This proposal draws upon findings from a doctoral research study that explores the ways in which leaders within second level education in Ireland are experiencing mentoring and coaching and in how far (and in what ways) it impacts their leadership identities and leadership practice. This research focuses on the increasing complexity of needs as identified by both newly appointed and experienced school principals, the response from national public authorities in providing support and training for principals in Ireland and the opportunities for developing supportive frameworks that include the potential for reimagining school leadership roles and responsibilities.

The growing global concern about the recruitment and retention of school leaders with notably fewer people applying for leadership roles (Hancock et al., 2019) have led to an acknowledgment that a crisis exists within education. While leadership training exists for all principal teachers in Ireland ongoing provisions that assist principals by incorporating the necessary practical supports and supportive frameworks in developing fundamental leadership ideologies within their school are frequently lacking (CSL Report, 2015) and often been regarded as ad-hoc, disjointed and lacking any system-wide framework. In an attempt to respond to the current leadership crisis, programmes for the induction of newly appointed principals and a developmental programme for school leadership teams are provided for principals which integrate previous professional learning support services into one body since September 2023. In spite of these developments principals are calling for more diverse supports undoubtedly compounded by the pace of change for school leaders and challenges that include the aftermath of a global pandemic, the cost-of-living crisis, restrained leadership roles, positions and resources, school accountability and self-evaluation, curricular reform, addressing disadvantage, diversity within school communities and child wellbeing and welfare.

A growing need for providing educational organisations with a clear progressive educational leadership pathway has, in more recent times, become central in the practical preparation and development of individuals in leadership roles. Findings from this study explore in depth the impact that formal supports such as mentoring and coaching have on bridging the gap for newly appointed school leaders in Ireland to support them in dealing with the complexity and extensive nature of the expectations of their leadership roles. Furthermore, this study seeks to provide insights into the lived experiences of established school principals who have engaged with formal supportive networks and the ways in which these supports have impacted on their professional development while working in the role of principal.     

This research uses mixed methods in order to corroborate the results from different methods and thus follows Greene et al.’s (1989) five major purposes’ for conducting mixed methods research, namely; triangulation, complementarity, initiation, development and expansion of research findings. Defined as a three phase exploratory sequential mixed methods design (Creswell & Creswell, 2018), this research began with a qualitative phase consisting of interview data and analysis that were further tested in a quantitative phase. The qualitative strand was identified as the most suitable for initial findings as a result of the absence of empirical research conducted in this area specific to the Irish context and post-primary leadership. All interviews were transcribed verbatim and reflective thematic analysis techniques were employed to identify and reflect on key themes (Braun and Clarke, 2021). Themes from the interviews guided questions for an online survey with cross-sectional design for second level principal teachers within Ireland, providing ‘the researcher with a consistent benchmark’ (Bryman, 2012, p.55) for gauging variation. The survey research complied with Bryman’s (2012, pp160-161) eleven-step process of quantitative research and provided greater insights into the current realities and norms of leadership experiences in post primary schools in Ireland and allowed participants a forum to discuss significant issues within their own leadership environments. In keeping with the overarching topic of educational leadership, this research pays special attention to the theme of education in an age of uncertainty with a particular focus on the ways in which formalised supports for school principals are cultivated in order to provide hope for the future undeterred by the current challenges faced within educational leadership.

Findings from this mixed methods study are outlined under the following themes; training and supports for educational leaders, complexity of needs, impact of engagement with formal support structures and calling for change. Many of the described experiences indicate mentoring and coaching relationships as most supportive in responding to the Department of Education run framework “Looking at Our School 2022” (2024) and the four domains outlined; Leading learning and teaching, managing the organisation, leading school development, and building leadership capacity. Productive mentoring relationships described as collaborative were recognised as highly beneficial. They were seen to support the development of positive professional behaviours and directly linked to enhanced leadership effectiveness and identity. Furthermore professional knowledge, management expertise and administrative competencies were largely noted as having improved as a result of engagement with formal supports. Challenges noted administration as the most overbearing aspect to the role of principalship with ‘time’ a significant obstruction to engaging in productive professional networks. The absence of supports within the school community further impeded engagement in programmes such as mentoring thus hindering development of leadership identity, increased feelings of isolation and indicate additional consequences to newly appointed principals willingness to engage in alternative leadership support programmes thereafter.

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