Conference Agenda

Contemporary principals lead schools for success amidst rapidly changing and complex national, state, district/municipality and community contexts with success defined by wellbeing and equity as well as academic outcomes. Complexities in a rapidly changing society require a multi-layered perspective (Author, 2020a) where schools are complex adaptive systems and societal institutions (Author, 2020b; Morrison, 2010). The conceptualization by the International Successful School Principalship Project is underpinned by complexity theory and ecological systems theory.

Complexity theory (e.g., Byrne & Callaghan, 2013) recognizes that organizations operate in a rapidly changing, globalized world. Closely related, ecological systems theory (Bronfenbrenner, 1979) posits that individuals (children) typically find themselves in various interconnected ecosystems from the most intimate (home) system to the larger school system and then to the most expansive system which includes society and culture. Together, the new ISSPP Project conceptualization considers schools as adaptive organizations that work within contexts of multiple changes and nested influences that are culturally and historically situated. It has enabled the research network scholars to construct an analytical framework which has informed new research questions and a comparative, mixed methods case study methodology. This methodology employs a systems-oriented approach in investigating successful leadership.

Research Questions

Specifically, the project research questions are:

RQ1: To what extent, and in what ways, is ‘success’ in schools perceived and measured [similarly and/or differently within and across different countries]?

RQ2: What are the key enablers and constraints for achieving school ‘success’ in different contexts?

RQ3: To what extent, and in what ways, do diverse socioeconomic, cultural, political, and professional contexts at different levels of the education system influence systems in which schools operate?

RQ4: Are there similar and/or different personal dispositions and professional knowledge, qualities and capabilities needed in enabling leaders to be(come) successful in different contexts [within and across different countries]?

RQ5: 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]?

RQ6: How do different key stakeholders within and outside the school community and at different levels of the education system define successful school leadership practices [within and across different countries]?

RQ7: Is each leadership practice identified by different key stakeholders within and outside the school community and at different levels of the education system truly essential for achieving and sustaining ‘success’ [across different schools within each country and across different countries; and over time]? In what ways?

RQ8: [How do different education systems support school principals to learn to become successful, and to sustain their success over time?]

RQ9: To what extent, and in what ways, do school principals contribute to the ‘success’ of their schools (and/or groups of schools) similarly or differently [ within and across different countries]?

In this panel discussion, researchers present their studies of successful principalship as part of the new ISSPP framework and comparative mixed methodology (Creswell & Creswell, 2017). Panelists feature scholars from New Zealand, Spain, Poland, Japan, and Brazil.

An internationally recognized chair will moderate the panel and connect the new ISSPP cases to the new theoretical and analytical framework as presented in companion symposia.