Teachers–Parents Collaboration and Effective Inter-House Sports Competitions among Secondary Schools in Abia State, Nigeria

This study investigated teachers–parents’ collaboration and effective inter-house sports competitions in secondary schools in Abia State, Nigeria. Specifically, it examined the relationships between financial contribution, decision-making involvement and effective inter-house sports implementation. The study was guided by two research hypotheses and anchored on Coleman’s Social Capital Theory. An ex-post facto research design was adopted for the study. The target population comprised 142,332 respondents, including 7,436 teachers and 134,896 parents whose wards attend public secondary schools in Abia State. A sample size of 399 respondents was determined using Taro Yamane’s formula, while convenience sampling was adopted to select accessible and willing participants. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire, and the hypotheses were tested using Pearson correlation at the .05 alpha level. The findings revealed that financial contribution had a significant relationship with effective inter-house sports competitions. The findings also indicated that decision-making involvement had a significant relationship with effective inter-house sports competitions. These findings show that adequate financial support and meaningful participation in planning and decision-making are important dimensions of teachers–parents’ collaboration in organizing school sporting activities. It was concluded that strengthening financial accountability and participatory planning could promote effective inter-house sports competitions in secondary schools. It was recommended that school administrators and parent–teacher associations should establish transparent arrangements for mobilizing and managing sports resources and actively involve teachers and parents in planning, coordinating and evaluating inter-house sports competitions.