THE INFLUENCE OF EDUCATIONAL LEADERSâ PRACTICES ON SCHOOL CULTURE AFFECTING ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE: A LESOTHO PERSPECTIVE

• Main Author: Mooqo, Motlalepula Azeal
• Other Authors: Dr ST Brynard
• Format: Others
• Language: en-uk
• Published: University of the Free State 2014
• Subjects: School of Education Studies
• Online Access: http://etd.uovs.ac.za//theses/available/etd-08042014-145136/restricted/

Poor academic performance in high schools continues to be a concern to Lesotho. It is this apprehension, which has prompted this study. On the research front, the disquiet has been with scarcity of investigations on what school principals, through their leadership practices, could do to influence a school culture that supports high academic performance of learners. As a result, the main aim of the study was to investigate and identify the leadership practices of school principals that are intended to create and nurture a culture conducive to high academic performance in high schools in Lesotho. The study also compared the leadership practices at schools that perform academically well with those typical of schools that display poor academic performance. There are conflicting views on the influence of school principalsâ leadership practices on school culture, which supports high academic performance of learners. Some researchers maintain that the influence is little, but significant. However, principals are held accountable for the advancement of schools and academic performance of learners. It is therefore, in order that principals, through their leadership skills, should effectively utilise human and material resources for the wellbeing of the schools they lead. Leadership and school culture are considered as intertwined processes, which exhibit reciprocal effects. The challenge has been to investigate what principals could do to create and maintain an environment that enables teachers and learners to work effectively. The study adopted a positivist approach, which employed a quantitative research designed to identify and describe the leadership practices of school principals and the cultures prevailing at schools. A questionnaire was developed and used to collect data from 120 respondents comprising teachers and principals chosen from 20 high schools in the Maseru district of Lesotho. The data collected were analysed and interpreted statistically for the results to be displayed in tables. Given the scope of the research and the limiting factors therein, the results of the study cannot be generalised to other settings of a similar nature. However, the study has made recommendations that may help to alleviate the problem of poor academic performance in schools. The study has also contributed to the existing knowledge by providing further areas of research in the field of educational leadership and management.