Leadership in Action: Teachers' Lived Experiences of School Leaders' Leadership Styles and Their Influence on Professional Skills Development in the City Division of Santiago

Abstract

School leadership plays a pivotal role in shaping teachers' professional competence, instructional effectiveness, and organizational commitment. As educational systems continue to respond to curriculum reforms, technological advancements, and evolving learner needs, school leaders are expected to adopt leadership styles that foster teacher empowerment, continuous professional learning, and organizational excellence. Although previous studies have established the relationship between leadership styles and teacher performance, limited qualitative investigations have explored how teachers personally experience school leaders' leadership styles and how these experiences contribute to the development of their professional skills. This study explored the lived experiences of teachers regarding school leaders' leadership styles and their influence on professional skills development in the City Division of Santiago. Using a transcendental phenomenological research design, twelve (12) purposively selected public school teachers participated in in-depth semi-structured interviews. The findings revealed that effective leadership styles significantly influence teachers' instructional competence, communication, collaboration, problem-solving, innovation, leadership capacity, and professional confidence. The study recommends strengthening leadership development programs for school leaders, institutionalizing collaborative professional learning communities, enhancing mentoring systems, and implementing sustainable leadership frameworks that promote continuous teacher professional growth and educational excellence.