Somaliland education partners policies and school leadership practices improvements: Case studies from Hargeisa, Somaliland

The purpose of the study was to explore the policy gap in Somaliland Education Partners and Improvement Programs of school leadership practices. Six urban public primary schools in Hargeisa sub-districts were taken as case studies to observe how international education policies and programs improved targeted schools’ leadership practices. A purely qualitative research design, with a case study research approach, was employed. Thus, the key policies and programs from various foreign partners and how they promoted those schools’ principal leadership practices were emphasized. Through school continuous professional development (CPD), context-fit capacity-building seminars, upgrading courses, and school leadership experience-sharing arrangements were used as the elements of reference. During the primary data collection, 37 sample units were reached as participants. These samples were chosen using a purposive cluster sampling technique. The sample units were 12 members from school principals and deputy principals, 12 from school supervisors and Community Education Committee (CEC), and 6 schools’ sub-district education office heads. Additionally, 1 person from Hargeisa district education office and 6 representatives from school foreign partners participated. The primary data were collected using observations, semi-structured interviews, and focus group discussion methods. Additionally, dozens of educational policies, strategies, and programs from education partners were scanned and analyzed as secondary data. Primary data were thematically analyzed, while the secondary data were examined using themes, patterns, and content analyses. Finally, the results revealed a significant disparity between the documented policies and programs and the actual school leadership practices. The actual school leadership practices were more authoritarian, autonomous, and dictatorial in style. Finally, lack of decentralization, weak accountability, and uncoordinated and inconsistent continuous professional development remain the studied schools’ leadership challenges. As a recommendation, Somaliland education partners should coordinate, decentralize, and contextualize their school improvement programs.