Abstract:
The study investigated the application of education law in the management of disciplinary problems in secondary schools. The study was carried out in Okigwe Education zone of Imo State. Four research questions and four null hypotheses were formulated to guide the study. Literature related to the study was reviewed under conceptual framework, theoretical framework, related empirical studies and summary of literature review. Descriptive survey research design was adopted for the study. The population of the study was 1,013, comprising of 64 principals and 949 teachers. Random sampling technique was adopted in selecting a sample of 300, comprising of 20 principals and 280 teachers. A structured questionnaire with 37 items was used for data collection. Internal consistency estimate was estimated for each cluster using Cronbach Alpha method and this yielded: 0.82, 0.72, 0.81 and 0.76 respectively for clusters A, B, C and D. Data collected were analyzed, mean scores and standard deviations were used to answer the research questions while the t-test statistics was used in testing the hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. The study revealed that education law is being enforced in the management of disciplinary problems in secondary schools. It also revealed that there are noticeable impacts of the application of education law in the management of disciplinary problems in secondary schools. The study identified some factors that militate against the application of education law in the management of disciplinary problems. The study revealed some strategies to be employed for effective application of education law in the management of disciplinary problems in secondary schools. Based on the findings, the researcher recommended that government should provide adequate man-power to teach technical subjects, administrators and teachers should show total commitment while trying to stop students’ misbehaviour and adults should be role models themselves. Government should provide adequate facilities and empower examination bodies to prosecute students involved in examination malpractice.
