Conference Agenda
Overview and details of the sessions of this conference. Please select a date or location to show only sessions at that day or location. Please select a single session for detailed view (with abstracts and downloads if available).
Please note that all times are shown in the time zone of the conference. The current conference time is: 19th Aug 2026, 21:28:36 EET
|
Daily Overview |
| Session | ||
26 SES 05 D: Leadership In Polycrisis & Uncertainty (Part 2)
Paper Session | ||
    | ||
26. Educational Leadership
Paper Educational Leadership and Reform in Conflict-Affected Contexts: Lessons from Lebanon University of Sydney, Australia Presenting Author:This study critically examines the role of leadership in educational change in Lebanon, using its context as a lens to understand the complexities of education in regions affected by conflict and political instability. It argues that educational reform in Lebanon has been profoundly shaped by enduring historical and sociopolitical legacies, including prolonged conflict, entrenched sectarianism, and persistent political instability. These factors have produced a highly politicised and fragmented educational environment, in which reform initiatives often face significant structural, cultural, and social constraints. Furthermore, the study highlights the influence of externally promoted reform models, which are frequently adopted in a selective or superficial manner without fully engaging with Lebanon’s unique sociocultural and political realities. While these models may offer technical solutions, they often overlook the deeper local dynamics that mediate policy implementation and the outcomes of reform. The study situates its analysis within key historical and contemporary milestones, including the Lebanese Civil War (1975–1990), post-war reconstruction efforts, and ongoing debates surrounding curriculum design, national identity, and civic education. It explores how educational leadership is enacted within contested political and social spaces, examining how leaders navigate tensions between state mandates, community expectations, and professional educational values. These dynamics reveal how leadership both enables and constrains meaningful, contextually relevant change in a complex, divided society. The theoretical framework draws on multiple perspectives to interrogate the assumptions underlying reform agendas and leadership practices. Foucault’s archaeology of knowledge is employed to examine how policy discourses and official knowledge structures shape what is considered possible or legitimate in leadership practice. Habermas’ concept of the colonisation of the lifeworld is applied to critique the ways in which bureaucratic, market-oriented, or externally driven reform agendas can marginalise the lived experiences, voices, and agency of educators, students, and communities. Together, these perspectives allow a critical examination of how educational leadership operates within settings marked by instability, historical fragmentation, and social contestation. Through this analysis, the study underscores the need for educational leadership that moves beyond technical compliance and procedural enactment. It advocates for leadership that is critically reflective, contextually responsive, and capable of fostering social cohesion, equity, and justice within schools and communities. While grounded in the Lebanese context, the study’s insights have wider relevance for regions affected by conflict, protracted instability, and societal division, where global reform pressures often intersect with local sociopolitical realities. By centring leadership as both a mediator and catalyst of change, the study contributes to a nuanced understanding of the possibilities and limitations of educational reform in contexts shaped by conflict, fragmentation, and historical inequities. Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources Used This study adopts a conceptual and analytical approach to explore educational leadership and reform in Lebanon. Rather than generating primary empirical data, it draws on a diverse range of secondary sources—including historical accounts, policy documents, curriculum records, and scholarly literature—to examine how leadership operates within the country’s politically and socially complex educational environment. The analysis is guided by a multi-layered conceptual framework that integrates sociohistorical analysis, Foucauldian discourse theory, Habermas’ lifeworld colonisation thesis, and scholarship in educational leadership, management, and learning (EDLM). A sociohistorical lens situates education within Lebanon’s historical trajectories, including colonial legacies, sectarian governance, the Civil War, post-war reconstruction, and the Taif Agreement as a political settlement. This perspective illuminates the structural and historical conditions that shape the possibilities for reform and leadership action. Foucault’s archaeology of knowledge is applied to examine how educational discourses—such as curricular silences surrounding the civil war—have been legitimised and normalised, shaping what knowledge can be produced, taught, or contested. Habermas’ theory complements this by highlighting how systemic imperatives, including bureaucratic, political, and donor-driven agendas, can colonise the lifeworld of schools, constraining communicative and civic dimensions of education. EDLM literature is integrated analytically, bridging macro-level theory and leadership practice. It provides conceptual tools for understanding how educational leaders navigate historical, discursive, and systemic constraints, mediating, reproducing, or resisting structural inequities. Leadership is conceptualised as moral, political, and pedagogical work, rather than a purely technical function. This analytical approach enables a nuanced examination of educational leadership in Lebanon, highlighting the interplay between historical legacies, systemic pressures, and leadership agency, and offering insights into the possibilities and limitations for meaningful educational change in conflict-affected, sectarian contexts. Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or Findings The analysis reveals that educational leadership in Lebanon operates within a highly politicised and fragmented environment, where historical legacies, sectarian divisions, and ongoing political instability continue to shape both opportunities and constraints for reform. Leadership practices are deeply influenced by structural inequities originating from colonial governance, sectarianised education policies, and the disruptions of the Civil War, which have left enduring impacts on resource distribution, curriculum design, and institutional capacity. Educational leaders were found to navigate complex tensions between state mandates, community expectations, and professional educational values. In practice, this often involved selectively adopting externally promoted reform models while adapting them to local sociocultural and political realities. Leaders demonstrated a range of strategies to maintain legitimacy, mediate competing interests, and foster coherence across fragmented schools, highlighting the centrality of adaptive, contextually informed decision-making. Foucauldian analysis of policy discourses showed that official knowledge structures, including curricular silences around the Civil War and nation-building narratives, constrained the scope of what could be taught and legitimised particular leadership practices while marginalising others. Complementarily, Habermas’ framework revealed how bureaucratic, donor-driven, and market-oriented reforms often colonised the lifeworld of schools, limiting communicative and participatory dimensions of education and constraining the agency of educators and students. Despite these constraints, leaders enacted pedagogical, moral, and political agency in ways that fostered social cohesion, equity, and community engagement. Practices emphasising collaboration, reflective problem-solving, and ethical leadership emerged as critical mechanisms for mitigating systemic inequities and promoting locally meaningful reform. These findings underscore that educational leadership in conflict-affected Lebanon is both mediating and transformative: it operates within restrictive structural and discursive conditions but also enables contextually responsive and socially just educational practices. The Lebanese case illustrates the complex interplay of history, politics, and leadership, offering lessons for other contexts marked by protracted instability and societal division. References Abouchedid, K., & Zeid, M. B. (2017). Lebanon: Legacy of the Past and Present Challenges. Education in the Arab World, 59. BouJaoude, S., & Ghaith, G. (2006). Educational reform at a time of change: The case of Lebanon. In Education reform in societies in transition (pp. 191-209). Brill. Foucault, M. (2013). Archaeology of knowledge. routledge. Habermas, J. (1984). The theory of communicative action. In. Boston: Boxwood Press. Niesche, R. (2018). Critical perspectives in educational leadership: a new ‘theory turn’? Journal of Educational Administration and History, 50(3), 145-158. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220620.2017.1395600 Shuayb, M. (2019). Who shapes education reform policies in Lebanon? Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education, 49(4), 548-564. Wheeler, D. (1966). Educational problems of Arab countries. International Review of Education, 300-316. Ball, S. J. (2013). Foucault and Education: Disciplines and Knowledge. London: Routledge. Ball, S. J. (2013). Foucault, Power, and Education. London: Routledge. Foucault, M. (1980). Power/Knowledge: Selected Interviews & Other Writings 1972-1977. Edited by Colin Gordon. London: The Harvester Press. Hilal, Y. Y., & Gardner-McTaggart, A. (2025). School leadership at times of crises: Surveillance as support. Educational Management Administration & Leadership, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1177/17411432251393782 26. Educational Leadership
Paper Leadership Strategies in a Japanese High School Facing Depopulation and Post-disaster Recovery: An ISSPP Case Study 1: Kanazawa University, Japan; 2: Shiga University, Japan; 3: University of Jyväskylä, Finland; 4: Ritsumeikan University, Japan; 5: Nihon University, Japan; 6: Oita University, Japan Presenting Author:This study explores school leadership strategies at School Y, a small Japanese upper secondary school recognized for advancing inquiry-based learning amid depopulation and post-disaster recovery. Similar to many European countries, Japanese upper secondary schools, particularly in rural areas, face multiple challenges including rapid depopulation and the long-term impacts of repeated natural disasters. These conditions often result in negative school evaluations, declining student enrolment, and increased pressure on school leadership to sustain educational quality and community relevance. This study provides empirical insights from a Japanese context where a school leader navigates and responds to the challenges. The findings offer important implications for the international comparative research, International Successful School Principals Project (ISSPP), which has included a wide range of European contexts, by extending comparative understandings of school leadership to an underrepresented Japanese context (Sato & Yada, 2023; Gunnulfsen, et al., 2022, Yokota, 2019). Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources Used This study employs a multi‑perspective, mixed‑methods single‑case design (Creswell & Poth, 2018) incorporating individual and focus group interviews with a principal, teachers, students, parents and community members, as well as a survey of the principal and teachers in a rural Japanese school. Interview and survey questions followed ISSPP protocol. Semi-structured interviews were conducted and discourse analysis was applied. The quantitative survey data were used to complement the qualitative analysis. For the qualitative strand, the principal participated in a 110‑minute interview, and 19 teachers each participated in 50‑minute individual interviews. To capture stakeholder perspectives beyond the school, two parent focus groups (8 parents) and five local community members were interviewed in 50‑minute sessions. Interviews were standardized to ensure cross‑national comparability in line with ISSPP’s guidance. Questions explored leadership vision and daily practices, the design and enactment of inquiry activities, perceptions of school climate and student agency, collaboration with external partners, and experiences of post‑disaster recovery. Qualitative analysis focusing on how participants construct meanings around leadership practice, inquiry, and success. Rigor was ensured through: (1) dual narrative analysis—two researchers independently coded and interpreted narrative segments, then reconciled differences; (2) peer review within the research team to refine thematic categories and verify coherence; and (3) maintenance of an audit trail documenting coding decisions, analytic memos, and protocol adherence. Quantitative results were not treated as standalone findings but were integrated with qualitative insights via methodological triangulation, enabling convergence, complementarity, or contrast across data sources. To enhance transferability, the study provides a thick description of School Y’s historical background, organizational structures, curriculum and co‑curricular design, assessment practices, and community partnerships, allowing readers to judge applicability to other contexts. The research received institutional ethics approval, complied with national research codes, and ensured confidentiality, informed consent, and voluntary participation for all respondents. To complement and triangulate the qualitative data, a quantitative survey was administered to the teachers. Using a six‑point Likert scale, the survey measured school culture, leadership support, and collective efficacy. Items were adapted to reflect the specific context of inquiry‑based learning and community collaboration while maintaining construct continuity for comparability. Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or Findings The findings show how School Y’s leadership integrated formal structures with relational processes to achieve success. This success reflects long-standing efforts to restore the school’s reputation, predating the current principal’s tenure. Even during a major natural disaster, the principal maintained a calm, gentle demeanor, never losing his smile, and prioritized trust-building and open communication with all stakeholders inside and outside the school.The principal consistently invited diverse ideas, removed small but meaningful barriers, and modeled flexible improvement, creating a culture where speaking up was safe and continuous refinement was expected. This culture enabled inquiry projects to emerge from student interests and local needs while aligning with school-level goals. The disaster experience reshaped priorities: rather than accelerating change for its own sake, the principal centered wellbeing—students’ and staff members’ lives and mental health—as the foundation for instructional improvement and innovation. This wellbeing-first orientation stabilized the school, sustained teacher commitment, and made inquiry purposeful rather than performative. Partnerships with parents and the community were instrumental. Shared concern over depopulation and a forward-looking educational vision created conditions for reputational recovery, transforming past negative perceptions into civic pride. Inquiry projects addressing real community problems reinforced the school’s role as an anchor institution, deepening reciprocal trust and support. The study also notes a structural challenge: a skewed age distribution among staff. Sustaining success will require cultivating next-generation teacher leaders, robust mentoring, and opportunities for co-design and co-assessment across departments. In sum, School Y redefines success beyond exam metrics, grounding it in relational leadership (Eacott, 2018; Giles, 2019), wellbeing, and community-connected inquiry—a transferable model for similar contexts: start with trust and safety, scaffold flexible improvement, integrate inquiry with local realities, and build outward-facing partnerships that make learning socially meaningful. References Bronfenbrenner, U. (1979). The Ecology of Human Development. Harvard University Press. https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctv26071r6 Creswell, J.W. & Poth, C.N. (2018). Qualitative Inquiry and Research Design (4th ed.). SAGE. Eacott, S. (2018) Beyond Leadership: A Relational Approach to Organizational Theory in Education, Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-6568-2 Giles, D. L. (2019) Relational Leadership in Education: A Phenomenon of Inquiry and Practice Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780429445583 Gunnulfsen, A.E., Jensen, R. & Møller, J. (2022). A critical review of the history and future progress of the ISSPP. Journal of Educational Administration, 60(1). https://doi.org/10.1108/JEA-04-2021-0088 Gurr, D. & Moyi, P. (2022). The international successful school principalship project: reflections and possibilities. Journal of Educational Administration, 60(1). https://doi.org/10.1108/JEA-02-2022-267 Harada, T. (2018) The latest trend in the reform of high school education in Japan: Focusing on the curriculum reform, The Journal of Social Studies Education in Asia, 7, 111-113. Kariya, T. (2012) Education Reform and Social Class in Japan: The emerging incentive divide, Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203076996 Kim, D.‑C. (2021) Depopulation, Aging, and Rural Restructuring in Japan, Journal of Depopulation and Rural Development Studies (AGER), 33, 107-123. https://doi.org/10.4422/ager.2021.17 Mikouchi, A. K., Akita, K. & Komura, S. (2018) A Critical Review on Project-Based Learning in Japanese Secondary Education, Bulletin of the Graduate School of Education, the University of Tokyo, 58, 373-385. https://doi.org/10.15083/00077153 Nakawa, N. & Kosaka, M. (2025) Aligning Cross-Curricular Inquiry-Based High School Textbooks with Curriculum Guidelines. ZDM Mathematics Education 57, 859–872. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11858-025-01701-3 Sabong, V. & Sumida, M. (2023) Nature of Students’ Research Projects at a Japanese National High School, the Bulletin of the Center for Research in Science Education, Faculty of Education, Ehime University, 2, 74–83. Sakurai, A. & Sato, T. (2016) Promoting Education for Disaster Resilience and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, Journal of Disaster Research, 11, 3, 402-412. https://doi.org/10.20965/jdr.2016.p0402 Sato, H. & Yada, T. (2023). A systematic narrative review of school leadership studies in Japan. Bulletin of Institute of Education University of Tsukuba, 44(1). Yokota, H. (2019). Mapping four leadership styles in Japan. Journal of Educational Administration, 58(2). 26. Educational Leadership
Paper Novice School Principals During Wartime: Challenges and Resilience Resources Kaye Academic College of Education, Israel Presenting Author:The research literature on new school principals highlights the complexity of transitioning into a leadership role (e.g., Sepuru & Mohlakwana, 2020). While managerial challenges in routine times are well documented (e.g., Maxwell & Riley, 2017), research on school leadership during emergencies, particularly in wartime, remains limited (Striepe & Cunningham, 2022). The current study focused on novice principals in their first year on the job who navigated school leadership during a prolonged national crisis and war in Israel. The war broke out following the attack carried out by Hamas terrorist organization on October 7, 2023, which resulted in significant loss of life and the abduction of civilians into Gaza. Initially centered in Gaza, the war subsequently expanded to additional arenas, including Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, and Iran, and involved numerous casualties. Entering school leadership is broadly recognized as a complex professional transition that demands rapid learning of organizational routines, system navigation, and identity formation (Bayar, 2016). Research has identified a “reality shock,” characterized by workload overload, a decline in self-efficacy, and emotional strain (Sepuru & Mohlakwana, 2020). Crisis events impose additional demands, including emotional regulation, rapid decision-making, support for staff and students, and the establishment of new practices under conditions of uncertainty (Smith & Riley, 2012; Striepe & Cunningham, 2022). Existing studies from conflict areas highlight issues of safety, trauma, disrupted communication, and reliance on local community and government support (Hudson et al., 2024; Al-Said et al., 2025). Thus, effective leadership in times of crisis involves understanding threats, responding to them, and establishing new routines (Striepe & Cunningham, 2022). In this study, novice principals entered their positions just weeks before the outbreak of a major war. Rather than having the opportunity to gradually learn the role, they were immediately required to lead schools during a national emergency, while they themselves were still figuring out what it meant to be a principal. As one principal reflected: “If I had known what it meant to lead under normal conditions, I could have built on that. But I never had normal.” All participating principals took part in a formal induction program implemented by Kaye Academic College of Education and the Democratic Institute, in partnership with Aveni Rosha, The Israel Institute for School Leadership and the Ministry of Education. The program included learning sessions, school visits, and individual mentoring.The principals were supported by two mentors: a program-appointed coordinator and an additional mentor from the Ministry of Education, an experienced school principal. Due to multiple stressors, the development of personal and managerial resilience is particularly vital during periods of crisis and war (Halevi & Shechter, 2024). Resilience refers to the ability to “bounce back,” namely, a return to normative functioning following crisis or distress (Isaacs, 2012). Masten (2014) defines resilience as the capacity to adapt to disturbances threatening system functioning at the individual, family, school, community, or organizational levels. Contemporary perspectives also view resilience as the capacity for growth through adversity, closely related to the concept of post-traumatic growth, defined as positive psychological change following crisis or traumatic stress (Tedeschi & Calhoun, 2004). Drawing on these contemporary conceptualizations of resilience, including resilience as a dynamic, system-level process (Masten, 2018) and as potential post-traumatic growth, the study first examines the challenges faced by novice principals and then explores how internal and external resources combined to enable adaptation and coping. Research questions:
Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources Used The study adopts a qualitative phenomenological design aimed at understanding principals’ lived experience and meaning-making during crisis (Creswell & Poth, 2018). Participants were 12 female principals in their first year of appointment, representing elementary, middle, and high schools across six cities in southern Israel, all of which experienced different degrees of exposure to wartime events, including direct terror attacks, mass evacuations, and casualties within the school community and family. All participants held a master’s degree and had 20–30 years of professional experience in the education system. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews conducted via Zoom, while the principals were still functioning under wartime conditions. The interviews focused on participants’ entry into the principalship and their leadership experiences. Interview topics included perceived challenges, internal resilience resources and external sources of support, coping practices, emotional experiences, school functioning, future-oriented perspectives, and the perceived contribution of the induction program to their professional coping and development. Ethical approval was obtained prior to data collection, and all participants provided informed consent. Sample questions included: “Can you tell the story of your leadership experience during the war?”, “How do you perceive your role as a principal during wartime?”, “What challenges and difficulties did you encounter?”, and “How did you respond to these challenges in practice?” A thematic content analysis was conducted (Shkedi, 2003). The analysis comprised several stages. In the first stage, following a holistic reading of each interview, an inductive analysis was carried out, focusing on the meanings participants attributed to their lived reality. The data were segmented into meaning units based on thematic content, and initial categories were generated. In the second stage, a mapping analysis was conducted to construct the comprehensive category system (Shkedi, 2003). To examine the study’s trustworthiness, at the outset of the analytic process the research team jointly analyzed five interviews. Disagreements regarding the extracted themes or the assignment of quotations to specific themes were discussed until consensus was reached. This process enabled the assessment of inter-coder agreement and the establishment of shared analytic guidelines. Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or Findings The findings indicate that novice principals faced multiple challenges during the war, including initial shock, managing schools amid uncertainty, rebuilding disrupted routines, and sustaining emotional and managerial demands. At the same time, they were required to support staff members and students affected by the war and ensure continued school functioning. Against this backdrop, the analysis revealed a dynamic interplay of external and internal coping resources. External support resources included the induction program, within which principals reported specific content that directly assisted them in coping with the challenges encountered. In particular, the program coordinator and the individual mentor (experienced school principals) emerged as especially significant sources of support, providing emotional support alongside practical guidance in addressing leadership dilemmas, establishing emergency routines, and facilitating the transition back to school functioning. Additional sources of support included family members, district supervisors, local authority leaders, and peer networks within the community and training cohort. In parallel, principals drew on a wide range of internal coping resources. These included self-efficacy, confidence, initiative, proactivity, flexibility, creativity, and the capacity to function under pressure and make decisions under uncertainty. Relational capacities, such as empathy and the ability to build trust-based relationships with staff, were also central internal resources. The findings reinforce previous research highlighting the resilience capacities demonstrated by school principals in times of crisis (e.g., Halevi & Shechter, 2024). Beyond coping, the findings indicate processes of growth through crisis. Principals reported enhanced self-awareness, a deeper understanding of the leadership role, and strengthened professional confidence. These processes align with the concept of post-traumatic growth (Tedeschi & Calhoun, 2004). In conclusion, the findings suggest that leadership during crisis relies on the integration of external and internal resources and that crisis conditions may also serve as a catalyst for professional learning and leadership development among novice principals. References Al-Said, H., Abu-Gweder, A., & Kaplan, H. (2025). Coping and Resilience Resources among School Principals in the Arab-Bedouin Education System in the Shadow of the Iron Swords War. In: M. Gutman (Ed.). Challenges facing Education Leadership in the Shadow of War: International and Multicultural Perspectives from Zones of Conflict. (pp. 32-40). Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group. Bayar, A. (2016). Challenges Facing Principals in the First Year at Their Schools. Universal Journal of Educational Research, 4(1), 192-199. http://dx.doi.org/10.13189/ujer.2016.040124 Creswell, J. W., & Poth, C. N. (2018). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five approaches (4th ed.). Sage Publications. Halevi, L., & Shechter, H. (2024). Situational resilience. In Y. Harpaz (Ed.), Education in times of war: Diaries, research, and reflections (285-299 ). Resling. Hudson, C., Tigchelaar, D. & Zastavnyi, A. (2024), "Educational leadership during a time of war in Ukraine, Journal of Professional Capital and Community, 9)4(,281-290. https://doi.org/10.1108/JPCC-06-2024-0098 Isaacs, A. J. (2012). Resiliency and the individual demographics of school leaders: Making a difference in the quality of educational leadership. Journal of Research in Education, 22 (1), 128-162. Masten, A. S. (2014). Ordinary magic: Resilience in development. Guilford Press. Maxwell, A., & Riley, P. (2017). Emotional demands, emotional labour and occupational outcomes in school principals: Modelling the relationships. Educational Management Administration & Leadership, 45(3), 484-502. https://doi.org/10.1177/1741143215607878 Sepuru, M.G., & Mohlakwana, M. A. (2020). The perspectives of beginner principals on their new roles in school leadership and management: A South African case study. South African Journal of Education, 40(2), 1-11. doi:10.15700/saje.v40n2a1755 Shkedi, A. (2003). Words that attempt to touch: Qualitative research- Theory and application [Hebrew]. Ramot, Tel Aviv University. Smith, L., and Riley, D. )2012(. School Leadership in Times of Crisis. School Leadership & Management, 32 (1): 57–71. doi:10.1080/13632434.2011.614941. Striepe, M., & Cunningham, C. (2022). Understanding educational leadership during times of crises: a scoping review. Journal of Educational Administration, 60(2),133-147. https://doi.org/10.1108/JEA-03-2021-0057 Tedeschi, R. G., & Calhoun, L. G. (2004). TARGET ARTICLE: Posttraumatic Growth: Conceptual Foundations and Empirical Evidence. Psychological Inquiry, 15(1), 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327965pli1501_01 | ||