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This study investigates teachers' perceptions on PLC implementation within religious-based secondary schools in the context of Malaysia. Using a pragmatic mixed-method approach, quantitative data were obtained from 610 teachers about principals' implementation and support for PLC implementation. Then, 16 senior teachers who have successfully participated in PLC practices were interviewed. The study reveals that teachers in the religious-based public secondary schools felt satisfied with their principals' implementation of PLC practices. This study is one of few studies explored the practical and theoretical implications of improving principals' initiatives and their strategies which benefit PLC practices across religious-based secondary schools in Malaysia.

This study reports on the professional development and school leadership programmes requested by principals in Malaysian schools. A total of 557 principals provided feedback on their preferred school leadership and professional development programmes which they believed as essential to be effective school leaders. Based on their feedback, mentoring was named the most needed leadership development programme as it allowed access to the guidance, knowledge and skills of senior principals. As for school leadership courses mentioned by school principals, financial management was considered as most useful. The study concludes by recommending suggestions to improve principals' professional development programmes in Malaysia.

In the Malaysian context, all educational processes at the national level are envisioned by the National Education Philosophy (NEP). The NEP was formed in 1988 in line with the National Principles (Rukun Negara) with the ultimate aims of building a united and progressive society (Ministry of Education, 2001). However, there is uncertainty whether the NEP has been actualized in the educational processes, transmitted successfully by teachers to students and further personalized by students. This paper aims to report findings of study which analyzed the actualization of the NEP in government and private secondary schools based on student and teacher perspectives. The research followed a survey design through two sets of questionnaires; one for teachers and the other for students. The Cronbach's Alpha reliability coefficient value for the teacher and student questionnaire was 0.96 and 0.98 respectively. A total of 185 Form 4 students and 45 teachers from both private and government secondary schools in Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia participated in this research. 77.3% of students and 64.4% of teachers rated the level of actualization of the NEP as high, with a mean score of 7.67 and 7.28 out of 10 as rated by the students and teachers respectively. The paper further discusses the finding of the study from both teacher and student perspectives. It also provides a brief discussion on the limitations of this study and on its implications. It concludes with general implications of the study to the educational processes in the country in general and to the national education system in specific.

Unquestionably, studies focusing on school leaders' stress while managing schools have received extensive attention. However, there is still a lack of research focusing on deputies' stress, even though deputies play an essential role in a school's improvement process. Despite deputies' dual roles, it is an accepted fact that deputies do experience stress while simultaneously dealing with their 'superiors', fulfilling their administrative tasks and helping teachers to work at their fullest capacity. Based on these two noteworthy premises, this mixed-methods study was designed to explore and address whether dealing with educational superiors causes stress to primary deputies. Regarding the sample, 120 deputies from across 45 primary public schools in two urban districts were selected as respondents for the study. Regarding the quantitative data, the non-parametric and descriptive statistics were employed in determining deputies' views of their superiors. Further, eleven deputies were interviewed, and their anonymity was also protected to sustain the ethical considerations of the study. As expected, truculent attitudes and criticisms from school inspectors and parents were highlighted by deputies as contributing to their experiences of stress, with the levels of stress being classified as 'moderate' based on their demographic differences. Surprisingly, primary deputies revealed that they do not face much stress when working with their own head teachers; in fact, primary deputies informally revealed that their heads were quite open and understanding of their viewpoints and lenses.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between headteachers and teachers and its effects on the role of trust in Malaysian high-performing schools through the dyadic relationship theoretical approach. Design/methodology/approach: Using a survey questionnaire, a total of 199 teachers from five high-performing schools were selected as respondents for data collection. Before proceeding with inferential statistical analysis, teachers were separated into the "in-group" and "out-group". Findings: The findings revealed that the teachers from both the groups perceived that their facets of trust are strongly associated with the type of relationship they have with their school leaders. The results also demonstrate that the quality of dyadic relationships between headteachers and teachers moderately influences teachers' trust. Practical implications: The findings suggest that the headteachers should always build good relationships with the teachers to gain teachers' trust for sustaining school effectiveness. The findings encourage the Ministry of Education, particularly the Teacher Recruitment Division, to require all teachers and headteachers to deepen their knowledge on leader-member exchange (LMX) role-development processes. Originality/value: The results are of great importance since limited empirical studies have examined LMX role-development processes with reference to teachers and headteachers in the context of Malaysian higher performing schools.

Most studies in headship focus on the elements of training and head teachers' capabilities in leading schools. The concept of isolation experienced by head teachers during the early years of their headship is, however, overlooked. This article attempts to explore the neglected aspect of headships' experiences with isolation that later contributes to the betterment of the headship appointment. This mixed-methods study explores the experience of head teachers' isolation in the early phase of their leadership years, and presents findings on the strategies used to overcome the isolation. Using an open-ended questionnaire, a total of 170 novice head teachers from Malaysian primary and secondary schools were asked to give their responses on experiences of isolation. Furthermore, 10 novice head teachers, who experienced isolation in the early phase of their leadership years, were interviewed. Findings revealed that the level of isolation among the head teachers was fairly low, and they perceived their isolation experience as temporary.

This study investigates teachers' perceptions on PLC implementation within religious-based secondary schools in the context of Malaysia. Using a pragmatic mixed-method approach, quantitative data were obtained from 610 teachers about principals' implementation and support for PLC implementation. Then, 16 senior teachers who have successfully participated in PLC practices were interviewed. The study reveals that teachers in the religious-based public secondary schools felt satisfied with their principals' implementation of PLC practices. This study is one of few studies explored the practical and theoretical implications of improving principals' initiatives and their strategies which benefit PLC practices across religious-based secondary schools in Malaysia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aims to investigate whether organisational climate (OC) predicts academic staff performance at Malaysian higher education institutions (HEIs). The study equally aims at validating the psychometric properties of OC and workforce performance (WFP) constructs. Design/methodology/approach: Survey questionnaires were administered to 800 academic staff of eight selected HEIs. Principal component analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, full-fledged structural equation modelling and multiple regression analysis were performed to explore the underlying factors and test the factorial validity of the constructs. Findings: The analysis yielded a five-factor index for the OC construct, whereas the WFP construct comprised two factors. The findings reveal a strong predictive causal effect between OC and WFP. These results suggest that establishing a positive OC enhances academic staff performance. Furthermore, the hypothesised model adds new knowledge to the literature of OC, from the Malaysian context, which could be used to predict WFP at the tertiary level. Practical implications: The study concludes by discussing the theoretical and practical implications of the findings for HEIs. Originality/value: This paper makes a significant contribution to the understanding of how OC could be used as an effective instrument in improving academic staff performance in the context of Malaysian HEIs.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the issues and challenges faced by headteachers in practicing the suggested distributed leadership (DL) approach in three primary schools to their middle layer leaders. Design/methodology/approach: The study employed a case study design and data were collected through semi-structured interviews. A total of three headteachers were interviewed in examining and exploring challenges within the DL practices. The transcripts from the semi-structured interviews formed the basis of the findings. Findings: The findings suggest that senior teachers lack confidence in making decisions and rely on the consent from headteachers even though they are empowered to make their own decisions. Another significant issue faced by headteachers when distributing their leadership is the ability, expertise, experience, and willingness of teachers to hold leadership roles and responsibilities. Originality/value: The results are important since there have been few empirical studies on the issues and challenges faced by headteachers in practising DL approach in primary schools in the context of Malaysia. This initiative sidelines the traditional school leadership approach which emphasises on the accountability of headteachers as the sole school leader.

This study determines the preferable leadership practised by colleges' directors, institutional factors and challenges encountered in knowledge sharing in Malaysian technical higher learning institutions (HLIs). Using a pragmatic mixed-method strand, we obtained 212 teachers and instructors' viewpoints on knowledge sharing factors and barriers. The study also interviewed four teachers in exploring college directors' leadership practices and issues faced while sharing their knowledge and experiences with their colleagues. The findings revealed that technical college teachers favoured enabling others to act as a preferable leadership practice that empirically supports their knowledge sharing practices. Thus, reward system and culture were antecedents and significant predictors for teachers' knowledge sharing practices in technical HLIs compared with their colleges directors' transformational leadership practices. Teachers also highlighted that their directors provide affirmative responses concerning the knowledge sharing activities; thus, practising their roles as a knowledge sharing catalysts. However, lack of support from the management, micro-politics and teachers' own negative perceptions were identified as challenges and constraints teachers encountered while sharing their knowledge with their peers. The findings put forward some suggestions for improvement on technical college's knowledge sharing practices.

The vibrant demand for academic excellence in the twenty-first century has brought diverse determinants of students' outcome into play. However, few studies have validated the instruments and examined the mediating effect between exogenous and endogenous variables of the student outcome model. This study, therefore, investigates the psychometric properties of four scales: two modified subscales of SERVQUAL: quality of teaching and learning and quality of classroom, qualified instructional leader and student outcome. It also investigates student outcome determinants and the role of teaching and learning and classroom quality in mediating the relationship between qualified instructional leaders and student outcomes. The study adopts a full-fledged structural equation modelling approach and analyses data collected through a total of 450 questionnaires distributed among undergraduates of a public university in Malaysia. The findings demonstrate that student outcomes and qualified instructional leader instruments comprise three dimensions, whereas teaching and learning and classroom quality instruments comprise a single dimension each and support the composite reliability, convergence and discriminant validity of the scales. The results indicate that determinants of student outcome predict learning student outcomes. The results also demonstrate that teaching and learning quality strongly and positively mediates the relationship between qualified instructional leaders and student outcomes, whereas classroom quality positively but weakly mediates the relationship. The theoretical and practical implications of the study were also addressed.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between the quality culture and workforce performance in the Malaysian higher education sector. The study also aims to test and validate the psychometric properties of the quality culture and workforce performance instruments used in the study. Design/methodology/approach: A total of 267 academic staff from the International Islamic University Malaysia completed the survey questionnaires. A principal component analysis (PCA) technique was performed to extract the underlying factors, followed by the application of confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to test factorial validity of the constructs. Findings: The analysis yielded a nine-factor-indexed quality culture construct, while the workforce construct constituted two factors. The findings of the study postulate statistically significant correlation between quality culture and workforce performance. Practical implications: The findings of the study suggest that a quality culture initiative can be used effectively in the context of the Malaysian higher education sector to enhance academic staff performance. Originality/value: The results are important since there have been few published studies on quality culture that examine its effects on academic staff performance in the Malaysian higher education sector. (Contains 10 tables and 6 figures.)

This study reports on the professional development and school leadership programmes requested by principals in Malaysian schools. A total of 557 principals provided feedback on their preferred school leadership and professional development programmes which they believed as essential to be effective school leaders. Based on their feedback, mentoring was named the most needed leadership development programme as it allowed access to the guidance, knowledge and skills of senior principals. As for school leadership courses mentioned by school principals, financial management was considered as most useful. The study concludes by recommending suggestions to improve principals' professional development programmes in Malaysia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ever growing demand for educational transformation in Malaysia has placed greater responsibilities upon school leaders to improve school performance. This brings to light the need to explore alternative approaches of school leadership where teachers can be roped in to help, lead and manage the operational tasks of the school. This study explores in-service teachers' perceptions of teacher leadership within their contexts. The study also investigates teachers' readiness and the challenges they face while practising informal teacher leader roles. The study employs a mixed-methods design and data were collected through questionnaires from 587 primary and 189 secondary in-service teachers and semi-structured interviews with eight selected teachers. In-service teachers have positive perceptions towards teacher leadership with most acknowledging familiarity with the concept. They admitted that they were ready to be selected as informal teacher leaders, for professional reasons. The findings further reveal that in-service teachers face challenges from various parties within the school community in executing their role as teacher leaders. Moreover, the findings recommend a framework for policy and school based initiatives for improving teacher leadership practices in Malaysian school context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Principals are school leaders who experienced stress while leading their schools towards excellence. However, principals stress experiences are always ignored and least studied. This mixed-methods study investigates primary principals’ stress experiences and their Islamic coping strategies used in incapacitating the stress experiences. A total of 216 Muslim primary principals across different gender, types of schools and years of experiences as school leaders responded to the administrative stress and the Islamic coping strategies items. In addition, seven primary principals were purposefully selected and interviewed in exploring their reasons of using Islamic coping strategies for their relieving process. Results discovered that primary principals experienced fairly stress level and they perceived managing students’ academic achievement was the most stressor followed by managing teachers’ capabilities. Although findings revealed that no significant differences in terms primary principals’ demographics; male primary principals, and experienced between 6 and 10 years and positioned in schools with least students (SLS) category have slightly higher level of stress. In terms of Islamic coping strategies used by primary principals, saying dhua to Allah, performing dhikir and reciting the Yassen are selected coping approaches employed in handling their stress. From interviews, primary principals also revealed that they used Islamic religious approaches as part of meaningful activities not just to overcoming their stress but also as part of religious approaches in remembering Allah, thinking back their past mistakes as part of the Muhasabah process. Therefore, we believed that religious approaches should be taken into consideration in principals’ training as it provides peaceful and treatment in managing principals’ stress issue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the issues and challenges faced by headteachers in practicing the suggested distributed leadership (DL) approach in three primary schools to their middle layer leaders. Design/methodology/approach – The study employed a case study design and data were collected through semi-structured interviews. A total of three headteachers were interviewed in examining and exploring challenges within the DL practices. The transcripts from the semi-structured interviews formed the basis of the findings. Findings – The findings suggest that senior teachers lack confidence in making decisions and rely on the consent from headteachers even though they are empowered to make their own decisions. Another significant issue faced by headteachers when distributing their leadership is the ability, expertise, experience, and willingness of teachers to hold leadership roles and responsibilities. Originality/value – The results are important since there have been few empirical studies on the issues and challenges faced by headteachers in practising DL approach in primary schools in the context of Malaysia. This initiative sidelines the traditional school leadership approach which emphasises on the accountability of headteachers as the sole school leader. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose This study aims to investigate whether organisational climate (OC) predicts academic staff performance at Malaysian higher education institutions (HEIs). The study equally aims at validating the psychometric properties of OC and workforce performance (WFP) constructs.Design/methodology/approach Survey questionnaires were administered to 800 academic staff of eight selected HEIs. Principal component analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, full-fledged structural equation modelling and multiple regression analysis were performed to explore the underlying factors and test the factorial validity of the constructs.Findings The analysis yielded a five-factor index for the OC construct, whereas the WFP construct comprised two factors. The findings reveal a strong predictive causal effect between OC and WFP. These results suggest that establishing a positive OC enhances academic staff performance. Furthermore, the hypothesised model adds new knowledge to the literature of OC, from the Malaysian context, which could be used to predict WFP at the tertiary level.Practical implications The study concludes by discussing the theoretical and practical implications of the findings for HEIs.Originality/value This paper makes a significant contribution to the understanding of how OC could be used as an effective instrument in improving academic staff performance in the context of Malaysian HEIs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between the quality culture and workforce performance in the Malaysian higher education sector. The study also aims to test and validate the psychometric properties of the quality culture and workforce performance instruments used in the study. Design/methodology/approach – A total of 267 academic staff from the International Islamic University Malaysia completed the survey questionnaires. A principal component analysis (PCA) technique was performed to extract the underlying factors, followed by the application of confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to test factorial validity of the constructs. Findings – The analysis yielded a nine-factor-indexed quality culture construct, while the workforce construct constituted two factors. The findings of the study postulate statistically significant correlation between quality culture and workforce performance. Practical implications – The findings of the study suggest that a quality culture initiative can be used effectively in the context of the Malaysian higher education sector to enhance academic staff performance. Originality/value – The results are important since there have been few published studies on quality culture that examine its effects on academic staff performance in the Malaysian higher education sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using muriate of potash (MOP) as a source of potassium (K) is a cost-effective method for crop production in tropical peat soils. However, exchangeable K commonly leaches from tropical peat soils because of high rainfall and a lack of clay to retain this cation. Potassium retention as exchangeable K could inhibit K loss through leaching to increase K availability. Clinoptilolite zeolite (CZ), forest litter compost (FLC), and chicken litter biochar (CLB) can be used to retain K from MOP in tropical peat soils for crop use because of the high affinity of CZ, FLC, and CLB for K ions. These approaches can be used as innovative and sustainable alternatives for the frequently used lime (CaCO3). However, information on using CZ, FLC, and CLB for MOP K retention is limited. Thus, CZ, FLC, and CLB were tested in a leaching study to determine their effects on MOP K retention in tropical peat soil. The use of CZ and FLC at rates of 100% and 75% of the recommended rate for pineapple cultivation (a commonly grown fruit crop in tropical peat soils in Malaysia) improved the K availability, pH, and CEC of the peat soil because of the high CEC of CZ and the humic substances (humic acids, fulvic acids, and humin) of FLC, which have a high affinity for K ions. The CLB did not improve K retention because of the competition between K, Ca, Mg, and Na ions, which are inherently high in this soil amendment. Instead of liming, which only replaces a few of the leached cations, such as calcium, the results of this study suggest an alternative method of retaining peat cations, such as K, that reduce peat acidity. This alternative method of retaining peat soil cations, especially K ions, is a practical and sustainable approach for improving peat soil productivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]