ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Educ.
Sec. Leadership in Education
Transformational Leadership in Educational Management: Encouraging Student Motivation and Engagement
Usfandi Haryaka
Widyatmike Gede Mulawarman
Nurlaili Nurlaili
Warman Warman
Universitas Mulawarman, Samarinda, Indonesia
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Abstract
Low student motivation and engagement in learning remain fundamental issues in educational management, primarily due to the weak implementation of transformational leadership in schools. The urgency of this research stems from the role of leadership in creating an inspiring learning environment, while also addressing the ongoing gap between leadership theory and practice in the field. The purpose of this research is to analyze the factors influencing the success of transformational leadership and its impact on student motivation and engagement. A mixed-methods approach was employed, with a sample size of 276 respondents assessing the survey and 30 interviewees. Data were collected through Likert questionnaires, observations, and in-depth interviews. Data analysis was conducted through descriptive statistics, regression, correlation, and thematic analysis for qualitative data. The results show that transformational leadership significantly influences student motivation, with a regression coefficient of 0.34-0.43, and increased learning participation is indicated by a correlation of 0.38. The largest contributing factors are the availability of school resources (42%) and an innovative culture. Conversely, the main obstacles stem from a lack of training and competency development (57%) and teacher resistance (27%). The effectiveness of transformational leadership is found to be influenced by leader competence, school culture, and organizational support. In conclusion, transformational leadership has been shown to increase motivation, engagement, and an innovative learning climate. Practical implications: schools need to strengthen training, coaching, and regular evaluation programs to ensure the sustainability of transformational leadership implementation.
Summary
Keywords
education3, Innovation5, leadership1, management2, Motivation4
Received
30 July 2025
Accepted
17 February 2026
Copyright
© 2026 Haryaka, Mulawarman, Nurlaili and Warman. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
*Correspondence: Usfandi Haryaka
Disclaimer
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