Exploring instructional leadership practices of leaders in Ghanaian basic schools

In the past decade learning outcomes in public basic schools in Ghana have fallen far below the targets of the Ministry of Education as less than a third of primary school children reach proficiency in English or in Mathematics. In the wake of this low performance, there has been a call for the professionalization and strengthening of instructional leadership in Ghanaian basic schools to facilitate effective teaching and learning. Employing qualitative research strategy through interviews, this study sought to investigate instructional leadership practices of 14 school leaders in the basic schools of one educational district of Ghana. The study found limited shared instructional leadership aimed at improving instruction. It seems instructional leadership was related to managerially focused idiosyncratic teaching and learning practices underpinned by behaviourism. Head Teachers had entrenched a leadership culture driven by central policies and expectations.