This article considers distributed leadership in the context of the extensive literature on post-bureaucratic organisations. It suggests that both distributed leadership and bureaucracy are ideal types. It outlines the development of bureaucracy as an organisational form, challenges the often-stereotypical criticisms that have damned the theory…

This article explores how leadership and gender are constructed by women principals of schools located in communities of multiple deprivation in two provinces of South Africa. Analysis of interview data uncovers a hierarchy of goals related to establishing a school, recruiting and retaining learners, ensuring they are ready to learn, developing…

This paper draws on qualitative data from a mixed-method study that analysed women's access to the principal role and their leadership experiences. The paper draws on a subset of interviews with 54 female head teachers in the Gauteng and North West provinces of South Africa. Since a mothering style of leadership was self-reported by over half of…

Responding to Thrupp's [2003. "The School Leadership Literature in Managerialist Times: Exploring the Problem of Textual Apologism." "School Leadership & Management: Formerly School Organisation" 23 (2): 169] call for writers on school leadership to offer "analyses which provide more critical messages about social…

In about a decade the theory of distributed leadership has moved from a tool to better understand the ecology of leadership to a widely prescribed practice. This article considers how to account for its spread and dominance and what purpose it serves. The concept offers an enticing suggestion of including more in leadership, and even sometimes…

South Africa presents a distinctive and varied context in which to explore the experience of women principals. The article draws on a larger data set to explore the interplay of gender and school size in seven schools with 200 students or fewer. From this study, we conclude that gender remains a potent influence on the career and experience of…

There has been a strong increase in interest in leadership development in recent years, not least in the learning and skills sector. However, little research exists on the relationship between leadership development and actual leadership behaviours in the sector. This study is an attempt to help fill this gap by looking at leadership, leadership…