Abstract:
The rationale underpinning the study was frequent leadership change, which has the
potency to disrupt the school’s progress as stability in leadership is very critical to
school development. However, in Klo-Agogo Senior High School, persistent leadership
instability has been the norm to the extent that the school experienced nine different
leadership in a decade. This interpretive qualitative case-study enquiry was conducted
to explore stakeholders' thoughts, feelings, and actions to gain deeper in-depth
contextual knowledge of the leadership instability phenomenon. Face-to-face interview
was conducted with twenty (20) participants sampled purposively for the study
supported with documentary evidence to increase the study's trustworthiness. Thematic
analysis was employed for the data analyses. The findings unearthed lack of induction,
orientation, and coaching services for heads, novice heads, community interference,
and poor accommodation as the major causes of leadership instability in the school.
Whereas, head retention practices include; induction and orientation service for newly
appointed heads, orientation for the community to know the limit to roles as
stakeholders of the school, befitting accommodation for the head and staff, and good
community-school relationship establishment. The study recommends school support
initiative orientation for all stakeholders to help maintain top talented heads in the
school. Stable head leadership must be ensured in schools to increase teacher
productivity, augment student achievement gains, improve school outcomes, and have
positive externalities to the community as a whole to enhance national development
Description:
A thesis in the Department of Educational Administration and
Management, Faculty of Educational Studies, submitted to the school of
Graduate Studies in partial fulfillment
of the requirements for the award of the degree of
Master of Philosophy
(Educational Administration and Management)
in the University of Education, Winneba