Influence of Principals’ Controlling Functions on Student Academic Achievement in Public Senior Schools in Kipipiri Sub-County, Nyandarua County, Kenya

This study investigated the influence of principals’ controlling functions on students’ academic achievement in senior schools in Kipipiri sub-county Nyandarua County, Kenya. The study was guided by research questions: In what ways does the principals’ controlling function influence student academic achievement in public senior schools? Fayol’s Administrative Theory of Management guided the study. The study employed a convergent mixed method design, using a cross-sectional survey and phenomenology approaches. The target population comprised of 15 public senior school, 15 principals, 214 teachers,1012 form four students, 1 Teachers Service Commission Sub-County Director and 1 Sub- County Quality Assurance and Standards Officer. Purposive and Stratified simple random sampling techniques were used to select 383 respondents for this study. Data was collected using questionnaires, interview guides and document analysis. Validity was tested by research experts and pilot testing and reliability was confirmed using Cronbach’s Alpha coefficient of 0.92. Quantitative data was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics while qualitative data was subjected to thematic content analysis. Ethical considerations were observed throughout the study. The findings demonstrated that principals controlling functions have influence on students’ academic achievement. The study concluded that principals’ controlling function provides an important mechanism for maintaining instructional quality and responding to academic performance gaps, controlling function influenced the conditions under which teaching and learning occurred through several interconnected mechanisms. The study recommends that Education quality assurance and standards officers should strengthen school-based monitoring and evaluation, while the government should ensure adequate staffing and instructional resources. Principals should strengthen classroom supervision and monitoring students’ academic progress through regular observation, assessment, feedback and timely interventions.