POSTGRADUATE DIPLOMA IN TEACHING

1 / 2023

HMEF5023_V2

EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP

MATRICULATION NO : CGS02754426
IDENTITY CARD NO. : 960310-06-5044
TELEPHONE NO. : 014-8136757
E-MAIL : anisnajihah103@oum.edu.my

LEARNING CENTRE : OUM Temerloh

 TABLE OF CONTENTS

NO. TITLE PAGES

1. 1.0 Introduction 2
2. 2.0 Part 1 2-6
1.1 Journal Article Review
3. 3.0 Part 2 6-11
3.1 In-Depth Interview Report
4. 4.0 Part 3 12
4.1 Online Class Participation
5. References 13

1
1.0 INTRODUCTION
Leadership that promotes the advancement of teaching and learning is known as
instructional leadership. Pedagogical leadership, learning-centered leadership, leadership
for learning, and student-centered leadership are some of the names used to describe it
(Howley-Rouse, 2021). Instructional leadership is tightly connected to the work of
improving learning for students. It is most frequently used to refer to school principals,
who oversee scheduling, budgeting, and curriculum and are in charge of ensuring that
every student succeeds in their institutions. Instructional leaders can establish a culture of
excellence in their schools by concentrating on effective teaching and learning
techniques. This will enable both teachers and students to reach their full potential.

2.0 PART 1: JOURNAL ARTICLE REVIEW

This article was writes by Fazal Mohamed Mohamed Sultan, Gunasegaran
Karuppannan and Justin Rumpod. This article emphasis on the correlation between
instructional leadership practices among headmasters and primary schools’ achievement
in Sabah, Malaysia.

The main focus of this study is to determine the relationship between headmaster’s
instructional leadership practices and the level of performance and achievement of
schools in Malaysia which the study been done at schools in Tuaran District in Sabah.

MOE faced a big challenge in improving the quality of education such as there is
noticeable performance gap between urban and rural areas. This study is important
because it assesses how school leaders, particularly headmasters in rural areas, practice
instructional leadership. Therefore, MOE’s primary goal is to raise overall student’s
achievement and close the performance gap and this is by making sure that each educator
reaches the standards for excellence established by the educational authorities. This
study’s findings will be useful in assisting the MOE, Sabah Education Department, and
District Education Office to implement their plans in improving academic performance at
all levels, especially in rural and remote areas where socio-economic challenges are low.

2
 The researcher felt the needs to conduct a study in order to investigate the factors that
contributed to the problem on why the achievement of Primary School Assessment Test
(UPSR) declined and why schools in rural areas got band 4 meanwhile schools with band
1 is in urban areas. This study was conducted based on four objectives where researcher
wants to find out how primary school headmasters in Tuaran District currently handle
instructional leadership. Other than that, the researcher also wants to determine the
degree of instructional leadership practices among headmasters in Tuaran District based
on school bands. The other objectives are to determine differences in headmasters'
instructional leadership based on demographic factors in the Tuaran District and to
examine the connection between Tuaran District school bands and the principals'
practices for instructional leadership.

This study was conducted by giving out questionnaires to the schools with band 1,2,3,
and 4. The theoretical framework used in this research is based on Hallinger and
Murphy's Instructional Leadership Model. (1985). The headmasters' instructional
leadership, which had three dimensions which are defining school goals, overseeing
instructional programs, and fostering a supportive learning environment was the
independent variable in this study. When this independent variable undergoes changes,
the dependent variable is also changed. Other than giving out the questionnaires,
researcher also conducted a pilot study that contributed 30% of the actual study sample
involving 42 respondents from primary schools in Tamparuli district. 141 respondents
participate in this study by returning the questionnaires after a week it was distributed.
The provided questionnaire instrument is divided into three sections, Parts A, B, and C,
totaling 57 questions.

The results of the study show that 87 respondents out of 141 respondents were male
while the remaining were female. For the first objective which is determining the levels
of instructional leadership practices by headmasters shows that dimension 1 in leadership
practice which is defining school goals was the highest practices where the two elements
in instructional leadership specifically formulating school goals and disseminating school
information have a standard deviation of 0.61 where the mean is 4.44. Meanwhile, for
dimension 2 which is instructional program management had a mean of 4.22 with
3
standard deviation of 0.67 and promoting a learning climate as dimension 3 had a mean
of 4.18 with a standard deviation of 0.71. Thus, it is clear that the headmasters engage in
highly effective instructional leadership. Based on an analysis of instructional leadership
components, it can be seen that some components have a high level of mean and some
have a low level. The results imply that some of these factors are prioritized more in
instructional leadership than others.

For the second objective which is to identifying the state of instructional leadership
practice according to school bands. According to analysis, Band 1 and Band 4 schools
exhibit distinctly different instructional leadership practices where Band 1 schools had a
mean of 4.4 while Band 4 schools’ mean was 4.05. In summary, the mean level is
regarded as being high and demonstrates that the instructional leadership practices used
by headmasters of Band 1, 2, 3, and 4 schools are of an excellent standard. The analysis
of data based on the instructional leadership dimension revealed that Band 1 schools
outperform other schools in all dimensions. Based on descriptive statistical evaluation, it
was discovered that the dimension of define school goals, with a mean of 4.41, is the
most prevalent one of instructional leadership practiced by headmasters in Tuaran. The
dimension promoting a positive learning climate comes in third with a mean of 4.12,
followed by the second-most dimension, managing instructional programs, with a mean
of 4.19. The results were all deemed excellent, which shows that the headmasters are
using leadership techniques that are almost always in line with the need to raise student
achievement. The result is consistent with Jamelaa's (2012) study, which determined that
headmasters' dedication to the instructional leadership dimension will result in a positive
effect on students' achievement levels.

To determine whether headmasters in Tuaran District differ in terms of instructional

leadership level depending on demographic factors is the third objective of this study.
The results demonstrate that there are no significant differences in instructional
leadership based on gender, age, position held, grade, or level of education. The ANOVA
test was used to analyze differences in headmasters' instructional leadership practices
based on respondents' demographic characteristics. It can be concluded that based on the

4
respondents' demographic characteristics, the study finds no statistically significant
differences in the level of instructional leadership practices among headmasters.

The last objective of this study is to examine the connection between Tuaran District
school bands achievement and the principals' practices for instructional leadership.
According to a Pearson Correlation analysis, there was a marginally negative correlation
(r = -0.210*, p 0.05) between the instructional leadership of headmasters and the
achievement level or band of schools. This justify that the performance of the school's
band level will not necessarily be impacted by an increase or decrease in the level of
instructional leadership practices. For instance, other factors might cause a Band 3 school
to move up to Band 1 such as, the improvement in the level of instructional leadership
practices of headmasters does not necessarily account for environmental factors, parent
socioeconomic status, and the rise in composite scores in the Malaysian Education
Quality Standards (SKPM). These results are consistent with a study by Usang (2012)
conducted in secondary schools in Sarawak, which found a weak negative relationship
between principals' leadership in the classroom and students' performance on exams.

The researcher came to the conclusion that primary school headmasters in Tuaran
District, Sabah, exhibit a high level of instructional leadership practices. They have
carried out their responsibilities as instructional leaders in accordance with the goals set
forth by the MoE in the PPPM, which places high-performing leaders in the service of
educational excellence. The fact that the dimension of defining schools' goals has the
highest score indicates that many headmasters place a high priority on it is the second
conclusion of the study. Third conclusion is in comparison to headmasters at Bands 2 and
3, the study found that headmasters at Band 1 schools exhibit higher levels of
instructional leadership practices. Each school's excellence is influenced by a variety of
factors. Among them, the leadership element is merely one. The excellence of schools is
also influenced by factors such as geography, socioeconomic status of parents, and the
local environment. Overall, it was discovered that headmasters should prioritize all three
dimensions in their instructional leadership practices. The results are consistent with a
study by Zakaria (2016) that looked at Malaysia's under-enrolled schools and discovered

5
that headmasters exercise strong instructional leadership in the creation of their
institution's mission and vision.

The personal understanding of this article that the researcher conducted a study to
determine the correlation between instructional leadership practices among headmasters
and primary schools’ achievement in Tuaran District in Sabah. Other than that, this study
can help MOE, Sabah Education Department and District Education Office to carry out
their plan in raising all levels of academic achievement. The researcher also successfully
assessed how well primary school principals in Tuaran use instructional leadership
practices and the researcher also discovered differences in instructional leadership
practices based on the level of performance of schools or bands.

Critiques of the article are the introduction may need to be more precise on what
purpose of this study. Other than that, the data in this study does not show the date when
the data was collected. This makes us the reader feel lost a little bit in engaging with this
study.

3.0 PART 2: IN-DEPTH INTERVIEW REPORT

A principal served as the head of an institution, establishing the fundamental
principles that will drive staff and students concurrently on to academic success. Great
principals understand the significance of their roles and carry them out with dedication,
purpose, and consistency. According to evaluations of school leadership, a principal's
leadership duties include planning, implementing, supporting, advocating, and
monitoring (2022).

The profile of the first informant which will be called as Mr H is a male teacher that
has been teaching for more than 30 years. Mr. H who was born in 1967 in Baling, Kedah
has successfully obtained Sijil Perguruan Asas (SPA) after graduating from Maktab
Perguruan Sultan Idris (MPSI) which now known as Sultan Idris Education University
(UPSI). He graduated from MPSI in 1989 and also started teaching in the same year.
After teaching for 26 years, he successfully completed his study in Bachelor of Education
(Primary School) with Honors in 2015 with a major in Malay Language Studies. He has

6
received the Excellent Service Award three times during his tenure. He has spent the last
30 years working in five different schools, and he is currently committed to her fifth.

The second informants’ profile which will be called as Madam M is a female teacher
who was born in 1968 in Temerloh, Pahang. Madam M has been teaching for 30 years
since 1993. She has successfully obtained her Sijil Perguruan Asas (SPA) after
graduating from Maktab Perguruan Kinta, Ipoh (MPKI) in 1993 and also started teaching
in the same year. She successfully obtained her bachelor’s degree in Bachelor of
Education (Primary School) with Honors in 2015 after teaching for 22 years. She is major
in Islamic Education. She has received the Excellent Service Award two time during the
tenure. She has spent the last 30 years teaching in four different schools and currently she
held the position of Library Media Teacher in her fourth school.

An in-depth interview has been done with two senior teachers from the same school.
This interview objective is to determine the teacher’s perceptions of the school
principal’s leadership qualities and used the article (Sultan et al., 2022) as a reference for
the interview. The interview was conducted according to four themes which are
accountability, communication, decision-making, and time management.

1.0 Accountability

Both informants indicated that accountability and appropriate leadership style must go
hand in hand so that the principal can play his role more effectively. The informants also
said that they become more motivated when the principal gives them the trust to carry out
the duties assigned to them. Mr. H commended,

“…Alhamdulillah, the principal implemented a transformational leadership style since

he first started at the school. His leadership style makes us the teachers to feel satisfied
and motivated to face the day. He will always encourage the teacher to solve the
problems and make a decision based on his supervision. I can say that he is like a
motivator in school since he always motivates us.”

7
 As for Madam M, she said that the principal makes her feel motivated in doing her job
as the principal always guide her when she faced some problems in school. She does not
feel burdened with school work as she enjoys her time in school.

“…I am very happy to have him as my principal as he always encouraged us to create

a conducive and prosperous environment. He may seem firm and does not look friendly
but he is very much liked by many. This is because he is good in communicating, positive
and always be fair.”

The informants reported that their principal makes them feel appreciated and happy by
always motivating them and guiding them to perform their works. They also stated that
positive and encouraging principals motivated them to carry out their responsibilities and
duties with full commitment and dedication.

2.0 Communication

Another crucial component of leadership quality identified by the informants is

communication. Both of the informants responded that communication is really important
in school since it can affect the success or failure of the school. Both of Mr. H and
Madam M commended,

Mr. H:

“…Yes, communication is very important in school either communication between

principals and teachers or communication between teachers and students. Our principals
will always pay attention to the teacher's perspective and take note of it. That makes us
feel included in making decision and performed school activities.”

Madam M:

“…Every school will have an observation in the classroom where the principal will
observe the teacher during their lesson time. After the observation, usually he will
reprimand them about their mistakes if there were any mistakes and he also give some
advices on ways to fix the mistakes that they made during their lesson time in the

8
classroom. He did not get angry when mistakes happened as he knows that nobody is
perfect, even a teacher can make mistakes but he will ask them nicely and guide them.”

Both informants reported that they feel appreciated when their principal keep on
communicating with teachers in any aspect about improving their school. Not only it
helps them improving their school system but also increase teachers’ job satisfaction. A
principal who communicate well with teachers, students and even the parents always get
a positive result in improving the school perceptions and systems.

3.0 Decision-Making

A principal should have decision-making as one of the leadership qualities.

Decision-making is one of the crucial qualities because if a leader cannot make a
decision, it appears to staff that the leader is incompetent. Mr. H said:

“…Becoming a principal is not an easy matter as principal should know on how to

make a decision. Decision-making is a crucial skill as it helps us to improve schools’
productivity. It also shows that principal trustworthy and thoughtful which makes the
teachers feel that they can confide with them about their interests and concerns. Our
principal trust us, the teachers to attend meetings outside school. When the teacher come
back from their meetings, our principal will ask the teacher to share their experience in a
meeting with every teacher in the school. He also let the teacher to lead other in applying
the knowledge that has been learned in order to achieve school’s goals.”

As for Madam M, she said that whenever there is disagreement among teachers, the
principal will be the middle man who will help to solve the disagreement.

“…He always helps us to reach our agreement. However, it is not a big

disagreement and not always happened. If it happens, he will always become the middle
man and always make a win-win decision. This let us know that he is a competent leader
that can lead us to become a great team in the school.”

Both informants agreed that a competent principal can make good decisions
whenever they faced any complications. They also stated that a wise principal uses
9
participative and collaborative strategies for all important decisions. By listening to
others opinion, it can help the principal to make a wise decision that can give good
impact to the school.

4.0 Time Management

The two informants identified time management as one of the leadership qualities.
The informants responded that time management skills can assist principals in meeting
job demands, reducing job stress, and improving performance. Both Mr. H and Madam
M commended,

Mr. H:

“…Time management is a crucial skill that a principal should have. Our principal
set priorities about what is most important. He will make a plan by managing the
priorities from the most important to least important. Once he sorted out the priorities, he
will set his mind in completing it by guiding the teachers to execute the plan he made in
order to meet the deadline of his priorities. His priorities are always about meeting
school’s vision and mission. Therefore, teachers are always willingly to help him as he
always makes backup plans in case something unexpected happens.”

Madam M:

“…During the examination season in our school, the principal gives a frame time
to teachers in order for them to make preparations before and after examination. This
helps teachers to sort out their priorities for the examination.”

Mr. H and Madam M see eye to eye where time management can reduce stress
and priorities the time either teacher’s time or principal’s time. When the principal good
in time management, it can help in increasing teacher’s performance and also increase the
school achievement.

The key findings of teacher’s perceptions of the school principal’s leadership

qualities are accountability, communication, decision-making, and time management.

10
Both of the teachers have same opinion regarding the qualities of leadership in their
principal.

In conclusion, a principal that have those leadership qualities is an excellent

leader as they used the qualities to help them manage their teachers and school systems.
Other than that, principal’s leadership is one of the most frequently mentioned
determinants of a school’s overall accomplishment.

(3053 words)

11
4.0 PART 3: ONLINE CLASS PARTICIPATION

12
5.0 REFERENCES

Howley-Rouse, A. (2021, March 10). Instructional leadership and why it matters. THE
EDUCATION HUB. Retrieved from https://theeducationhub.org.nz/instructional-
leadership-and-why-it-matters/

The qualities that make a principal great. Just Imagination Blog - Just Imagination Blog.
(2022, October 14). Retrieved from https://blog.jcu.edu/2022/02/23/the-qualities-
that-make-a-principal-great/

13