Charles L. Slater

Challenges of a Successful First-Year Principal in Mexico.

Purpose – This case study is an attempt to understand the experience of a school principal, Arnulfo. The research question is: what are the challenges of one first‐year school director in Baja California, Mexico?Design/methodology/approach – Arnulfo participated in an interview and five focus groups at the Ensenada State Normal School. He kept a journal of incidents completed during April‐July 2006. A team of three researchers helped to write the case study. One researcher collected the data and wrote a summary in Spanish. A second researcher organized the material and translated it into English. The third researcher criticized and reviewed the write‐up.Findings – Arnulfo faced a variety of challenges, but the burden of paperwork was the most serious. It can be understood on a number of levels. Bolman and Deals four frames to understand organizations and leadership help to explain the complexity in terms of structural, human resource, symbolic, and political. The political frame was Arnulfos greatest st...

A Cross-Cultural Investigation of Leadership in the United States and Mexico.

This study reports the administration of Kouzes and Posners (1995) Leadership Practices Inventory (LPI) to 28 graduate students in educational administration at a university in the Southwest of the USA and 28 graduate students at a university in Mexico. A rationale for the importance of cross-cultural study in educational administration is presented. The results of this study indicate that the US educators scored significantly higher than Mexican educators on all five of Kouzes and Posners leadership practices. The rank order of the practices was quite different. The leadership practices appear to be quite firmly embedded in US culture but not Mexican culture. Questions are raised about whether the theory has universal application and how effective leadership may be defined differently across cultures.

Understanding Principal Leadership: An International Perspective and a Narrative Approach

This article reviews recent literature in educational administration that supports the argument that leadership matters. School principals exert influence on teachers, who in turn affect student achievement. There is a need for an international approach both to replicate large studies and to use a narrative approach to study leaders in their historical and school context. Concepts and methods from adult development can provide an understanding of the role of the principal. Future research in educational administration should address the lives of principals expressed in their own voices.

Principal leadership and mathematics achievement: an international comparative study

This study investigated the differences and similarities in the impact of school leadership on student mathematics achievement in different global regions using TIMSS international data. Three-level unconditional and conditional hierarchical models were fitted to the data in each country. The findings showed that the variables of teacher professional development and interactions with other teachers at the student level had inconsistent influence on student achievement outcomes across countries. In all but one of the countries in the sample, the proportion of economically disadvantaged students was related to student achievement. In England there were significant differences on several key variables.

Beginning Elementary Principals around the World.

The paper explores the different circumstances of newly appointed principals around the world. It is a literature review that examines articles from both English-speaking and non-English-speaking countries. Being a novice principal is stressful and even traumatic. Principals appear to feel unprepared for their role. The problem most common to all countries is interpersonal conflict. Principals have to serve as a sort of buffer to reduce shock due to contact. They gain tacit knowledge and become more confident as they learn on the job, but they do not necessarily become instructional leaders.1

Principal Perceptions and Student Achievement in Reading in Korea, Mexico, and the United States: Educational Leadership, School Autonomy, and Use of Test Results.

This study compared PISA 2009 student reading literacy scores with principal perceptions across three countries with varying levels of student performance: Korea, Mexico, and the United States. Seventy-five countries participated in PISA 2009, which measured 15-year-old children’s reading achievement and principal perceptions. The study explored the relationship of principals’ perceived levels of leadership, school autonomy, and use of test results with student attainment of reading literacy. School variables were treated as covariates when each effect of principal leadership was interpreted. All variables were included in a multilevel model and analyzed simultaneously. The means and standard deviations of outcome variables and the explanatory and control variables for the model of the study were calculated by taking into account sampling weights, as well as plausible values for reading literacy scores. SAS PROC MIXED was used to fit hierarchical linear models for the study. There was a positive relationship between student achievement in reading literacy and testing to improve instruction in all three countries—Korea, Mexico, and the United States—and there was a negative relationship between student achievement and lack of resources. Social, economic, and cultural status showed a positive relationship with reading literacy. To be specific, testing to improve instruction can be beneficial in all three countries when it is defined as using tests to group students for instructional purposes and to identify aspects of instruction or the curriculum that could be improved. Results also indicate that students are likely to achieve better if principals perceive that there are no shortages of personnel and equipment.

Culturally Competent School Leaders: The Individual and the System

Abstract Cultural competence is the knowledge, behaviors, and dispositions necessary to effectively interact with other cultural groups. Two case studies are presented which illustrate the cultural competence of administrators in urban settings. Theories are reviewed to investigate the themes of cultural competence that emerged from the professional challenges faced by the two school leaders. The article suggests individual and system supports for administrators to effectively lead and advocate for an array of diverse students and their families

Ideal Images of Educational Leadership in Mexico City and South Texas

Abstract This study used a qualitative approach to analyze ideal images of educational leadership among administrators in Mexico City and South Texas. Looking at educational leadership from a cross-cultural perspective revealed issues that are hidden when working in just one culture. Though both groups indicated that participation, clear communication, planned change, and attention to values were components of their best leadership experiences, there were subtle differences in how they discussed each dimension.

Understanding Social Justice Leadership: An International Exploration of the Perspectives of Two School Leaders in Costa Rica and England.

This article is an examination of two social justice leaders, one in Costa Rica and one in England. It is part of the International Study of Leadership Development Network, a multi-nation study of social justice and educational leadership. A brief discussion of the philosophy of social justice and an examination of the macro and micro context in each of the countries set the stage to understand the social perspective of the two school leaders. Interviews were conducted to construct a narrative to illuminate their views of social justice. A comparison of the leaders found more similarities than differences even though the settings in each country were quite different. They both felt that it was important to challenge inequities in society and demand that the government provide for all citizens; they emphasized respect for students; and, to some extent, they grounded their beliefs in faith. These narratives can be valuable for both practitioners and researchers to learn from the conceptions of social justice and the challenges of these leaders. Illuminating the agency of a school leader in one national context may stir the possibility of emancipation in another context.

Lessons Learned: The Promise and Possibility of Educational Accountability in the United States

This chapter reviews educational reform efforts in the United States beginning with the National Commission on Excellence in Education in 1981 and traces how student assessment has come to be associated with large-scale, centralized, high-impact testing. This approach has been instrumental in aligning curriculum to standards and disaggregating results to focus attention on student groups. However, unintended consequences have narrowed the curriculum, decreased time for instruction, and pushed students out of school.