THE ROLE OF SCHOOL LEADERSHIP IN MANAGING STUDENT DISCIPLINE IN PAKISTAN: A SYSTEMATIC LITERATURE REVIEW (2015–2025)

Abstract

Student discipline remains a persistent challenge in Pakistani schools, with significant implications for teaching quality, school climate, and student outcomes. While school leadership is widely recognized as a key factor in managing discipline, existing research in Pakistan is fragmented and lacks systematic synthesis. This study presents a systematic literature review of empirical and policy studies published between 2015 and 2025 to examine how school leaders in Pakistan influence, manage, and improve student discipline, identify key challenges and research gaps, and highlight effective leadership interventions. Guided by Braun and Clarke’s six-phase thematic analysis framework, the review analyzed peer-reviewed articles, dissertations, and policy-oriented studies. Five major themes emerged: leadership practices shaping student discipline; the role of school culture, relationships, and moral climate; structural, policy, and contextual constraints; disciplinary strategies and leadership interventions; and policy design and leadership capacity gaps. The findings reveal that leadership styles particularly instructional, collaborative, democratic, and relational approaches indirectly influence student discipline by shaping teaching quality, school climate, and teacher engagement, whereas authoritarian leadership undermines disciplinary effectiveness. Discipline was found to be closely linked to ethical leadership, interpersonal relationships, and teacher support. However, centralized governance, limited leader autonomy, resource constraints, and misalignment between policy design and leadership capacity significantly restrict effective discipline management. The review identifies positive and preventive discipline, professional development, student participation, parental engagement, and digital leadership as promising interventions, contingent on systemic support and policy alignment. The study concludes that sustainable improvements in student discipline in Pakistan require leadership-driven, relational, and contextually responsive approaches supported by coherent policy frameworks and capacity building.