Democratic School Leaders: Defining Ethical Leadership in a Standardized Context

2009 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 406-444 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cynthia Gerstl-Pepin ◽  
Judith A. Aiken

The purpose of this article is to learn from active educational leaders engaged in the practice of democratic, ethical leadership. In this article, we share findings of a qualitative study that used narrative inquiry to examine the stories of eight educational leaders. We discuss three themes arising from the participants’ narratives that define ethical, democratic leadership: understanding ethical sensitivities and personal narratives; actions that leaders engage in to support their democratic, ethical beliefs; and balancing ethical, democratic responsibility and standardized accountability. From these themes, we offer suggestions to expand leadership preparation, research, and practice.

2000 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 374-415 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michelle D. Young ◽  
Julie Laible

This article emerges from a belief that an overwhelming majority of White school leaders do not have a thorough enough understanding of White racism or the ways in which they are perpetuating White racism in their schools, even though most are well-meaning individuals. The lack of understanding or awareness of different forms of racism and how White racism works is highly problematic. Indeed, it has appalling consequences, detrimentally impacting the lives and dreams of millions of children. In this article, we draw from both literature and experience to argue for the incorporation of antiracism in school leadership programs. We begin with the assertion that because Educational Administration programs function as important agents of socialization for our future school leaders, White racism in all its manifestations must be confronted in these programs. After building the case that racism is enacted by teachers and administrators in schools and demonstrating the harmful effects of White racism on both children and adults, we argue that racism is not being adequately addressed in educational administration programs. Subsequently, we offer guidance to our readers for promoting antiracism among future educational leaders.


2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 425-439
Author(s):  
Donnie Adams ◽  
Ashley Ng Yoon Mooi ◽  
Vasu Muniandy

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.


2021 ◽  
pp. 002205742110288
Author(s):  
Karen Elizabeth Bohlin

Educational leaders are required to respond in real time to questions, quandaries, and cases that involve individuals in different contexts. They face an array of possible choices that exist in tension. Justice and fairness must coexist with mercy and compassion; in enforcing policy, compliance must make room for flexibility in special cases. School leaders are called to adjudicate competing goods and teach others to do the same. This article examines what practical wisdom is, why it matters, and introduces a theoretically grounded Practical Wisdom Framework (PWF) to help school leaders deliberate well to create and sustain formative institutions.


2015 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 121 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christa Boske

This narrative inquiry seeks to advance the field of educational leadership preparation by exploring ways to interrupt personal, interpersonal, and institutional racism through the senses-ways in which people perceive their experiences and relation to others. Findings suggest that participants engage in actions aligned with revelations from their reflective process and utilize their positions as a lever to address racism at various levels within educational systems. Participants utilized their transformed storied selves to challenge the disparate impact of power and privilege on educational and social equity within school communities.


2014 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 193-211
Author(s):  
Narrative Inquiry Group

This article describes the journey of The Narrative Inquiry Group, a community of high school educators engaged in embedded, self-directed professional development. Our approaches include professional conversation, narrative inquiry, and literary métissage, and our results consist of productions representative of our selves, learning, and practices. We would suggest that our inquiries map the path of individual and collective experience, and illustrate the value of being self-critical within the safety of a learning community. In addition, we hope to inform others’ research and practice, and those with an interest in teacher education, of the importance of understanding the experience of educators engaging in inquiry.


2011 ◽  
Vol 6 (5) ◽  
pp. 234-249 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer Friend ◽  
April Adams ◽  
George Curry

This article examines specific uses of video simulations in one educational leadership preparation program to advance future school and district leaders' skills related to public speaking and participation in televised news interviews. One faculty member and two advanced educational leadership candidates share their perspectives of several applications of advanced technologies, including one-on-one video simulations with the instructor and collaborative peer review of video portfolios. Finally, the authors provide links to multimedia examples of these digital artifacts from an advanced educational leadership course, titled Effective Practices: Media, Government & Public Communications, offered at the University of Missouri-Kansas City.


2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 62-78
Author(s):  
Ellie Drago-Severson ◽  
Jessica Blum-DeStefano

Purpose This paper draws from more than 25 years of research with aspiring and practicing educational leaders to present six strategies for building a culture of feedback in schools, teams, districts, professional learning opportunities, and other educational settings. These strategies reflect key elements of the authors’ new, developmental approach to feedback. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach Through the lens of adult developmental theory, the authors highlight foundational learnings from open-ended survey research with 14 educational leaders about their experiences giving and receiving feedback, and prior qualitative, mixed-method, and longitudinal research with principals, assistant principals, teachers, superintendents, and other educational leaders. Findings The authors share six developmentally oriented strategies for establishing trust and building conditions for authentic, generative feedback: finding value in mistakes, modeling vulnerability, caring for the (inter)personal, clarifying expectations, sharing developmental ideas, and building an infrastructure for collaboration. Practical implications This work has implications for leadership and leadership preparation, especially given contemporary emphases on collaboration and high-stakes evaluations as tools for ongoing improvement, enhancing professional capital, and internal, individual, and system-wide capacity building. Originality/value Because a developmental perspective has been noticeably missing from the wider feedback literature and leadership preparation curricula, this work extends and enhances tenets from different fields (e.g. business, developmental psychology, educational leadership and educational leadership preparation), while also addressing urgent calls for educational reform; leadership preparation, development, and practice; and professional capital building.


2021 ◽  
pp. 153270862110604
Author(s):  
Penny A. Pasque ◽  
Lori D. Patton ◽  
Joy Gaston Gayles ◽  
Mark Anthony Gooden ◽  
Malik S. Henfield ◽  
...  

We explore “ Unapologetic Educational Research: Addressing Anti-Blackness, Racism, and White Supremacy” to engage scholars in thinking about and reflecting on what it means to conduct qualitative research from a standpoint that honors Black lives in the research process while also disrupting racism and white supremacy. First, we unapologetically take up topics including engaging “diversity” in qualitative research, interrogating the etic perspective in the “new” focus on race, using critical perspectives to inform research and practice, examining the racialization of positionality, focusing on Black women educational leaders, and engaging schools and communities. Next, we engage in dialogue with each other to push ourselves—and you/the reader—to think more deeply about the serious and potentially dangerous implications of our research decisions. Given the unprecedented historical present we are all experiencing in our lifetime, we are committed to shifting the landscape of qualitative research as well as using research to shift our sociopolitical context toward racial equity and justice.


Author(s):  
Yanira Oliveras-Ortiz ◽  
Wesley D. Hickey ◽  
Jennifer S. Jones

Educational leaders in rural schools across the world face distinctive challenges. In this chapter, the authors report the findings of two studies examined through narrative inquiry conducted in a Garifuna and Ketchi Mayan village in Central America. The case studies explore the role of the principal as a strategic leader to improve the education system, and the impact of these leaders in their communities. By sharing these stories, the authors illustrate the importance of strategic thinking, as well as both transformative and servant leadership to promote change.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document