The British Council has stressed the need to develop professional standards for school leaders, thereby promoting excellence in instructional leadership.

This was disclosed at a five-day summit organised by the Council in partnership with the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN).

The Council’s Director of Programmes, Chikodi Onyemerela, said the initiative aimed at establishing clear performance expectations for school leaders in instructional leadership across different career stages and define the essential knowledge and competencies needed for effective leadership.

Onyemerela said the professional standards initiative was a product of a study tour, which looked at the practice of instructional leadership in the United Kingdom (UK), and discovered a gap in Nigeria’s education sector that needed to be filled.

Also, Registrar of TRCN, Prof. Josiah Ajiboye, said the ultimate goal of the programme was to review the current school leadership in Nigeria, noting that school leadership accounts for about one-fourth of learners’ attainment in their schools.

“In Nigeria, we have not concentrated so well on school leadership. That is why we’re bringing out a unique policy document on school leadership, especially when we are talking about instructional leadership,” he said.

British Council Education Consultant, Jane English, who is a UK-based policy expert, agreed that school leadership is central to student development.

She said: “The standards would help school leaders identify areas that need developing and to focus more on the core purpose of their schools. Sometimes, some leaders in their schools focus too much on administration; administration is easy, it feels good but the real focus of school leadership is about the work done in the classroom.”