The ‘dark side’ of leadership in early childhood education

2019 ◽  
Vol 44 (2) ◽  
pp. 111-123 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melinda Brooker ◽  
Tamara Cumming
Keyword(s):  
Job Satisfaction ◽  
Early Childhood ◽  
Early Childhood Education ◽  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Leadership Practices ◽  
Work Environments ◽  
Dark Side ◽  
Childhood Education ◽  
Purposeful Sampling ◽  
Low Pay

It could be suggested that persistent workforce problems in the early childhood (EC) field in Australia – such as job satisfaction and turnover may be related to ineffective leadership practices, low pay and lack of professional acknowledgement. In this article we report on a small qualitative study completed in 2017, investigating 12 educators’ experiences of what could be described as ‘dark side’ leadership practices. Purposeful sampling was used to select educators who had expressed dissatisfaction with leaders on a Facebook forum for early childhood educators. Findings revealed all of Oplatka’s elements of ‘dark side’ leadership practices and ideologies at work, with the addition of two new types of ‘dark side’ leadership practices – ‘acts of courage’ and ‘meat in the sandwich’. The evidence these data provide of regulatory breaches, discrimination and bullying highlight the critical need for action by employers, regulatory authorities and unions to better support educators and their leaders in their work environments.

Poeticalization and Storying; www.mmm.com

2018 ◽  
Vol 25 (7) ◽  
pp. 637-640 ◽  
Author(s):  
Merete Moe ◽  
Anne B. Reinertsen
Keyword(s):  
Early Childhood ◽  
Early Childhood Education ◽  
Sick Leave ◽  
Working Life ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Work Environments ◽  
Childhood Education ◽  
Work World ◽  
Education And Care

A threshold situation is a kind of crisis of, for example, deteriorating health. Fall 2014, a project was conducted, focusing on writing for well-being with a former employee and leader at an Early Childhood Education and Care, now on long-term sick leave. Here is her story and poem; her writings/Sis. Our stories and theory/practice/data/interpretive poems; our writings/Merete and Anne: Our companionship, company, and compassion: Sis/Merete/Anne.Com . We aim at Deleuze and Guattarian safespace writing. In modern working life participation, empowerment, governance, and self-leadership is considered vital for creating good psychosociological work environments. Foucault’s concept governmentality aims to elucidate how we are created as subjects, looking at how we are governed by others and by ourselves according to norms and expectations in organizations, society, and from ourselves. We think with poetry to open up, explore, and fabulate. We call it poeticalization and storying and work and worlds and words or rather work/world/word/making/melding/mattering/Sis/Merete/Anne: www.mmm.com .

scholarly journals Exemplary leadership practices in early childhood education in preparing the golden generations for Indonesia

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (4) ◽  
pp. 253-268
Author(s):  
Usnul Umi Miftahurrohmah ◽  
◽  
Hasan Hariri ◽  
Riswanti Rini ◽  
Rohmatillah Rohmatillah ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Early Childhood ◽  
Early Childhood Education ◽  
Leadership Style ◽  
Leadership Practices ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Government School ◽  
Childhood Education ◽  
Exemplary Leadership ◽  
Five Practices ◽  
Inclusive Early Childhood

Abstract Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the ideal quality of inclusive early childhood education, an effective leadership style and five practices of exemplary leadership. Research methodology: This is a review article. The review process began with a search engine (Google Scholar) to search and review early childhood education and leadership articles. Results: The results suggest that it is important to hold quality inclusive early childhood educations since, in this level of education, six developmental areas are well stimulated. The key success of maintaining quality inclusive early childhood education is a collaboration among education parties (government, school, parents and community). A school needs a principal who can perform five exemplary leadership practices to help “Golden Indonesia 2045” become true. Limitations: First, the scope of articles reviewed is still very limited to the literature review in the Indonesian context. This and other limitations will be opportunities for further empirical studies about five practices of exemplary leadership in the Indonesian education area. Contribution: This study can be useful for the early childhood education level.

scholarly journals Distributed leadership for professional learning: Effective leadership practices in early childhood education

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Rachel Denee
Keyword(s):  
Early Childhood ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Early Childhood Education ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Distributed Leadership ◽  
Leadership Practices ◽  
Effective Leadership ◽  
Learning Context ◽  
Childhood Education ◽  
Aotearoa New Zealand

<p>In Aotearoa New Zealand, leadership within the early childhood education (ECE) sector is both positionally assigned and a required practice of all teachers. Within this context, distributed leadership – where all team members have the opportunity to lead – is increasingly seen as an effective leadership model (Thornton, 2010). The purported benefits of distributed leadership have significant overlap with professional learning: increased engagement, deeper learning, context-specific learning and improved pedagogical practices among teachers (Poekert, 2012). This study considers the relationship between distributed leadership and professional learning in ECE settings, and seeks to discover practices of effective positional leaders in facilitating both. A nationwide survey was carried out in Aotearoa New Zealand to capture a picture of current perceptions of ECE teachers and positional leaders about professional learning communities and, in particular, distributed leadership for professional learning. Subsequently, the leadership practices for distributed leadership and professional learning in three previously-identified high quality ECE services were investigated through individual and group interviews. The analysis of literature, survey and interview findings from this study led to a framework of effective leadership practice, consisting of six elements: inquiry and articulation of thinking; teachers enacting leadership; collaboration and dialogue; mentoring and coaching; fostering relational trust; and, creating vision and designing supportive structures.</p>

scholarly journals Professional learning communities: Enhancing collaborative leadership in Singapore early childhood settings

2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 79-92 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sukuna Vijayadevar ◽  
Kate Thornton ◽  
Sue Cherrington
Keyword(s):  
Early Childhood ◽  
Early Childhood Education ◽  
Professional Learning Communities ◽  
Learning Communities ◽  
Learning Community ◽  
Professional Learning Community ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Leadership Practices ◽  
Collaborative Leadership ◽  
Childhood Education

Leadership in early childhood education has been promoted as a collaborative process in which all teachers, rather than just the positional leader, are involved. Collaborative leadership practices are not well understood within the marketised Singapore early childhood education context. Beyond mandatory leadership training, little is known about how leaders are supported to strengthen their leadership practices and involve others in leadership activities. School-based literature suggests that learning through professional learning communities expands the collective capacity of organisations; however, literature on professional learning communities in early childhood education is limited. This article reports on the findings of an interpretive case study examining the current understandings and leadership practices of principals in the Singapore early childhood education context, and investigating how participation in professional learning communities can support the development of collaborative leadership practices. The participants in two professional learning communities established as part of this study were six principals from an anchor-operator childcare provider and five principals from private childcare centres in Singapore. Two teachers working with each of the respective principals were also involved in focus group interviews to ascertain if there were changes in their principals’ leadership practices. Data was collected from professional learning community meetings, online reflections, pre- and post-professional learning community interviews with the principals, and follow-up focus group discussions with the teachers. The key findings indicate that praxis as a result of participation in a professional learning community led to some shifts in principals’ thinking about collaborative leadership practices and resulted in reported changes to their leadership approaches, distribution of leadership, and improved collegiality and collaborative learning for teachers. The results indicate that considering and implementing collaborative leadership practices through professional learning communities in the Singapore early childhood education context requires sensitivity towards Asian Singapore sociocultural values related to hierarchy and economic pragmatism.

scholarly journals Analysing the Early Childhood Qualification Implementation: The Experience of Montessori Centres

2004 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sola Freeman
Keyword(s):  
Early Childhood ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Early Childhood Education ◽  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Ministry Of Education ◽  
Support Intervention ◽  
Policy Issues ◽  
Childhood Education ◽  
Left Behind ◽  
The Impact

In 2002, the Ministry of Education in New Zealand released Pathways to the Future: Nga Huarahi Arataki. This 10-year strategic plan for early childhood education was the culmination of years of advocacy, research and consultation within the early childhood sector. A key component of the plan was a staged requirement for teachers in positions of “person responsible” in early childhood centres to have a Diploma of Teaching ECE or equivalent qualification. This article analyses the impact of the first stage of the qualification requirement, using the results of a small qualitative study of six Montessori early childhood centres in Wellington, and reviews the context, literature and policy issues that inspired and drove the policy requirement. It concludes that practical difficulties for centres and their teachers to upgrade means there is a need to supervise the support, intervention and creative strategies used to ensure no one is left behind, and diversity within early childhood education in New Zealand is maintained.

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