Influence of School Learning Environment on Quality Education in Public Secondary Schools in Arusha City Council, Tanzania

Influence of School Learning Environment on Quality Education in Public Secondary Schools in Arusha City Council, Tanzania

Emelda Suleiman
Teacher,Kijenge Primary School
P.O Box 884 – Arusha.
Email: emeldalekey@gmail.com
Dr. Kennedy Omondi Otieno
Coordinator Postgraduate Studies Research & Publications
St. Augustine University of Tanzania (SAUT), Arusha.
P.O Box 12385 – Arusha, Tanzania.
Email: omondiken2016@gmail.com

Abstract: The study investigated influence of school learning environment on quality education in public secondary schools in Arusha City Council. The study objectives were to: find out the influence of school learning environment on quality education in public secondary schools and determine the intervening measures to the challenges the school management face in providing the necessary school learning environment in public secondary schools in Arusha City. The study adopted convergent mixed methods design to gather data. The sample size of one CEO, 6 school heads – purposively involved in the study, 30 teachers and 61studentsselected by simple and stratified random sampling techniques participated. Questionnaires and interview guide were used for data collection. The research experts evaluated the instruments to determine content validity. Reliability of the questionnaires were tested in pilot study and Cronbach Alpha coefficient and found TQ at r = 0.705 and SQ at r = 0.705. Quantitative data was analyzed using descriptive statistics in the SPSS version 20 and results were presented in tables of frequencies and percentages. Qualitative data was analyzed thematically alongside research questions. The study findings revealed that adequate facilities create healthy learning environment & adequate staffing also influence quality education. Moreover, Poverty, staffing, cooperation, provision of adequate funds and facilities are possible measures to address the challenges facing school management in the provision of school learning environment. The study recommends that school heads should maintain good public relations with education stakeholders for healthy school environment necessary for quality education.