Muslim teachers' constructions of the school principals' masculinity vs. femininity: the case of Arab-Muslims in Israel

Author(s):

Khalid Arar(presenting / submitting)Izhar Oplatka(presenting)

Conference:

ECER 2012

Network:

26. Educational Leadership

Format:

Paper

Session Information

26 SES 13 B, Educational Leadership

Parallel Paper Session

Time:

2012-09-21

11:00-12:30

Room:

FFL - Aula 7

Chair:

David Gurr

Contribution

The implications of masculinity and femininity are always a concern in educational entities. Either explicitly or implicitly, this issue affects teachers, the curriculum and students (Francis, 2010; Weaver-Hightower, 2009). Gender researchers were inspired by feminist approaches to examine the issue of 'masculinity', from male and female viewpoints (Connell 2005) and many studies have examined the issue of gender in education (Arar and Abu-Rabia-Queder, 2011; Grogan & Shakeshaft, 2011). It seems that 'masculinity' and 'femininity' significantly influence the structuring of school discourse (Fuller 2011) and learning contents delivered to the students (Francis 2010). Yet, there has been little research interest in teachers’ perceptions of the masculinity or alternatively femininity evident in educational leadership, leaving a gap in knowledge. Since perceptions are culturally constructed, this gap should be addressed by focusing on particular social and cultural contexts in which these perceptions are formed (Francis, 2010). The study of teachers' perceptions in multicultural contexts such as Muslim society in Western countries can shed further light on this issue.

Although the need for gender analysis in educational institutions has been indicated (Francis, 2010; Weaver-Hightower, 2009), the application of such analysis to empirical data has so far been limited. This study attempted to apply different conceptions of gender to the field of leadership and principalship in schools. We conducted qualitative research to trace Muslim teachers' perceptions of the masculinity and femininity of school principals. The study posed three questions:

What are the teachers' perceptions concerning the masculine and feminine characteristics of school principals?
What are the teachers' perceptions concerning the influence of gender on the principal's leadership style, teachers-principal power relations and the principals' career path?
Do teachers prefer masculine or feminine school leadership?

Method

Participants: Semi-structured interviews were held with 38 Muslim-Arab teachers studying in an M.A program in Israel, between January-May 2011. The interviews posed three open questions: What are your perceptions of the masculine vs. feminine principal? What kind of relationship would you expect from a male compared to a female principal? And, who is the ideal principal for the teachers in your school? These questions elicited the subjective interpretations of the teachers, exploring their constructions of masculine vs. feminine educational leadership. Data analysis: Analysis of the interviews followed four stages suggested by Marshall and Rosman (1995): "organizing the data", "generating categories, themes and patterns", "testing emergent hypothesis" and "searching for alternative explanations". Data were compared to identify dominant patterns. To fortify reliability, analysis was conducted by Author 1, while Author 2 acted as critic, reinforcing the structure of each analytical stage.

Expected Outcomes

Findings indicated that teachers of both sexes had a positive perception of the masculine principal. They described the masculine principal in terms of mental strength as "a strong character", an "authoritative personality", demonstrating "assertiveness", "the ability to endure pressures", "decisiveness", and "self-confidence". Some teachers painted a negative image of woman principals, describing the feminine principal as "suspicious" "weak and dependent on her family", "lacking self confidence and hesitant" and "reluctant to take responsibility". Women teachers associated leadership with physical strength: "a leader who operates powerfully, decisively" or compared leadership with "mere management", stressing that leadership includes "having a vision". None of the teachers described the feminine principal as a leader although many noted that she is "charismatic". The teachers considered that a masculine principal was "trustworthy", "educated", "knowledgeable", "a person who keeps his word". Teachers of both sexes agreed that a principal, regardless of their gender, should be: "just", "professional" "moral" and should "have integrity". The feminine principal was also perceived as "professional", "educated and knowledgeable" yet not considered suitable for the principalship. Differences found in Muslim teachers' perceptions of feminine as opposed to masculine principals correspond with Muslim society's norms, which still maintain that principals should be men, with masculine features and leadership style.

References

Arar, K. & S. Abu-Rabia-Queder. (2011). Turning points in the lives of two pioneer Arab women principals in Israel. Gender and Education, 27(1), 1-15. Connell, R. W. (2005). Masculinities 2nd ed. Berkley: University of California Press. Francis, B. (2010). Re-theorising gender: female masculinity and male femininity in the classroom? Gender and Education, 22(5) 477-490. Fuller, K. (2011). Learning gendered leadership: a case study of leadership apprenticeship. Paper presented at BELMAS Annual International Conference, 9th July, England: Wybston Lakes. Grogan, M. & C. Shakeshaft. (2010). Women and educational leadership. California: Jossey Bass. Marshall, C., & G. Rossman. (1995). Designing qualitative research. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. Weaver-Hightower, M. (2009). Masculinity and Education. In The Routledge international handbook of critical education, eds. M. Apple, W., Au and L. A. Gandin, pp. 163- 176. New-York: Routlege.

Author Information

Khalid Arar (presenting / submitting)

The Center for Academic Studies, Israel

Izhar Oplatka (presenting)

Tel Aviv University School of Education

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