Leadership Content Knowledge and Instructional Leadership in Selected International Schools in Mandalay, Myanmar: Analyzing Teacher’s Perception

Abstract

Leadership content knowledge refers to principals’ understandings about the content of school subjects (Stein and Nelson, 2003). In Instructional Leadership, a principal collaborates with teachers to promote and guide the development of best practices in the classroom. When the principal and the teacher specialize in different fields, the principal may struggle to offer relevant feedback conducive to teacher growth and influence learning outcomes. This research endeavored to analyze teachers’ perception of leadership content knowledge of the various aspects of instructional leadership. Respondents provided ratings on leadership content knowledge in enhancing learners’ academic, fostering teacher growth, and positively contributing to instructional strategies. It also measured the perception of teachers of the school principals’ content knowledge, creating a comprehensive picture of the constructive role of leadership content knowledge in the overall educational experience. Conversely, the Likert-scale questions in other parts were structured to gauge the negative results on academic success associated with lack of leadership content knowledge. Teachers rated the negative impact posed by the lack of content knowledge in terms of effective instructional strategies, learners’ academic development, and continuous improvement of instructional practices. The section delved into teachers’ perceptions in the absence of content knowledge and its adaptability to educational advancements, school’s overall academic success, and instructional leadership. Convenience sampling was employed, where the researcher could collect data from a conveniently available pool of respondents. The researcher used convenience sampling due to practical requirements, like being in the same location, being available at a specific time, being easily accessible, or being willing to volunteer. The researcher used a self-made closed-ended survey validated by the expert, with 20 questions featuring Likert-scale. The survey questionnaire was administered electronically, fostering ease of participation.