A hybrid ethical leadership model for township schools: Integrating classical, contemporary, and African leadership perspectives

Ethical leadership in education is essential for fostering fairness, integrity, and accountability. Principals face complex ethical dilemmas in South African township schools that extend beyond conventional school leadership due to limited resources, political interference, and community-based governance. Based on a qualitative integrative literature review and conceptual analysis, this study systematically examined peer-reviewed scholarship alongside seminal works to identify key ethical leadership dimensions. The process involved structured searching, screening, and thematic synthesis of relevant literature. The outcome is a hybrid ethical leadership model (HELM) that integrates classical theories (e.g., virtue ethics, moral person–moral manager), contemporary perspectives (e.g., transformational leadership, social learning theory), African ethical traditions (e.g., Ubuntu, relational ethics), and Bronfenbrenner’s socio-ecological systems theory. The model offers a context-sensitive, multi-layered framework for ethical decision-making that balances justice, care, role modelling, and governance, contributing theoretically and practically to leadership training and school governance in township contexts.