Perceptions and Practices of Heads of Schools’ Instructional Leadership in Public Secondary Schools in Biharamulo District, Tanzania

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Abstract

The study aimed at examining the perceptions and practices of heads of schools’ instructional leadership in public secondary schools in Biharamulo district, Tanzania. A concurrent triangulation design using a sample of 75 was used. Data were collected using questionnaires for teachers, Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) for heads of schools and interviews for district secondary education officers. The quantitative data from questionnaires was analyzed using descriptive statistics while the qualitative data from interviews and FGDs were analyzed through thematic techniques. The study found that heads of schools perceived instructional leadership in terms of showing right direction about the teaching and learning process, ensuring the presence of teaching and learning resources and enhancing teachers’ teaching capacity. The study also found that heads of schools practiced instructional leadership in terms of supervising preparation of schemes of work and lesson plans, providing teaching and learning resources, promoting programme development, and in some occasions visiting teachers in classrooms. Furthermore, the study revealed that heads of schools’ instructional leadership is affected by lack of financial support, lack of training, teachers’ negligence, and heavy workload. Finally, the study recommends regular in-service trainings to be organized for heads of schools and more research to be carried out to examine the extent to which heads of schools employ instructional leadership practices.

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