Understanding the Headteachers ' Role in Pakistan: Emerging Role Demands, Constraints and Choices

Abstract: Little effort is made to study the role of headteachers in the eastern context, including Pakistan. This paper is based on the study conducted in the government and non-government schools in Pakistan in order to understand head teachers ' role in terms of the emerging demands, constraints and choices. The study suggests that the government school headteachers seem to be less proactive and more interested in maintaining status quo because of the influence of the 'top-down management model'. The study also suggests that the government headteachers have limited choices and many constraints because of the influence of the bureaucratic system. Their counterparts in non-government schools seem to be more proactive in making the best use of available choices and in maintaining equilibrium between the role demands, choices and constraints. The research findings further reveal that the non-government headteachers tend to have a broader vision of managing schools effectively than their counterparts in the government schools