The study of context-based leadership practices has gained currency during the last decadeThis study aims to complement the recent efforts of researchers in identifying the context-based leadership practices of successful school leaders, and deliberating how these practices are enacted within their own unique contextsAn in-depth case study was conducted in a successful school in northern Malaysia using a combination of case study methods and grounded theory Case study methods were used for data collection from multiple sources, employing a semi-structured interview protocol derived from the one used in several studies conducted under the International Successful School Principal ship ProjectThe findings of the case study reveal that strong interpersonal skills, people-centered leadership, clear communication of vision and goal, focus on academic achievement, co-curricular activities, developing people and creating a positive work environment are all vital constituents of successful leadershipThe findings will attempt to add to the scant literature on context-based leadership practices from MalaysiaImplications for practice can be drawn for policymakers, who must resist over-reliance on borrowed leadership models, while practitioners need to prioritize their practices based upon the contextual requirements to succeed

Contextual leadership practices

Leading change from the classroom is closely linked with the development of teacher leaders. It is considered to be the significant outcome of teachers’ commitment to change their ordinary role as classroom instructional leaders to school-based teacher leaders. In this regard, it is a privilege for teacher leaders to walk with principals who portray developmental leadership behavior competently. Thus, the objective of this study is to test a theory-based model predicting teachers’ leadership competencies and its relationship with principals’ developmental leadership behavior and teachers’ commitment to change. Data was collected from 928 respondents who served in 58 high performing secondary schools in Malaysia. Structural Equation Modeling was utilized to test the model developed. The results indicate that the teachers’ leadership competencies have significant relationship with principals’ developmental leadership behavior and teachers’ commitment to change. In addition, principals’ developmental leadership behavior was found to mediate the relationship between teachers’ leadership competencies and teachers’ commitment to change.

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Leadership Competencies and Commitment to Change: The Mediating Effect of Developmental Leadership Behavior

The leadership opportunities for students with disabilities are dependent on school leaders and teachers as they are advocates and provide natural support in fostering their leadership development....

Leadership Opportunities for Students with Disabilities in Co-Curriculum Activities: Insights and Implications

Instructional leadership is about actions carried out by school leaders such as headmaster or school principal to improve the quality of teachers’ instruction and improve students’ learning outcomes. This qualitative study was conducted to identify instructional leadership practices among the headmaster in selected High Performing Schools around Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur. This study used the interview method for data collection. Participants for the interviews were six headmasters of the high performing primary school who have 5 to 20 years of experiences in the field of education. The results show headmasters in High Performing Schools in the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur practicing the five dimensions of instructional leadership in improving school climate, which are protect instructional time, provide incentives to students, provide incentives to teachers, promote professional development and maintain high visibility at school. The results also indicate that the instructional leadership practices of the headmaster in High Performing Schools focusing on the professional development to ensure teachers’ instructional competency is at the high level. Consequently, teacher professional development program should be emphasized in a leadership training program for school leaders to increase their capacity as effective instructional leaders by assisting teachers to improve teaching and learning activities in schools.

https://jupidi.um.edu.my/article/download/8430/5861

Amalan kepimpinan pengajaran untuk penambahbaikan sekolah: retrospeksi guru besar sekolah berprestasi tinggi

Kajian ini bertujuan untuk mengenal pasti tahap amalan kepimpinan teragih dalam kalangan guru besar di Sekolah Jenis Kebangsaan Cina (SJKC) di Semenanjung Malaysia. Secara khususnya, kajian ini bertujuan untuk mengenal pasti tahap amalan kepimpinan teragih berdasarkan dimensi Misi, Visi dan Matlamat, Budaya Sekolah, Perkongsian Tanggungjawab dan Amalan Kepimpinan. Kajian ini mengaplikasikan kaedah kuantitatif yang menggunakan pendekatan tinjauan. Sebanyak 379 orang responden telah dipilih secara rawak dalam kajian ini. Kajian ini dianalisis secara deskriptif dengan menggunakan skor min dan sisihan piawai. Dapatan kajian ini menunjukkan tahap amalan kepimpinan teragih secara keseluruhannya berada pada tahap yang Tinggi (Min = 3.99, SP = 0.45). Selain itu, dapatan kajian juga menunjukkan dimensi Misi, Visi dan Matlamat, Budaya Sekolah, Perkongsian Tanggungjawab dan Amalan Kepimpinan berada pada tahap yang Tinggi. Kajian ini dapat menyumbang kefahaman kepada para guru besar tentang kepentingan amalan kepimpinan teragih di sekolah. Selain itu, kajian ini telah menambah maklumat mengenai kepimpinan teragih dan penambahan maklumat ini dapat membantu pengkaji lain dalam kajian lanjutan tentang kepimpinan teragih dalam proses mencapai tujuan reformasi pendidikan selaras dengan Pelan Pembangunan Pendidikan Malaysia 2013-2025 (PPPM).

Amalan kepimpinan teragih di sekolah jenis kebangsaan cina di semenanjung malaysia

Substantial progress has been made in the knowledge base of educational leadership and management (EDLM) in societies across the world. However, the evidence base in developing countries such as Ma...

The elusive Malayan tiger ‘captured’: A systematic review of research on educational leadership and management in Malaysia:

The millennium age of educational leadership opens a new perspective towards student leadership (Black et al., 2014).  The idea of student leadership in the 21st century has risen (Adams & Velarde, 2018), the call for student leadership gaining in momentum, as various enhanced leadership models and trends are developed for students (Tan & Adams 2018; Tie, 2012). Scholars argue that students’ leadership development should be a priority to assist students to form a strong leadership identity at an early stage (Adams, Kamarudin, & Tan, 2018; Amirianzadeh, 2012; Keselman et al., 2015; Simonsen et al., 2014; Villarreal et al., 2018).  
There are still lingering doubts over the leadership competencies of student leaders. As leaders of tomorrow; it is imperative they grasp an understanding of the many leadership styles, know the leadership models and exposed to leadership development programs that enables them to increase their knowledge, competence, skills and capabilities as leaders. Student leadership development is now the responsibility of all members of the learning community (Dugan & Komives, 2007) and schools have a responsibility to prepare students to lead (Adams, Kamarudin, & Tan, 2018). However, there is little research regarding student leadership and leadership development models (Wisner, 2011). 
Astin’s (1977) decades of research on student leadership may have sparked initial discussions. Astin’s introduction of the Student Involvement Theory and subsequently developing three important models of student leadership; namely the College Impact Model, the Social Change Model, and the Transformative Leadership Model serves as a guide for other research on understanding student qualities and characteristics and the nature of the educational environment students experience (Astin, 1991), students’ leadership development (Astin et al., 1996), and to transform a campus to a leadership environment (Astin & Astin, 2000).
Subsequently, the Student Leadership Challenge Model was developed by Kouzes and Posner (2003) highlighting common practices of exemplary student leadership and how they influence others “a desire to make something happen, to change the way things are, to create something that no one has ever created before” (p. 15). Amirianzadeh, Jaafari, Ghourchian and Jowkar (2010) combined both Astin’s et al (1996) and Kouzes and Posner (2003) work to develop the Student Leadership Competencies Model. The model looks at the effects of students’ involvement, environment, attitudes and behaviour as important variables in student leadership competencies development.
A more contemporary theory of student leadership emerged in Amirianzadeh’s (2012) Hexagon Theory of Student Leadership. This theory was built upon empirical student leadership research over the past two decades. The theory advocates that student leadership develops from education, training and development through the individual himself and their social environment, thus this model enables the students to function within these dimensions as a leader. Interestingly, Bolman and Deal’s (1997) Four-Frame Model, one of the best-known theories of leadership and management (Bush, 2011) remains relatively unexplored in the area of student leadership (Tan & Adams, 2018).
A notable observation is that most student leadership literature comes from the researchers’ perspective rather the student’s perspective (Dempster & Lizzio, 2007). While it’s important to understand the various models of student leadership as the development of leadership training and development programmes will enhance` students’ leadership effectiveness (Adams, 2018; Wisner, 2011), the true voices of the students are outweighed by the voices of researchers (Aminitehrani, 2017). This has become all the more apparent especially among students with disability where research on student leadership among students with disability is yet to be uncovered worldwide (Chapman, Ainscow, Miles, & West, 2011).
While researchers come up with various models of student leadership and educators wax eloquently about the importance of developing student leaders, these remain theories until they are applied practically in leadership development programmes for students. There is a need for more research on student leadership, factors that inhibit its effectiveness and the challenges encountered, in order to develop leadership programs for students to have the added competencies that the 21st century demands.

Pavithra Semaadderi

Papers

The elusive Malayan tiger ‘captured’: A systematic review of research on educational leadership and management in Malaysia:

Student Leadership and Development: A Panoramic View of Trends and Possibilities