The definition of leadership as a process of influencing and capacity building to improve student achievement and further the general education or Democratic Bildung raises some questions about what influence means in a specific culture and the type of social connections that link people together (Moos & oth., 2013)(Ärlestig, Day, & Johansson, 2016). Some recent research has been focused on the notion of ethical leadership, showing the importance of beliefs and values, such as the dignity or the right of others, in the moral guidance of school leaders. Trust, consideration, esteem, the sense of justice, are important dimensions to make decisions accepted by others but also to empower people for school improvement (Biesta, 2011; Shapiro, Stefkovich, 2016). Similarly, the issues of race, class, gender, are structuring managerial relationships in schools and can maintain some stereotypes that undermine the common understanding and balance between people. These cultural and moral dimensions have an influence on the way leaders exercise their responsibilities and engage teachers in different forms of action and coordination within schools ((Boltanski & Thévenot, 1991/2006; Gross, Shapiro, 2015; Normand, 2016)

The symposium therefore will gather contributions from various authors capable of reporting these moral and cultural differences, while broadening the research perspectives on school leadership. Contributors will answer a common set of questions: what are the main cultural characteristics of school leadership in their country? What are culturally dominant moral foundations from which school principals assume their responsibilities and lead teachers? How do leaders have different ethics that differentiate their ways of engaging with others? What are culturally bound conceptualizations of ethical leadership? How does the culture of teachers and managers influence their conceptualizations or representations of authority, hierarchy, respect, solidarity, trust, commitment, autonomy, responsibility? What cultural specificities can be found in the professional development components surrounding educational leadership? (Easley & Tulowitzki, 2016)

The aim is to study differences between countries with liberal, communitarian and nationalistic traditions. Contributions will present diversified approaches to leadership from English-speaking (USA), Northern European countries (Sweden and Finland) with France and Switzerland, which have specific political configurations. Secondly, within each country, contributors will specify differences in the cultural and moral arrangement of leadership practices that are partly linked to a specific social and political context (racial discrimination, welfare and social inclusion, civic-mindedness and equal opportunities, linguistic particularism). Contributions will analyse different forms and contents of leadership practices in the different countries: instrumental leadership oriented towards accountability and evidence-based practices, participatory and democratic leadership, bureaucratic and authoritarian leadership). These contrasts and differences seemed to be adapted to the description and analysis of different conceptions of the common good, which vary strongly from one country to another (Moos & Wubbels, 2018).

These contributions will report as few shared themes on moral and cultural features, while broadening the research perspectives on school leadership beyond an instrumental and neo-liberal vision. They contribute to an existing research field that studies diversity and ethical leadership in schools.

Biesta, G. J. J. (2011). Learning Democracy in School and Society. Dordrecht: Springer. Boltanski, L., & Thévenot, L. (1991/2006). On justification. Economies of Worth. Princeton: Princeton university Press. Easley, J., & Tulowitzki, P. (Eds.). (2016). Educational accountability: International perspectives on challenges and possibilities for school leadership. London: Routledge. Gross, S. J., & Shapiro, J. P. (2015). Democratic ethical educational leadership: Reclaiming school reform. Routledge. Moos, L., & Wubbels, T. (2018). General Education: Homogenised Education for the Globalized World? Zitschrift für Erziehungswissenshaft, 21(2), 241-258. Moos, L., Hansen, B., Björk, G., & Johansson, O. (2013). Leadership for democracy. In Moos L., Transnational Influences on Values and Practices in Nordic Educational Leadership (pp. 113-131). Springer, Dordrecht. Moos, L., Hansen, B., Björk, G., & Johansson, O. (2013). Leadership for democracy. In Moos L., Transnational Influences on Values and Practices in Nordic Educational Leadership (pp. 113-131). Springer, Dordrecht. Normand, R. (2016). Between Civil Service and Republican Ethics–The Statist Vision of Leadership Among French Principals. In H. Ârlestig, C. Day, & O. Johansson (Eds.), A decade of research on school principals. Dordrecht: Springer. Shapiro, J. P., & Stefkovich, J. A. (2016). Ethical leadership and decision making in education: Applying theoretical perspectives to complex dilemmas. Routledge. Ärlestig, H., Day, C., & Johansson, O. (Eds.). (2016). A decade of research on school principals. Studies in Educational Leadership. . Dordrecht: Springer.