An Assessment on the Administrative Competence of Elementary School Principals at Indanan District Sulu: Teachers’ Perspectives

Anisa Abdurajak; Masnona Asiri

doi:10.62596/3ybk9j54

Authors

Anisa A. Abdurajak Master of Arts in Education, School of Graduate Studies, Sulu State College, Jolo 7400, Philippines Author
Masnona S. Asiri Master of Arts in Education, School of Graduate Studies, Sulu State College, Jolo 7400, Philippines Author

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.62596/3ybk9j54

Keywords:

administrative competence, educational leadership, rural school management, teacher perspectives, marginalized education

Abstract

While national educational frameworks codify standardized leadership competencies, their operationalization in geographically marginalized and resource-constrained environments remains empirically underexplored, particularly from the vital vantage point of frontline educators. To address this localized discrepancy, this research evaluated the administrative competence of elementary school principals within the rural, high-needs context of Indanan District, Sulu, exclusively through the assessment of their teaching staff. Utilizing a quantitative descriptive-correlational design, data were acquired from a purposive sample of 100 public school teachers via a structured instrument targeting four core domains: planning and organizing, leadership and supervision, communication skills, and decision-making and problem-solving. Statistical analysis revealed uniformly high perceptions of administrative competence across all parameters, with adaptive strategic planning and resource organization emerging as the most pronounced operational strengths. Inferential testing indicated substantial perceptual consensus regardless of age, gender, or professional tenure, although significant assessment variances materialized based on civil status and academic credentialing. Crucially, correlational matrices demonstrated a cohesive, interdependent leadership architecture characterized by near-perfect positive relationships connecting communication proficiency with both decisional efficiency and instructional supervision. These empirical insights reveal that rural school leaders successfully buffer systemic deficits through highly integrated, communication-driven management frameworks. Consequently, the findings necessitate a macro-level policy shift away from isolated, compliance-based administrative seminars toward advanced, crisis-adaptive leadership development tailored for marginalized educational frontiers.

References

Abubakar, R. A. (2021). Teachers’ perceptions of school leadership in conflict-affected areas of Mindanao. Journal of Educational Research in the Philippines, 9(1), 77–95.

Alhabshi, S. M. (2018). Challenges of educational leadership in Sulu: A case study of public elementary schools. Mindanao Education Review, 6(3), 21–35.

Alvarez, K. (2020). Teachers’ perception of principals’ leadership in Mindanao. Mindanao Journal of Education, 12(2), 78–101.

Aquino, G. (2015). The Filipino principal: Roles and responsibilities. Rex Bookstore.

Bass, B. M. (1990). From transactional to transformational leadership: Learning to share the vision. Organizational Dynamics, 18(3), 19–31. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0090-2616(90)90061-S

Brillantes, A. B. (2018). Educational leadership in the Philippine context. UP Press.

Burns, J. M. (1978). Leadership. Harper & Row.

Bush, T. (2008). Theories of educational leadership and management (3rd ed.). SAGE Publications.

Clark, D., Martorell, P., & Rockoff, J. (2009). School principals and school performance: Evidence from New York City. NBER Working Paper No. 15552. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/e722012011-001

Creswell, J. W., & Guetterman, T. C. (2019). Educational research: Planning, conducting, and evaluating quantitative and qualitative research.

Cruz, M. (2019). Administrative competence of elementary principals in Quezon Province. Philippine Journal of School Administration, 7(1), 45–68.

Day, C., & Leithwood, K. (2007). Successful principal leadership in times of change. Springer. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/1-4020-5516-1

De Asis-Galvez, G. (2019). Administrative competence of public elementary school principals in Northern Samar. Philippine Journal of School Administration, 6(2), 34–58.

Del Rosario, J. (2017). Administrative competence of principals in Cavite. Cavite Journal of Education, 5(2), 24–49.

Dela Cruz, R. (2021). Competence of principals and its effect on school performance in Sulu. Sulu Educational Review, 3(1), 33–57.

Department of Education. (2019). DepEd Order No. 32, s. 2019: National adoption and implementation of the Philippine professional standards for school heads. DepEd.

Department of Education. (2020). Philippine Professional Standards for School Heads (PPSSH). DepEd.

Dizon, J. (2017). Communication practices of Filipino school leaders. Philippine Journal of Education Administration, 12(1), 45–67.

Fullan, M. (2014). The principal: Three keys to maximizing impact. Jossey-Bass.

Garcia, B. (2016). Planning competence of school principals in Mindoro. Mindoro Journal of Educational Management, 4(1), 22–46.

Gonzales, J. C. (2017). Administrative competence of public school principals and its relationship to teacher performance. Philippine Journal of Educational Leadership, 5(2), 45–62.

Guzman, L. (2018). Teacher perceptions of principals’ administrative skills. Journal of Philippine Education Studies, 7(2), 101–120.

Hallinger, P., & Heck, R. H. (1996). Reassessing the principal’s role in school effectiveness: A review of empirical research. Educational Management & Administration, 24(1), 5–44. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0013161X96032001002

Harris, A. (2009). Distributed leadership: What we know. McGraw-Hill. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-9737-9_2

Horng, E., Klasik, D., & Loeb, S. (2010). Principal time-use and school effectiveness. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 32(4), 464–495. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1086/653625

Ingersoll, R. (2001). Teacher turnover and principal leadership. American Educational Research Journal, 38(3), 541–574. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3102/00028312038003499

Juhaili, H., & Asiri, M. (2024). The assessment of preschool program: The case of Indanan South District. Journal of Education and Academic Settings. https://doi.org/10.62596/je3na507 DOI: https://doi.org/10.62596/je3na507

Laguerta, P. (2021). Challenges of school administration in rural areas. Asian Journal of Education Research, 5(1), 55–78.

Leithwood, K., & Jantzi, D. (2005). Transformational leadership. In B. Davies (Ed.), The essentials of school leadership (pp. 31–43). SAGE Publications.

Leithwood, K., & Sun, J. (2012). The nature and effects of transformational school leadership: Evidence from the U.S. Educational Administration Quarterly, 48(3), 443–484. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0013161X11436268

Lopez, P. (2017). Communication competence of school leaders in Cebu. Cebu Journal of Educational Leadership, 2(1), 41–63.

Louis, K., Leithwood, K., Wahlstrom, K., & Anderson, S. (2010). Learning from leadership project: Investigating the links to improved student learning. University of Minnesota.

Manalo, R. (2018). Decision-making approaches of principals in the Philippines. Philippine Educational Review, 3(2), 23–47.

Marzano, R. J., Waters, T., & McNulty, B. (2005). School leadership that works: From research to results. ASCD.

Mintzberg, H. (1973). The nature of managerial work. Harper & Row.

Navarro, E. (2016). Problem-solving approaches of school heads in Laguna. Laguna Journal of Education Research, 4(2), 54–76.

Northouse, P. G. (2016). Leadership: Theory and practice (7th ed.). SAGE Publications.

Polit, D. F., & Beck, C. T. (2017). Nursing research: Generating and assessing evidence for nursing practice (10th ed.). Wolters Kluwer.

Reyes, V. (2016). Educational management in Philippine public schools. National Journal of Educational Management, 4(1), 12–36.

Robinson, V. M. J. (2011). Student-centered leadership. Jossey-Bass.

Santos, A. (2015). Leadership and supervision practices of principals in Metro Manila. Metro Manila Journal of Education, 3(2), 15–38.

Sebastian, J., & Allensworth, E. (2012). Principal leadership and teacher instructional practice. Educational Administration Quarterly, 48(4), 626–663. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0013161X11436273

Sergiovanni, T. J. (1991). The principalship: A reflective practice perspective. Allyn and Bacon.

Serrano, C. (2019). Leadership styles of public school principals. Philippine Journal of Leadership Studies, 8(1), 88–112.

Spillane, J. P. (2006). Distributed leadership. Jossey-Bass.

Stogdill, R. M. (1948). Personal factors associated with leadership: A survey of the literature. Journal of Psychology, 25(1), 35–71. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/00223980.1948.9917362

Torres, R. (2020). Competence of school heads and its impact on teacher motivation. Mindanao Journal of Education, 10(1), 67–90.

von Bertalanffy, L. (1968). General system theory: Foundations, development, applications. George Braziller.

Waters, T., Marzano, R., & McNulty, B. (2004). Balanced leadership: What 30 years of research tells us about the effect of leadership on student achievement. McREL.

World Bank. (2020). The role of school leadership in improving education. World Bank Publications.