Leadership, Culture and Performance: A Case Study in Portuguese Schools

Abstract

This study investigates the relationships between leadership systems, organizational culture and school performance in school clusters in the Eastern Algarve, Portugal. Based on the assumption that schools in similar socio-economic contexts can present different dynamics and results, the research focuses on understanding how leadership, personalized in the principal, and school culture traits influence educational performance. The central hypothesis is that effective educational leadership positively influences the school's organizational culture, and that both variables are decisive in framing teaching practice and creating learning environments that boost student results. Adopting a multiple case study methodology (“constellation of cases”) in six municipalities in the Algarve, the article analyses preliminary data to contextualize the profound territorial inequalities in school enrolment, dropout and success in the region. The preliminary results of this contextualization reveal significant disparities that serve as a backdrop for the subsequent qualitative analysis. Ultimately, the work aims to identify the mechanisms that allow schools to “make a difference”, contributing with reflections to processes of change and improvement in the Portuguese education system.