School leadership and the development of a positive learning climate

This chapter addresses the role of educational leadership in shaping a climate conducive to student learning. The first part of the chapter focuses on differences between countries and economies with regard to creating a disciplinary classroom climate and establishing a positive relationship between teachers and students within a school. The second part of the chapter examines the impact of instructional and distributed leadership on the creation of a positive learning climate at a school. In the third section, the effect of school leadership on learning climate is explored by comparing the four different types of school leadership: integrated leadership, inclusive leadership, educational leadership and administrative leadership. In this section also, country and economy leadership types are related to the establishment of a learning climate within a school. The chapter concludes with reflections on the direct influence of the principal in lower secondary schools on classroom climate.