Leading multicultural schools in Nigeria : the challenges and strategies of educational leaders of international schools from different countries

Abstract

This study explores the experiences of educational leaders of international multicultural schools in Nigeria to find out the challenges that they face and how they employ culturally responsive leadership to promote cultural inclusion in their schools. The participants in this qualitative research were two female and four male school leaders who come from different countries as well as work and/or have worked in different international schools in four regions of Nigeria. Data was collected via interviews and analysed via thematic analysis. Based on the results, there seem to be significant negative attitudes toward local educators in international schools in Nigeria. These attitudes manifested in different interconnected ways such as prejudice against local educators, parents’ preference for foreign educators, less opportunities for local educators as well as lower welfare and salary packages for local educators. In addition, the results show that there are different ways to practice culturally responsive leadership and its components. The findings from this study can be used to raise awareness of the need for culturally responsive leadership in schools and provides insights on how it can be implemented.