Educational Management Administration & Leadership

There is growing interest in the topic of middle-level leadership, including department and subject leaders. However, published research has largely failed to consider the underlying mechanisms through which middle-level leaders influence teacher professional learning. This study investigated how and under what conditions department leadership is beneficial to teacher professional learning. This research examined “school collectivism” as a boundary condition that was hypothesized to influence the effects of departmental leadership on teacher resilience and professional learning. Survey data on these constructs were collected among 3219 teachers in 121 primary and middle schools located in mainland China. Multilevel moderated mediation modeling was employed to assess the simultaneous effects of conditional and mediating factors on teacher engagement in professional learning. The results revealed that department leadership could influence teacher resilience which also mediated the relationship between department leadership and teacher professional learning. This indirect effect of department leadership on teacher professional learning was strengthened when school collectivism was reinforced. The findings add to the current literature first by empirically verifying the impact of middle-level leaders on teachers, as well as by highlighting school-level conditions that can shape the exercise of middle-level leadership.

This systematic review aimed to examine the evolution of middle leadership research in a 21-year period, starting from 2002 to 2023, by employing bibliometric methods to examine the metadata of 181 documents. It summarised the key features of the middle leadership knowledge base by analysing its descriptive trends, distribution of knowledge production, key scholars, journals, and documents, and uncovered its underlying intellectual structure. The review offers insights into the development of the literature on middle leadership – a relatively new concept. The findings from this review would help scholars understand the nuances of middle leadership as well as provide insights to researchers on the current and future development of middle leadership research in schools.

This article reports on factor analyses of the Middle Leadership Roles Questionnaire – School Edition (MLRQ-SE) that were conducted to test a theoretical model. This work was completed as part of a larger study that investigated the roles of formal middle-leadership positions in public schools of New South Wales, Australia. Quantitative data from an adapted version of the MLRQ-SE, which was completed by 2608 employees in formal middle leader positions in NSW public schools, were factor analysed to identify theorised roles and thereby confirm an overarching model of middle leadership roles as well as assist with ongoing refinement of the instrument's scales. Exploratory factor analyses identified seven salient roles of middle leaders. Confirmatory factor analyses of data from the two largest position categories supported the seven-role model for assistant principals and head teachers. While the scales within the MLRQ-SE were based on a wide review of previous research, the data reported here is from one educational jurisdiction in one country. However, the findings provide evidence for the existence middle leader roles often theorised in literature but to date not confirmed empirically. The findings also hold implications for policy, practice and future research regarding leadership development and recruitment.

School middle leaders (MLs) play a pivotal role in improving student outcomes through leading teaching and learning. However, MLs face considerable challenges in driving school improvement, including comparatively few opportunities for targeted professional development (PD). In this paper, we explore the impact of a pedagogy-focused, collaborative approach to PD, known as Quality Teaching Rounds (QTR), for middle leading practice. Twenty-two post-QTR interviews with MLs, principals and classroom teachers at nine primary schools in NSW, Australia, were thematically analysed using Kemmis's theory of practice architectures. We found that QTR positively impacted middle leading by: (1) building agreement about good pedagogical practice; (2) enhancing pedagogy through a process of reciprocal lesson observation; and (3) building collegial culture by flattening power hierarchies. We argue that it is critical to offer MLs powerful forms of collaborative PD if they are to enact the transformative potential of their role in driving pedagogical improvement.

This study explores the unintended consequences of teacher leadership within the centralised and hierarchical education system of Türkiye. Utilising a phenomenological approach, data were gathered through semi-structured interviews with 15 teachers, and content analysis was employed to analyse the data. Our findings reveal that teacher leadership practices unintentionally lead to stress, burnout, isolation, and role ambiguity at the individual level; peer jealousy and rivalry, along with challenges in promoting collaboration at the group level; create operational fragmentation and hierarchical tensions and power conflicts at the organisational level; and result in reduced time for student support and diminished instructional quality at the student level. This study adds nuance to the global school leadership literature by challenging the prevailing positive narrative surrounding teacher leadership and exposing its often-overlooked unintended consequences. We discuss implications for policy and practice.

Mentoring is one of the main tools for training novice principals, but its contributions to development of professional skills are yet unclear. To unpack the contributions of mentoring to novice principals’ professionalism, we first developed a conceptual framework based on the surface, deep, and implicit structures of Shulman's signature pedagogies, and the professional skills of diagnosis, intervention, and inference, according to Abbott's theory of professions. Using these frameworks, we explored the imprints left by mentoring on novice principals. The methodology includes content analysis of semi-structured interviews conducted with 15 Israeli novice principals on their mentoring experiences. The findings reveal that novice principals experience two contradictory messages: the principal as an omnipotent hero who can survive and cope, immediately and alone, with all professional tasks, and as an obedient bureaucrat who needs empathy and care. We conclude that while their mentors helped them to fulfill their obligations, they did not contribute to the development of the principals’ skills of diagnosis and inference of previous events. Theoretical and practical implications are presented in the discussion.

What motivates leaders to feel confident in their ability to lead is a relatively unexplored theme, particularly during their induction, which lasts for one to five years after their appointment. This study qualitatively examines the antecedents of leadership efficacy development among Malaysian novice school principals. The data were obtained using a phenomenological design. Twenty-one such principals participated in this study. The phenomenological interview model developed by Bevan was adapted for data collection. The findings revealed three main domains of antecedents that influence leadership efficacy, namely self-reference, internal support, and external support. Each domain comprises several antecedents derived from empirical data and analyses using sources of leadership efficacy, as discussed in previous studies. This study also puts forth recommendations for enhancing the leadership efficacy of novice school principals.

As a result of the increasing demands and the changing multi-cultural and socio-economic profile of schools, shortages of quality education leaders are a global issue. In the United States, this is particularly pernicious in urban areas, and traditional pathways to leadership positions pose an array of barriers. There is a growing need for culturally-responsive, critically self-aware social justice-oriented (CR/CSA/SJ) leaders who are better able to retain diverse teachers, more likely to stay in urban schools, contribute to higher achievement of marginalized students, and create inclusive environments. This qualitative study uses interviews to examine the leadership pathways of 72 education leaders at 28 intentionally diverse charter schools across five U.S. locations. Findings suggest that a range of motivations and experiences facilitated their pathways into leadership positions. Implications are relevant globally, at this time of increased awareness of historic societal inequities that schools can help combat.

Various professional development activities including training workshops are organised annually for school leaders. However, there have been questions as to whether participants in training workshops do necessarily implement lessons learnt from such workshops in their schools. This study reports lessons from school leaders who were adjudged to have been successful in implementing lessons from a British Council Connecting Classrooms training workshops for school leaders in Ghana. Adopting a qualitative phenomenological case study research approach using interviews, the study explored what school leaders perceived to be the factors that contributed to their successful implementation of lessons from the training workshops. The study found that when the focus of the workshop met participants needs, engagement of workshop participants in action planning, attending the workshop together with teachers and School Improvement Support Officers, follow-up visits by workshop trainers and organisers, creating of a platform for workshop participants to share experiences, and the organisation of a post-workshop reflective experience and successful stories sharing conference got them to commit to implementing lessons from the workshops. It is therefore recommended that organisers of training workshops for school leaders should incorporate these activities in their organisation of training workshop to achieve the intended impact.

This study investigated the leadership practices of headteachers (principals) who have obtained formal qualification/certification in educational leadership and management (ELM) programme with their counterparts who have not in a developing country context. The study, which employed the descriptive survey design and a questionnaire as the data collection instrument, was carried out in one educational district in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana. Using a proportionate stratified sampling technique, 220 teachers participated in the study while an independent sample t-test was used as the data analytical technique. Findings from the study showed that there was a statistically significant difference between headteachers who had obtained formal qualification in ELM and headteachers who had not in all six leadership functions explored in the study. The study concludes that the era where prospective headteachers in Ghana and other developing countries are appointed primarily on the basis of their teaching record and rank should give way to a system where formal qualification in ELM would be considered a condition for appointment into headship roles.

This study explored school leaders’ professional identity by examining the guiding standards school leaders pursue in their jobs and the professional roles they identify themselves with. Using professional roles in school leadership that were formulated in (inter)national frameworks, 36 Dutch school leaders in secondary education provided their identity standards and their professional role identification. Standards were grouped per topic for each professional role. Role identification was visualized and grouped using radar charts. Results showed that in general ‘interactions and interpersonal contact’ formed significant aspects of these school leaders’ professional identities. Identity standards covered all professional roles and were mostly formulated in terms of contact and interaction. School leaders sometimes identified themselves primarily with a specific social or analytical role. Some school leaders identified themselves with multiple professional roles. Additionally, a new role, focusing on performing practical ‘hands on’ tasks, emerged. The identity standards as well as the identification patterns can be used in helping school leaders to gain more insight into their personal leadership preferences and their motivation for certain dimensions in their work and how these relate to specific demands and expectations in the work context.

This study explores the relationship between the identity development of a school principal and the concept of social justice leadership. We examine how one African American principal used equity-focused leadership in two different high schools to improve the conditions of all students. Erikson's view of identity and Cross's conception of Negrescence guided the research questions guided the study of the identity development of a Black school principal as a social justice leader, what actions he took, and what supports and barriers he encountered. The principal's case suggested several factors that form a social justice leader. He acknowledged a history of oppression, confronted racial animosity, and showed empathy through action. He had strong role models and received a solid education with Black professors and mentors and formed lifetime friendships. He developed the confidence to believe in himself as an educator and advocate for others. As an innovative educator, he was able to take risks. As a Black man, he fit well into one culture but was limited by racism in another. He became a leader who continued the pursuit of social justice after the principalship.

This qualitative study explores the lived experiences of study programme leadership in development processes in higher education (HE). Study programme leaders are considered crucial in enhancing high-quality study programmes. Using a phenomenological hermeneutic approach, we analysed data from 18 interviews representing study programme leaders from six distinct health profession bachelor programmes at two Norwegian multi-campus institutions. Our findings paint a metaphorical picture of study programme leadership, likening it to leading as in alternating currents where signals flow and change direction. These leaders adeptly navigate an ever-evolving educational landscape filled with horizontal and vertical signals, tensions, and expectations. However, some express a lack of motivation and preparation to enter this field of tension. Our analysis identifies three aspects of study programme leadership: transforming, bridging, and balancing. Through their leadership, study programme leaders serve as vital antennas in development processes, capturing signals, coordinating activities, and fostering connections. Furthermore, they are a pivotal nexus through their transformative and bridging efforts. Balancing various leadership approaches enables them to navigate the changing currents. This study's implications are relevant to the HE field, offering valuable insights into study programme leadership. By emphasising the pivotal role of study programme leaders, it contributes to advancing HE development processes, underscoring the need for heightened awareness and further development of these leadership roles.

This article focuses on teachers’ and principals’ experiences of aggressive emails in home–school collaborations with parents. Semi-structured interviews with 31 teachers and principals from primary, lower and upper secondary schools in Sweden were conducted. Three categories were identified in the material which illuminate the phenomenon of cyberaggression towards principals and teachers from parents: ‘aggressive emails as reactions to principals and teachers’ performances’, ‘aggressive emails as a way of imposing power’ and ‘aggressive emails as a source of anxiety, loss of joy, and decreased focus on core tasks’. The study concludes that cyberaggression in emails from parents is centred around the act of negotiating and that email communication opens up spaces for negotiation to take place. The study also concludes that email cyberaggression tends to be instrumental in character, intended to result in a specific outcome rather than to cause harm. However, cyberaggression influences professional practice and can create a vicious circle of administrative obligation.

Recent studies have increasingly highlighted the need for contextual leadership practices within educational settings, however, there remains a notable lack of clarity regarding the specific influence of these practices on crucial organizational outcomes. The present study seeks to address this gap by investigating the relationships between contextual leadership and three key school outcomes: organizational citizenship behavior, group identity, and autonomous motivation for teaching. Additionally, the study examines group cohesion as a potential mediator in these relationships. To achieve this, a cross-sectional survey involving 1617 teachers was conducted, and the data were analyzed using structural equation modeling. The findings indicate positive correlations between contextual leadership and the three targeted outcomes: Organizational citizenship behavior, group identity, and autonomous motivation for teaching. Moreover, the study confirms the mediating role of group cohesion in these relationships. The finding underscores the importance of fostering shared identity and purpose within educational institutions to enhance desired outcomes. This study's implications extend to theoretical and practical domains, offering valuable insights for scholars, practitioners, and policymakers. Ultimately, the study advocates for a strategic focus on cultivating a cohesive and purpose-driven community to optimize educational achievements and teacher engagement.