The care paradox: how ethics of care creates leadership dilemmas for women in schools

PurposeMiddle leaders play an important role in the education landscape, first and foremost as teachers, and second as leaders. The purpose of this paper is to identify the expectations and challenges experienced by first-time middle leaders in New Zealand primary schools, and identify the leadership development and support they were provided with.Design/methodology/approachThis was a small qualitative study designed to collect data from the perspectives of first-time middle leaders and principals in New Zealand primary schools. Three methods were employed. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with six middle leaders who had been in the role for one to three years. These participants were identified through an analysis of recent public appointment records and then e-mailed with an invitation. Four principals from a local principals’ association were invited to comprise a focus group and relevant documents were analysed.FindingsThe findings from this study are presented in three sections: expectations, challenges and leadership development and support. Whilst the principals described wide and varied role expectations the middle leaders highlighted the importance of their teaching role with leadership responsibilities as secondary. From both perspectives time to do the administrative work was an overwhelming difficulty. A key finding was related to a lack of confidence to undertake the role in spite of efforts to provide and receive support. Overall, there was agreement that further development for new middle leaders was essential.Research limitations/implicationsThis small, limited study highlights the central role that middle leaders play in leading learning and teaching, and the existence of a lack of confidence. Further research is needed to delve into conditions that would enable new middle leaders to manage the challenges of time and confidence.Practical implicationsThe research recommends that practitioners who are new to a middle leadership role be allocated dedicated time for performing the administrative tasks and participating in an ongoing induction programme. The middle leaders themselves and their schools would benefit from efforts to strengthen middle leadership development.Originality/valueAlthough a great deal has been written about middle leadership, there is only a small amount of research about primary schools. This research adds valuable new information in a primary school context and breaks new ground in researching early career, first-time middle leaders in this context.

The decline in the number of Marist Brothers has led to lay staff assuming increased responsibility for continuing the work of the Brothers. In order for this transition to be authentic and effective, schools should continue to be led within Marist charismic tradition. The Principal plays a critical role in this, but so do all leaders. Currently, little is known as to how middle leaders contribute to this process. The purpose of this study is to explore how middle leaders/managers at Champagnat College understand and implement the Marist charism. The context of this research is a College in Queensland, Australia, owned and conducted by the Marist Brothers. These research questions, arising from a review and synthesis of the literature, focused the conduct of the study: How do Champagnat College middle leaders understand the Marist charism? What understanding do Champagnat College middle leaders hold regarding how they implement the Marist charism? Given the focus of this thesis, an interpretive approach was considered appropriate. Within a constructionist epistemology, symbolic interactionism has been employed as a lens to inform the interpretive theoretical perspective of the study. A case study methodology was adopted. Data were gathered from participants (Marist Brothers and middle leaders at Champagnat College) through focus groups and semi-structured interviews. A document analysis and researcher reflective journal contributed additional data. Contributions to new knowledge highlight the way that middle leaders have embraced, and committed themselves to, the Marist charism and how Catholic and Marist identity may be defined. The Marist charism frames middle leader understandings of how they contribute to the College. This research identifies the “deep story” of the Marist charism as a shared construction, which preferences the story of the founder but which may risk losing its gospel connection. The shared meaning is a powerful cultural integrator and creates cohesive links among the middle leaders. The meanings also create ethical reference points for individual middle leaders as they undertake their duties at the College and as they engage in non-work activities. The research proposes a new model of Catholic and Marist identity, which includes “post-critical belief” (Pollefeyt & Bouwens, 2010). The contributions to practice relate to the vocation to spiritual leadership of middle leaders and the need for ongoing formation. Through the recognition of trust and sense-making characteristic of middle leaders, an effective foundation of distributed leadership may be further developed to build a culture where the Marist charism is understood, interpreted and implemented through effective leadership actions. This is assisted through the fostering of a culture of discernment and accountability.

Increasingly, educational systems are appreciating the importance of middle leaders leading educational improvement in schools. Schools depend on middle leaders to lead site-based educational development in areas including curriculum development, teacher professional learning and student learning improvement. Middle leaders are in a unique but complex position where they influence both executive leadership and teachers within the school organisation. Adopting case study methodology to investigate the practices and influence of middle leaders leading a school-based educational development project, three semi-structured interviews and artefacts from two middle leaders were collected over eight months. The theory of practice architectures afforded an examination of data to explain the conditions and arrangements enabling and constraining the middle leaders’ practices of influence. The findings showed middle leaders’ influence was dependent on executive leadership support, time, formal role descriptions and trusting relationship. Furthermore, the results reveal middle leaders can influence educational development at the school level through advocating for, collaborating with, and empowering colleagues to support teacher ownership of site-based projects. Of interest, this study showed influence can be reciprocal, between middle leaders and colleagues, and between middle leaders and executive leadership.

Background: Ethical care is concerned with aspects of work that may influence nurses’ ethical behavior. Intensive care units might expose nurses to moral judgment while caring. This qualitative study aimed to explain the nurses’ experience of moral judgment in intensive care units. Methods: The present qualitative study was conducted using the conventional content analysis method. The participants of the study included 23 nurses working in the intensive care units (ICU, CCU, NICU) of four hospitals affiliated with Sabzevar University of Medical Sciences who were selected using purposive sampling. The data were collected through semi-structured interviews. The questions asked in the interviews included, "Would you please describe one working day of yours caring in the intensive care units?" and "While caring, did you have to hesitate to make a decision ethically? If yes, would you describe that situation?" The Data were analyzed using the qualitative content analysis method proposed by Graneheim and Lundman. Results: Data collection and analysis led to the identification of 1 theme, 6 categories, and 23 subcategories. The identified theme was "intensified tension and conflict following ethical patient care in the intensive care units" and the categories were "repeated exposure to stress in ethical patient care in the intensive care units", "ethical care originated from the nurses’ beliefs", "moral judgment in care affected by the patient’s clinical condition", "moral judgment as a consequence of clinical judgment", "ethical care based on organizational and legal conditions in the moral environment", and "requirements of ethical care". Conclusion: The nurses in the intensive care units deal with ethical issues and are under a lot of stress. The results of this study can help nursing authorities pay more attention to developing ethical knowledge and ethical considerations in hospitals and provide organizational support to identify the moral tensions of nurses in intensive care units.

Background/Context: Undocumented youth navigate unwelcoming federal, state, and local contexts in the United States. Although previous research shows the significant impact of immigration policy and enforcement on educational outcomes and social-emotional well-being, this study sheds light on the multiple, intersecting policy, and school contexts that hinder social and educational mobility. Purpose: The purpose of the study is to elicit Latinx undocumented immigrant youth experiences in a southern state to contribute to evolving research on their experiences in K-12 schools. In addition, the purpose was to understand how undocumented youth (a) talk about the policies that impact their daily lives, (b) perceive the organizational-level structures that exist to support them in school and community contexts, and (c) articulate a sense of belonging through their community and school interactions in relation to processes of racialization and its impact on immigration status. Conceptually, the paper uses a multilevel, interactional framework to show the impact of racialization of Latinx undocumented immigrants in policy, school, and community, and relational contexts. Research Design: The study is a 3-year critical ethnography of two Title I high schools in the U.S. South that maintains particularly restrictive policies toward immigrants. Fieldwork from two school sites and interviews with 63 undocumented youth, and relevant personnel deepen our understanding of their status of illegality—specifically how their material lives are impacted by policy and institutional-level dynamics and constraints. Conclusions/Recommendations: The author shows how youth voice through ethnographic evidence counteracts anti-immigrant policies and criminalization of Latinx immigrants; youth critique social policy and institutions that seek to limit their progress in society. The implications for policymakers, educators, and school-based personnel is significant Although legal status may impose certain limitations on undocumented students’ educational opportunities, their educational trajectories are still highly determined by school structures. Knowing this, educators can respond effectively to ensure educational rights and equitable educational practice.

PurposeMiddle leadership is difficult to define and fathom as these roles are fluid, adapting to the context of individual schools. However, little is known about the relationships among middle leadership, teacher commitment and job satisfaction in the field of education. The purpose of this paper is to propose a conceptual framework on the mediating role of teacher job satisfaction in the relationship between middle leadership and teacher commitment in schools based on past research, particularly in the context of schools.Design/methodology/approachA review of literature was undertaken to develop the conceptual framework.FindingsFindings suggested that middle leadership can positively influence teacher commitment via the mediating effect of teacher job satisfaction.Originality/valueThe value of this paper lies in understanding middle leadership as a salient factor in influencing teacher commitment via teacher job satisfaction. This paper’s framework lays a strong foundation for the expansion of the middle leadership knowledge base on middle leadership as well as for future theory development and debate.

Curbing the urge to care: A Bourdieusian analysis of the effect of the caring disposition on nurse middle managers’ clinical leadership in patient safety practices

PurposeInstructional leadership is a school leadership approach that emphasizes improving teaching and learning. This study explores how school middle leaders – teachers holding leadership positions in schools, who are responsible for a particular area or discipline of the school's curriculum – fulfill their instructional leadership role.Design/methodology/approachThe participants in this qualitative study were 24 middle leaders (subject coordinators) in elementary schools in Israel. Data collection was based on semi-structured interviews, and data analysis included three stages: sorting, coding and categorizing.FindingsThe current study points to three main characteristics of instructional leadership in school middle leaders: leading by expertise; leading by collaboration; and leading by example.Originality/valueAt present, there is only scant literature on instructional leadership in school middle leaders. This study suggests that principals and middle leaders, who work closely with each other to provide instructional leadership in their schools, do so in different ways.

On a global level, COVID-19 has shaken the foundations of every sector. In the South African education context, the traditional methods of teaching, learning, and managing schools changed drastically overnight and management roles and responsibilities were pushed to unprecedented levels. Moreover, the roles of middle leaders and managers took place within a more distributive framework, encouraging school leaders to adopt varying styles of leadership to cope with the demands of COVID-19. For this study, middle leaders constitute departmental heads, grade heads and subject heads. This study utilised a qualitative research design, adopting a case study approach within the interpretivist paradigm. Three departmental heads and seven post level one educators who occupy grade heads/leaders’ roles in a primary school constituted the sample. Semi-structured individual interviews were conducted with participants to gain their understanding of how distributive leadership was practiced during the pandemic. Four themes emerged, namely leadership styles and factors informing the leadership behaviour and leadership growth of middle leaders and managers in schools; middle leaders’ and managers’ perceptions of distributive leadership and the responsibilities of the different stakeholders; the impact of COVID-19 on distributive leadership as perceived by middle leaders and managers; and the advantages and disadvantages of distributive leadership practices. The study recommends that School Management Teams (SMTs) involve middle leaders and managers to a greater degree to secure an effective ‘buy-in’ to the concept of distributive leadership and that middle managers offer opportunities for others to lead, by developing leadership-specific courses for them. SMTs must also ensure that individuals have a stable working environment where their psychological, sociological, and emotional needs are respected, fulfilled, and validated during any pandemic.

Í nútímakenningum um skólastjórnun er kastljósinu jafnan beint að sýn skólastjóra á hlutverk sitt og tengsl við samstarfsfólk. Þá er átt við að skólastjórar og kennarar starfi saman að því að þróa skólastarf og kennsluhætti. Markmiðið með slíkum starfsháttum er að stuðla að auknum gæðum í skólastarfi. Í þessari grein er athyglinni beint að þeim afbrigðum samstarfsforystu sem fengið hafa mikið rými í fræðilegri umræðu á 21. öldinni, þ.e. dreifðri forystu (e. distributed leadership) og kennaraforystu (e. teacher leadership). Gögnum var safnað með spurningakönnun sem send var til allra skólastjóra vorið 2017 og var svarhlutfallið 69%. Í niðurstöðum er dregin upp mynd af aðstæðum í skólunum og greint frá hversu miklum tíma skólastjórar telja sig verja til samstarfs við millistjórnendur, kennara og annað starfsfólk, hversu mikla áherslu þeir leggja á þátttöku millistjórnenda og kennara í ákvörðunum og virkja þá til forystu um þróun kennsluhátta. Í umræðunum um niðurstöðurnar er bent á mikilvægi þess að skólastjórar horfi gagnrýnið á hvert markmiðið með virkjun millistjórnenda og kennara er, þ.e. hvort það sé einkum til að létta vinnuálagi af skólastjórum eða til að dreifa forystu um þróun náms og kennslu. Þá þarf að greina hvort launamál, vinnuálag eða aðrir starfstengdir þættir valdi því að meirihluta skólastjóra veitist erfitt að virkja kennara til kennslufræðilegrar forystu í þágu skólastarfsins alls.

This paper explores the experiences of middle leaders in publicly managed post-primary schools in the Republic of Ireland involved in regional Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) focused on the enactment of the ETBI Patrons' Framework on Ethos. This policy aims to support and guide publicly managed schools in embedding and sustaining a shared, inclusive, and values-based ethos grounded in the core values of the Education and Training Board (ETB) sector. Middle leaders (ethos leads) play a key role in implementing the Patrons’ Framework by leading its enactment in their schools and participating in regional PLCs with peers. For the purposes of this study, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 16 purposively selected ethos leads. Analysis of the data revealed two interrelated themes: middle leaders’ professional learning within PLCs, and the role of collaborative leadership and structures in supporting their work. These findings highlight the value of PLCs, and collaborative leadership in enhancing middle leaders’ professional growth, suggesting that structured, peer-supported environments are key to empowering their role in policy enactment, particularly in the area of values.

English primary schools tend to operate on a rather different basis from secondary schools in terms of middle leadership. Dependent on the size of the school, the majority of primary teachers will have some form of middle leadership responsibility particularly as each of them is likely to hold a responsibility for at least one area of the curriculum. Thus, in a primary school, it would not be unusual to categorise all the teachers as ‘middle leaders’. In this article the authors examine some of what is known about middle leadership in primary schools: first, through an exploration of the development of middle leadership roles; second, by consideration of the context of the primary school and the implications this has for operating as a leader; third, the ways in which teachers work together as a community of practice is discussed; finally, some key findings from recent research are reported. These elements are then drawn together to form a picture of the complex and evolving elements of acting as a middle leader. The article concludes by highlighting some specific and fertile areas for future research.

This paper describes the agentic leadership of professional learning and development described by curriculum middle leaders in secondary schools in New Zealand. The data were gathered from 30 interviews undertaken with curriculum middle leaders in 2023. The interviews were conducted with a diverse group of participants, including those leading large departments of 20 plus staff in urban secondary schools and others holding positions in smaller rural schools. The results revealed middle leaders had a strong commitment to developing relationships with their teachers, recognising the importance for collegiality, connectedness and communication. They demonstrated innovative ideas to support the improvement mindset of colleagues within their department, with many providing leadership opportunities to support the professional learning of teachers. Barriers and enablers in the leadership of professional development within the department context are discussed in terms of practice architecture theory with clear themes emerging regarding collaborative instructional practices including mentoring and coaching. Middle leaders identified areas for their own development, including embedding data analysis related to student achievement and their desire for consistent guidance from senior leaders in the school. Middle leaders thrived in their leadership position when support for their own professional learning was consistently available. (194)

ABSTRACTAssessment leadership has often been associated with school leaders (SL), comprising principals and vice-principals. This study aimed to examine the under-researched assessment leadership role of Middle Leaders (ML) instead. Data was drawn from a larger, mixed-methods project that involved a self-report questionnaire administered to principals, MLs and teachers across twelve schools as well as observations and one-to-one interviews with one ML each from seven schools. The study found that Assessment for Learning (AfL) has gained some traction among the MLs because of the assessment practices they value, they rate more highly those more associated with AfL, particularly Student Involvement and Engagement; compared with Grading / Reporting which is more directly related to summative assessments. In particular, the study found that MLs used three dominant approaches in their assessment leadership – Technical, Tactical and Ethical. Technical leadership was seen in their focus on overseeing the technical aspects of assessment, particularly in aligning assessment to curriculum goals and expecting teachers to deliver on grading and reporting, for accountability purposes. In response to various tensions encountered in their work, the MLs also exercised tactical and ethical leadership. These findings highlight how MLs’ perceptions and actions are influenced by and mediate policy implementation in schools.

The importance of middle leaders in bringing about improvement in schools is well recognized in the UK, as in many other countries, with the ever-present demand for raising standards and achievement. This article outlines some initial findings and discussion points emerging from the first stage of a project exploring how middle leaders in secondary schools in the United Kingdom perceive their leadership development needs, having recently completed a major middle leadership programme. An online questionnaire and semi-structured interviews were used to uncover the perspectives of middle leaders about aspects of their role in which they feel confident, their immediate development needs and what they perceive would help them to meet these needs. Most respondents felt confident in their role but, somewhat paradoxically, expressed a need for further development in their areas of greatest confidence, which may well reflect the increasing complexity of the role of the middle leaders in schools.