Availability of Professional Learning Community and the Leadership Practices that Support it in Governmental Schools in Egypt and the Sultanate of Oman

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to identify the availability of the dimensions of Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) and the leadership practices that support them in government schools. It also investigated the differences in the previous areas across nationality (Egyptian/ Omani), and gender (male / female). The study sample consisted of 1235 teachers 509 from Egypt and 726 from Oman. The scale developed by Olivier, Hipp and Huffman (2010) was used to measure PLC dimensions, and Pohl (2012) classification was used to identify school leadership practices that support PLCs in schools. This classification is aligned with school leadership standards. The overall sample rated highly both the availability of PLC dimensions and the leadership practices that support them. The study found significant differences due to nationality in favor of the Omani sample, and due to gender in favor of females. The study concludes with some mechanisms recommended to improve PLCs and school leadership to support them in government schools.