Conflict Management Strategies Employed by Teachers and School Heads in Selected Public Schools

This quantitative study determined organizational conflicts in an educational context and conflict management strategies employed by educators as the basis for an enhanced conflict management program. The study employed 35 respondents, comprising three (3) school principals and 32 teachers from selected public secondary schools in Sorsogon province, to gather data through surveys. Results indicated a generally low occurrence of organizational conflicts across surveyed schools and conflict management strategies that mostly follow a compromising conflict management style followed by collaborating and accommodating strategies. The study also revealed relationship conflicts and occasional procedural conflicts are more common in schools due to the nature of the organization, while the sporadic occurrence of issues made conflict management challenging for educators. The study proposed the use of the P.A.C.E. (Proactive Approach to Conflict Management in Education) program as a proactive approach to managing organizational conflicts in an educational setting. The study concludes that public secondary schools in Sorsogon province have a generally positive working environment despite the presence of conflicts. The P.A.C.E. program can be potentially effective in enhancing conflict management programs by addressing the challenges identified by the respondents and is recommended for use in education settings depending on the needs. Recommendations for conflict management programs and the future direction of related studies are also set forth for a more nuanced understanding of the compactness and effectiveness of conflict management strategies.