In this integrative literature review, we synthesize the scant literature from the last 40 years of educational research on how school principals make difficult decisions. Reviewing 15 peer-reviewed articles, articles were coded for the methods used and their substantive findings. We review sampling techniques, the types of problems and methods…

This article presents the development and application of a model that can be utilized to compare the autonomy of principals in various historical and national contexts. Drawing on former conceptual work on autonomy in education, the model conceptualizes principal autonomy as two-dimensional. The first dimension is the decision making expected from…

Education researchers claim collaboration between school district leaders and principals is one of the key factors in successful school districts. Collaboration creates alignment and coherence throughout the organization. Factors that foster this collaboration are limited throughout education literature. This qualitative study explored factors…

Background: It is widely recognised internationally that participation in higher education is likely to lead to increased opportunities and resources. However, only a minority of learners from Roma backgrounds continue into post-compulsory education. As important research into inclusion continues, more attention must be paid to the identification…

Should the topic of judgment have a place in the preparation and development of school leaders? This question serves as the focus for an examination of the nature of judgment and obstacles to good judgment. Judgment is defined as the ability to arrive at and make a choice when faced with incomplete information, uncertain conditions, and/or…

We conducted a multi-year study of specialization in elementary mathematics and/or science, using data drawn from a local sample of teachers and a nationwide sample of principals. Using the theory of planned behavior, we compare and contrast teacher and principal views and decision-making processes related to elementary content specialization…

Previous reports suggest that administrators rarely dismiss low-performing teachers despite the changing policy landscape allowing them to do so. This brief uses survey data from Tennessee to investigate the underlying reasons explaining administrators' decisions to retain low-performing teachers. The presented analysis suggests that…

Educational leaders are faced with multiple ethical decisions every day. This article presents the Values-Issue-Action (VIA) Model as a tool for developing ethical decisions in K-12 schools. The model is presented with three scenarios from K-12 education to practice using the model into practice. The model can be used by current school leaders and…

This study is a descriptive research study aiming to: 1) test the fitness between the theoretical model of the mindful leadership indicators and empirical data and 2) investigate factor loading value of the main elements, sub-elements, and indicators with models. The population of the research is 27,718 primary school principals under the office…

Good school governance is basically about effective principal leadership used to create appropriate processes, systems, and management for ensuring the sustainability and continuity of schools. This research aims to examine the model of good school governance and to establish the correlation between good school governance and the principal's…

This paper investigates reasoned risk-taking in decision-making by school principals using a methodology that combines sequential use of psychometric and traditional measurement techniques. Risk-taking is defined as when decisions are made that are not compliant with the regulatory framework, the primary governance mechanism for public schools in…

This qualitative study identified and analyzed the occurrences of the Garbage-Can decision making model in public schools. The study was based on semi-structured interviews with 34 teachers from elementary and middle schools in Israel. Data analysis showed three major decision areas in which the Garbage-Can model was employed, and the conditions…

The purpose of this action research study was to link together theory and educational leaders' practice to give form to and improve their ability to make ethically sound decisions. The questions that guided the study included: 1. How can I, as a superintendent, lead the principals I work with to use all four ethical paradigms in their own decision…

Justine Finley, newly appointed principal of Northside Elementary, had been tasked with increasing her school's grade under the state accountability system and keeping neighborhood families from choosing to enroll in the charter school down the street. The superintendent made these priorities very clear. After spending the first 3 months observing…

The study employed qualitative methodology, relying on semi-structured interviews, in order to identify and analyze occurrences of the garbage-can decision-making model regarding resource attainment and allocation in Israeli schools. Results indicate that the garbage-can model of decision-making is salient when school principals try to use…