School Leadership Capacity-Building Approaches and Prudent School Management Practices in Africa.

Abstract

School leaders play a vital role as instructional leaders and agents of change in their institutions. Therefore, the need for effective school leadership capacity building in enhancing educational quality cannot be over-emphasized across African countries and the world. The study sought to investigate the relationship between school leadership capacity-building approaches and prudent school management practices in African countries. The literature reviewed indicated that the subject has attracted diverse interests from stakeholders. Some countries have made it an educational policy priority while others have not. Further, there are variations in the capacity-building approaches used ranging from workshops, induction, in-service training, mentorships, conferences, workshops, staff meetings, and refresher courses to build the capacities of school leaders. Therefore, to realize prudent school management practices, countries must customize capacity-building approaches according to specific socio-economic, cultural, and political contexts.