SCHOOL SAFETY MEASURES AND THEIR EFFECTIVENESS IN PREVENTING SCHOOL ABDUCTIONS IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN KADUNA STATE, NIGERIA
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.65336/WJAEL.2026.3903Keywords:
School safety, school abduction, security measures, secondary schools, Kaduna State, safe schools initiativeAbstract
The study investigates the safety measures and their effectiveness in preventing school abductions in secondary schools in Kaduna state. A descriptive survey design was proposed for the study. The population of the study comprised all principals, vice principals, teachers, and school security personnel in public secondary schools located in the twenty-three Local Government Areas of Kaduna State the population of 17,718 According to Kaduna State Ministry of Education records (2025), the target population consisted of Principals 512, Vice Principals 1,024, Teachers 14,856, Security Personnel 1,326 respectively total 17,718. A sample size of 1,200 respondents was selected using a multistage sampling technique. The instrument used for data collection was a structured questionnaire titled “School Safety Measures and School Abduction Prevention Questionnaire (SSSAPQ)”. The instrument was subjected to face and content validation by three experts in Educational Management, Educational Administration, and Measurement and Evaluation from a recognized Nigerian university. The mean and standard deviation was used to analyzed the research questions while t test was used to analyzed the hypotheses. Findings from previous studies indicate that schools with adequate fencing, surveillance systems, trained security personnel, emergency response plans, and active community participation experience lower vulnerability to security threats than schools without such measures. The study concluded that effective implementation of comprehensive school safety measures significantly contributes to reducing the risk of school abductions and enhancing educational continuity. The study recommended increased government investment in school security infrastructure, deployment of trained security personnel, strengthening of community-school partnerships, and regular security audits of schools.
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