The Impact of Principals’ Transformational Leadership Practices on Tutors’ Self-Efficacy Beliefs in the University Colleges of Education in Ghana

Robert Afayori

doi:10.7176/jep/11-3-04

Abstract

Research studies have consistently demonstrated the statistically significant relationships between principals’ transformational leadership practices and teachers’ sense of efficacy in student engagement, instructional strategies and classroom management. What is less studied and very much less researched is the extent to which principals’ transformational leadership practices account for the variances in teachers’ sense of efficacies in tertiary institutions. This current study investigates tutors’ perceptions of the specific principals’ transformational leadership practices which impact on their sense of efficacy in student engagement, instructional strategies and classroom management in the university colleges of education in Ghana. Data was garnered using the PLQ and TSES questionnaire instruments. Following cluster sampling procedures, 629 tutors from 15 university colleges were selected for the study. Descriptive statistics, correlational and multiple regression analyses were to index the specific principals’ transformational leadership practices which accounted for the total variances in the three dimensions of tutors’ sense of efficacy. Findings indicate that principals’ transformational leadership practices such as providing vision and direction and holding high performance expectations accounted for most of the variances in tutors’ sense of efficacy in all three factors. This implies that principals who frequently exercise these leadership qualities are more likely to enhance their tutors’ self-efficacy beliefs in student engagement, instructional strategies and classroom management. Keywords : Principal Leadership Practices, transformational leadership, teacher performance, teacher self-efficacy beliefs, tutor sense of efficacy. DOI : 10.7176/JEP/11-3-04 Publication date: January 31 st 2020

Highlights

Remarkable attempts have been made by governments and institutions of learning to raise the standards of education for all students through educational research and reforms (Day et al, 2016)
The descriptive statistics of tutors’ years of experience and their years of work with their current principals indicate that the minimum number of years of work as a tutor is 1 while maximum is 35
The results of the analysis indicated that principals’ transformational leadership practices accounted for about 4.3% of the total variance in tutors’ sense of efficacy in student engagement

Summary

Introduction

Remarkable attempts have been made by governments and institutions of learning to raise the standards of education for all students through educational research and reforms (Day et al, 2016). Most of the research studies that focus on school improvements and effectiveness principals’ leadership practices as a significant factor (Marks and Printy, 2003; Hallinger and Heck, 2010; Shatzer et al, 2014; Day et al, 2016). Day and colleagues (2016) report that principal leadership practices have the potential to influence positively or negatively various elements of the school such as the organisation of the school, its culture, teacher and staff attitude, student learning and academic achievements (p.222-223). For teachers to achieve such significant levels of performance, they need the support and guidance of good and effective principal leadership. What is less studied and much less researched is the impact of principal transformational leadership practices on tutors’ sense of efficacy in the colleges of education in Ghana

Methods

Results

Conclusion