European Journal of Education Studies ISSN: 2501 - 1111 ISSN-L: 2501 - 1111 Available on-line at: www.oapub.org/edu Volume 3 │ Issue 9 │ 2017 doi: 10.5281/zenodo.889100 ENHANCING LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT IN GHANAIAN SENIOR SECONDARY SCHOOLS: AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS AND RECOMMENDATIONS FOR EFFECTIVE PRACTICE Gifty Abena Ampong1, Martin Gyambrah2, Joel Schmidt3, Christian Werner4 Med, University of Applied Management, Germany 1 Ph.D, University of Applied Management, Ghana Campus 2 Ph.D, University of Applied Management, Germany 3 Ph.D, Dr., rer. oec, Private University Seeburg Castle, Seekirchen, Austria 4 Abstract: Leadership is considered to be significant for the success of any institution. The present study focused on Enhancing Leadership Development in Ghanaian Senior Secondary Schools. The study employed an exploratory analysis research which was qualitative in nature. Sample included principals, teachers, administrative staffs and some workers from the Ministry of Education. Purposive sampling procedure was employed. Data were collected through semi-structured interview protocols. An interpretive approach was used to analyze the data and generate meaning and conclusions. The following findings were observed; some of the leadership challenges faced by principals in the Ghanaian senior high schools include financial challenges, inadequate logistics, and lack of infrastructure, indiscipline among students, unskilled / uncooperative personnel, and lack of motivation. Some of the requisite leadership skills observed were communication, managerial, instructional and social skills. It was further observed that the modes for leadership development capability included In-service training, mentoring, coaching, feedback, seminar and workshop. Both theoretical and practical content was observed for the approaches employed in leadership development delivery. Finally, with regards to support, it was observed that some of the schools had to generate their own internal support due to inadequate or no support coming from the governmental level. The study concluded that given the importance of educational leadership, the development of effective leaders should be a deliberate process Copyright © The Author(s). All Rights Reserved. © 2015 – 2017 Open Access Publishing Group 423 Gifty Abena Ampong, Martin Gyambrah, Joel Schmidt, Christian Werner ENHANCING LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT IN GHANAIAN SENIOR SECONDARY SCHOOLS: AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS AND RECOMMENDATIONS FOR EFFECTIVE PRACTICE designed to produce the best possible leadership for schools and colleges. In this view, it was recommended that a continuous leadership development program of activities which focus on recruitment of candidates from preparation level to succession level. It was further recommended that Senior High Schools in Ghana should organize inservice training to cover need and context and also ensure suitable variety modes for effective training through a broad body of knowledge supported by practices that identify the content, design and methods of effective programs. Keywords: development, leadership, education, practices, models 1. Introduction There is not a single documented case of a school successfully turning around its pupil achievement trajectory, in the absence of talented leadership. One explanation for this is that leadership serves as a catalyst for unleashing the potential capacities that already exist in the organization (Leithwood, Day, Sammons, Harris, & Hopkins, 2006). Effective leadership enables institutions to achieve the expected outcomes. School leadership is increasingly seen as a vital component of school improvement. In one of the most recent comprehensive review of the impacts of school leadership conducted by Leithwood, Seashore, Anderson, and Wahlstrom (2004) concluded that among schoolrelated factors leadership is an only factor next to classroom instruction that contributes to what students learn at school. School leaders have both direct and indirect effects on students’ achievement and school success. Principals play a vital and multi-faceted role in setting the direction for schools that are positive and productive workplaces for teachers and vibrant learning environments for children. The main purpose of education is to produce good and productive citizens. In today’s environment of keen expectations, school leaders are expected to improving teaching and learning at school level. They are expected to negotiate with the conflicting interests of parents, teachers, students, bureaucracy, unions, and other state and federal agencies (Stanford Educational Leadership Institute (SELI). The expectations for schools and school leaders have changed profoundly. The British Office for Standards in Education stated that strong leadership from the head teacher was a characteristic feature of all schools in England that were making good progress with addressing the key issues in the action plan (Ofsted, 2003). Several research studies have shown that high-quality leadership has a significant impact on both pupils’ academic and non-academic outcomes. There is a wealth of evidence to suggest that the quality of leadership positively enhances teaching and learning (Harris, European Journal of Education Studies - Volume 3 │ Issue 9 │ 2017 424 Gifty Abena Ampong, Martin Gyambrah, Joel Schmidt, Christian Werner ENHANCING LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT IN GHANAIAN SENIOR SECONDARY SCHOOLS: AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS AND RECOMMENDATIONS FOR EFFECTIVE PRACTICE 2004). School-level factors such as leadership, organizational learning and teachers’ work have a significant impact on non-academic student outcomes such as participation in school, academic self-concept and engagement with the school (Hargreaves & Fink, 2006). Leadership is one of the most important predictors of whether groups and organizations are able to effectively adapt to and perform in dynamic environments (Peterson, Smith, Martorana, & Owens, 2003). Deal and Peterson (1999) stated that changes in school process have left many educators consciously or unconsciously mixed up, exhausted and disappointed. And these changes in the process can be seen as evolutionary. To accept change that provides internal steadiness while moving ahead is one of the challenges educational institutions have to face. To improve educational quality a leadership development approach which is oriented toward building capacity in anticipation of unforeseen challenges should be considered. The heads or leaders of the institutions are responsible for managing the resources available effectively for producing the desired outcome. In the school context, the major resources are people in addition to physical and financial resources. In order to be efficient, the heads of the schools must be very dynamic, well qualified and experienced. Leadership in education is an ambiguous and complex concept, and there are vastly theories and researches on school administration and leadership which reflect this conceptual fuzziness, (Goldring & Greenfield, 2002). Divergent perspectives within the academy, among policy makers at national and local levels, and among school leader and administrators add to a growing swirl of competing and often conflicting role images and expectations. Over the past two decades, the modernist views of organizations and leadership, in particular, are changing. This in many ways may be connected to the uncertainty, turbulence, messiness, and unpredictability of the milieu of schooling. Essentially, the people-changing goals of schools make school administration and leadership a daunting challenge. These factors cause leadership in education not to ensure effective leadership for the good health of the institution, (Murphy & Louis, 1999). Leadership development is believed to help leaders to ensure effective leadership in an organization. Leadership development is defined by McCauley et.al, (1998) as expanding the collective capacity of organizational members to engage effectively in leadership roles and processes. The integration of leadership development with career progression and organizational performance (Schleicher, 2012), is essential for the 21st-century leadership roles in education. Alongside this background, this study looks into leadership in Ghanaian senior secondary schools (SHSs). Investigating the models available for development and European Journal of Education Studies - Volume 3 │ Issue 9 │ 2017 425 Gifty Abena Ampong, Martin Gyambrah, Joel Schmidt, Christian Werner ENHANCING LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT IN GHANAIAN SENIOR SECONDARY SCHOOLS: AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS AND RECOMMENDATIONS FOR EFFECTIVE PRACTICE eventually, propose possible improvements using examples from countries like UK, USA, and Singapore. Leadership development cases from around the world will also be studied and lessons that are necessary for the development of leadership in Ghanaian senior secondary schools will also be drawn upon. By taking some secondary schools in a suburb of Accra as a study, it is hoped that findings from these schools could serve as evidence on the ground on how leaders in secondary schools are developed to face the unanticipated challenges that may arise in the process of leading and the approaches available for these leaders. 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