This study was guided by the social theory and its development of the theory can be traced back to the work of Albert Bandura (1977) and Lou (2013). Albert Bandura is considered as one of the leading proponents of this theory. Social Learning Theory of Albert Bandura (1977): Lou (2013) opined that Bandura proposed the concept of social cognitive theory. A general contention is that much of the development in human cognition is explained by the interplay of internal personal factors in the form of cognitive, affective and biological events; behavior; and environmental events.
According to Nabavi (2014), Bandura in 1961 conducted his famous experiment known as the Bobo doll experiment, to study patterns of behavior, by social learning theory, and those similar behaviors were learned by individuals shaping their own behavior after the actions of models. Bandura’s results from the Bobo Doll Experiment changed the course of modern psychology, and were widely credited for helping shift the focus in academic psychology from pure behaviorism to cognitive. He demonstrated that children learn and imitate behaviors that they have observed in other people.
According to Banyard ; Grayson (2000), Bandura believed that direct reinforcement could not account for all types of learning, and that people can learn new information and behaviors by watching other people. According to Shaffer (2005), people learn from one another, via observation; imitation; and modeling. Social learning theory is relevant in this study. The implication of this theory is that students who misbehave in schools are likely to have learnt that behavior from their homes and peers. One of the reasons a teenager may be sneaking out of school or destroying school property may be because others are doing it, since not to do the same is to be out of the peer group. Day school students are in constant touch with their homes and society.
This implies that the environment in which these students grow can also influence their behavior adversely. With poor role models in the society, mobile phones, rogue alters and drug abuse, students’ behavior has indeed worsened. Besides, children from families where wife beating occurs are more likely to be aggressive adolescents. The behaviors of students change through modeling and observation of peers and adults. Copying or imitating certain bad behaviors that had been observed and appreciated through their peers and the environment therefore, among students mainly causes indiscipline.
Social Learning Theory of Julian Rotter (1954): Rotter’s interactionism position holds that human behavior is based largely on the interaction of people with their meaningful environments. Rotter believes that, although personality can change at any time, it has a basic unity that preserves it from changing as a result of minor experiences. McLeod (2011) supported Rotter’s work with the view that empirical law of effect assumes that people choose a course of action that advances them toward an anticipated goal.1.9 Conceptual frameworkThe process of managing students’ discipline begins by identifying the types of indiscipline experienced in school. Under the school usual conditions students exhibit three forms of indiscipline.
These are minor, major and intolerable ones. (Simatwa. 2007), the conceptual framework is based on the concept that students’ discipline can be dealt with effectively by focusing on types of pupil discipline and methods of dealing with identified discipline problems. The conceptual framework shows that secondary schools are faced with numerous indiscipline cases such as; smoking, truancy, noisemaking, failure to complete assignment, lateness, sneaking out of school, theft and cheating and many others. The framework also shows that schools could deal with the disciplinary problems by using methods such as; involving parents, using guidance and counseling, co-curricular activities and moral activities in the school as to use popular activity. The framework suggests that when such channels are well followed in the management of students’ discipline, the result of the schools would be well behaved students, orderly students, academic positive performance and school goal achievements and good conducive learning environment.
