LEADERSHIP STYLES PRACTICED BY PRINCIPALS IN PUBLIC SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN SIAYA, KISUMU AND KAJIADO COUNTIES, KENYA
Abstract
The leadership style practiced by a principal is one fundamental factor that determines the success of any school. A principal with appropriate leadership competencies can positively impact on the way teachers undertake their duties which in turn will determine the students’ performance. This study examined the predominant leadership style practiced by principals in public secondary schools in Siaya, Kisumu and Kjiado counties. The study adopted a descriptive survey paradigm. The study was guided by the Full Range Leadership Theory. The target population comprised of 397 principals, 379 deputy principals, 1010 heads of departments, and 2208 teachers in public secondary schools in Siaya, Kisumu and Kajiado counties, Kenya who had served for more than two years in the same school. Stratified and simple random sampling was used to sample 40 secondary school principals, 38 deputy principals, 101 heads of departments and 221 teachers giving a total of 400 respondents. The data for this study was collected using Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire Form 5X which classified, the leadership style of principals as transformational, transactional and laissez-faire. The data collected were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The study found out that transformational leadership style was the predominant leadership style practiced by principals in Siaya, Kisumu and Kajiado counties. The study however established overlapping scores between transactional contingent reward and transformational intellectual stimulation and individualized consideration. The study concluded that even though teachers perceived their principals as more transformational than transactional, one’s leadership style cannot be explicitly categorized as both styles complement each other. The study recommends that teacher development programs should provide training on leadership styles to help school leaders understand when and how apply the various leadership styles depending on the situation at hand.
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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.46827/ejes.v0i0.977
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