Kerry and Murdoch (1993), analysing the essential characteristics of leaders and school principals, raised two key questions: (1) What kind of leadership will schools require to help them face the next ten years?; and (2) How equipped are managers in school to provide that leadership? Traditionally, aspiring school principals emerge from the…

This article draws on the results of a larger qualitative, self-contained focus group study that identified effective behaviours for school principals to collaborate successfully. Participants, representing various stakeholder groups, including principals themselves, were asked to respond to the research question, "what are the ways in which…

With a move away from rotational chairs and a reluctance to tackle the conflicting responsibilities inherent in the lower levels of academic leadership, how can those at the top of the pipeline identify faculty who have the ability and desire to move through the ranks? What characteristics will increase the probability of willingness, commitment,…

Those who explore the topic of leadership will soon find a consistent theme: Leaders must focus on and accept responsibility for results. The increasing emphasis on measuring results using state and national tests has led some school leaders to focus on raising test scores. Yet data is not what drives educators to change or improve. In this…

The Strategic Management of Human Capital in Education Project was founded in 2008 with one goal: to improve student achievement dramatically in the 100 largest urban school districts. Unless teaching quality and principal leadership improve significantly, lasting education improvement is impossible. In policy terms, without "strategic management"…

In an effort to encourage dialogue and reflection on matters of common concern and interest, this journal invites responses on selected articles from other educators, who engage the text critically and offer some reflections about its utility and validity. This paper presents responses from Daniel F. Curtin, Gwen Byrd and Dominica Rocchio to the…

Recently, the Center for Higher Education Policy Analysis at the University of Southern California conducted a national study of public higher education governing board performance. 130 board members, presidents, coordinating board officials, governors, legislators, and education department staff were interviewed about ways to improve performance…

A science teacher forgets to remind her students to wear their safety goggles during a chemistry experiment and one student is injured when the caustic chemicals he is working with splash into his eyes. A teacher is late for recess duty and a student falls from the swings and is injured. A principal sends one teacher and one student teacher on a…

This is the thoroughly revised and updated second edition of the bestselling book Exploring Leadership. The book is designed to help college students understand that they are capable of being effective leaders and to guide them in developing their leadership potential. Exploring Leadership incorporates new insights and material developed in the…

The author argues that leadership is a cultural construct embedded in symbolic processes. By culture, the author refers to the informal codes and shared assumptions of individuals who participate in an organization. An organization's members shape and are shaped by the symbols and rituals of the institution as well as the unique history from which…

Over the past 20 years two lines of argument have fostered global interest and investment in the preparation and development of school leaders. First, policymakers have increasingly come to the conclusion that education is a critical lever in social, economic, and cultural development, and that leadership is a necessary factor in creating quality…

Through long interviews with five outstanding male educational leaders, the authors share their stories and primary lessons on leadership development. The stories portray leadership as being perceived primarily as an evolutionary process characterized by family and teacher nurturance, community and spiritual centeredness, and responsive caring.…

Selection of educational leaders in the United States typically involves four decision points controlled by three types of institutions: admission to and graduation from a principal preparation program controlled by an institution of higher education, certification controlled by the state, and employment controlled by a local school district.…

Principal preparation programs are designed to create and prepare effective school leaders. These programs pursue many pathways to achieve this goal. This study highlighted the significance of framing this pursuit around the Educational Leadership Council Standards (ELCC; Wilmore, 2002) and Malcolm Knowles' (1970) adult learning theory. In…

Multirater feedback, often called 360-degree feedback, is a popular development and assessment tool, especially for organizational leaders. Raters from different organizational levels, including subordinates, boss, peers, and self, rate the leader's performance. However, there seldom is strong agreement across rater groups. This study used the…