Fostering effective leadership and management with special reference to rural schools

M.Ed. (Educational Leadership and Management)There is considerable and growing evidence that principals can play a pivotal role in initiating school effectiveness particularly as it pertains to student academic performance. To be successful in such initiatives principals must motivate and encourage teachers, students, parents and other community members to join their effort in creating positive engaging school climate that increase the likelihood of student good performance. Educational changes in rural schools have an impact on managers and leaders in various ways. Principals are expected to lead and manage aspects such as curriculum, organizational change, resources and human resources. These challenges stem from a number of sources from within the school resources, from a community perspective and from the school setting itself. Today the administrative role and tasks of school principal are becoming increasingly complex and diverse. There is a need for principals to develop appropriate leadership skills to enable them to carry their tasks effectively. However, not all principals and teachers received proper training to execute their jobs effectively. Many rural school principals are in such unviable positions where they lack preparation programme in their leadership and management position. The researcher used a digital voice recorder and field notes to capture the data from all participants. An Individual participant interview was conducted from all participants. Raw material was sifted and the researcher managed to come out with themes and categories related to fostering effective management leadership in rural schools. The findings from this study are that being a school principal is not an easy job. The job is demanding and full of tension. More is expected of principals yet the principals yet the principals have not received much more in the way of help and support preparatory programmes in a form of training