School leadership and school quality in secondary education in Rwanda

• In Event: Adapting secondary schooling in Rwanda to the context of COVID-19: Lessons from the Leaders in Teaching Initiative

Proposal

Strengthening school leadership is one of the key elements of improved quality education and central in enabling improved learning outcomes in Rwanda. As such, school leadership has been one of the key priorities of the Rwandan government which calls for strengthening governance and accountability across all levels of education in Rwanda, with the targeted outcome of improved leadership in schools as a strategic priority. While many of Rwandan’s head teachers currently see their roles as mostly administrative, there is also a key role that head teachers play in supporting and advising teachers and ultimately enhancing children’s learning outcomes.

This presentation explores the quality of school leadership in the Rwandan context by examining practices associated with school quality measures. Drawing on the work of Ladd and Loeb (2013), “The challenges of measuring school quality: Implications for educational equity”, in this presentation, we introduce three interconnected analytical processes to capture the role of the quality of school leadership in improving school quality. First, we use student outcome measures, such as test scores and educational attainment, as an indicator of school quality. Second, we measure school inputs and understand how these are associated with student outcomes. Finally, by investigating how student outcomes are produced through school inputs and focusing on the processes that connect them, we derive the main qualities of school leaders associated with improved student outcomes. The ultimate aim of this presentation is to answer the following question: Which school leadership practices are associated with school quality in Rwandan secondary schools?

We use data collected in February and March 2020 (shortly before school closures) from around 350 secondary schools within 14 districts in Rwanda. In particular, we draw on responses from 350 school leaders, identified as either head teachers or director of studies. Results from our study demonstrate that student outcomes are significantly associated with better school inputs, measured as financial, human and material resources. Yet, a significant share of the best performing schools are boarding schools, which reflect the selectivity process of admissions to secondary schools in Rwanda. Among the key practices associated with school quality, we identified frequently meeting with and providing continuous professional development to teachers as well as perceived satisfying interactions with parents by school leaders. Implications for the responsibility of school leaders towards improving learning outcomes are drawn as part of the conclusions and overall discussion of this presentation. The importance for on-going support by school leaders during and after school closures, including through continuous professional development provided by Leaders in Teaching partners, will be considered.

Authors

• Laura Le Saux, Laterite

• Belise Kangabe, Laterite

• Anthony Onwuegbuzie, University of Cambridge

• Ricardo Sabates, University of Cambridge