A synthesis of reviews of research on principal leadership in East Asia

2015 ◽  
Vol 53 (4) ◽  
pp. 554-570 ◽  
Author(s):  
Allan Walker ◽  
Philip Hallinger
Keyword(s):  
East Asia ◽  
School Leadership ◽  
Principal Leadership ◽  
Thematic Analysis ◽  
Structural Elements ◽  
Principal Development ◽  
Global Literature ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Past ◽  
Applied Study

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to synthesize findings from five systematic reviews of research on principal leadership in East Asia contained in this special issue. The goal is to identify commonalities as well as differences concerning both approaches to research and the enactment of school leadership within this rapidly developing and increasingly influential region of the world. Design/methodology/approach – The review uses thematic analysis of both structural elements and substantive findings drawn from the composite review papers. Findings – The synthesis of the research reviews found considerable variability across the five societies in terms of the volume of work accessible to international audiences, topical foci, the conceptual and methodological sophistication, and findings. Three content patterns were discerned via the thematic analysis of the five reviews: first, influences on the principalship (incorporating personal, cultural and political sub themes); second, principal leadership practices (including qualities and styles, vision, indirect influence on student learning and shared decision making); and third, principal development (including preparation, training and professional development). Research limitations/implications – In a broader sense, this synthesis paper seeks to assess the development of the field of applied study in East Asia over the past two decades. As such, the paper highlights implications for further building the knowledge base both in the region and globally. Originality/value – This synthesis, as well as the five reviews, represent the first effort to mark the boundaries of knowledge about school leadership in these East Asian societies. As such, they lay a foundation for the future development of the field in the region, and in so doing also make a contribution to a more diverse global literature in the field.

Assistant principal leadership development: a narrative capture study

2014 ◽  
Vol 52 (2) ◽  
pp. 173-192 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa Petrides ◽  
Cynthia Jimes ◽  
Anastasia Karaglani
Keyword(s):  
Leadership Development ◽  
School Leadership ◽  
Principal Leadership ◽  
Assistant Principals ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Assistant Principal ◽  
Leadership Roles ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Leadership Challenges ◽  
Teacher Professional

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the knowledge base on the ways in which assistant principals view their roles, and on the potential challenges involved in a distributed leadership model. Design/methodology/approach – The study employed a narrative capture method, in which assistant principals from two large urban school districts were asked to relate and self-interpret two leadership stories through a web-based narrative capture form. A total of 90 stories were collected from 45 assistant principals. Participants rated their stories based on a set of leadership indicators (including method of decision making and type of teacher interaction present in the story, among others); the results were analyzed statistically. Findings – Overall, participants tended to view their roles in terms of instructionally focussed leadership. However, leadership challenges emerged in several areas of leadership practice, including operational management and teacher professional development (PD). Demographic factors were found to influence leadership perceptions and practices. Research limitations/implications – This study begins to fill the empirical gap on assistant principal leadership roles, practices, and perceptions. Further research, using other methods (e.g. observation), is needed to collect evidence of in situ leadership practices of assistant principals, and how those practices impact and relate to school objectives for teaching and learning. Practical implications – The study sheds light on the leadership development needs of assistant principals and on the importance of ongoing, tailored PD, based on factors including where leaders are in their careers and how they envision their roles. Originality/value – This paper contributes to nascent scholarship regarding assistant principal school leadership.

South-east Asian demand for crowdfunding could grow

2016 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
East Asia ◽  
Small Businesses ◽  
East Asian ◽  
South East Asia ◽  
Product Returns ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Past ◽  
Regulatory Reforms

Subject Crowdfunding in South-east Asia. Significance Regulatory reforms have made possible a range of alternative financing initiatives that raised almost 84 million dollars for small businesses in the past three years from South-east Asian platforms alone. Crowdfunding is the fastest-growing segment, though amounts are still small. Impacts Further industry-specific regulatory reforms will be required to support South-east Asian crowdfunding. Facing competition, more banks will be forced to offer online crowdfunding-related products. However, low product returns could be a disincentive to large investor interest in crowdfunding.

Conceptualizing the critical path linked by teacher commitment

2015 ◽  
Vol 53 (5) ◽  
pp. 597-624 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jingping Sun
Keyword(s):  
Student Learning ◽  
School Leadership ◽  
Principal Leadership ◽  
Critical Path ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Teacher Commitment ◽  
Value Systems ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Four Dimensions ◽  
Improving Student Learning

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to propose a critical path through which school leadership travels to students by highlighting the importance of teacher commitment. Design/methodology/approach – Using both meta-analytic and narrative review methods, this paper systematically reviews the evidence in the past 20 years about the conceptualizations and measurements of teacher commitment and its relationships with principal leadership and student learning. Findings – This paper presents: first, the four dimensions of teacher commitment and the ten constituents involved in the conceptualization of teacher commitment; and second, the five measures used in empirical studies for measuring teacher commitment. It concludes that: teacher commitment is significantly related to student learning; the extent to which school leadership influences teacher commitment is large and is aligned with the value systems of both leaders and teachers; and teacher commitment mediates leadership impacts on student learning in three ways: at the personal level, at the dyad level and at the collective level. Research limitations/implications – This study conceptualizes a critical path through which school leadership improves student learning, mediated by teacher commitment. A framework of such critical paths will provide educational leaders and policy makers at both local and state levels with much needed guidance for improving student learning. Originality/value – This study adds to the understanding of the indirect influence of school leadership on student learning by illustrating how and to what extent principal leadership influences teacher commitment, which in turn influences student learning.

A review of Singapore principals’ leadership qualities, styles, and roles

2015 ◽  
Vol 53 (4) ◽  
pp. 512-533 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Ng ◽  
Dong Thanh Nguyen ◽  
Benjamin Koon Siak Wong ◽  
William Kim Weng Choy
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
School Leadership ◽  
Principal Leadership ◽  
Comparative Research ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Leadership Qualities ◽  
General Picture ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The World

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present a review of empirical studies on principal leadership in Singapore. It seeks to provide a general picture of Singapore principals’ leadership qualities, styles, and roles. Design/methodology/approach – This is a systematic review of empirical studies, using a “bounded” approach with a focus on the main findings of the reviewed studies. In all, 36 studies were selected for the interview. The findings of these studies were open coded, synthesized, and clustered into different themes. Findings – The review revealed several qualities, characteristics, styles, and enacted roles of Singapore principals. While there are similarities between Singapore principals and principals elsewhere in the world, the review brought out some features unique to Singapore principals. Originality/value – This review contributes to the growing literature in comparative research on principals’ leadership and their enacted roles, and concurrently functions as a guide for further research on school leadership in Singapore.

International jihadist terrorism is still potent

2019 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
West Africa ◽  
East Asia ◽  
South East Asia ◽  
Islamic State ◽  
Combat Experience ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Past ◽  
Terrorist Groups ◽  
Jihadist Terrorism

Subject Jihadist terrorism in the past year. Significance Developments in terrorist groups in the past year were marked by Islamic State (IS)’s military 'defeat' in Syria and, in parallel, expansion into South-east Asia and West Africa via the emergence of new ‘provinces’; al-Qaida (AQ)’s consolidation and growing capabilities via opportunistic local collaborations; and concerns over Jemaah Islamiyah (JI)’s resurgence in Indonesia. Impacts Targeting of places of worship in South-east Asia may become an entrenched trend. AQIM will keep trying to exploit socio-political grievances in the Maghreb region and Mali. Despite its losses, IS has more money, better media profile and more combat experience than AQ.

Principal leadership preparation towards high-performing school leadership in Malaysia

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 425-439
Author(s):  
Donnie Adams ◽  
Ashley Ng Yoon Mooi ◽  
Vasu Muniandy
Keyword(s):  
School Leadership ◽  
Principal Leadership ◽  
School Leaders ◽  
Educational Leaders ◽  
Leadership Preparation ◽  
Leadership Roles ◽  
Professional Qualification ◽  
Content Type ◽  
High Performing ◽  
Comprehensive Plan

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the Malaysian National Professional Qualification for Educational Leaders (NPQEL), a principal leadership preparation programme and the Malaysian Education Blueprint 2013–2025, a comprehensive plan for a rapid and sustainable transformation of our education system through to 2025 to ensure high-performing school leaders in every school.Design/methodology/approachIn understanding how the NPQEL operates and its effectiveness in preparing high performing school leaders, a research instrument of open-ended questions were administered to 102 principals from government-funded secondary schools, to establish how they were prepared for their leadership roles and their views of their leadership practices.FindingsThe NPQEL programme provides evidence of strong outcomes in preparing school leaders towards high-performing school leadership in Malaysia in combination of a variety of approaches with respect to its designs and competency standards. Findings indicate that the NPQEL contributes towards the development of the school leaders' attributes or skills for their leadership roles; and the NPQEL fulfils the aspirations set out in the Malaysian Education Blueprint 2013–2025.Originality/valueThis paper explores the potential influence of Malaysian NPQEL and the Malaysian Education Blueprint 2013–2025 on preparing high-performing school leaders in every school.

Bungee jumping and rocket launching

2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (7) ◽  
pp. 1610-1624
Author(s):  
Michael Christie ◽  
Susan Simon ◽  
Wayne Graham ◽  
Kairen Call ◽  
Yvonne Farragher
Keyword(s):  
Transformational Leadership ◽  
Leadership Development ◽  
Transformative Learning ◽  
School Leadership ◽  
Learning Needs ◽  
Development Programs ◽  
Leadership Theories ◽  
Principal Development ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Leadership Research

Purpose A plethora of principal development programs based on myriad leadership theories currently abounds in many educational jurisdictions globally. Today’s principals, consequently and fortuitously, often feel less isolated and better supported that has been indicated in school leadership research over the past two decades. The purpose of this paper is to discover, however, how principals, through well-designed postgraduate study, can effectively become the transformational leaders, schools regularly require of them. Design/methodology/approach Action research involving postgraduate leadership students at an Australian university over a two year period, involved three cycles: identification of leadership learning needs, introduction of innovations to their learning and identification of the transformative learning which contributed to their leadership development. Findings Transformative learning impacts significantly on transformational leadership development. This happens when disorienting dilemmas challenge and open minds to possibilities, and paradigmatic assumptions are questioned. The ensuing awareness enables leaders to demonstrate characteristics of transformational leadership especially the dimension of individualised consideration. Originality/value Few studies have aligned transformative learning with transformational leadership theory, but this paper found that school leaders benefit from transformative learning in their quest to become such a leader. The scariness of a metaphoric principal bungee-jump could ultimately lead to rocket launching of the most transformative kind.

Growing Laos-US ties will concern Beijing

2015 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
South Korea ◽  
East Asia ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Past ◽  
East Asia Summit ◽  
The Us ◽  
Generational Changes ◽  
Trade Preferences ◽  
High Level

Subject Laos/US diplomatic ties. Significance Ahead of US President Barack Obama's planned visit to the 2016 East Asia Summit in Laos, Washington is boosting its high-level diplomacy with Vientiane. In the past two months, US Assistant Secretary of State Danny Russel hosted the sixth annual Laos-US Strategic Dialogue; US Ambassador to ASEAN Nina Hachician visited to confer on Laos's 2016 ASEAN chairmanship; and Second Lady Jill Biden led a delegation to Vientiane on women's empowerment and civil society. These visits further the US 'Asia pivot' and lay the groundwork to challenge China's influence over Laos and the wider Mekong region including Cambodia and Myanmar. Impacts Generational changes in Lao politics will unfold from April 2016. Vientiane will diversify its diplomatic contacts. Possible US trade preferences may hasten Lao labour reforms. Japan, South Korea and Vietnam will also challenge China in Laos.

Fostering an entrepreneurial attitude – challenging in principal leadership

2014 ◽  
Vol 56 (6) ◽  
pp. 551-561 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maj-Lis Hörnqvist ◽  
Eva Leffler
Keyword(s):  
School Leadership ◽  
Principal Leadership ◽  
School Context ◽  
Research School ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Learning And Teaching ◽  
Entrepreneurial Attitude ◽  
International Policies ◽  
Learning School

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to uncover the meaning of entrepreneurship in schools and a school leadership which aims to nurture an entrepreneurial attitude. The authors will also discuss what challenges there could be for principals to lead activities to develop an entrepreneurial attitude to learning and teaching. Design/methodology/approach – The paper integrates policy documents and scientific material concerning entrepreneurial attitude, leadership and school culture. Findings – In Sweden as well as internationally there are clear policy intentions for renewal of schoolwork in a more entrepreneurial direction. The most striking challenges for principals are to be enough creative within the boarders set by school authorities when setting vision and goals for the development of their schools to enhance an entrepreneurial attitude, building trust and distributing power among staff, along with having courage to think outside “the box”. Research limitations/implications – The point of departure is entrepreneurial attitude in education as understood in a Swedish context. International policies as well as research are discussed. Practical implications – The paper illuminates strategic ways of thinking and acting according to leadership in an entrepreneurial learning school context. Originality/value – The role of principals as well as the significance of culture in a school context focused on developing an entrepreneurial attitude is quite often discussed in research. School differs from business in that there are more restrictions set by school authorities. The paper shows an undeveloped area which can be useful to identify and problematize challenges for leadership.

Making sense of images of fact and fiction

2015 ◽  
Vol 53 (4) ◽  
pp. 445-466 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philip Hallinger ◽  
Allan Walker ◽  
Gian Tu Trung
Keyword(s):  
Educational Leadership ◽  
Knowledge Base ◽  
School Leadership ◽  
Principal Leadership ◽  
Quantitative Description ◽  
Analysis Data ◽  
Research Quality ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Research Perspectives ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to review both international and domestic (i.e. Vietnamese language) journal articles and graduate theses and dissertations on educational leadership in Vietnam. The review addresses two specific goals: first, to describe and critically assess the nature of the formal knowledge base on principal leadership in Vietnam, second, to synthesize findings from the existing literature on principal leadership in Vietnam. Design/methodology/approach – The paper employed a method for conducting systematic reviews of research. The authors conducted a detailed, exhaustive search for international and “local” papers from Vietnam, yielding 120 research sources. Information from these papers was extracted and evaluated prior to analysis. Data analysis included both quantitative description of the “review database” as well as critical synthesis of substantive findings. Findings – The review supports and extends an earlier review which found that the practice of educational leadership in Vietnam remains largely “invisible” to the international community of scholars. The review also yielded a highly critical assessment of research perspectives and methods used in the “local” Vietnamese studies which comprised the bulk of the authors’ database. Synthesis of substantive findings highlighted the manner by which organizational, political, and socio-cultural forces in the Vietnamese context shapes the practice of school leadership. Research limitations/implications – First, qualitative studies are recommended that seek to describe, in-depth, the enactment of leadership in the Vietnamese context. Second, broad-scale surveys of characteristics, attitudes, and beliefs of school leaders across Vietnam are warranted. Third, the authors encourage graduate students and scholars studying school leadership in Vietnam to undertake a new generation of theory-informed studies that connect with the global literature. Practical implications – Due to the relatively weak nature of the existing knowledge base, the authors were unable to identify specific implications for leadership practice. However, practical implications are identified for developing the research capacity needed to improve research quality in Vietnam’s universities. Originality/value – This review is the first systematic review of educational leadership and management conducted of the Vietnamese literature. Moreover, the authors suggest that the review is original in its comprehensive coverage of both the local and international literature on educational leadership in Vietnam.

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