Conflict management practices in Kumasi Girls' secondary secondary

Abstract

Student conflicts in Senior Secondary Schools are disturbing factors that can mar the administration of the schools Academic work cannot go on smoothly if there are student unrests in the schools. The study investigated conflict management practices in Kumasi Girls’ Secondary School. Three sets of questionnaire were used. A total of 140 respondents, comprising 20 teaching staff, non-teaching staff and 100 students were selected through random sampling. The results revealed that dialogue between students and school authorities was the most popular conflict management technique used by the school authorities to solve misunderstandings that arise between the two parties in the school. Also students preferred dialogue or collaboration style of managing conflicts to autocratic ways to dealing with conflicting situations. Suggestions from students on conflict management include meetings between students and their class teachers so that students could channel their grievances through their teachers to the school authorities, provision of suggestion boxes and parents teacher and students fora. Others are that offending students should be referred to the school counselors, students should be advised by P.T.A and the school’s Board of Governors.