‘Supporting principals is not an end in itself: it is an investment in the schools they lead and the communities they serve.’ A new report has taken a closer look at who school leaders across the OECD are, what makes them valued, why this matters, and how to best to support them.
The Value of School Principals in TALIS 2024 (OECD, 2026a) focuses on lower secondary schools and draws on TALIS data from teachers and school leaders in 55 education systems. Carried out every 5 to 6 years, TALIS (the Teaching and Learning International Survey) is the largest international survey of teachers and principals.
‘Principals shape the daily experiences of teachers, students and families. They guide teaching, support staff, build trust with parents and create environments where students can thrive. Their leadership matters,’ the 150-page report opens.
‘In 2024, 280,000 teachers … shared their views on the leadership of 17,000 principals, while principals themselves described their practices, working conditions, professional development and school organisation.’
As reported in ACER News, the latest cycle included 6,000 teachers and 359 principals from schools across Australia. ‘In TALIS, valued leadership is defined by teachers’ perceptions of their principals’ instructional and relational leadership, reflecting the extent to which principals support teaching, learning and positive relationships within the school,’ it explains.
‘Instructional leadership involves supporting teachers to develop their practice, work collaboratively and take shared responsibility for student learning. This is linked to student achievement.
‘Relational leadership involves building a shared vision, fostering inclusive decision-making and promoting positive professional relationships across the school community. This is aligned to school climate.
‘Valued leadership is associated with better professional outcomes for teachers, including greater self-efficacy, higher job satisfaction and wellbeing and a lower likelihood of wanting to leave the profession.’
The ACER News article gives an overview of the Australian findings. They include:
- Australian principals remain highly committed to the profession, with 95% reporting overall job satisfaction.
- Work-related stress remains above the OECD average, largely driven by increasing pressures associated with staff absences, student behavioural issues, changing requirements from authorities and parent concerns.
- Female and younger principals (aged under 40) are more likely to be valued but report higher levels of work-related stress. Principals in smaller schools (fewer than 250 students) are also generally rated more positively than those in larger schools (750 or more students.
- Leadership practices among Australian principals: Most (85%) encourage collaboration among teachers to develop new teaching practices, ensure teachers take responsibility for improving their professional skills (83%), and foster a sense of responsibility for student learning outcomes (90%).
Read more about the Australian findings in the full article TALIS 2024: What makes an effective school principal? published on ACER News. The full OECD report – sharing findings from all 55 participating education systems: on why valued leadership matters; who valued principals are and where they work; what valued principals do; and how to support principals – is available to download from the OECD website.
Australia’s participation in TALIS 2024 was managed by ACER (the Australian Council for Educational Research) on behalf of the Australian, state and territory governments. For more on Australia’s TALIS results visit the website.
References
ACER News. (2026, October 27). What makes an effective school principal? ACER News. https://www.acer.org/au/news/article/talis-2024-what-makes-an-effective-school-principal
OECD. (2026a). The Value of School Principals in TALIS 2024. TALIS, OECD Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1787/a2cdb777-en
OECD. (2026b). The Value of School Principals in TALIS 2024 – Participant Notes: Australia. TALIS, OECD Publishing. https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/the-value-of-school-principals-in-talis-2024_8359283e-en/australia_061c6a19-en.html
