Session Information
26 SES 14 A, School Leadership Success amidst Contemporary Complexities and Layers of Influence on Education (Part 1)
Symposium to be continued in 26 SES 16 A
Contribution
This paper presents the theoretical and analytical frameworks and comparative mixed methods research methodology for the new phase of the International Successful School Principalship Project (ISSPP). In so doing, the paper provides a rationale for the use of ecological systems theory in research on successful school leadership, as they lead and manage the complex interactions within and between micro, meso, macro, exon and chrono level systems (Bronfenbrenner, 2009). This paper then unpacks the comparative design and multi-perspective, multi-level approach to conducting research that enables multiple causalities, multiple perspectives, and multiple effects to be charted (Cohen et. al., 2011). The new ISSPP comparative methodology is grounded in four conceptual and methodological considerations. First, context in education is multidimensional and fluid – encompassing not only multi-layered social ecological systems of education, but also how such systems influence each other to bring about change in values and behaviour over time. Second, how context matters finds its scholarly roots in educational researchers’ intellectual, disciplinary, and professional insights, as well as their positionality and reflexivity from sociocultural and sociopolitical insider/outsider perspectives. Third, assessing the comparability of educational systems, practices, processes, and outcomes both within and across countries matters. Fourth, our comparative approach not only recognizes differences in world views, forms of knowledge and practices between different cultures but also recognizes the reality that there are also important similarities in how children are motivated to learn, how committed and enthusiastic teachers teach, and how successful leaders create and sustain the contextually relevant conditions and cultures for the learning and growth of children and adults in their schools. Methodologically, the selection of the case sites uses a purposive sampling of schools that controls for differences in accountability standards and evidence of improved student performance during the tenure of the principal under study in each national context. Data sources include semi-structured qualitative interviews with the district/municipality, governors, principal, teachers, parents, and students and a validated teacher survey in order to provide a more elaborated understanding of the phenomena i.e., school success and the principal’s leadership contribution to that success. The comparative analytical process, theoretical positioning, and comparative mixed methods provide a coherent but contextually sensitive data analysis approach. Finally, this paper previews the other papers that present findings using the new ISSPP frameworks and methodology in England, Sweden, and USA .
References
Authors, 2021. Author, 2020a Author, 2020b Bronfenbrenner, U. (1979). The ecology of human development: Experiments by nature and design. Harvard university press. Byrne, D., & Callaghan, G. (2013). Complexity theory and the social sciences: The state of the art. Routledge. Creswell, J. W., & Creswell, J. D. (2017). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches. Sage publications. Denzin, N. K. (2012). Triangulation 2.0. Journal of mixed methods research, 6(2), 80-88. Manu, A. (2022). The Philosophy of Disruption. Bingley, Emerald Publishing. Morrison, K. (2010). Complexity theory, school leadership and management: Questions for theory and practice. Educational Management Administration & Leadership, 38(3), 374-393. Patton, M. Q. (2002). Qualitative research & evaluation methods. Sage.
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