Influence of School Leadership Practices on Teachers' Empowerment in Public Secondary Schools in Kicukiro District, Rwanda
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.53983/ijmds.v15n05.013Keywords:
School leadership practices, teacher empowerment, decision-making, delegation, professional development, Kicukiro District, RwandaAbstract
This study investigated the influence of school leadership practices on teachers' empowerment in public secondary schools in Kicukiro District, Rwanda. Guided by Transformational Leadership Theory, Distributed Leadership Theory, and Empowerment Theory, the study examined four leadership dimensions: decision-making, delegation, organizational, and professional development practices. A mixed-methods descriptive-correlational design was employed, with a sample of 260 teachers drawn from a target population of 800 using stratified random sampling (Yamane, 1967). Data were collected via structured Likert-scale questionnaires and semi-structured interviews with head teachers. Reliability was confirmed with Cronbach's alpha coefficients ranging from α = 0.83 to 0.89 (overall α = 0.86). Pearson correlation and multiple linear regression were used for quantitative analysis; thematic analysis was applied to qualitative data. Findings revealed that all four leadership practices had strong, statistically significant positive relationships with teachers' empowerment: decision-making (r = 0.711, p < 0.01), delegation (r = 0.693, p < 0.01), professional development (r = 0.673, p < 0.01), and organizational practices (r = 0.651, p < 0.01). Decision-making emerged as the strongest predictor (R² = 0.505). Qualitative findings confirmed that participatory leadership, meaningful delegation, supportive organizational structures, and continuous professional development collectively strengthen teacher autonomy, motivation, and governance participation. The study concludes that teacher empowerment in Kicukiro District is significantly shaped by integrated, participatory school leadership practices, and recommends institutionalization of structured decision-making frameworks, competency-based delegation, mentorship-oriented professional development, and equitable organizational systems.
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