Abstract
The main purpose of this study was to provide insights about school leadership preparation in Nairobi, Kenya. It also aimed at revealing information for the development of appropriate school leadership programs. I employed concurrent mixed methods, whereby a questionnaire and interviews were used simultaneously to gather data from primary and secondary school leaders in Nairobi, Kenya. The questionnaire was used to gather quantitative data from 116 school leaders, while semi-structured interviews were used to gather qualitative data from a purposively selected sub sample of 21 school leaders.
Findings revealed the participants’ sense of their preparedness for school leadership, associated with varied experiences that they brought to their appointment. The experiences included formal courses where they received degrees, non-formal experiences such as workshops and seminars, and informal experiences through unstructured mentorship, understudying other leaders, and proxy. However, the challenges faced in the actual practice revealed gaps in the school leadership preparation experiences. The gaps were most pronounced in regard to leadership and management skills associated with: financial accounting, human resource; establishing systemic procedures for recording; and accounting for performance. There were also gaps in visioning, managing diversity, facilitating change from negative attitudes towards education, enabling professional development, and handling emerging issues related to poverty, drugs, discipline and family predicaments. The leaders also faced individual challenges manifested in their lack of confidence, fear for their survival on the job, and achieving a work and life balance.
The study revealed the following as key elements which must be addressed in improving preparation for school leaders: criteria for appointing leaders and instructors for their leadership preparation programs; relevant course content; varied mode and instructional strategies; professional support; collaboration and linkages with other leadership development institutions; and sustainable funding. The analysis of data using the four dimensions of Wilber’s integral theory revealed that Nairobi needs a school leadership preparation framework that incorporates these key elements with the four dimensions of reality in this theory: Therefore, policy makers, developers of school leadership preparation programs, and researchers of school leadership should be concerned about how these leaders are equipped to negotiate and integrate their intentions, feelings, behaviour, personal and professional realities; while they nurture a school culture that enhances the quality of leadership in the education system.
