Framing research on school principals’ identities

This paper provides a basis for a tentative framework for guiding future research into principals’ identity construction and development. It is situated in the context of persisting emphases placed by government policies on the need for technocratic competencies in principals as a means of demonstrating success defined largely as compliance with demands for the improvement in student test scores. Often this emphasis is at the expense of forwarding a broader view of the need, alongside these, for clear educational values, beliefs and practices that are associated with these. The framework is informed by the theoretical work of Wenger and Bourdieu as well as recent empirical research on the part played by professional identity and emotions in school leadership. In the paper, we highlight different lines of inquiry and the issues they raise for researchers. We argue that the constructions of school leadership identities are located in time, space and place, and emotions reflect complex leadership identities situated within social hierarchies which are part of wider structures and social relations of power and control.     

Leadership coaching: a multiple-case study of urban public charter school principals’ experiences

The purpose of our multi-case study was to understand the experiences of non-novice New York City and Washington, DC public charter school principals who had participated in leadership coaching as a component of their leadership development. Eight New York City and Washington DC public charter school principal cases were selected through purposeful sampling. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, documents, and artifacts, which were analyzed, coded and grouped into three broader themes: the coaching process, the impact of coaching, and principal leader identity construction. The findings supported the following conclusions: (a) Participants’ experiences of coaching were inconsistent with the coaching literature; (b) The impact of coaching was shaped by perceived competencies of the coach and the structure of the coaching session; and (c) Participants’ leader identity construction was supported through the process of coaching.     

The dimensions of prospective elementary and middle school teachers’ problem posing for integer addition and subtraction

Journal of Mathematics Teacher Education - Elementary and middle school prospective teachers participated in semi-structured problem posing for integer addition and subtraction. The prospective...     

Leading a school through change – principals’ hands-on leadership strategies in school reform

Principal’s hands-on strategies reflecting their theories of changing have a substantial effect on the development of their schools and on how the large-scale reform takes root. The study explores five comprehensive school principals’ leadership strategies during a large-scale school reform in Finland. The principals’ strategies in the middle of reform acknowledged the process nature of leading and involved coherence-making. The inclusive and learning-oriented strategies were applied quite consistently in terms of the horizontal, but not so much in the vertical coherence-making. Exclusive strategies we used to decrease teachers’ workload. Principals’ theories of changing seem to focus on creating and protecting teachers’ opportunities for meaningful learning.     

The reflexive adaptations of school principals in a ‘local’ South African space

This paper is an analysis of the work of three principals in an impoverished black township in post‐apartheid South Africa. Based on qualitative approaches, it discusses the principals’ entry into the township, and their navigation of their schools’ surrounding social dynamics. It combines the lenses of ‘space’ and ‘performance’ to analyse the reflexive basis on which they establish their principal roles. The paper suggests that their identities as principals were established in light of a range of engaged pedagogical performances. It is argued that these were enacted based on nuanced readings of their discursive environment and the enactment of strategic practices that provided them an authoritative platform for their principal roles.     

An exploratory study of school counselling teachers’ motivation changes

This brief report describes an investigation into the motivational changes of two school counselling teachers in two rural schools in the Chinese context. The findings revealed the mixed motivations of the participants in joining school counselling and how their motivations transformed through their professional engagement and social interactions in specific institutional and socio-cultural settings. The study concludes with some implications for teacher development and points out directions for continuing research.     

The effects of principals’ perceived instructional and distributed leadership practices on their perceptions of school climate

The purpose of this study was to investigate the extent to which leadership styles predict school climate, in order to identify whether a relationship exists between principals’ perceived practices of instructional and distributed leadership and their perceptions of school climate (mutual respect and school delinquency), controlling for a net of principal and school characteristics. This research was conducted on a principal data-set from the 2013 Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS), which was administered by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Several linear regression models with and without the country controlled dummy variables were conducted, respectively. Results indicated that principals’ perceived distributed and instructional leadership practices are significant predictors of staff mutual respect in the school. Nevertheless, such leadership styles did not appear as important factors for school delinquency and violence. School size and socio-economic status turned out to be the two most important factors predicting school safety. These results add nuance to the findings of previous studies that principals’ emphasis on instructional practice and sharing leadership can play a significant role in promoting the trust, collegiality and respect among staff. However, more than such leadership styles may be needed for creating a safe and orderly school environment.     

An examination of the instruction provided in Australian essay guides for students’ development of a critical viewpoint

The argumentative essay has endured as a popular form of university assessment, yet students still struggle to meet key intended learning outcomes, such as those associated with critical thinking. This paper presents the results of a study that examines the instruction provided by Australian essay writing guides to support students’ development of a questioning, critical viewpoint. Thirty publically available guides were chosen from a range of university types, and sourced from central student learning units and humanities disciplines. Findings of this documentary analysis show that some guides provide too little context for essay writing as an academic practice, and conceptualise definitional, instructional and procedural aspects of the task in ways that may not align with intended outcomes. The conclusion indicates a need for further research about the teaching of argumentative essay writing.     

Cypriot primary school principals’ understanding of education for sustainable development key terms and their opinions about factors affecting its implementation

‘Transformative leaders for sustainable schools’, was a nationwide research project conducted in 150 primary schools in Cyprus during 2005–2007. The project explored the role of the principals in the organisation of sustainable schools. A mixed methods approach to data collection was employed combining quantitative and qualitative methods. This paper presents primary school principals’ perceptions of sustainable development, their views on the characteristics and operation of the sustainable schools as well as factors supporting or impeding the development of such schools in Cyprus. Our analysis reveals that the term ‘sustainable school’ is a concept only vaguely understood by the principals. Education for sustainable development is interpreted loosely as environmental education and sustainable schools’ operation is limited to sustainable development’s environmental aspects. Principals place their emphasis on environmental conservation, for satisfying humans’ needs whereas the notion of environment, economy and society are marginalised. The development of sustainable schools in Cyprus is restricted by limitations in time, lack of ESD teacher education, the centralised educational system and the overloaded curriculum. Suggested reinforcing factors are parents’ associations’ support and the school–community dialogue. Further exploration of the principals’ role as potential carriers of change and effective leaders is needed.     

An exploration of primary to secondary school transition planning for children with Down’s syndrome

This study explores factors that influence decisions about transition and what works for children with Down’s syndrome transferring from primary to secondary school. Qualitative data were collected using semi-structured interviews to gain the views of support staff and parents of two children with Down’s syndrome. One parent had chosen mainstream secondary school and was negotiating the transition, whilst the other was making decisions around future placement. The Voice of the Child (VoC) was elicited using rating scales. Thematic analysis revealed practical and ideological insights into transition, highlighting the need for parental involvement, planned transition and recognition of the individual needs of the child. The educational and social implications of these findings are considered along with directions for future research.     

Tools for the classroom? An examination of existing sociometric methods for teacher use

Despite the recent technical and theoretical advances in the investigation of children's social relations, the inherent complexity of these methods may prevent their easy integration into the classroom. A simple and effective tool can be valuable for teachers who wish to investigate students' social realities in the classroom. Therefore, the present study aims to identify an effective sociometric method for educator's use in the classroom. Nine separate sociometric categorisations were created from peer reports of grade one students (N = 748). Methods that have different collection methods (nominations or ratings) show surprisingly low agreement, unlike those with the same collection method. Methods based on peer nominations showed the strongest correlations with students' behavioural traits. Based on these results, we discuss the relevance and usefulness of such methods for use by classroom teachers in identifying students' social realities.     

An exploratory study of pre-service middle school teachers’ knowledge of algebraic thinking

Using algebraic habits of mind as a framework, and focusing on thinking about functions and how they work, we examined the relationship between 18 pre-service middle school teachers’ ability to use the features of the algebraic thinking (AT) habit of mind “Building Rules to Represent Functions” and their ability to recognize and interpret the features of the same AT habit of mind in middle school students. We assessed the pre-service teachers’ own ability to use the AT habit of mind Building Rules to Represent Functions by examining their solutions to algebra-based tasks in a semester-long mathematics content course. We assessed the pre-service teachers’ ability to recognize and interpret students’ facility with the AT habit of mind Building Rules to Represent Functions by analyzing their interpretations of students’ written solutions to algebra-based tasks and their ability to plan and analyze AT interviews of middle school students during a concurrent field-based education course. The data revealed that the pre-service teachers had a limited ability to recognize the full richness of algebra-based tasks’ potential to elicit the features of Building Rules to Represent Functions in students. The pre-service teachers’ own overall AT ability to Build Rules to Represent Functions was related to their ability to recognize the overall ability of students to Build Rules to Represent Functions, as exhibited during one-on-one interviews, but not to their ability to recognize the overall ability to Build Rules to Represent Functions exhibited exclusively in students’ written work. Implications for mathematics teacher education are discussed.     

An initial examination of Singaporean seventh and eighth graders’ views of nature of science

Research in nature of science (NOS) among Asia-Pacific countries such as Singapore is arguably scarce. This study aimed to survey Singaporean secondary school students’ views of NOS with a newly developed instrument named Students’ Views of Nature of Science (SVNOS), which included various key aspects of NOS that are generally agreed upon by the science education community. Moreover, the relations between some demographic factors, including gender and grade, and students’ views of NOS were explored.

Sample, design and method

In total, 359 Singaporean seventh and eighth graders were invited to participate in this survey. The reliability, validity and structure of the SVNOS instrument were ensured by confirmatory factor analysis. A two-way multivariate analysis of variance was then conducted to determine the interaction effects between the gender variable and the grade-level variable.

Results and conclusion

The results indicated that the SVNOS instrument is reliable and valid to assess students’ views of NOS regarding seven distinct NOS dimensions. The male students were more prone to have constructivist-oriented views of NOS in the most of the SVNOS dimensions, while the female students conveyed more non-objective views of NOS. In addition, the eighth graders revealed more empiricist-oriented views of NOS than the seventh graders in several SVNOS dimensions. This result seems to contradict the results of previous studies that students’ views of NOS may reflect a developmental trend with their increasing educational experiences.     

Classroom observation as an instrument for school development: School principals’ perspectives on its relevance and problems

Classroom observation can have diagnostic, evaluative and counseling purposes and can be regarded as a traditional instrument for the processes that are planned for school development. However, the evaluative character of classroom observation can also be interpreted as a controlling measure and therefore, lead to stress and fear in the observed individuals. This might bring about resistance against the feedback which results from classroom observation. In order to be able to focus on the useful aspects and the benefits of classroom observation, it is important to understand which factors make the instruments of classroom observation credible and reliable for the teachers who are being observed. It is central to our current topic to understand the specific criticism concerning the area of teaching and learning within a school inspection and to work out the factors which contribute to the credibility of classroom observations on one hand, and the factors which reduce it on the other hand. For this purpose, we analyzed the statements of fifty school principals on classroom observation taken from overall interviews concerning the expectations of those principals towards school inspections in North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW). The results clearly indicate that classroom observation is a critical process for teachers. Not being able to observe the classroom credibly can have several negative effects. Therefore, this research concentrates on ways that can improve the credibility of classroom observation.     

The constraints on school provision of post-primary physical education in Ireland: principals’ and teachers’ views and experiences

Dated and limited research relating to physical education in Ireland has reported that the subject is in crisis, unable to move forward until the fundamental resources of facilities, staffing and time for physical education are significantly improved. As part of a recent national physical education survey carried out in Ireland, data was collected from principals (n=417) and teachers (n=405) to inform discussion on the level of current infrastructure for physical education in post-primary schools. This paper investigates the areas of physical education facilities, time allocation and staffing, as a contribution to the debate on the way forward for physical education at post-primary level, illuminating both issues of policy and practice.     

Exploring the role of India’s secondary school compulsory curriculum textbooks in students’ national identity constructions in an overseas school

This study problematises the contribution of India’s school textbooks in students’ national identity constructions in an overseas school in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The textbooks construct students’ national identity on the concepts of India’s secular democracy, colonial resistance and equal citizenship rights. Notwithstanding study participants’ ambivalent identification with these ideals, they mostly express confusing identities evincing religious tendencies, gendered beliefs towards women and antipathy for India’s neighbouring states. This entails implications for India’s national cohesion and students’ ability to live in harmony with other communities in the diasporic setting. It also poses risks to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), 2030.     

An examination of middle school students’ representation practices in mathematical problem solving through the lens of expert work: towards an organizing scheme

Representation is viewed as central to mathematical problem solving. Yet, it is becoming obvious that students are having difficulty negotiating the various forms and functions of representations. This article examines the functions that representation has in students’ mathematical problem solving and how that compares to its function in the problem solving of experts and broadly in mathematics. Overall, this work highlights the close connections between the work of experts and students, showing how students use representations in ways that are inherently similar to those of experts. Both experts and students use representations as tools towards the understanding, exploration, recording, and monitoring of problem solving. In social contexts, experts and students use representations for the presentation of their work but also the negotiation and co-construction of shared understandings. However, this research also highlights where students’ work departs from experts’ representational practices, hence, providing some directions for pedagogy and further work.     

Teachers’ and principals’ reflections on student participation in a school science and technology competition

Background The European Union asks for renewed pedagogies in schools according to teaching strategies and necessary competences for the twenty-first century, instead of the often-used transmissive pedagogies. The national Swedish competition in science and technology for grade eight, The Technology Eight, provides an opportunity for teachers to work with instructional strategies in line with suggested pedagogies.

Purpose To investigate teachers’ and principals’ reflections on the competition in schools.

Sample Seventeen secondary school teachers and three principals from districts in the south-western part of Sweden participated in the study. All teachers had long experience of the competition, and their classes had reached at least the regional finals during the last year.

Design and methods Semi-structured interviews were recorded, transcribed verbatim, and then analysed using content analysis. Focus was put on why the teachers decided to participate, how the teachers integrated the competition in their education and roles of the principals.

Results There were various reasons for participating in the competition. Teachers reported development of twenty-first-century skills such as better cooperation between the students. They also noticed an increased interest in science and technology and how learning in the subjects was stimulated. Furthermore, the teachers found participation in the competition to be positive for them too. They integrated the competition in ordinary education and gained teaching ideas as well as found connections to the curriculum. Participating in the competition seemed to be a tradition in most of the schools. The principals’ role was to facilitate the organisation around the competition and to provide social support.

Conclusions Participation in a school competition was considered as an instructional strategy with several positive outcomes. Use of this strategy can be supported by earlier suggestions to use pedagogies that are opposite to transmissive methods, enhancing students’ development of important skills for the future.     

School leaders’ identification of school level and teacher practices that influence school improvement in national numeracy testing outcomes

Since 2008, all Australian students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 have been assessed in literacy and numeracy through an annual National Assessment Program—Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) test. In 2015, a team of mathematics education researchers across Australia conducted a nationwide research project to identify school practices and policies that were consistent between schools that showed growth and/or improvement in their NAPLAN numeracy results. This paper reports findings from three case study schools, using a school improvement framework to interpret evidence gathered from the schools’ principals and school leaders. The study has particular implications for policy makers and school leaders who may be seeking ways to improve mathematical practices in their own jurisdictions and schools.     

Need for emotional intelligence to develop principals’ social skills

Abstract

Principals are constantly challenged in their schools to serve as emotional anchors, provide professional guidance and be responsible for the effectiveness and improvement of their schools. This study therefore explored the need for emotional intelligence (EI) to be an integral part of the work-integrated learning competencies (WILCs) for principals in the Advanced Certificate in Education (ACE) with specialisation in School Leadership (SL) programme offered by higher education institutions (HEIs) to develop their social skills. The qualitative research approach was used to conduct this investigation. Five focus group (FG) interviews comprising ten principals in each group as well as ten single in-depth interviews were conducted. The findings of this study suggest that the ACE (SL) programme has been relatively successful thus far in developing the social WILCs of school principals. They admitted that it was crucial for them to have a better understanding of the interconnectedness between WILCs and the EI construct in their leadership positions. They concurred that this professional development programme empowered them to use their EI in addition to their cognitive abilities. Evidently, this exploratory study indicates that it is imperative for EI to be an integral part of the ACE (SL) programme for principals since cognition alone would not be sufficient to cater for their professional training needs.