Public School Heads’ Transformational Leadership Practices and Challenges as Perceived by Secondary Heads and Teachers in Olongapo City: An Exploratory Study

Abstract

This study examined the transformational and administrative leadership practices of public secondary school heads in Olongapo City and the challenges they encountered as perceived by school heads and teachers. Using a descriptive-comparative quantitative design, the study involved nine school heads and 195 teachers from four public secondary schools: Regional Science High School III, Tapinac Senior High School, Mabayuan Senior High School, and New Cabalan National High School. A researcher-made questionnaire based on DepEd Order No. 007, s. 2024 was used to measure leadership practices in organizational efficiency, resource allocation and management, policy implementation, workplace climate, and day-to-day school operations, as well as challenges related to teacher retention and recruitment, technology integration, student learning gaps, student mental health, and community trust and engagement. Data were analyzed using frequency, percentage, weighted mean, and analysis of variance. Findings showed that both school heads and teachers perceived administrative leadership practices as highly practiced. School heads rated workplace climate highest, while teachers rated policy implementation and day-to-day operations highest. Challenges were rated as challenging by school heads and sometimes challenging by teachers, with teacher retention and recruitment emerging as the most pressing concern. Most perceptions did not significantly differ when grouped by profile variables, except for selected teacher perceptions related to workplace climate and teacher retention. Based on these findings, a strategic leadership plan was proposed to strengthen leadership development, resource management, teacher support, technology use, learning recovery, mental health support, and community engagement.