COMMUNICATION SKILLS AS CORRELATES OF TEACHING PARTNERSHIP IN PRIVATE SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN ANAMBRA STATE

Abstract

The study examined communication skills as correlates of teaching partnership in private secondary schools in South East Nigeria. Two research questions guided the study and two null hypotheses were tested at 0.05 level of significance. The study was a correlational research design. The population of the study comprised 10,112 (7,584 females and 2,528 males) in 423 registered private secondary schools in Anambra State. The sample size comprised 809 (203 male and 606 female) teachers drawn from the population of private secondary schools in Anambra State. Proportionate stratified random sampling techniques. The instruments for data collection were Communication Skills Questionnaire (CSQ) and Teaching Partnership Questionnaire (TPQ). The instruments were validated by three experts. The reliability of the instrument was determined using Cronbach Alpha Coefficient method and the average coefficient of 0.79 for CSQ and 0.09 for Teaching Partnership Questionnaire (TPQ). The data were analyzed using Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient. The study revealed that teachers’ speaking skills (r = 0. 757; p < 0.000) and teachers’ listening skills (r = 0. 829; p < 0.000) positively and significantly relate to teaching partnership in private secondary schools in Anambra State. The study concluded that communication skills have strong positive and significant relationship on teaching partnership in private secondary schools in Anambra State. The study recommended that teacher training and in-service programmes should incorporate continuous development of effective speaking skills to enhance collaboration and instructional coordination among teachers.