Document Type
Article
Publication Date
1-1-2011
Abstract
In spite of the long instituted government initiatives to improve mathematics performance in Kenyan secondary schools, students’ performance in the subject at the secondary school level in Kenya continues to be poor. Studies on mathematics achievement in Kenya have primarily focused on teachers’ classroom practices neglecting the potential influence of school leadership. Using data collected from 273 schools involving 607 mathematics teachers we examined how school leadership could impact schools’ mathematics performance in Kenyan public secondary schools. We found school leadership behaviors – principal’s visibility, inspiration and influence – to have weak but significant indirect effect on mathematics achievement through a mechanism mediated by collective mindfulness, perceived hindrance of school structure, teachers’ academic press and trust in parents and students. These results demonstrate and bring into perspective the practical utility of collective mindfulness and school’s hierarchical structure in school leadership studies. A surprise finding was the negative impact of principals’ advice and support on teachers’ academic press. This we ascribed to teachers’ perception of advice and support as paternalistic and demeaning to their professional expertise.
Keywords
school leadership, academic press, collective mindfulness, trust
Rights
© The Author(s). Kelvin Smith Library provides access for non-commercial, personal, or research use only. All other use, including but not limited to commercial or scholarly reproductions, redistribution, publication or transmission, whether by electronic means or otherwise, without prior written permission is strictly prohibited.
Department/Center
Design & Innovation
Recommended Citation
Mwangi, Renson Muchiri, "School Leadership, Collective Mindfulness and Mathematices Achievement in Kenya" (2011). Student Scholarship. 370.
https://commons.case.edu/studentworks/370