Browsing by Author "Ihalainen, Olivia"

Objectives. Although leadership practices that focus on collaborating and sharing have gained popularity in the Finnish school organizations, the principal is often seen as the school’s leader with the power and opportunity to manage and develop the school. The aim of this study was to uncover school leaders’ views on school leadership. The study focused on examining school leaders’ views of the role of a school principal and pedagogical leadership. Previous research has shown that the knowledge and status of pedagogical leadership is unclear in school organizations. Methods. The research material of this study was collected as part of the EduLeaders research project of the Leadership in Educational Contexts research group. EduLeaders develops and evaluates basic studies in education and teaching management and develops advanced studies. The research material for this study consisted of four group interviews involving a total of 14 leaders in education and teaching. The study is a qualitative case study that is analysed by a theory-driven content analysis. The subcategories were formed based on the data, while the categories were formed together with the data and theoretical background. Results and conclusions. The study revealed that managers define the role of the principal in a context-dependent manner and through the principal’s perceptions and meanings given to the role. The study found three factors that defined the role of the principal: the principal’s tasks, expectations from outside, and the principal’s perceptions of themselves and their own competence. These three factors together with the principal’s interpretation and experience, the operating environment, and the situation, form the role of the principal. Pedagogical leadership, on the other hand, was understood as a holistic part of school operations, but was described as being implemented in different ways in different schools. The study formed an understanding of pedagogical leadership, according to which pedagogical leadership is centered on the student, pedagogical leadership is built on the common values of the school organization, and pedagogical leadership manifests itself in everyday life as sharing leadership, skills and responsibilities that are supported and enabled by the principal’s work tasks.