The Practice and Challenges of Distributed Leadership at Some Selected Primary Schcools of Debark District: Ethiopia

The purpose of the study was to evaluate the extent to which leadership was distributed among employees in the five primary schools in Debark District. In order to achieve this purpose, survey research design was employed. Questionnaire were employed to gather quantitative data from teachers and school leadership. And qualitative data were collected from cluster supervisors and informal leaders through the use of interview and focused group discussion. To analyze the data both descriptive and inferential statistics were employed in the study. In addition, the interview and focused group discussion data were analyzed, sorted and created themes in order to fill the gaps that were not filled by the quantitative approach. The findings demonstrate: the schools were different on distributed leadership practice specifically, the study found that schools had vision but the vision and mission statement were not communicated among employees, students and parents. The principals were not encouraging teachers to participate in the decision making process of their school affaires. The study also came up with problems related to school factors that hinder distributed leadership practice which include employees’ reliance on par time, lack of capacity of the formal leaders and teachers; School leaders’ attitude to teachers’ participation in their school affair and social stereotype that disadvantaged groups were not participating in the leadership practice. Non-school factors include inadequate follow up by the district, Regional and Ministry level; The school infrastructures were not favorable to promote distributed leadership approach. The study concluded that the schools were not effectively practicing the distributed leadership approach. The study, therefore, recommended that the schools should try to effectively communicate the vision and mission through designing strategies such as through streaming the school vision and the major actors in the schools should be trained about theories of leadership and distributed leadership practice.