Dissertation (MA Public Administration)
To reach the climax of organization in education programmes needs leaders who are well informed with the needs of followers. To achieve this, the desired goals need an understanding of which leadership style is appropriate in a situation. The purpose of the study was to assess the influence of school leadership style on teachers’ motivation in selected public primary schools in Kasulu Town Council. The study had three specific objectives, which are to identify styles of leadership adopted by head teachers in public primary schools of Kasulu Town Council, to identify the most dominant leadership style adopted by head teachers in public primary schools of Kasulu Town Council and examine how head teachers’ leadership styles influence teachers’ motivation. The study adopted a mixed-method approach with a descriptive survey research design. Both quantitative and qualitative approaches were used to collect data from 7 public primary schools where a sample of 101 respondents was drawn. This sample consisted 7 head teachers, 2 (two) ward education coordinators, and 91 classroom teachers. The study found that head teachers practiced several leadership styles, namely democratic, transformation, laissez-faire, and autocratic leadership. However, autocratic was predominantly employed as compared to other leadership styles. There was a significant and negative correlation between leadership styles and teacher motivation. The research concludes that head teachers ought to use multiple leadership styles although it is evident that participative (democratic) leadership style positively influenced teachers’ motivation. Therefore, it is recommended that head teachers should familiarize themselves with various leadership styles depending on different situations for effective administration. Furthermore, there should be a progressive good working relationships with and recognition to the teachers to keep them being motivated.