Approaches for developing academic management of secondary schools in Cambodia based on the concept of exemplary leadership

Abstract

The purposes of this study were 1. to examine the exemplary leadership level of Cambodian secondary school students in Battambang Province and to study the priority needs of academic management development of secondary schools in Cambodia based on the concept of exemplary leadership, 2. to develop the approaches for developing the academic management of secondary schools in Cambodia based on the concept of exemplary leadership. The data were collected from 12 sample schools, choosing one school to represent one district. The study informants included school principals, vice-principal, teachers, and students in Battambang province accounting for 169. The research instrument used in the study was asked to complete with the five-point Likert scale. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics (mean, standard deviation, frequency, percentage, modified priority need index (PNI modified)), inferential statistics (independent sample t-test and one-way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA)), and content analysis.

The findings revealed that 1. Students’ exemplary leadership level was slightly high. The highest exemplary leadership level of secondary school students overall was ‘encourage the heart’ and the lowest was Inspire a shared vision. Regarding gender, educational level, and grade there was no significant difference. The highest priority needs for developing academic management was Curriculum development, followed by Measurement and Evaluation, then Teaching and Learning while the lowest priority need was Student affairs. Considering the highest priority need of exemplary leadership dimensions was Model the way and the lowest priority need was Encourage the heart. 2. Approaches for developing academic management consisted of four approaches: 1) modify secondary school curriculum focus on students' exemplary leadership on Challenge the process, Model the way, and Enable others to act, 2) improve secondary school teaching and learning focus on students’ exemplary leadership on Model the way and Inspire a shared vision, 3) improve secondary school measurement and evaluation focus on students' exemplary leadership on Model the way and Challenge the process, 4) enhance the quality of student affairs focus on students' exemplary leadership on Encourage the heart and Enable others to act, and sixteen procedures.