Purpose, passion and play

2016 ◽  
Vol 54 (4) ◽  
pp. 378-392 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sabre Cherkowski ◽  
Keith Walker
Keyword(s):  
Educational Leadership ◽  
Human Development ◽  
School Leadership ◽  
School Principals ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Qualitative Description ◽  
Diverse Range ◽  
Content Type ◽  
School Organizations ◽  
Leading Schools

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify and elaborate on the construct of flourishing in schools as understood through the stories and explanations provided by a small group of public school principals. Framed within a positive organizational perspective, the specific objectives of this study are: to identify how school leaders understand and experience flourishing in their roles and in their schools; to explore the conditions, catalysts and/or galvanizing forces of flourishing in schools. Design/methodology/approach – The researchers used an electronic Delphi survey to gain a qualitative description of the understandings and impressions of the construct of flourishing from the perspective of practicing school administrators in one school district in central British Columbia. Delphi responses were aggregated after each round and thematically analysed to determine patterns and trends for further examination through progressive iterations of the survey administered via e-mail. The final set of data were then analysed for patterns, trends and themes that were compared and contrasted against research findings in the literature underpinning the theoretical framework for this study. Findings – While there was no single definition of what it means to flourish in the work of school leadership, shared descriptions from these principals indicated that they feel a sense of flourishing when they are working together with teachers from a sense of purpose and passion and in a spirit of play to cultivate learning climates that reflect a shared ownership for improving educational experiences for students. These initial findings provoke thinking about the potentials and benefits of shifting the focus of research and practice in educational leadership towards more positive, strengths-based perspectives. Research limitations/implications – The sample size was small, and so generalizing findings beyond this study is unreasonable. Further, because the researchers separated participant information from responses in order to safeguard anonymity and to aggregate the responses to provide these back to participants for their further elaboration and reflections, they were unable to determine whether particular responses were connected to context (elementary or secondary, size of school, years of experience as an administrator), gender or other demographic factors. However, the use of the electronic Delphi instrument provided insights on engaging school principals in thoughtful inquiry as participants, while respecting the busy workload and time constraints associated with the work of school principals. Practical implications – Attending to well-being in the work of leading schools is an under-researched area of educational leadership. This study is an example of how researching educational leadership from a positive, strengths-based, human development perspective may provide useful insights for supporting principals and other educators to notice, nurture and sustain a sense of flourishing in their work and across the school. While further research is needed to examine the construct of flourishing across a diverse range of school organizations, the findings from this study provoke thinking about the benefits of studying what goes well, what brings vitality and a more full sense of humanity in the work of leading school organizations. Originality/value – The researchers use a new perspective for examining and explaining the phenomenon of flourishing in schools, a positive organizational research orientation. The use of this strengths-based, positive, human development approach to examining the construct of flourishing from the perspective of school principals can offer new insights and strategies for attending to well-being as an integral part of the work of leading schools.

School leadership, teacher’s psychological empowerment and work-related outcomes

2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (7) ◽  
pp. 1501-1514
Author(s):  
Kersti Kõiv ◽  
Kadi Liik ◽  
Mati Heidmets
Keyword(s):  
Job Satisfaction ◽  
School Leadership ◽  
Leadership Style ◽  
Indirect Effect ◽  
School Principals ◽  
Psychological Empowerment ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Work Related ◽  
Perceived Leadership ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the mediating effect of teacher’s psychological empowerment between school leadership style and teachers’ work-related outcomes. Design/methodology/approach A total of 711 teachers from 31 Estonian schools were surveyed with a questionnaire measuring four dimensions of psychological empowerment (competence, meaning, self-determination and impact), school leadership characteristics (leadership style, leader’s empowering behavior and trust in leader) and teacher’s work-related outcomes (job satisfaction and workplace attachment). AMOS path analysis was used to investigate the direct and indirect relations between the teachers’ perceptions of school leadership, their psychological empowerment and their workplace attachment and job satisfaction. Findings This study found that psychological empowerment (subscales meaning and impact) mediates the relationship between perceived leadership empowerment behavior and teachers’ work-related outcomes. Also, the psychological empowerment (meaning and impact) mediates the relationship between perceived leadership style and teachers’ work-related outcomes. Trust in the principal has direct and indirect effect (through psychological empowerment) on job satisfaction, whereas there only seems to be indirect effect on workplace attachment through two components of psychological empowerment. Practical implications The mediating role of psychological empowerment includes an important message for school principals – in order to empower employees it is not sufficient to merely delegate formal power and decision-making rights. To facilitate the development of psychological empowerment, it is important to provide employees with an opportunity to experience agency, to experience that their voice and opinions are taken into account (perceived impact) and the purpose and targets of the whole organization are discussed with the employees and formulated in collaboration with them (perceived meaning). Originality/value Psychological empowerment as a mediating variable has not been widely researched, especially in school environment. The results will provide important signals for school principals, where and how to find leverage to improve teachers’ job satisfaction and workplace attachment.

Health literacy and mental health of school principals. Results from a German cross-sectional survey

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin Dadaczynski ◽  
Claudia Kotarski ◽  
Katharina Rathmann ◽  
Orkan Okan
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Health Literacy ◽  
Emotional Exhaustion ◽  
Regression Models ◽  
School Principals ◽  
Health Indicators ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Work Characteristics ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type

PurposeSchool principals are generally seen as key facilitators for the delivery and long-term implementation of activities on school health promotion, including health literacy. However, there is little evidence on the health literacy and health status of this occupational group. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the health literacy of school principals and its association with mental health indicators.Design/methodology/approachA cross-sectional online survey with German school principals and members of the management board (vice principals) was conducted (n = 680, 68.3% female). Demographic (gender, age) and work characteristics (type of school, professional role) as well as health literacy served as independent variables. Mental health as a dependent variable included well-being, emotional exhaustion and psychosomatic complaints. Next to uni- and bivariate analysis, a series of binary logistic regression models was performed.FindingsOf the respondents, 29.2% showed a limited health literacy with significant differences to the disadvantage of male principals. With regard to mental health, respondents aged over 60 years and those from schools for children with special educational needs were less often affected by low well-being as well as frequent emotional exhaustion and psychosomatic complaints. Taking into account demographic and work characteristics, regression models revealed significant associations between a low level of health literacy and poor mental health across all indicators.Research limitations/implicationsThe cross-sectional nature of this study does not allow to draw conclusions about the causal pathways between health literacy and mental health. Although the sample has been weighted, the results cannot be generalized to the whole population of school principals. There is a need for evidence-based interventions aiming at promoting health literacy and mental health tailored to the needs of school principals.Originality/valueThis is the first study to investigate health literacy and its association with health indicators among school principals.

The cyber-work performance of managers in education

2021 ◽  
Vol 40 (3) ◽  
pp. 151-167
Author(s):  
Ed Dandalt
Keyword(s):  
Technology Use ◽  
Work Performance ◽  
School Principals ◽  
Survey Method ◽  
Business Organizations ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Workflow System ◽  
Managerial Roles ◽  
School Organizations ◽  
Managerial Employees

PurposeThis study addresses the perspective of N = 273 school principals as related to technology role in performing managerial roles.Design/methodology/approachIn the context of this study, the concept of technology only refers to digital office tools such as microcomputers, email and administrative software. The concept of managerial roles is understood and used herein in relation to the definition provided by Mintzberg (2013) in his managerial typology. Moreover, a survey method was used to collect data from the aforementioned managerial employees. The managerial typology of Mintzberg was applied as a theoretical lens to collect and interpret survey data.FindingsThe findings suggest that surveyed school principals believe that technology use improves their ability to perform informational and decisional roles at work. Arguably, these managerial employees are satisfied with using technology as a labor tool for administrative and managerial work.Research limitations/implicationsThis study is limited because its sample size does not allow the findings to be generalized to all Canadian school principals. Nevertheless, the findings are significant because they suggest that similar to the positive technology-related attitude of managerial employees in business organizations, those in school organizations also perceive technology as an organizational asset. For that reason, management scholars should not only limit their studies of the intersection between technology and managerial roles or work to business organizations. They also need to extend their research studies and fieldwork to school organizations.Originality/valueThe originality of this study lies in the fact that in management literature, the intersection between technology and the managerial roles of school principals is underresearched. As such, this study represents a step forward toward the need to study the technology-related behaviors of school principals to better understand how technology use enables their workflow system.

Emotional Intelligence and Political Skill Really Matter in Educational Leadership

2016 ◽  
pp. 1274-1303
Author(s):  
Nikoletta Taliadorou ◽  
Petros Pashiardis
Keyword(s):  
Job Satisfaction ◽  
Emotional Intelligence ◽  
Social Skills ◽  
Educational Leadership ◽  
School Leadership ◽  
School Principals ◽  
Political Skill ◽  
Complex Environment ◽  
Political Skills ◽  
The Social

In this chapter, the authors investigate the social skills that school principals ought to exhibit in order to be more effective in the complex environment that characterizes modern schools. Thus, the main aim of this chapter is to provide an in-depth exploration of those social skills that are needed in order for school principals to become more flexible to external and internal requirements and to balance the need for change with stability. Therefore, an attempt is made to investigate the linkages between school leadership, emotional intelligence, political skill, and teachers' job satisfaction, as well as to examine the correlation of emotional and political skills of principals with the job satisfaction of their teachers.

Struggling to make a difference against the odds: a synthesis of qualitative research on women leading schools in Zimbabwe

2020 ◽  
Vol 34 (10) ◽  
pp. 1577-1594
Author(s):  
Zvisinei Moyo ◽  
Juliet Perumal ◽  
Philip Hallinger
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Research ◽  
Educational Leadership ◽  
Research Synthesis ◽  
Female Leadership ◽  
Leadership Role ◽  
Synthesis Methods ◽  
Broad Perspective ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Leading Schools ◽  
Research Studies

PurposeThis paper reports on results of a systematic research synthesis of 25 studies on women in educational leadership and management in Zimbabwe. The aim of this systematic review of research was to report conclusions drawn from a synthesis of findings from studies of gender and educational leadership in Zimbabwe.Design/methodology/approachThe review used systematic methods to identify 25 research studies that examined women leading schools in Zimbabwe. Research synthesis methods used for qualitative research studies were employed in order to identify three broad themes and related subthemes across the studies.FindingsThe review identified three themes: (1) barriers to women gaining access to management positions, (2) female ways of leading, (3) context challenges for women leaders. Both barriers to gaining positions and context challenges faced in enactment of the leadership role are described. These consist of an intertwined web of personal, institutional and cultural challenges. Women's ways of leading were characterized as collegial, collaborative and caring.Research limitations/implicationsThree implications are identified. First is a need for better statistical information on gender representation in Zimbabwe and other African countries. Second is a need to design and implement training, mentoring and networking support programs for female leaders in Zimbabwe. Finally, the authors recommend that future research move toward the use of mixed methods research designs capable of achieving complementary research goals of gaining a broad perspective on the effects of female leadership and in-depth understanding of how those are achieved.Originality/valueEmpirical studies of female leadership is especially urgent in Africa where particular features embedded in the cultural context shape female access to leadership role and attitude towards efforts of women to lead.

School leadership in disadvantaged contexts in Spain: Obstacles and improvements

2017 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 147-164 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vicente Llorent-Bedmar ◽  
Verónica Cobano-Delgado ◽  
María Navarro-Granados
Keyword(s):  
At Risk ◽  
Educational Leadership ◽  
School Leadership ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
School Principals ◽  
Child Poverty ◽  
School Management ◽  
Teaching Staff ◽  
Students At Risk ◽  
Educational Leadership Practices

The increase in child poverty in Spain highlights the importance of equality and inclusion of students at risk of social exclusion in the Spanish educational system. Recent research emphasises the importance of educational leadership, particularly from school principals, as a tool to improve the learning of these students. The main aim of this study is to establish the characteristics of school management in disadvantaged contexts in western Andalusia (Spain), placing special emphasis on the factors considered to hinder or aid effective leadership from principals. A mixed methodology was used in this process, surveying 282 teachers and interviewing 14 principals, and employing descriptive and contrastive statistics techniques. According to the teachers surveyed, principals tend to follow good educational leadership practices. However, the disadvantaged contexts present obstacles to their effective execution. While improvements are observed in the continuity of teaching staff, there is an urgent need to improve the qualifications of teachers working with students at risk of exclusion. In conclusion, principals need greater autonomy in relation to teachers and teaching practice.

Time management profiles of Cypriot school principals: a mixed-methods approach

2015 ◽  
Vol 29 (4) ◽  
pp. 492-518 ◽  
Author(s):  
Georgia Kouali ◽  
Petros Pashiardis
Keyword(s):  
School Leadership ◽  
Time Management ◽  
Quantitative Methods ◽  
School Principals ◽  
Management Style ◽  
Leadership And Management ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Use Of Time ◽  
Primary School Principals ◽  
Management Techniques

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present the results of a piece of research concerning the time management of Cypriot primary school principals. Time management refers to the interrelation of five independent variables: the various tasks principals perform, their frequency, the degree of accomplishment of those tasks, the use of time management techniques and time management style (from monochronic to polychronic). Design/methodology/approach – Quantitative methods were used (questionnaire) together with qualitative methods (observation, interviews, collection of artifacts), in order to obtain richer, deeper data and view multiple angles of the same phenomenon. Findings – The results of cluster analysis indicated three different time management profiles/types of principals: The Centralized Monochrons, the Procrastinative Managers and the Decentralized Polychrons. One basic conclusion is that the principals who adopt the practices of the Decentralized Polychrons manage better their time. Practical implications – The three time management profiles of principals are described, analysed, and discussed in order to reach conclusions about the selection, training, and placement of school principals. Through the description of the everyday practice of Cypriot principals useful information concerning school leadership and management are also provided. Finally, the conclusions of this research may prove useful for principals, because they are provided with the opportunity to rethink and evaluate their own time management and effectiveness of their daily practices. Originality/value – The creation and description of the three time management profiles is the main contribution of this piece of research, since there are not any time management types-profiles registered in the bibliography, which were produced with the use of scientific instruments and procedures.

Assessing and strengthening instructional leadership among primary school principals in Vietnam

2018 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 396-415 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hảo Thi Nguyễn ◽  
Philip Hallinger ◽  
Chia Wen Chen
Keyword(s):  
Educational Leadership ◽  
Instructional Leadership ◽  
Primary School ◽  
Primary Schools ◽  
Leadership Practices ◽  
School Principals ◽  
Leadership And Management ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Primary School Principals ◽  
Principal Instructional Leadership

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to add to an emerging literature on educational leadership and management in Vietnam by addressing several goals. First, the study sought to translate, adapt, and validate an existing measurement instrument, the Principal Instructional Management Rating Scale (PIMRS) Teacher Form, for use in Vietnam. Next, it aimed to describe patterns of instructional leadership evidenced among a sample of urban and rural primary school principals. Then, the researchers examined if these patterns of principal instructional leadership could be linked to one or more “antecedent variables”: school size, school location (urban/rural), principal’s gender and prior teaching experience. Finally, the paper sought insights from principals and teachers on how instructional leadership could be strengthened in the Vietnamese education context. Design/methodology/approach Both quantitative survey and qualitative methods were used in this study. The sample consisted of 569 teachers and 117 principals working in 117 primary schools located in Ho Chi Minh province of Vietnam. Data collection employed a translated and adapted Vietnamese language form of the PIMRS Teacher Form. An open-ended question posed to both teachers and principals was included in the survey instrument to gather recommendations for strengthening instructional leadership in Vietnam. The research used Rasch analysis, Cronbach’s test of internal consistency, confirmatory factor analysis, t-tests, and analysis of variance in data analysis. Findings The research achieved a preliminary validation of a Vietnamese language Teacher Form of the PIMRS. The analysis of PIMRS data gathered from teachers found that the primary school principals were perceived to be exercising instructional leadership at a surprisingly high level. Consistent with international research findings, selected evidence indicated stronger instructional leadership from the female principals, though the pattern was not strong. None of the other antecedents evidenced a significant relationship with patterns of principal instructional leadership. A number of overlapping recommendations were made by teachers and principals for strengthening instructional leadership in Vietnam. Research limitations/implications Although a Teacher Form of the PIMRS Vietnam was successfully validated, follow-up studies should be conducted with both the Teacher Form and Principal Form of this instrument. More broadly, the high scores on the PIMRS accorded to the principals in this study were deemed “surprising” in light of the lack of prior policy focus and training on this role of the principal in Vietnam. Thus, the authors recommend that this research be extended to a larger cross-level study of schools from different parts of Vietnam in order to provide additional confirmation of these preliminary findings. Practical implications Feedback from principals and teachers indicated a need for system leaders to articulate instructional leadership more explicitly as part of the principal’s role set in Vietnam. Only then will it become part of the formal expectations that shape principals’ practice and the preparation and professional development programs in which they participate. The principals also suggested that instructional leadership could be strengthened by enabling model principals to share instructional leadership practices with colleagues. Finally, teachers and principals highlighted the need to broaden, legitimate, and strengthen sources of instructional leadership within the school beyond the principal. These suggestions are not only consistent with policy actions taken in other societies, but are also grounded in the context of education in Vietnam. Originality/value The first internationally published study of educational leadership and management in Vietnam only appeared in 2012. In the succeeding years, several qualitative studies have emerged describing principal leadership practices in a handful of schools. The current study represents the first published quantitative study of school leadership from Vietnam. Although the results are preliminary in nature, the study provides both baseline data on principal instructional leadership and a validated instrument that can be used in future research.

Broken bridges: a social network perspective on urban high school leadership

2018 ◽  
Vol 56 (5) ◽  
pp. 562-584 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yi-Hwa Liou ◽  
Alan J. Daly
Keyword(s):  
High School ◽  
Social Network ◽  
School Leadership ◽  
High School Principals ◽  
School Principals ◽  
Urban High School ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Innovative Climate ◽  
The Social ◽  
Secondary School Leadership

Purpose Secondary school leadership provides multiple challenges in terms of the diversity of tasks, multiple demands on time, balancing communities and attending to instructional programming. An emerging scholarship suggests the importance of a distributed instructional leadership approach to high school leadership. However, what has been less thoroughly explored is how secondary school leadership is distributed leaders across a school district. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the social structure and positions urban high school principals occupy in the district system. Design/methodology/approach This study was conducted in one urban fringe public school district in southern California serving diverse students populations. The data were collected at three time points starting in Fall 2012 and ending in Fall 2014 from a district-wide leadership team including all central office and site leaders. All leaders were asked to assess their social relations and perception of innovative climate. The data were analyzed through a series of social network indices to examine the structure and positions of high school principals. Findings Results indicate that over time high school principals have decreasing access to social capital and are typically occupying peripheral positions in the social network. The high school principals’ perception of innovative climate across the district decreases over time. Originality/value This longitudinal study, one of the first to examine high school principals from a network perspective, sheds new light on the social infrastructure of urban high school principals and what this might mean for efforts at improvement.

An Emerging Framework for Inclusive Educational Leadership

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michelle D. Young ◽  
Noelle W. Arnold
Keyword(s):  
Academic Success ◽  
Educational Leadership ◽  
School Culture ◽  
School Leadership ◽  
Developmentally Appropriate ◽  
Well Being ◽  
High Quality ◽  
School Cultures ◽  
Education Experience ◽  
K 12

Ongoing shifts in demographics, knowledge, and expectations require continuous critical reflection on the leadership of K-12 schools. The models of school leadership offered in the past, which focus on management, are no longer adequate. Today, leaders must also ensure that all the students in their care are being provided high-quality, developmentally appropriate, and challenging educational opportunities that prepare each student for college, careers, and life. In other words, leaders must engage in “Inclusive Educational Leadership.” Inclusive Educational Leadership is a reconceptualization of traditional education leadership, which is dedicated to equity, quality and inclusion. We emphasize “inclusive” because it is our contention that providing a quality education experience that is both equitable and fosters equitable outcomes requires an intentional focus on inclusion. Inclusive Educational Leadership has three key areas of emphasis: place, preparation, and practice. Place refers to social practices and policies that reflect competing meanings and uses of spaces, the role people play in a given space and articulations of locations (geographic positions), environments (conditions), and ranks (hierarchies). Preparation refers to education, training and mentoring that is provided to leaders, and practice refers to the work leaders do to cultivate dispositions that support inclusion, support inclusive and culturally responsive practice, and develop an inclusive school culture. The goal of inclusive leadership is to cultivate an inclusive, caring, and supportive school culture that promotes the academic success and well-being of each student. In other words, its goal is to offer more than expectations that lightly touch on all students; its goal is to deliver results for each student. Thus, the work of Inclusive Educational Leadership involves a restructuring of the education experience to prevent marginalization, while creating school cultures based on dignity and respect and focused on achieving equity, high-quality educational experiences, and life success for all students.

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