| Abstract: | This research made a comparative study on the quality of education in Ethiopian Higher Education
Institutes, specifically on leadership practice in private and public universities in six selected Higher
Education Institutes. It looked into the styles and behaviour of leadership in these institutions.
Relevant literature on the styles, behaviour and practice of leadership in HEIs was also reviewed.
Different leadership theoretical assumptions were examined and used in studying the practice. Data
were collected from six HEIs (three private and three public Universities) in Ethiopia. Data analysis
was made by using both chi-square and t-test for quantitative data, and interpretational and
reflective analysis for qualitative data. The findings showed that most of the leadership behaviour
manifested in private HEIs is more of task-oriented that is primarily concerned with improving
efficiency and process reliability. On the other hand, the leadership behaviour observed in public
HEIs was mostly relations-oriented which is primarily concerned with strong commitment to the
unit and its mission with improving human relations. Moreover, behaviours that are change -
oriented like monitoring the external environment to identify threats and opportunities, initiating
and leading change, encouraging innovative thinking, and facilitating collective learning were not
given more attention in both institutions. Finally, it was concluded that the practice of effective
leadership, and specifically the practice of transformational leadership in both HEIs was found to be
weak and requires consideration from both the government and the HEIs. |
