Introduction
Over the decades, the impact on teachers’ job performance has become the
main subject of leadership which has been conceptualized as leadership
styles of school principals and job performance of the teachers
(Ekhaisomi, 2011; Imhangbe, Okecha, & Obozuwa, 2018), an organizational
process (Cheong Cheng, 1991), a critical factor for school performance
(Cheng, 1994), as a manager and an administrator to control school
resources for organizational goal achievement (Adeyemi, 2010). However,
Imhangbe et al. (2018) not only conceptualized the principal leadership
style and teacher job performance relationship but also discovered the
major positive influence of democratic on teachers’ job performance in
this regard, while about substantial joint variation in teacher job
performance was due to
autocratic, democratic and
laissez-fair leadership styles as well as it has strongly been suggested
that principals should be encouraged to use democratic leadership style.
In addition, Ekhaisomi (2011) correlated principals’ leadership styles
to teachers’ job performance and argued employed leadership style tool
kit based on situation, which is in the hand of principals to maximize
teachers’ productivity if it is used well, otherwise, it will reverse
the instance.
The education sector of Pakistan was divided into two categories at the
time of independence. They were public sector educational schools,
colleges, and institutions as well as private sector (Burki, 1986).
These public and private schools, colleges and institutions have been
working since or after the creation of Pakistan to date (Iqbal, 2012).
The country’s education sector produces responsible citizens and
develops human capital to attain National Education Goals (Ministry of
Federal Education and Professional Training Government of Pakistan,
2017). Here the question is that weather the country or state would
achieve the educational targets alone (International Finance
Corporation, 2002; World Bank, 2002). Concerning to the national
targets, both the public and private sector educational schools,
colleges and institutes are playing their vital roles. The private
schools are the key contributors in bringing their part in Millennium
Development Goals the same as in public sector schools.
A significant phenomenon in Pakistan is the provision of private
education which is the core ground and rational motive in the growth and
expansion of schools, institutes, enrollment and teachers’ national
workforce in private sector from the past decades, especially since
2000, in urban as well as rural regions (Institute of Social Policy
Sciences, 2010). This massive growth is a challenge for administrators,
policy makers and school leaders. The school principals provide a
quality education by offering fine teaching services. Imhangbe et al.
(2018) stated that school principals’ leadership style had either
positive or negatively / direct or indirect impact on teachers’ job
performance.
Leadership phenomena is a captivated sequence of an action which intends
to achieve befitted results through sanitization and improvement of
personal, social and professional work practices. It works by filling
organizational leadership shelves with those personnels and leaders who
have the ability to bring and convert vital assets to the institute and
organization, eventually ameliorating bottom line (Northouse, 2018),
such as to enrich their work practices and to effect the performance of
the teachers. School leadership (Spillane, Halverson, & Diamond, 2004)
, educational and administrative as technical and nontechnical,
including managers, problem solvers and facilitators (Williams-Boyd,
2002), as well as school uniqueness, purposeful school changes,
successful strategies (Busher, 2006), are all perceived as an imperative
directing process apex. Furthermore, leadership peculiarly principal
leadership styles are burning phenomenon for the researchers over a
period of time around the world, numerous scholarly studies have thrown
light on versatile theoretical leadership approaches and tactics as well
as processing complexities (Bass & Stogdill, 1990; Bryman, 1992, 2011;
Gardner, 1993; Hickman, 1998; Mumford, 2006; Rost, 1993).
Transformational leadership and
transactional leadership (Bass,
1990; Bass, Avolio, Jung, & Berson, 2003; Burns, 1978; Downton, 1973)
foster teachers’ job performance. Transformational leadership and
transactional leadership which have been zeal in leadership research
have mutual and particular effects on organization (Awamleh & Gardner,
1999; Bass, 1985; Conger & Kanungo, 1998; House, 1976). Over the time,
group performance, satisfaction, commitment and organizational
performance, which are linked to the leadership style, are vital
outcomes for numerous organizations (Kirkpatrick & Locke, 1996).
Leadership has multiple and discrete dimensions which are definite
realities (Reeves, 2006), such as path goal theory, situational
approach, skill approach, trait approach, behavioral approach, servant
leadership, adaptive leadership, transformational and
transactional
leadership (Northouse, 2018), instructional leadership (Harris, Jones,
Cheah, Devadason, & Adams, 2017; Smith & Andrews, 1989; Terosky,
2016), strategic leadership (Petersen, 2015; Van Niekerk & Van Niekerk,
2006) as well as principal’s strategic leadership (Mokone, 1999),
managerial leadership (Ciriello, 1998; Jaques, 2017; Lee, 2017), and,
distributed leadership (Al-Khasawneh & Futa, 2012; Chen, 2007; Saadi et
al., 2009).
The role of leadership and school conditions contribute to innovation
(Hallinger & Heck, 1996; Newmann & Wehlage, 1995), modernization,
adaptation of advanced teaching practices, global changes and current
challenges. It is an essential responsibility of school leadership and
management to equip their teachers with the latest knowledge and
practices, which can contribute to academic success that produces
incentives and opportunities to improve the job practices of teachers
(Bryk & Driscoll, 1985; Newmann & Wehlage, 1995).
Tomlinson (2004) proposed distinctive procedures from smells and
incantations of the prophecy to drive and proposed insight into the
intricacies of human interaction in educational institutes and
organizations. School leadership and management develop their teachers
and staff in terms of goals, vision and current challenges to enhance
the job performance. In spite of the facts, management makes and
implements strategies and policies to help principals, directors, and
administrators of schools to achieve their objectives.
Tomlinson (2004) recognizes that the mentoring, coaching and counseling
services offered by leaders are affirm elements. These three elements
compose the tool kit which helps the management to boost up teachers’
jobs performance as well. Tomlinson further argues that it is an
essential back up support service tool box to cope with changes and
current challenges which can be adapted according to schools and
colleges context after alternation.
Principals
and school leaders are striving for the quality of having great facility
and competence for proficiency to balance and stabilize their key roles
which is why undoubtedly, today, school leaders and principals need to
wear many hats constantly and juggle them fluidly day by day (Tobin,
2014), as an agent of success, change or sources of failure (Kafka,
2009), under the umbrella of multiple leadership theories and styles
which impact the job performance of teachers.
Approaches, like trait approach, skill approach, situational approach,
behavioral approach, path goal theory and multiple leadership styles
(Northouse, 2018) are used by principals being managers, administrators,
diplomates, curriculum instructor, teacher leaders and sometimes all in
one school day context in various situation at various state of affairs.
Leadership style is a portfolio to enhance teachers’ job performance
productivity, however no leadership style is superior to others,
although that the situation and context at hand determines what style or
styles to be employed to maximize job performance. In fact, the right
style influences job performance of teachers positively otherwise
reverses in the case (Ekhaisomi, 2011).
Current researches have been commenced in this respect about the leaders
and principals of schools to inspect commonly adopted or practiced the
style of leadership and its impact on teachers’ job performance
(Adebayo, 2003; Adeyemi, 2010; Imhangbe et al., 2018; Machumu &
Kaitila, 2014).
Imhangbe et al. (2018) studied the relationship between “principals’
leadership styles and the job performance of teachers in secondary
schools in public sector in Edo Central Senatorial district, Nigeria”.
It was correlational study by design and two research instruments were
adapted, named “Principals’ Leadership Style Questionnaire” (PLESQUE)
and “Teachers’ Job Performance Questionnaire” (TEJOPAQ) to collect the
data from the population of 69 principals and 397 teachers of the
secondary schools; 21 copies of the teachers’ questionnaire were removed
from the analysis due to incorrect filling. Thus, 376 copies of the
instruments were analyzed in the study. The hypotheses were tested at
0.05 significant level by using multiple regression, Pearson
product-moment correlation analysis and percentage. On the bases of
analysis, the results explore that 68.3% variation in teachers’ job
performance was due to democratic leadership style and laissez-fair
jointly. Democratic and laisse-fair leadership have positive influence
on the job performance of the teachers in that area. Therefore, it was
recommended among the other things, principals of Edo Central Senatorial
District, Nigeria should encourage to cope with democratic leadership
style. This study is also main encouragement and guideline for this
present research.
Adeyemi (2010) threw light on “principals’ leadership styles and
teachers’ job performance in secondary schools in Ondo State, Nigeria”.
The descriptive research design was adopted for this investigation. 240
secondary schools were selected as study samples out of all comprised
281 population of state secondary schools. Stratified random sampling
technique was used to select 1800 teachers and 240 principals as unit of
analysist. Two questionnaires 1(“The Principals’ Leadership Style
Questionnaire (PLSQ)” and 2) “Teachers’ Job Performance Questionnaire
(TJPQ)” were used to collect the data. The data collected was analyzed
using the Pearson Product Moment Correlation. A correlation coefficient
of 0.81 value is showing the reliability of instruments. Pearson,
t-test, percentages and frequency tests were used for analysis while
alpha of 0.05 value was used to test the hypotheses. It has been noted
that democratic leadership style was often used by principals. The job
performance of the teachers was better while under autocratic leadership
style as compare to democratic and laissez-fair leadership styles. Among
the other recommendations, the mixture of autocratic and democratic
leadership styles is suggested to be used to enhance teachers’ job
performance and reserves the situation while using laissez-fair
leadership style.
Machumu and Kaitila (2014) examined the suitability of school leadership
style and teachers’ job satisfaction in primary schools of Tanzania. The
cross-sectional study design was utilized to provide holistic picture
and in-depth problem understanding. 200 teachers were selected among 20
schools as samples including head teachers, deputy head teachers and
classroom teachers through purposive and stratified random sampling. It
was observed along with other findings that the dominant style of
leadership in best performing schools was democratic style. Thus, it was
recommended that there was much more for least performing schools to
learn from the democratic style of leadership.
Werang and Lena (2014) investigated the relationship between principal’s
leadership, school organizational climate, and teachers’ job performance
by selecting 164 teachers as population while the sample was comprised
of 118 teachers that were approximately 71% of population, at State
High Schools in Merauke regency, Indonesia. The questionnaire was the
key research tool for this descriptive quantitative study. The
investigation revealed “a significant relationship between principals’
leadership and teachers’ job performance at the state high schools in
Merauke regency, Papua”. Prestigious
Effective leadership is instrumental in ensuring organizational
performance which has a positive impact on organizational performance,
eventually many individual performances culminate in organizational
goals achievement and performance. Effective leaders and principals have
clear visions and strong expectations to school future and teachers
(Werang & Lena, 2014).
Kozaala (2012) conceptualized “Leadership styles and job performance of
teachers in selected private secondary schools of Kamuli District,
Uganda”. The sample was comprised on 15 private schools and data was
collected from 125 participants which were comprised on fifteen head of
the teachers, thirty Governors Board personals and five Education
Ministries and Sport Kamuli District, official personals. The research
was conducted through self-constructed questioners for the teachers and
interview guide for the head teachers, Governors Board members and
official personals. This cross-sectional investigation was analyzed by
using Pearson’s co-efficient correlation. It was noticed that at
administration positions, principals and head teachers were employed by
autocratic leadership style; the directive language was being used while
talking to teachers and decisions were made solely and without their
teachers’ suggestions or opinions, the duties or job responsibilities
were not delegated in regard to democratic leadership style, due to all
that teachers felt rejected and were demotivated, therefore junior
teachers’ job performance was negatively impacted.
Indeed, a glut of researches had been conducted available on this enigma
but it is a paradox which has been unsolved so far and varies context to
context; for our acquaintance, it needs elucidation by clearing up what
and how the style of leadership either negatively or positively further
teachers’ job performance in secondary schools in private sector.
The available researches’ research object was public schools generally
while this paper was carried to throw light on principals’ leadership
style and teachers’ job performance relationship or correlation in
secondary schools in private sector which may differ than public
schools. Besides the issues, there was no prior published research work
available particularly on this area and population regarding principals’
leadership style (autocratic, democratic and laissez-faire) and
teachers’ job performance in private sector at the time of this study.
As a result, there was indigence or chasm in knowledge on this
leadership and job performance subject matter in the view of secondary
schools in public sector in Lahore district.
Thus, there was an acute need to fill this gap in knowledge. To our
knowledge, Therefore, it was first study which gives insightful view
that which leadership style among autocratic, democratic and
laissez-faire, were the most conducive to the job performance
in secondary schools in private
sector particularly in Lahore district-Pakistan.