School principals as mediating agents in education reforms

ABSTRACT

School principals may be seen as mediating agents, standing at the school doorstep, between the extra-school and intra-school worlds. The principals’ mediating role becomes more crucial during a time of education reform, which involves external demands on the one hand, and teachers’ resistance to these demands on the other. This study explores how principals mediate between the demands of a national reform policy and teachers’ attitudes and needs. In this qualitative study, 59 school principals were interviewed. Findings from the data analysis indicated that principals used two complementary mediation strategies: (1) mobilising the teachers towards the reform and (2) mobilising the reform towards the teachers. The mediating strategies used by principals are discussed, suggesting practical implications and further research avenues.

KEYWORDS:

• School principals
• education reforms
• mediating agent

Notes on contributors

Dr. Haim Shaked is a lecturer at the graduate program of the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy, School of Education, Bar-Ilan University, as well as at several colleges of education in Israel. Earlier, he was a school principal for 17 years. His research areas include systems thinking in school leadership, education reform, instructional leadership and educational policy. His book Holistic School Leadership: Systems Thinking for Educational Leaders (co-author: Prof. Chen Schechter) is about to be published this year by Springer.

Chen Schechter, Ph.D. Associate Professor, Department of Educational Leadership and Policy, School of Education, Bar-Ilan University, Israel. His research areas include education reform, organizational learning, educational leadership, system thinking, and qualitative research methods. His book Holistic School Leadership: Systems Thinking for Educational Leaders (co-author: Dr. Haim Shaked) is about to be published this year by Springer.