and supervision thereby empowering staff by creating a more intelligent, efficient, effective and productive work force.

It will help in planning of future course of action and proper management of information and records in ABU Staff School and Demonstration Secondary School.  Future course of action to include the number of pupils to admit in the next admission, which teacher will teach what subject, which projects to be completed etc.

It will improve timely access to internal and external information in School to support transactions like the purchase of teaching aids and enhance productivity in the areas of teaching, learning and supervision.

1.7             SCOPE OF THE STUDY

This study will cover the assessment of information management in Staff School and Demonstration Secondary School, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria complex encompassing the main and the divisions of the two schools.

1.8             Limitation of the study

Such limitations as time and funds militated against the conduct of this research. Since the research is an academic study, there is a time limit within which the study must be carried out, especially as it is a pre-requisite for promotion. Hence there was the need to limit the study to such a minimal researchable area considering the time frame.                                          

1.9    OPERATIONAL DEFINITION OF TERMS

The following are the operational definitions of terms used in this study:

1. RECORDS: are information (data, text, images, sounds, codes, computer programs, software, databases, or the like) that are inscribed on a tangible medium or that are stored in an electronic or other medium and are retrievable in perceivable form.
2. INFORMATION MANAGEMENT: Information management is process of

acquiring processing, storage, retrieval, and dissemination of information.

3. ASSESSMENT: process of synthesizing information about individuals in order to understand and describe them better

 

REFERENCES

Balogun, O. (1999). „Education Key to the Future‟. The Guardian. Jan. 29 p. 21.

 

Choo, C, W (2002) Information Management for the Intelligent Organization: The Art of  Scanning the Environment (3^rd Edition). Medford, NJ: Information Today, Inc.

 

 

Davies, B., & Ellision, L. (1990). Management. In Davies, B., L. Osborne, A.  & West Burnham,  J. (1990). Education management for the 1990s. London: Longman.

 

 

Durosaro, D.O. (2000) Resource Allocation and Utilization for University Education in

Nigeria,  Trends and Issues in E.G. Fagbamiye and D.O. Durosaro (eds,). Education and  Productivity in Nigeria, NAEAP 51-67

 

 

Federal Government of Nigeria (2004) National Policy on Education, (4th ed) Lagos:

NERDC              Press.

 

 

Galbraith, J. (1977) Organization Design. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.

 

 

Herman, J (1988) Increasing the Utility of Information Systems in Schools: Lessons from the

Literature. Multilevel Evaluation Systems Project. Los Angeles: p. 4-6

 

 

Lucey, T (2005) Management Information System. 9^th Edition. Bookpower: United Kingdom.

 

 

Mathieu, R., & Khalil, O. E. M. (1997). Teaching Data Quality in the Undergraduate Database  Course. 1997 Conference on Information Quality. Cambridge, MA: Massachusetts  Institute of Technology.

 

McLeod, R., Jr. (1995). Management Information Systems: A study of computer-based  information systems 6th ed.. New Delhi: Prentice Hall of India. pp 28.

 

Moja, T. (2000). Nigeria Education Sector Analysis: An Analytical Synthesis of Performance  and Main Issues. WORLD BANK Report 2000.

 

 

Nakpodia, E.D. (2006), Educational Administration. A New Approach Warri, Nigeria Jonokase  Nigeria Company.

 

 

Nwagwu, N. A. (1995). The development and management of records in the Nigerian education  system in data management in schools and other issues. Ehiametalo, E. T. (Ed.) Benin  City: Ilupeju Press.

 

 

Peffers, K and Saarinen, T (2002) „Measuring the Business Value of IT Investments: Inferences  from A Study of Senior Bank Executives‟ Journal of OrganizationalComputing and  Electronic Commerce, Vol 12(1) pp 17-38.

 

 

Robertson, J (2005) Ten Principles of Effective Information Management. KM Column, Step

Two Design Pty Ltd. P 7. Available at http://www.steptwo.com.au

 

 

Saint, W. S. (1995). Managing the challenge of doing more with less. Universities in Africa –  Strategies for Stabilization and Revitalization. Washington D. C.: The World Bank.

 

 

Strong, D. M., Lee, Y. W., & Wang, R. Y. (1997) “10 Potholes in the Road to Information  Quality”. IEEE Computer, Vol 30(8),pp 38-46.

A STUDY OF INFORMATION ADMINISTRATION IN PRIMARY AND SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN AHMADU BELLO UNIVERSITY, ZARIA