“My supervisors first check school cleanliness”: Factors inhibiting instructional leadership practices in Northern Sindh, Pakistan

Abstract

Amid the growing concerns of educational stakeholders about the academic achievements of students, educational literature, especially coming from the developed context, portrays instructional leadership as a desirable model with the potential to contribute to the improved capacity of teachers, ultimately leading to enhanced student achievements. However, research shows that school leadership is context-dependent, and different contexts and cultures differently influence the enactment of instructional leadership. Against this background, the current study explored the factors inhibiting instructional leadership practices in the developing world, taking Pakistan as a case. The research used a qualitative approach and case study method concentrating on the phenomenon of instructional leadership in a semi-government school in the context of Northern Sindh, Pakistan. Considering the area under investigation, the school manager and principal were purposefully selected as the research participants. Ten teachers were also consulted to enrich and triangulate data. The school leaders (manager and principal) were interviewed individually using semi-structured interviews, whereas the teachers were interviewed in groups. The emerging data were analyzed using thematic analysis. The results showed that the school leaders’ instructional leadership practices were mainly inhibited by their partial understanding of their responsibilities, limited exposure to capacity building opportunities, teachers’ attitudes, and a communication gap between the school and the upper management responsible for overseeing the academic activities of the school. The paper argues that unless these influential factors are considered by policy makers and educational leaders, it is very unlikely for the school leaders to exercise instructional leadership in this part of the world.