| dc.description.abstract | In recent past, and specifically in 2008, a large number of public secondary schools in Kenya have experienced riots and boycotts. Schools in Kirinyaga County were among the most affected in this year's - -e wave, (DEO Kirinyaga, 2008). Observations from bodies such as parliamentary committees, heads association, UNICEF and MOE attributed these unrests to the manner in which student affairs were being managed in schools. Many studies have concentrated on looking at how the school administration, teachers and other stake holders manage students' affairs. Little attention is given to role played student leadership. This study aimed at investigating on the factors that influence student leadership in the selected secondary on the management of student's related affairs. The objectives of the study were to: Find out the effects of student leader's individual characteristics, investigate the extent to which the 1 s leadership style determine the management of student's affairs, assess how motivational factors t on the student leaders, and identify how the student leader's tasks influence the management of t affairs in secondary schools of Kirinyaga County. The study was carried out in Kirinyaga South district of Kirinyaga County. Descriptive survey research design was employed in the study. The accessible population for the study was all form four students drawn from 17 public secondary schools in the District. The study sample of 60 students, 6 teachers and 3 principals was drawn from six schools randomly selected in the District. The main sampling techniques were simple random sampling e students and teachers, and purposive sampling for the principals. The main instruments of data collection were interviews and questionnaires. Data analysis was conducted through descriptive statistics with the aid of Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). The findings were presented in form of tables and pie charts. The main factor influencing student leadership was found to be the school administration while task factor had the least influence. The study also established that many respondents were not satisfied with the manner in which students affair were being managed by students leaders. The study is significant because the findings will be useful to all stakeholders for it will improve practice, data for policy discussion, formulation and implementation on matters of interest on student affairs ultimately the entire education sector. This is in turn, expected to lead to efficiency and effectiveness running of schools which is well demonstrated by good performance in the national exam. | en_US |
