This paper uses data from a mixed-methods research project which explored the views and experiences of students in Northern Ireland and Wales on the assessment and reform of GCSEs. The research found that while students were generally supportive of the substance of the reforms in each region, they raised concerns about the rapid pace of reform,…

Given the prominence of both instructional leadership and teacher leadership in the realms of school reform and policy, not surprisingly, both have also been the focus of extensive empirical research. But there have been limits to this research. It is, for example, unclear which of the many key elements of instructional leadership are more, or…

Leaders must be agile decision makers, engage in critical self-reflection, integrate reflection with action, and collaborate with those who are diverse in considerable ways to be successful in a multifaceted global environment. This quantitative study examines relationships between agile leadership factors and curriculum reform in higher education…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore the motives, opportunities, and threats associated with the adoption of market-driven externally developed reforms (EDRs) as well as how these motivator factors, combined with background variables, account for school principals' satisfaction with EDR adoption. Design/methodology/approach: Principals…

Indiana recently gained status as a national leader in educational reform. At the same time, a record number of superintendents retired, with 62 retirements in 2012 and 2013, representing 21% of superintendents in the state. The purpose of this study was to explore factors influencing superintendents' decisions to retire during this time.…

One common way of conceptualising recent changes in university governance is by stating that the universities are being pushed towards a market-like setting where the uniqueness of each university's strategy and capacity for introducing organizational change is seen as necessary to improve the functioning of the university. We argue that the…

This study examined and compared school autonomy in China and the United States. Based on the international PISA 2012 school data, the authors examined three aspects of school autonomy. We found that in comparison with the United States, (1) principals from China were less likely to have responsibility over eleven school decisions (hiring…

Theory and empirical work suggest that teachers' social capital influences school improvement efforts. Social ties are prerequisite for social capital, yet little causal evidence exists on how malleable factors, such as instructional management approaches, affect teachers' ties. In this cluster-randomized trial, we apply a decision-making…

Reform is a reality for many school districts and schools. When faced with reform movements, districts and schools must address both the immediate implementation and the sustainability of the reform. This dissertation study is informed by two theories centered on reform implementation and sustainability: Organizational Learning Theory by…

The authors of the article outline a historical review of Catholic education and student enrollment in North America and a recent perspective of Catholic school principals' decision-making and problem-solving preferences. The purpose of this article is to provide the reader with an understanding of events which impacted the evolution of Catholic…

During educational change, managers can contribute positively to the professional's sense of coping ability. The question remains as to whether the managers of lecturers can also influence the perception of lecturers on newly formulated organizational aims. Recently, the changes in many European institutes of higher professional education (HPE)…

This qualitative case study used General Systems Theory and social network analysis to explore the relationships between the members of a district central office and principals of elementary schools within an urban school district in the Midwest. Findings revealed sparse relationships between members of the district central office and principals,…

This study explored the relationship between school level and the psychosocial construct of a growth mindset school culture. Data was collected on the What's My School Mindset (WMSM) Survey from a stratified random sample of PK-12 faculty and administrators (n = 347) in 30 schools across a large northwestern state. The overarching research…

Successful school reform is dependent on the quality of decisions made by educational leaders. In such decision making, educational leaders are charged with using sound research findings as the basis for choosing school reform initiatives. As part of the debate regarding the usability of various evaluative research designs in providing information…

The paper is based on the results of a study of secondary school principal decision-making styles conducted in eight regions of the Russian Federation (one per federal district) in 2014 using the methodological approach developed by Alan J. Rowe. The study aimed to assess the reformist potential of Russian school principals. We believe that this…