Session Information
26 SES 06 A, 20 Slides in 400 Seconds – Pecha Kucha Presentations of Educational Leadership Research
Pecha Kucha Session
Contribution
At the international level, as well as at the national level, the principal garners the attention of both institutional and political leaders, both in terms of the organization and the efficient functioning of educational systems (Hopes, 1988). In this way, many studies in comparative education show that primary school
principals, regardless of their status, are key players in the renewal of educational systems (UNESCO, 2006). Renewalhas become a priority, and the organizational choices that affect it have been either proved or remain uncertain. Each system tends to make the management of its schools more effective for the greater success of all its students (Pont, 2008,16). Their various missions offer a wide spectrum of possibilities on how to proceed. The principals base their professional identity on institutional requirements, but also on their own way of doing things. So, the profiles are varied and relate to figures like the supervisor,
manager, education specialist or team leader (Fullan, 2006 ; Barrère, 2006). In
France, they are not superiors but primarily teachers, and they work under the
supervision of a district inspector. Only 8.2% of primary school principals spend all their time managing the school and doing the administrative work. Most of them teach half-time, three-quarters time or full-time. This division depends on the number of classes in the school. Their role in the proper functioning of schools has been acknowledged by the Ministry of Education many times (IGAENR, 2003 ; MEN, 2013). But there seems to be a gap between the Ministry
of Education’s analysis and the analysis and feelings of the principals
themselves. For more than 15 years, then, on the one hand, school principals have been trying to get an elevated status, and on the other hand, there is a recurring lack of incumbents in management positions. In 2006 after a long strike of seven years, principals gained somewhat improved working conditions. However, trade union organizations and professional associations continue to advocate for a better way to work. At the same time, since in France the educational system is a national system, many reforms and regulatory texts set national benchmarks for education policy. Is this too much? Undoubtedly, this was already pointed out in 2003 by the General Inspection of the Administration of National Education and Research (IGAENR) in its annual report. Could
this abundant production of texts be part of a voluntary, non-antagonistic
approach, reducing itself to a more or less slow adaptation to the evolutions
of its environment without defining strong guidelines and without asserting
clear objectives for changing the school (Dubet, 2008)? Or, could it be an indication of trial and error with uncertain effects that put the actors in the educational community in a situation of discomfort or even ill-will? Our purpose is to understand how leaders take into account the results of research aimed at
changing the system through comparative analysis, and to try to answer some of these questions. Why is the status of hierarchical superior possible abroad and not in France? What are the claims of French principals in terms of getting better way to work? Why do most of French principals want leadership based on status?
Method
Expected Outcomes
References
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