Developing School Leaders in the Pacific

Book excerpt: This book provides detailed insights on the training and development for Pacific Island school leaders. It draws extensively on original empirical research that explores school leaders’ perceptions of how leadership and management training impacted their professional practices, and how these practices in turn impacted the dynamics of school operations. This book addresses a critical need to understand how to support leadership development for all Pacific schools, but especially in schools that are faced with the increasing challenges of learning and teaching conditions. In small island developing states in the Pacific region, school leaders face a myriad of challenges due to limited human and material resources, and a fragile economic base. Written by Pacific Islander authors, this book provides insights from different countries in the Pacific Islands. It shows how contextual challenges can exert enormous pressure on school leaders who are leading and managing schools without any leadership preparation. Given the importance of effective leadership practices and its impact on student learning outcomes, this book aims to be a source of reference for practitioners and educational authorities who have a vested interest in the provision of quality education in the Pacific region and beyond.