Abstract:

The principal as the head of the school is held accountable for the effectiveness and the success of the school. Furthermore, the Department of Basic Education (DBE) uses the grade 12 academic results as the yardstick to measure school effectiveness. This article provides a South African perspective on successful school leadership with the main focus on female principals.

The aim of this study was:
(1) to investigate the leadership styles and behaviours employed by female principals in order to influence high learner outcomes
(2) to explore the role of principals in producing high academic results.

Case study which is apt for this kind of study was chosen as the qualitative research methodology. Semi structured interviews, observations and document analysis were used as research instruments to collect data. Four female principals leading successful schools that were doing exceptionally well were purposefully sampled. The female principals in this study transcended against all odds to transform their schools into pockets of academic excellence. Research sites where outstanding educational outcomes (according to the DBE standards) were believed to be occurring were selected. These schools were situated in disadvantaged contexts wherein the surrounding community is experiencing the upsurge prevalence of HIV/AIDS, unemployment, teenage pregnancy, poverty and lack of parental involvement in the curriculum issues. The data was coded into categories and common themes identified. Critical discourse analysis was particularly employed to analyse the non-verbal cues displayed by teachers towards leadership style and behaviour. Analysis of data revealed certain attributes, behaviours and leadership styles to be a key factor in influencing learner outcomes. The naturalistic nurturing aspect of female principals built trust as the emotional glue between the principals and their staff members. All four women portrayed common leadership styles i.e. instructional leadership, servant leadership, shared leadership and afro-centric leadership. The study concluded that transforming schools into pockets of academic excellence needed a firm, visionary and determined leader. The practical implications are that whilst the study focused on female principals, the implications have a broader transnational focus given the fact that the government deems education as the most significant tool to redress the imbalances of the past regime.

Keywords:

Academic excellence, quality teaching and learning, afro-centric leadership, instructional leadership, shared leadership, distributed leadership.