Contextual framing for school leadership training : Empirical findings from the Commonwealth Project on Leadership Assessment and Development (Co‐LEAD)

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present the findings of (Co‐LEAD) (Commonwealth project on leadership in education assessment and development), the overall purpose of which was to find out school leaders' training needs around the Commonwealth in order to provide some answers with regards to the professional development needs of school principals. Design/methodology/approach – A mixed methods approach (e.g. both qualitative as well as quantitative) was utilized in order to carry out this study. The questionnaire consisted of 46 statements which make reference to the main functions of school leadership, such as, School Climate and School Improvement, Instructional Leadership and Human Resource Management, as well as Relations with Parents and the Community. The gap analysis method was used for the questionnaire items. Finally, complimentary to the questionnaires, it was decided to have on‐site visitations and interviews with “real people” on the ground. Findings – Based on the authors' analyses and interpretations, it seems that the greatest needs for leadership improvement and training are in three areas: Trust Building and Collaboration which includes Relations with Parents and the Community, promotion of cooperation with other organizations and businesses from the community so that students' needs are addressed and initiation of trust building activities within the local community; Encouraging Instructional Leadership and Human Resource Development which includes Instructional Leadership and Human Resource Management and systematic monitoring of instructional and managerial processes to ensure that program activities are related to program outcomes; and Initiating School Improvement and Development which includes the application of research findings to facilitate school improvement, the development of budgets based upon documented program needs, and the provision of opportunities to students to participate actively in school management issues. Originality/value – This piece of research extends knowledge with regards to the expressed needs for leadership training and improvement for school principals. It documents that if such an endeavor is to be successful, it has to be contextualized and therefore, training should be region and country specific.