Overview

Contemporary principals lead schools amidst rapidly changing and complex contexts, many of which have long histories of persisting systemic and structural racial, economic, and social inequities. Research by members of the International Successful School Principalship Project (ISSPP) from 20+ countries over the last two decades has found that, regardless of differences in contexts and conditions, successful principals’ work is predicated upon educational purposes that entail but transcend the functional, founded on principles of social justice, equity, and inclusion.

In ISSPP research, schools are considered as adaptive social systems that sit at the nexus of policy, communities, and society. Researching school leadership amidst a complex and rapidly changing society requires conceptualisations and methodologies to be sufficiently robust and dynamic to capture the nuances of the ways that multi-layered influences in society, communities, and schools shape, and are shaped by, what successful principals do.

Drawing upon evidence from a sample of selected member countries, this symposium synthesizes ISSPP research findings over time and discusses how the newly developed ISSPP theoretical conceptualization and comparative methodologies enables the research to consider leadership as a multi-level phenomenon and capture the ways in which principals navigate within and between complex systems levels over time to grow and sustain success.

Research Questions

RQ1: How appropriate is complexity theory to furthering understandings of successful school leadership, and how will such understandings advance the application of complexity theory in social and comparative research in education?

RQ2: To what extent, and in what ways, do diverse socioeconomic, cultural, political systems, and professional contexts at different levels of the education system influence how schools operate to bring about valued educational outcomes, especially those  serving high need communities?

RQ3: To what extent, and in what ways, is ‘success’ in schools perceived and measured similarly and/or differently within and across different countries? 

RQ4: What are the key enablers and constraints for achieving school ‘success’ in different contexts within and across different countries?

RQ5: How do different key stakeholders within and outside the school community and at different levels of the education system define successful school leadership practices? What similarities and differences can be identified within and across different countries?

RQ6: What similarities and differences can be identified in the values, beliefs, and behaviors of successful school principals across different schools in the same country, and across national cultures and policy contexts? 

In seeking to answer the urgent issues of defining how success is achieved and sustained in all schools, and especially those serving high need communities, the ISSPP research examines school leadership through the lens of ecological systems theory (Bronfenbrenner, 1979) which theorizes individual practices and development within the context of various dynamically interacting layers of social and ecological systems and uses the complexity theory (e.g., Byrne & Callaghan, 2013) to capture the processes and actions in which school organizations operate, develop, and thrive in an increasingly unpredictable, globalized world. 

Methodology

The ISSPP utilizes a comparative, mixed methods design with a variety of data sources to bring multiple perspectives to bear in the inquiry. Sampling features principals who lead successful schools in their communities. Data sources within each case study include semi-structured qualitative interviews with the district/municipality, governors, principal, teachers, parents, and students, and a whole-school teacher survey. The comparative analysis of these data sources within and across different schools and countries enables trustworthiness and enhances rigor.

Session Structure

Part A of the symposium will begin with an overview followed by four paper presentations and audience discussion. It concludes with a discussion and an introduction to Part B of the symposium.

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. London: Routledge.