Schoolteachers' constructions of desirable educational leadership: a career-stage perspective

Abstract

The current study aimed at exploring desirable constructions of educational leadership among Israeli schoolteachers at three different career stages, as well as tracing the origins of these constructions. Based on semi-structured interviews with 10 teachers at early-career stage, 10 at mid-career stage and 10 at late-career stage, the study first found major commonalities among the interviewees with regard to emotional, moral, participative and structural constructions of educational leadership. But, ‘a second reading’ of the data unearthed subtle distinctions among the interviewees, deriving from the teacher's position in the career cycle. The early-career teachers hold an egocentric view of educational leadership while their late-career counterparts present a more multi-focal outlook. Empirical and practical implications are suggested.

Keywords:

• career stages
• educational leadership
• principal teacher relations
• leadership perceptions