Abstract

A principal plays a very important role in deciding the direction and success of a school. Whether a school is
dynamic is dependent upon the skills and abilities of the principal. In order to be excellent, the principal must be
in possession of an excellent character. Therefore, the selection and promotion of school principals should be
conducted through a meticulous and objective procedure. The entire process must be reviewed in order to ensure
the quality and high standard of national education. Selection according to seniority or competency in work
performance through evaluation of management and administrative skills, which is the current practice, may not
be suitable for the enhancement of the leadership of principals. This study was conducted to identify and affirm
the conceptual framework and attributes of school leaders (principals) needed to achieve leadership sustainability
and school excellence. The exploratory factor analysis method was employed for the purpose of this study and
was implemented in three stages. The sample population comprised primary and secondary school teachers.
Through this study, it was found that there were five important traits or attributes which a school leader or
principal must possess in order to make a school excellent. These five attributes are: (i) integrity, which has the
sub-attributes of being principled and humble; (ii) forward looking, which has the sub-attributes of strategic
catalyst and mind motivator; (iii) inspirational, which has the sub-attributes of supportive and influential; (iv)
competent, which has the sub-attributes of task competency (there are two components, namely, action-oriented
and sociability as well as emotional and spiritual competency); and (vi) self-efficacy.

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