An investigation into the principal's instructional role : a case of four secondary schools in Southern Nations, Nationalities and People's Region, Ethiopia

Abstract

Instructional leadership is essential for the academic success of any schooling situation. Given this background, the researcher set out to investigate how instructional leadership is practiced and also could be improved in the Southern nations, nationalities and people’s region of Ethiopia; to this end, the researcher used a case study of four secondary schools. The main research question that framed the study was: How do principals practice effective instructional leadership role in secondary schools? A qualitative research method formed the basis of this study. The choice of schools for this study was deliberate, and was solely based on convenience. Participants in this study consisted of national educational experts, regional and district supervisors, as well as the principals of the selected schools from the sample areas. The following were selected from the sample areas: four school principals, six district supervisors and six regional experts. In addition, there were four experts from the Ministry of Education who also participated in the study. The analysis of the research data revealed that there is strong evidence of effective instructional leadership at the selected schools. However, despite the existence of this instructional leadership, these schools, like all other organizations, are still faced with a number of challenges that limit the effectiveness of the teaching and learning process. These challenges include lack of discipline, inadequate support, poor time management, lack of teaching and learning resources and poor training system. Participants were provided with a number of possible solutions to the problems identified. Principals were expected to be good role models in order to set examples for their staff members. An enabling environment had to be created for effective teaching and learning to take place. The researcher recommended the following new model: secondary school principals in the selected region were expected to have a vision and knowledge of instruction. In addition, they had to be committed to their work and be capable of creating a safe environment and a school culture conducive to effective teaching and learning.