KOMPETENSI KEPIMPINAN GURU BESAR: PEMANGKIN PEMBANGUNAN PROFESIONALISME BERTERUSAN GURU DI SARAWAK

Abstract

The issue of teachers’ Continuous Professional Development (CPD) has gained increasing attention as part of efforts to strengthen the quality of education, in alignment with the nation’s educational aspirations. The leadership competencies of headteachers play a crucial role as a key catalyst in enhancing teachers’ professionalism, ensuring they remain responsive to the demands of 21st-century education. Accordingly, this study aims to examine the effect of headteachers’ leadership competencies on teachers’ CPD in Sarawakian national schools. Employing a quantitative research design, the study involved 743 teachers as respondents, selected through cluster sampling. The Leadership Competency Instrument (LCI) developed by the Razak School of Government (2017) and the Malaysian School Leadership Competency Standard (KOMPAS 2.0) were combined to assess headteachers’ leadership competency levels, while teachers’ CPD was evaluated using the Teacher’s Continuous Professional Development at Work (TCPD@Work) instrument developed by Evers et al. (2015). Data were analyzed descriptively (mean and standard deviation) using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 29, while inferential analysis was conducted using Smart Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (SmartPLS SEM) 4.0 to test the relationships between variables. The findings revealed that both headteachers’ leadership competency and teachers’ CPD were at very high (6.123) and high levels (5.667), respectively. Furthermore, headteachers’ leadership competency demonstrated a significant positive effect on teachers’ CPD. Overall, this study establishes an empirical model that underscores leadership competency as a pivotal catalyst for enhancing teachers’ CPD in the local educational context. The findings imply that continuous enhancement of headteachers’ leadership competencies can further strengthen the implementation of teachers’ CPD in schools. Future research is recommended to investigate potential mediating or moderating factors, such as organizational culture or community support, to understand the mechanisms underpinning this relationship better.