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60+ Amazing Research Topics for Educational Leadership

A dissertation or thesis is a document presented for one to be awarded a degree or professional qualification. It involves research on a given topic.

Educational leadership, on the other hand, involves identifying and nurturing talents in a school set up to meet the objectives of education.

Now let’s merge the two and see the meaning.

A dissertation topic in educational leadership is, therefore, a thesis on how pupils, teachers, and parents will work towards achieving a common goal.

Leadership dissertation topics are common nowadays attributed to the growing number of institutions, and schools were also incorporated. Education dissertation topics are hence being researched daily due to the emerging challenges in running schools.

Dissertation topics in higher education leadership are vast because of the various tertiary institutions available; vocational training institutions, colleges, and universities. Enough of the explanations, and now let’s delve into the course meal. So sit tight and belt up, this is going to be one fantastic flight you’ve ever had.

60 Research Paper Topics in Educational Leadership

• The Effects of Religion on Educational Leadership
• Analyzing Long Term and Short Term Educational Leadership Goals
• How to pass teacher’s excellence to students easily
• The role of Leadership Summits on Educational Leadership
• The Impact of leadership Training Institutions on Educational Leadership
• How To Improve Education Leadership in the Society Today
• How effective is the Youth than the Elderly in Educational Leadership?
• Evaluating Different structures of Organizational Leadership
• How Education Leadership Varies with Different Continental Settings
• The Effects of Teacher-Parent-Student Ratio in Educational Leadership
• How Public and Private Institutions Vary in Education Leadership
• Policies in Educational Leadership and Their Impact
• Analyzing Higher Education Leadership Characteristics
• Leadership in Higher Education Frames Analysis
• The Impact of Higher Education Programs Leadership Development
• The Higher education Leadership Indigenous Perspective
• Distance Education Programs and Transformational Leadership Characteristics in Higher Education
• How to Plan For an American Higher Education Leadership Crisis
• Preparing of Educational Leadership Personnel
• Evaluating Better Schools With a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership
• How is Educational Leadership in the 21st Century
• Understanding What a Masters in Educational Leadership Entails
• How Educational Leadership is Financed
• Evaluating Differences in Educational Leadership Between Profit and Non-Profit Organizations
• The Need for Effective Leadership in Education
• Analyzing Globalization in Educational Leadership
• Understanding the Different Education Leadership Styles
• When To Start Teaching Education Leadership and The Impact
• Impact of Online Courses on Educational Leadership Graduates
• How Innovative Strategies Impact Educational Leadership
• Evaluating Trends in Educational Leadership
• How Educational Leadership Contributes to Discrimination
• Analyzing Technical Terms in Educational Leadership
• What is the Impact of Subordinate Staff on Educational Leadership
• How Can we Merge Student Leadership with the Administration
• The Need to Simplify Educational Leadership
• Innovative Solutions to Educational Leadership Challenges
• Ensuring Sustainable Student-Parent-Teacher Relationship
• Demystifying Myths About Educational Leadership
• How To Initiate a Re-Birth in Educational Leadership

Also, here are additional dissertation topics for custom dissertation writing on educational leadership:

1. Understanding The Role of Women in Educational Leadership

Ladies, first am being a gentleman here. It has been one of the most researched educational leadership topics.

2. How Cultural Organizations Influence School Institutions

A set way of life defines every Society in any part of the world. These cultural aspects also imply educational leadership.

3. The Influence of Educational Leadership on Transformation

This form of organizational leadership dissertation aims to establish the impact of educational leadership in Society. For instance, how has the Society grown or depreciated as a result of the educational leadership?

4. What Role Does Educational Leadership Serve in Society?

The values and morals set by an education institution determine how the Society will be in the future. A valuable educational leadership system will thus pass on responsible, and reliable people to Society.

5. The Role of Education Leadership on the Success of the Society

Success is critical in any undertaking. If not, why engage with it in the first place? This dissertation topic, therefore, seeks to unveil how education leadership can contribute to the success of the Society.

6. The Impact of Educational Leadership in Research and Literature

Educational leadership determines decisions such as the number of resources invested in research. Thus, it will major on how various forms of educational leadership either contribute to or against study and literature.

7. How Social Media Affects Educational Leadership

The digital era has immensely contributed to the organization of various forms of leadership. Social media can either be positively or negatively impacting educational leadership. Therefore, such a dissertation topic will bring this out.

8. How Poor Leadership and Poor Results in Schools Relate

Decisions made by the parents, teacher, or the students themselves will have an impact on their results.

9. The Role of Technology in Educational Leadership

Has it improved or depreciated the value of educational leadership?

10. The Impact of the Community on Educational Leadership

It focuses on how to incorporate the community into the educational leadership and the subsequent results.

11. How Racism Impacts Educational Leadership

This leadership dissertation topic focuses on institutions with mixed races. Does this affect the running of institutions?

12. The Impact of Interdisciplinary Teams in Running of Schools

Are they effective? And if so, to what extent?

13. The Comparison between Top and Lower Performing Schools

How are the two institutions managed? Are the educational leadership systems the same?

14. How to Intertwine Certain Teaching Methods with an Efficient Organization

Can specific strategic teaching methods be incorporated into educational leadership?

15. How Leadership Wrangles Affect Students

Teachers and parents fighting for different positions in the administration can affect student performance.

16. Analyzing Characteristics of Various Teachers Handling a Certain Subject

The traits of various instructors can either have a positive or negative impact on their mode of delivery.

17. How can Students be incorporated into the Educational Leadership

Ways in which students can adequately represent in the school leadership.

18. Government Regulations on Educational Leadership

Do Government regulations promote or inhibit educational leadership?

19. How Can Special Groups Be Represented Effectively

Persons with disabilities also have an equal right in administration.

20. Evaluating the Impact of the Politics of a Country to Educational Leadership

Do politicians have a say in the running of school institutions?

Use Our Topics And Get A+ Grade

These dissertation topics will properly groom you in writing your next thesis. Ask our professional team of writers to get help in writing more leadership dissertation topics.

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Research Topics & Ideas: Education

170+ Research Ideas To Fast-Track Your Project

If you’re just starting out exploring education-related topics for your dissertation, thesis or research project, you’ve come to the right place. In this post, we’ll help kickstart your research topic ideation process by providing a hearty list of research topics and ideas , including examples from actual dissertations and theses..

PS – This is just the start…

We know it’s exciting to run through a list of research topics, but please keep in mind that this list is just a starting point . To develop a suitable education-related research topic, you’ll need to identify a clear and convincing research gap , and a viable plan of action to fill that gap.

If this sounds foreign to you, check out our free research topic webinar that explores how to find and refine a high-quality research topic, from scratch. Alternatively, if you’d like hands-on help, consider our 1-on-1 coaching service .

Overview: Education Research Topics

• How to find a research topic (video)
• List of 50+ education-related research topics/ideas
• List of 120+ level-specific research topics 
• Examples of actual dissertation topics in education
• Tips to fast-track your topic ideation (video)
• Free Webinar : Topic Ideation 101
• Where to get extra help

Education-Related Research Topics & Ideas

Below you’ll find a list of education-related research topics and idea kickstarters. These are fairly broad and flexible to various contexts, so keep in mind that you will need to refine them a little. Nevertheless, they should inspire some ideas for your project.

• The impact of school funding on student achievement
• The effects of social and emotional learning on student well-being
• The effects of parental involvement on student behaviour
• The impact of teacher training on student learning
• The impact of classroom design on student learning
• The impact of poverty on education
• The use of student data to inform instruction
• The role of parental involvement in education
• The effects of mindfulness practices in the classroom
• The use of technology in the classroom
• The role of critical thinking in education
• The use of formative and summative assessments in the classroom
• The use of differentiated instruction in the classroom
• The use of gamification in education
• The effects of teacher burnout on student learning
• The impact of school leadership on student achievement
• The effects of teacher diversity on student outcomes
• The role of teacher collaboration in improving student outcomes
• The implementation of blended and online learning
• The effects of teacher accountability on student achievement
• The effects of standardized testing on student learning
• The effects of classroom management on student behaviour
• The effects of school culture on student achievement
• The use of student-centred learning in the classroom
• The impact of teacher-student relationships on student outcomes
• The achievement gap in minority and low-income students
• The use of culturally responsive teaching in the classroom
• The impact of teacher professional development on student learning
• The use of project-based learning in the classroom
• The effects of teacher expectations on student achievement
• The use of adaptive learning technology in the classroom
• The impact of teacher turnover on student learning
• The effects of teacher recruitment and retention on student learning
• The impact of early childhood education on later academic success
• The impact of parental involvement on student engagement
• The use of positive reinforcement in education
• The impact of school climate on student engagement
• The role of STEM education in preparing students for the workforce
• The effects of school choice on student achievement
• The use of technology in the form of online tutoring

Level-Specific Research Topics

Looking for research topics for a specific level of education? We’ve got you covered. Below you can find research topic ideas for primary, secondary and tertiary-level education contexts. Click the relevant level to view the respective list.

Research Topics: Pick An Education Level

Primary education.

• Investigating the effects of peer tutoring on academic achievement in primary school
• Exploring the benefits of mindfulness practices in primary school classrooms
• Examining the effects of different teaching strategies on primary school students’ problem-solving skills
• The use of storytelling as a teaching strategy in primary school literacy instruction
• The role of cultural diversity in promoting tolerance and understanding in primary schools
• The impact of character education programs on moral development in primary school students
• Investigating the use of technology in enhancing primary school mathematics education
• The impact of inclusive curriculum on promoting equity and diversity in primary schools
• The impact of outdoor education programs on environmental awareness in primary school students
• The influence of school climate on student motivation and engagement in primary schools
• Investigating the effects of early literacy interventions on reading comprehension in primary school students
• The impact of parental involvement in school decision-making processes on student achievement in primary schools
• Exploring the benefits of inclusive education for students with special needs in primary schools
• Investigating the effects of teacher-student feedback on academic motivation in primary schools
• The role of technology in developing digital literacy skills in primary school students
• Effective strategies for fostering a growth mindset in primary school students
• Investigating the role of parental support in reducing academic stress in primary school children
• The role of arts education in fostering creativity and self-expression in primary school students
• Examining the effects of early childhood education programs on primary school readiness
• Examining the effects of homework on primary school students’ academic performance
• The role of formative assessment in improving learning outcomes in primary school classrooms
• The impact of teacher-student relationships on academic outcomes in primary school
• Investigating the effects of classroom environment on student behavior and learning outcomes in primary schools
• Investigating the role of creativity and imagination in primary school curriculum
• The impact of nutrition and healthy eating programs on academic performance in primary schools
• The impact of social-emotional learning programs on primary school students’ well-being and academic performance
• The role of parental involvement in academic achievement of primary school children
• Examining the effects of classroom management strategies on student behavior in primary school
• The role of school leadership in creating a positive school climate Exploring the benefits of bilingual education in primary schools
• The effectiveness of project-based learning in developing critical thinking skills in primary school students
• The role of inquiry-based learning in fostering curiosity and critical thinking in primary school students
• The effects of class size on student engagement and achievement in primary schools
• Investigating the effects of recess and physical activity breaks on attention and learning in primary school
• Exploring the benefits of outdoor play in developing gross motor skills in primary school children
• The effects of educational field trips on knowledge retention in primary school students
• Examining the effects of inclusive classroom practices on students’ attitudes towards diversity in primary schools
• The impact of parental involvement in homework on primary school students’ academic achievement
• Investigating the effectiveness of different assessment methods in primary school classrooms
• The influence of physical activity and exercise on cognitive development in primary school children
• Exploring the benefits of cooperative learning in promoting social skills in primary school students

Secondary Education

• Investigating the effects of school discipline policies on student behavior and academic success in secondary education
• The role of social media in enhancing communication and collaboration among secondary school students
• The impact of school leadership on teacher effectiveness and student outcomes in secondary schools
• Investigating the effects of technology integration on teaching and learning in secondary education
• Exploring the benefits of interdisciplinary instruction in promoting critical thinking skills in secondary schools
• The impact of arts education on creativity and self-expression in secondary school students
• The effectiveness of flipped classrooms in promoting student learning in secondary education
• The role of career guidance programs in preparing secondary school students for future employment
• Investigating the effects of student-centered learning approaches on student autonomy and academic success in secondary schools
• The impact of socio-economic factors on educational attainment in secondary education
• Investigating the impact of project-based learning on student engagement and academic achievement in secondary schools
• Investigating the effects of multicultural education on cultural understanding and tolerance in secondary schools
• The influence of standardized testing on teaching practices and student learning in secondary education
• Investigating the effects of classroom management strategies on student behavior and academic engagement in secondary education
• The influence of teacher professional development on instructional practices and student outcomes in secondary schools
• The role of extracurricular activities in promoting holistic development and well-roundedness in secondary school students
• Investigating the effects of blended learning models on student engagement and achievement in secondary education
• The role of physical education in promoting physical health and well-being among secondary school students
• Investigating the effects of gender on academic achievement and career aspirations in secondary education
• Exploring the benefits of multicultural literature in promoting cultural awareness and empathy among secondary school students
• The impact of school counseling services on student mental health and well-being in secondary schools
• Exploring the benefits of vocational education and training in preparing secondary school students for the workforce
• The role of digital literacy in preparing secondary school students for the digital age
• The influence of parental involvement on academic success and well-being of secondary school students
• The impact of social-emotional learning programs on secondary school students’ well-being and academic success
• The role of character education in fostering ethical and responsible behavior in secondary school students
• Examining the effects of digital citizenship education on responsible and ethical technology use among secondary school students
• The impact of parental involvement in school decision-making processes on student outcomes in secondary schools
• The role of educational technology in promoting personalized learning experiences in secondary schools
• The impact of inclusive education on the social and academic outcomes of students with disabilities in secondary schools
• The influence of parental support on academic motivation and achievement in secondary education
• The role of school climate in promoting positive behavior and well-being among secondary school students
• Examining the effects of peer mentoring programs on academic achievement and social-emotional development in secondary schools
• Examining the effects of teacher-student relationships on student motivation and achievement in secondary schools
• Exploring the benefits of service-learning programs in promoting civic engagement among secondary school students
• The impact of educational policies on educational equity and access in secondary education
• Examining the effects of homework on academic achievement and student well-being in secondary education
• Investigating the effects of different assessment methods on student performance in secondary schools
• Examining the effects of single-sex education on academic performance and gender stereotypes in secondary schools
• The role of mentoring programs in supporting the transition from secondary to post-secondary education

Tertiary Education

• The role of student support services in promoting academic success and well-being in higher education
• The impact of internationalization initiatives on students’ intercultural competence and global perspectives in tertiary education
• Investigating the effects of active learning classrooms and learning spaces on student engagement and learning outcomes in tertiary education
• Exploring the benefits of service-learning experiences in fostering civic engagement and social responsibility in higher education
• The influence of learning communities and collaborative learning environments on student academic and social integration in higher education
• Exploring the benefits of undergraduate research experiences in fostering critical thinking and scientific inquiry skills
• Investigating the effects of academic advising and mentoring on student retention and degree completion in higher education
• The role of student engagement and involvement in co-curricular activities on holistic student development in higher education
• The impact of multicultural education on fostering cultural competence and diversity appreciation in higher education
• The role of internships and work-integrated learning experiences in enhancing students’ employability and career outcomes
• Examining the effects of assessment and feedback practices on student learning and academic achievement in tertiary education
• The influence of faculty professional development on instructional practices and student outcomes in tertiary education
• The influence of faculty-student relationships on student success and well-being in tertiary education
• The impact of college transition programs on students’ academic and social adjustment to higher education
• The impact of online learning platforms on student learning outcomes in higher education
• The impact of financial aid and scholarships on access and persistence in higher education
• The influence of student leadership and involvement in extracurricular activities on personal development and campus engagement
• Exploring the benefits of competency-based education in developing job-specific skills in tertiary students
• Examining the effects of flipped classroom models on student learning and retention in higher education
• Exploring the benefits of online collaboration and virtual team projects in developing teamwork skills in tertiary students
• Investigating the effects of diversity and inclusion initiatives on campus climate and student experiences in tertiary education
• The influence of study abroad programs on intercultural competence and global perspectives of college students
• Investigating the effects of peer mentoring and tutoring programs on student retention and academic performance in tertiary education
• Investigating the effectiveness of active learning strategies in promoting student engagement and achievement in tertiary education
• Investigating the effects of blended learning models and hybrid courses on student learning and satisfaction in higher education
• The role of digital literacy and information literacy skills in supporting student success in the digital age
• Investigating the effects of experiential learning opportunities on career readiness and employability of college students
• The impact of e-portfolios on student reflection, self-assessment, and showcasing of learning in higher education
• The role of technology in enhancing collaborative learning experiences in tertiary classrooms
• The impact of research opportunities on undergraduate student engagement and pursuit of advanced degrees
• Examining the effects of competency-based assessment on measuring student learning and achievement in tertiary education
• Examining the effects of interdisciplinary programs and courses on critical thinking and problem-solving skills in college students
• The role of inclusive education and accessibility in promoting equitable learning experiences for diverse student populations
• The role of career counseling and guidance in supporting students’ career decision-making in tertiary education
• The influence of faculty diversity and representation on student success and inclusive learning environments in higher education

Education-Related Dissertations & Theses

While the ideas we’ve presented above are a decent starting point for finding a research topic in education, they are fairly generic and non-specific. So, it helps to look at actual dissertations and theses in the education space to see how this all comes together in practice.

Below, we’ve included a selection of education-related research projects to help refine your thinking. These are actual dissertations and theses, written as part of Master’s and PhD-level programs, so they can provide some useful insight as to what a research topic looks like in practice.

• From Rural to Urban: Education Conditions of Migrant Children in China (Wang, 2019)
• Energy Renovation While Learning English: A Guidebook for Elementary ESL Teachers (Yang, 2019)
• A Reanalyses of Intercorrelational Matrices of Visual and Verbal Learners’ Abilities, Cognitive Styles, and Learning Preferences (Fox, 2020)
• A study of the elementary math program utilized by a mid-Missouri school district (Barabas, 2020)
• Instructor formative assessment practices in virtual learning environments : a posthumanist sociomaterial perspective (Burcks, 2019)
• Higher education students services: a qualitative study of two mid-size universities’ direct exchange programs (Kinde, 2020)
• Exploring editorial leadership : a qualitative study of scholastic journalism advisers teaching leadership in Missouri secondary schools (Lewis, 2020)
• Selling the virtual university: a multimodal discourse analysis of marketing for online learning (Ludwig, 2020)
• Advocacy and accountability in school counselling: assessing the use of data as related to professional self-efficacy (Matthews, 2020)
• The use of an application screening assessment as a predictor of teaching retention at a midwestern, K-12, public school district (Scarbrough, 2020)
• Core values driving sustained elite performance cultures (Beiner, 2020)
• Educative features of upper elementary Eureka math curriculum (Dwiggins, 2020)
• How female principals nurture adult learning opportunities in successful high schools with challenging student demographics (Woodward, 2020)
• The disproportionality of Black Males in Special Education: A Case Study Analysis of Educator Perceptions in a Southeastern Urban High School (McCrae, 2021)

As you can see, these research topics are a lot more focused than the generic topic ideas we presented earlier. So, in order for you to develop a high-quality research topic, you’ll need to get specific and laser-focused on a specific context with specific variables of interest.  In the video below, we explore some other important things you’ll need to consider when crafting your research topic.

Get 1-On-1 Help

If you’re still unsure about how to find a quality research topic within education, check out our Research Topic Kickstarter service, which is the perfect starting point for developing a unique, well-justified research topic.

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64 Comments

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Special education

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Research title related to school of students

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Research title related to students

My field is research measurement and evaluation. Need dissertation topics in the field

Assalam o Alaikum I’m a student Bs educational Resarch and evaluation I’m confused to choose My thesis title please help me in choose the thesis title

Good idea I’m going to teach my colleagues

You can find our list of nursing-related research topic ideas here: https://gradcoach.com/research-topics-nursing/

Write on action research topic, using guidance and counseling to address unwanted teenage pregnancy in school

Thanks a lot

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Thank you for the information.. I would like to request a topic based on school major in social studies

parental involvement and students academic performance

Science education topics?

plz tell me if you got some good topics, im here for finding research topic for masters degree

How about School management and supervision pls.?

Hi i am an Deputy Principal in a primary school. My wish is to srudy foe Master’s degree in Education.Please advice me on which topic can be relevant for me. Thanks.

Every topic proposed above on primary education is a starting point for me. I appreciate immensely the team that has sat down to make a detail of these selected topics just for beginners like us. Be blessed.

Kindly help me with the research questions on the topic” Effects of workplace conflict on the employees’ job performance”. The effects can be applicable in every institution,enterprise or organisation.

Greetings, I am a student majoring in Sociology and minoring in Public Administration. I’m considering any recommended research topic in the field of Sociology.

I’m a student pursuing Mphil in Basic education and I’m considering any recommended research proposal topic in my field of study

Research Defense for students in senior high

Kindly help me with a research topic in educational psychology. Ph.D level. Thank you.

Project-based learning is a teaching/learning type,if well applied in a classroom setting will yield serious positive impact. What can a teacher do to implement this in a disadvantaged zone like “North West Region of Cameroon ( hinterland) where war has brought about prolonged and untold sufferings on the indegins?

I wish to get help on topics of research on educational administration

I wish to get help on topics of research on educational administration PhD level

I am also looking for such type of title

I am a student of undergraduate, doing research on how to use guidance and counseling to address unwanted teenage pregnancy in school

the topics are very good regarding research & education .

Can i request your suggestion topic for my Thesis about Teachers as an OFW. thanx you

Would like to request for suggestions on a topic in Economics of education,PhD level

Would like to request for suggestions on a topic in Economics of education

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Am offering degree in education senior high School Accounting. I want a topic for my project work

l would like to request suggestions on a topic in managing teaching and learning, PhD level (educational leadership and management)

request suggestions on a topic in managing teaching and learning, PhD level (educational leadership and management)

I would to inquire on research topics on Educational psychology, Masters degree

I am PhD student, I am searching my Research topic, It should be innovative,my area of interest is online education,use of technology in education

request suggestion on topic in masters in medical education .

Look at British Library as they keep a copy of all PhDs in the UK Core.ac.uk to access Open University and 6 other university e-archives, pdf downloads mostly available, all free.

May I also ask for a topic based on mathematics education for college teaching, please?

Please I am a masters student of the department of Teacher Education, Faculty of Education Please I am in need of proposed project topics to help with my final year thesis

Am a PhD student in Educational Foundations would like a sociological topic. Thank

please i need a proposed thesis project regardging computer science

Greetings and Regards I am a doctoral student in the field of philosophy of education. I am looking for a new topic for my thesis. Because of my work in the elementary school, I am looking for a topic that is from the field of elementary education and is related to the philosophy of education.

Masters student in the field of curriculum, any ideas of a research topic on low achiever students

In the field of curriculum any ideas of a research topic on deconalization in contextualization of digital teaching and learning through in higher education

Amazing guidelines

I am a graduate with two masters. 1) Master of arts in religious studies and 2) Master in education in foundations of education. I intend to do a Ph.D. on my second master’s, however, I need to bring both masters together through my Ph.D. research. can I do something like, ” The contribution of Philosophy of education for a quality religion education in Kenya”? kindly, assist and be free to suggest a similar topic that will bring together the two masters. thanks in advance

Hi, I am an Early childhood trainer as well as a researcher, I need more support on this topic: The impact of early childhood education on later academic success.

I’m a student in upper level secondary school and I need your support in this research topics: “Impact of incorporating project -based learning in teaching English language skills in secondary schools”.

Although research activities and topics should stem from reflection on one’s practice, I found this site valuable as it effectively addressed many issues we have been experiencing as practitioners.

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Educational Leadership Themes for 2022-2023

Strengthening Family and Community Partnerships

The education profession: changing the narrative, the self-directed learner, confronting poverty in schools, beyond the textbook: content and curriculum, leading through change, centering thinking and discussion skills, social justice in schools.

Nurturing Well-Being in Schools

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ASCD is a community dedicated to educators' professional growth and well-being.

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Journal of Research on Leadership Education

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• Description
• Aims and Scope
• Editorial Board
• Abstracting / Indexing
• Submission Guidelines

The Journal of Research on Leadership Education ( JRLE ), an electronic peer-reviewed journal, seeks to promote and disseminate rigorous scholarship and provide an international venue across multiple disciplines and contexts to inform the field of educational leadership.

We strongly encourage submissions such as:

• Innovative approaches and techniques for leadership preparation pedagogy, programs, and professional development
• Research on leadership preparation pedagogy, programs, and professional development, including evaluation of impacts and outcomes (e.g., student learning)
• Thorough and critical reviews that stimulate lively, thoughtful, topical, practical, and controversial discussion
• Analysis of current policy trends influencing leadership preparation and development (e.g., political and contextual issues that impact leadership education such as state changes in teacher and principal evaluation systems, impact of Common Core Standards on programs, and/or other timely and relevant policy topics)
• Inclusion of student voice through such mechanisms as the newly formed UCEA Graduate Student Council organization
• International and comparative studies of leadership preparation pedagogy, programs, and professional development
• ERIC (Education Resources Information Center)
• Educational Research Abstracts Online (T&F)
• Emerging Sources Citation Index (ESCI)
• OCLC: Electronic Collections Online

The Journal of Research on Leadership Education ( JRLE ) uses an electronic submission and review process. Manuscripts should be submitted to JRLE 's SageTrack website at http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/jrle where authors will be required to set up an online account in the SageTrack system. For questions about submitting manuscripts, please contact the JRLE Managing Editor at [email protected]

Submitted manuscripts should be 25 to 35 pages in length (including references) and conform to the style of the 7th edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA). All copy should be typed, double-spaced, in Times New Roman 12-point font. Notes, references, tables should be included in the MS Word file at the end of the manuscript per APA style. Figures may be submitted as TIFF or JPEG images, although we can accept most other formats.

Manuscripts must include an abstract of no more than 100 words. Abstracts for empirical manuscripts should summarize the study’s purpose, research methods or approach, findings, and key conclusions. For non-empirical manuscripts, abstracts should summarize the key features of the manuscript, for example, the purpose, conceptual argument or model, and conclusions. Additionally, five key words or phrases should be listed after the abstract.

Author Identification

Manuscripts should include a cover sheet with the title, author’s name, address, phone number, fax number, and e-mail address, along with a brief biographical statement (2-3 sentences). If the article was authored by more than one person, co-authors’ names, e-mail addresses, phone numbers, and biographical statements should also be included. To assure anonymize review, the author’s name or identifying information should NOT appear in headers, footers, reference list, or citations throughout the manuscript. Information in the text or reference list that would identify the author should be replaced with the word “Author” in lieu of the author’s name or identifying information.

Originality of Manuscript

Manuscripts submitted for consideration must be the original work of the submitting author(s), must not be previously published in any form – print or on-line, and must not be under consideration for publication elsewhere.

Submitting authors should ensure that the primary focus of the paper is within the aims and scope of JRLE and compose the paper with the inclusion of cited works from previous issues of JRLE. This will help to ensure that the topic is in alignment with the broader education leadership literature and of interest to the JRLE readership.

Pedagogy and Practice Submissions

In 2015, co-editors Gordon Gates and Sharon Kruse introduced the Pedagogy and Practice feature to the  Journal of Research on Leadership Education  ( JRLE ). Its introduction included a description of its intended design and focus:

Pedagogy and practice is designed as a venue for submissions that provide original and authentic links between pedagogy and practice that are likely to be of interest to readers who teach in leadership preparation programs. We invite authors to submit manuscripts that address (a) how a teaching/learning activity might be structured within the classroom and/or (b) documentation of utility including dis- cussion of student learning outcomes that were achieved by participation in a particular activity. (p. 226)

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Gordon, G., & Kruse, S. (2015). Pedagogy and Practice. Journal of Research on Leadership Education,  10 (3), 226. doi: 10.1177/1942775115623392.

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Reframing Educational Leadership Research in the Twenty-First Century

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• First Online: 16 June 2021

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• David NG 7  

Part of the book series: Accountability and Educational Improvement ((ACED))

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For the last three decades, reviews on instructional leadership have pointed to studies that predominantly adopted conventional social science research methodologies, specifically analytical tools, such as descriptive, causal factor, correlational and advanced modelling. These methods have constraints and limitations, which include that variable-based linear models measures are treated as ‘rigorously real’ measures of social reality, that individuals use rational deduction (ignoring the value premise of decision-making), and that individuals are treated as independent and individualized. This paper proposes and illustrates how research approaches of complexity science can be applied within the social system to address complex instructional leadership questions. Consequently, reframing instructional leadership research through the lens of complexity science provides the most viable approach to understand the adaptive processes and the dynamic system of schools.

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Instructional Leadership

7.1 introduction.

Educational leadership research has come of age. From its fledgling start in 1960s under the overarching research agenda of educational administration for school improvement, the focus shifted to leadership research from the early 1990s (Boyan, 1981 ; Day et al., 2010 ; Griffiths, 1959 , 1979 ; Gronn, 2002 ; MacBeath & Cheng, 2008 ; Mulford & Silins, 2003 ; Southworth, 2002 ; Witziers, Bosker, & Kruger, 2003 ). Since then, educational leadership as a respected field began to flourish by the early 2000s (Hallinger, 2013 ; Robinson, Lloyd, & Rowe, 2008 ; Walker & Dimmock, 2000 ). From the 1980s up to the present time, the body of knowledge on educational leadership has grown tremendously to produce three distinctive educational leadership theories: Instructional leadership, transformational leadership, and distributed leadership. While it is undisputed that educational leadership research has indeed been productive, there is a sense that a narrowing labyrinth of researchable questions is approaching in particular to the first two educational leadership research theories. The evidence of this is implied in the concerted call to expand and situate educational leadership research in non-Western societies (Dimmock, 2000 ; Dimmock & Walker, 2005 ; Hallinger, 2011 ; Hallinger, Walker, & Bajunid, 2005 ). This call is valid in that there is still limited contribution to substantive theory building from non-Western societies. However, it also implies that Western societies’ focus on educational leadership has reached an optimum stage in publications and knowledge building. A more pertinent reason to rethink educational leadership research could be based on epistemological questions about the social science research paradigm that has been the foundation of educational leadership research. These questions will be expanded as the discussion proceeds on current approaches of educational leadership research.

This chapter has three goals: The first one is to map the data-analytical methods used in educational leadership research over the last thirty years (1980–2016). This investigation covers the research methodologies used in instructional leadership, transformational leadership, and distributed leadership.

Educational leadership studies are conducted in the social context of the school. This context involves complex social interactions between and among leaders, staff, parents, communities, partners, and students. In the last decade, there has been a consensus among scholars that schools have evolved to become more complex. Furthermore, there is a consensus among scholars to view complexity through increases in the number of actors and the interactions between them. The complexity of schools is evident in the rise in accountability and involvement from an expanding number of stakeholders involved, such as politicians, clinical professionals (who diagnose learning disabilities of students), communities, and educational resource providers (training and certifying institutions). The relations between stakeholders are non-linear and discontinuous, so even small changes in variables can have a significant impact on the whole system. Therefore, the second goal is to determine whether methodologies that are adequate for the assessment of complex interaction patterns, influences, interdependencies, and behavioural outcomes that are associated with the social context of the school, have been adopted over the past three decades.

The third goal is to explore potential methodologies in the study of educational leadership. These alternative methodologies are taken from more recent developments of research methodologies used in other fields. These fields, such as health, development of society, among others, have similarities with the study of educational leadership. The common link is the social contexts and the system’s influence involving the spectrum of interactions, change, and emergence. We will examine published empirical research and associated theories that look at influence, interdependencies, change, and emergence. Adopting these alternative methodologies will enable reframing educational leadership so it can move forward. Three questions guide the presentation of this paper:

What are the data sources and analytical methods adopted in educational leadership research?

What is the current landscape of schooling and how does it challenge current educational leadership research methodologies?

What are some possible alternative research methodologies and how can they complement current methodologies in educational leadership research?

This chapter proposes to reframe educational leadership studies in view of new knowledge and understanding of alternative research data and analytical methods. It is not the intent of the paper to suggest that current research methodologies are no longer valid. On the contrary, the corpus knowledge of current social science research methodologies practiced, taught, and learned through the past three decades cannot be dismissed lightly. Instead of proposing to reframe educational leadership studies, the main purpose of this paper is to explore and propose complementary research methodologies that will open up greater opportunities for research investigation. These opportunities are linked to the functions of adopting alternate analytical research tools.

7.2 What Are the Dominant Methodologies Adopted in Educational Leadership Research?

Educational leadership research adopts a spectrum of methods that conform to the characteristics of disciplined inquiry. Cronbach and Suppes ( 1969 ) defined disciplined inquiry as “conducted and reported in such a way that the argument can be painstakingly examined” (p. 15). What this means is that any data collected and interpreted through reasoning and arguments must be capable of withstanding careful scrutiny by another research member in the field.

This section looks at the disciplined inquiry methods adopted and implemented in the last thirty years that have contributed to the current body of knowledge on educational leadership and management. The pragmatic rationale to impose a time frame for the review is that instructional leadership was conceptualized in the 1980s, followed by transformational leadership and in recent years, distributed leadership. The purpose of this review is to identify, if possible, all quantitative and qualitative methods adopted. The next section provides a broad overview of the three educational leadership theories/models. This will anchor the discussion on alternate research methodologies that will reframe and expand the research on these theories/models.

7.2.1 Instructional, Transformational, and Distributed Leadership

Instructional leadership became popular during the early 1980s. There are two general concepts of instructional leadership – one is narrow while the other is broad (Sheppard, 1996 ). The narrow concept defines instructional leadership as actions that are directly related to teaching and learning, such as conducting classroom observations. This was the earlier conceptualization of instructional leadership in the 1980s, and it was normally applied within the context of small, poor urban primary schools (Hallinger, 2003 ; Meyer & Macmillan, 2001 ). The broad concept of instructional leadership includes all leadership activities that indirectly affect student learning, including school culture, and time-tabling procedures by impacting the quality of curriculum and instruction delivered to students. This conceptualization acknowledges that principals, as instructional leaders, have a positive impact on students’ learning, but that this influence is mediated (Goldring & Greenfield, 2002 ; Leithwood & Jantzi, 2000 ; Southworth, 2002 ). A comprehensive model of instructional leadership was developed by Hallinger and Murphy ( 1985 , 1986 ). This dominant model proposes three dimensions of the instructional leadership construct: defining the school’s mission, managing the instructional program, and promoting a positive school-learning climate. Hallinger and Heck ( 1996 ), in their comprehensive review of research on school leadership, concluded that instructional leadership was the most commonly researched. The authors’ focused review found that over 125 empirical studies employed this construct between 1980 and 2000 (Hallinger, 2003 ). In the last decade, instructional leadership has regained prominence and attention in part because of the lack of empirical studies in non-Western societies. This can also be inferred from the notion that leadership in curriculum and instruction still matters and remains the core business of schools.

Transformational leadership was introduced as a theory in the general leadership literature during the 1970s and 1980s (e.g. Bass, 1997 ; Howell & Avolio, 1993 ). Transformational leadership focuses on developing the organisation’s capacity and commitment to innovate (Leithwood & Duke, 1999 ). Correspondingly, transformational leadership is supposed to enable change to occur (Leithwood, Tomlinson, & Genge, 1996 ). Amongst the leadership models, transformational leadership is the one most explicitly linked to the implementation of change. It quickly gained popularity among educational leadership researchers during the 1990s in part because of reports of underperforming schools as a result of top-down policy driven changes in the 1980s. Sustained interest during the 1990s was also fuelled by the perception that the instructional leadership model is a directive model (Hallinger & Heck, 1996 ). In a pointed statement of the extent of instructional leadership research, Hallinger ( 2003 , p. 343) emphatically notes that “The days of the lone instructional leader are over. We no longer believe that one administrator can serve as the instructional leader for the entire school without the substantial participation of other educators.” From the beginning of the 2000s, a series of review studies comparing the effects of transformational leadership and instructional leadership, the ‘over-prescriptivity’ of findings, the limited methodologies adopted, and a lack of international research contributed to the waning interest in transformational leadership (Robinson et al., 2008 , Robinson, 2010 ).

Interest in distributed leadership took off at around 2000. Gronn ( 2002 ), and Spillane, Halverson, and Diamond ( 2004 ) are leading the current debate on distributed leadership as observed by Harris ( 2005 ). Gronn’s concept of distributed leadership is a “purely theoretical exploration” (p. 258) while Spillane’s and his various colleagues’ work is based on empirical studies that are still ongoing. When Gronn and Spillane first proposed their concepts of distributed leadership, what was revolutionary was a shift from focusing on the leadership actions of an individual as a sole agent to analyzing the ‘concertive’ or ‘conjoint’ actions of multiple individuals interacting and leading within a specific social and cultural context (Bennett, Wise, Woods, & Harvey, 2003 ; Gronn, 2002 , 2009 ; Spillane, 2005 ; Woods, 2004 ). In addition, Spillane, Diamond, and Jita ( 2003 ) explicitly relate their concept of distributed leadership to instructional improvement, which, therefore, catalyzes the interest among researchers to explore the constructs in school improvement and effectiveness. From 2000 to 2016, a focused search for empirical studies that employed the constructs of distributed leadership yielded over 97 studies.

7.2.2 Assessment of the Dominant Methodologies in Educational Leadership Research and Courses

The purpose of this review is to identify, if possible, all the quantitative and qualitative methods adopted. This review is based on a combined search for the three educational leadership theories in schools using the following search parameters:

Keywords in database search: “instructional leadership” OR “transformational leadership” OR “distributed leadership”

Limiters: Full Text; Scholarly (Peer-reviewed) Journals; Published Date: 1980–2016

Narrow by Methodology: quantitative study

Narrow by Methodology: qualitative study

Search modes: Find all search terms

Interface: EBSCOhost Research Databases

Database: Academic Search Premier; British Education Index; Education Source; ERIC

The search yielded over 672 empirical studies employing the constructs of instructional leadership, transformational leadership, and distributed leadership. As the purpose of the review is to identify all quantitative and qualitative methods adopted, only that information was extracted. The researchers carefully read the relevant sections of the 672 studies pertaining to methodologies and extracted that information. An overview of the results is given in Tables 7.1 and 7.2 .

The range of quantitative and qualitative research methodologies and analytical tools found in the review was categorized as follows:

Quantitative Analyses:

Univariate Analysis:

The analysis refers to a single variable represented by frequency distribution, mean and standard deviation.

Bivariate Analysis:

This type of analysis examines how two variables are related to each other, represented by ANOVA, Pearson product moment correlations, correlation and regression.

Multivariate Analysis:

These are statistical procedures that are used to reach conclusions about associations between two or more variables. Representations of inferential statistics include regression coefficients, MANOVA, MANCOVA, two-group comparison (t-test), factor analysis, path analysis, hierarchical linear modelling, and others.

Qualitative Analyses:

Content Analysis:

Content analysis is the systematic analysis of the text by adopting rules that can separate the text into units of analysis, such as assumptions, effects, enablers and barriers. The text is obtained through document search, artifacts, interviews, field notes, or observations. The transcribed data are converted into protocols followed by categories. Coding schemes are then applied to determine themes and their relations.

Hermeneutic Analysis:

With this type of analysis, researchers interpret the subjective meaning of a given text within its socio-historic context. Methods adopted extend beyond texts to encompass all forms of communication, verbal and non-verbal. An iterative analyses method between interpretation of text and holistic understanding of the context is adopted in order to develop a fuller understanding of the phenomenon.

Grounded-theory Analysis:

This is an inductive technique of interpreting recorded data about a social phenomenon. Data acquired through participant observation, in-depth interviews, focus groups, narratives of audio/video recordings, and documents are interpreted based on empirical data. A systematic coding technique involving open coding, axial coding, and selective coding is rigorously applied. These coding techniques aim to identify key ideas, categories, and causal relations among categories, finally arriving at a theoretical saturation where additional data and analyses do not yield any marginal change within the core categories.

On the one hand, these results show that a wide range of both quantitative and qualitative methodologies are applied and that the field is open to a lot of diversity in methodologies, but, on the other hand, the results also show that complexity methodology is missing completely.

One of the purposes of this paper is to identify current research methodologies that have been adopted for the past decades. The following review is to ascertain whether current research methodologies adopted are also reinforced and transmitted by the research courses offered by top universities. A search was conducted that specifically looked at graduate research courses taught in educational leadership and management. The following search parameters were used:

Identify the top 20 universities that offer graduate courses in educational leadership and management.

QS ranking of universities is chosen over Times ranking because QS ranking is sorted by subject: Education and searchable by educational leadership.

Representation of Western and Eastern universities in order to provide a representation of universities globally.

The findings are presented in Table 7.3 . This table is remarkably similar to Tables 7.1 and 7.2 but with more details of the topics in educational leadership research methodologies. The previously presented findings of the methodologies used in educational leadership research strongly suggest that the research methodologies currently adopted in educational leadership studies are reinforced by research courses taught at the top universities. Indeed, the transmission and application of research skills is a critical and essential component of graduate programmes. This transmission of knowledge and practice is strengthened by the enshrined supervisor-supervisee relationship where cognitive modelling takes place through discourse, reflection, guidance, and inquiry. The one-to-one supervision has the very powerful effect of instilling expectations, cultivating habits, and shaping practices that contribute to a competent researcher identity. It is noteworthy that the transmission-based form has emanated from and is continued in the paradigm of social science. Table 7.3 presents the research courses that are currently taught at the top 20 universities offering educational leadership research.

7.3 Limitations of the Dominant Methodologies in Educational Leadership Research and Courses

The range of methodologies and analytical tools reviewed above are disciplined inquiry methods in social science. Social sciences are the science of people or collections of people, such as groups, firms, societies, or economies, and their individual or collective behaviours; social sciences can be classified into different disciplines, such as psychology (the science of human behaviours), sociology (the science of social groups), and economics (the science of firms, markets, and economies). This section is not intended to wade into epistemological and ontological debates within the social sciences. It is also not possible to have an in-depth discussion on social science methodologies within the constraints of this paper. To highlight ongoing discussions about limitations of social science research is the focus of this paper.

Educational leadership is not a discipline by itself, but a field of study that involves events, factors, phenomena, organizations, topics, issues, people, and processes related to leadership in educational settings. This field of study adopts social science inquiry methods. The review of research methodologies, as depicted in Tables 7.1 and 7.2 , strongly suggests that educational leadership research subscribed to the functionalist paradigm (Bhattacherjee, 2012 ). The functionalist paradigm suggests that social order or patterns can be understood in terms of their functional components. Therefore, the logical steps will involve breaking down a problem into small components and studying one or more components in detail using objectivist techniques, such as surveys and experimental research. It also encompasses an in-depth investigation of the phenomenon in order to uncover themes, categories, and sub-categories.

Educational leadership studies, using quantitative methods, aim to minimize subjectivity. Hence, the constant advocacy of good sampling techniques and a large sample size in order to represent a population where the sample is reported by mean, standard deviation, and normal distribution, among others. Qualitative methods rest upon the assumption that there is no single reality for events, phenomena, and meaning in the social world. Adopting a disciplined analytical method based on dense contextualized data in order to arrive at an acceptable interpretation of complex social phenomena is advocated. The following section will discuss several common limitations of social science research.

7.3.1 Population, Sampling, and Normal Distributions

Based on the review, quantitative and qualitative methods of social science in educational leadership research can be inferred to subscribe to the goals of identifying and analyzing data that can inform about a population. Researchers aim to collect data that either maximize generalization to the population in the case of quantitative methods or provide explanation and interpretation of a phenomenon that represents a population in the case of qualitative methods. In most cases, definitive conclusions of a population are rarely possible in social sciences because data collection of an entire population is seldom achieved.

Therefore, researchers apply sampling procedures where the mean of the sampling distribution will approximate the mean of the true population distribution, which has come to be known as normal distribution. This concept has set the parameters as to how data has been collected and analyzed over many years. It has become widely accepted that most data ought to be near an average value, with a small number of values that are smaller, and the other extreme where values are larger. To calculate these values, the probability density function (PDF), or density of a continuous random variable, is used. It is a function that describes the relative likelihood for this random variable to take on a given value.

A simple example will help to explain this: If 20 school principals were randomly selected and arranged within a room according to their heights, one would most likely see a normal distribution: with a few principals who are the shortest on the left, the majority in the middle, and a few principals who are the tallest on the right. This has come to be known as the normal curve or probability density function.

Most quantitative research involves the use of statistical methods presuming independence among data points and Gaussian “normal” distributions (Andriani & McKelvey, 2007 ). The Gaussian distribution is characterized by its stable mean and finite variance (Torres-Carrasquillo et al., 2002 ). Suppose that in the example above the shortest principal is 1.6 m. Given the question, “What is the probability of a principal in the line being shorter than 1.5m?”, the answer would be ‘0’. From the total number of principals in the room, there is no probability to find someone who is shorter than 1.6 m. But if the question were, “What is the probability of a principal in the line being 1.7m?”, then the answer could be 0.2 (i.e. 10%, or 2 persons). Hence, this explains the finite variance, which is dependent upon the sample size. Normal distributions assume few values far from the mean and, therefore, the mean is representative of the population. Even largest deviations, which are exceptionally rare, are still only about a factor of two from the mean in either direction and are well-characterized by quoting a simple standard deviation (Clauset, Shalizi, & Newman, 2009 ). This property of the normal curve, in particular the notion that extreme ends of variance are less likely to occur, has significant implications as will be discussed.

Is the normal distribution the standard to determine acceptable findings in educational research? One possible answer is a study done by Micceri ( 1989 ). His investigation involved obtaining secondary data from 46 different test sources and 89 different populations, and that included psychometric and achievement/ability measures. He managed to obtain analyzed data from 440 researchers; he then submitted these secondary data to analysis and found that they were significantly non-normal at the alpha.01 significance level. In fact, his findings showed that tail weights, exponential-level asymmetry, severe digit preferences, multi-modalities, and modes external to the mean/median interval were evident. His conclusion was that the underlying tenets of normality-assuming statistics appear fallacious for the psychometric measures. Micceri ( 1989 , p. 16) added that “one must conclude that the robustness literature is at best indicative.”

In another well-cited article in the Review of Educational Research, Walberg, Strykowski, Rovai, and Hung ( 1984 , p. 87) state that “considerable evidence shows that positive-skew distributions characterize many objects and fundamental processes in biology, crime, economics, demography, geography, industry, information and library sciences, linguistics, psychology, sociology, and the production and utilization of knowledge.” Perhaps the most pointed statement made by Walberg et al., that “commonly reported univariate statistics such as means, standard deviations, and ranges – as well as bivariate and multivariate statistics […] and regression weights – are generally useless in revealing skewness” is worthy to note.

What are the implications and limitations of the normal distribution in the population? There are at least two limitations. First, reliance on normal distribution statistics puts a heavy burden on assumptions and procedures. The procedures of randomness and equilibrium have powerful influences on how theories are built and also determine how research questions are formulated. In other words, findings may be rejected that could otherwise be informative because they do not meet the normal distribution litmus. The explanation of the normal distribution suggests that any events or phenomena at both (extreme) ends of the normal curve are highly unlikely – consequently, we typically reject those findings. Research on real-world phenomena, e.g. social networks, banking networks, and world-wide web networks, has established that events in the tails are more likely to happen than under the assumption of a normal distribution (Mitzenmacher, 2004 ). Many real-world networks (world-wide web, social networks, professional networks, etc.) have what is known as long-tailed distribution instead of normal distribution.

Second, independent variables contributing to a normal distribution assume that the variables are static. The reality is that in education (and educational leadership) the variables are dynamic. This dynamic function comes from past and even future environmental and individual influences. An example is that of being fortunate to have initial advantages, such as enrolling in a university study (past influence), working with eminent researchers (preferential attachment), obtaining well-funded research projects, and having publication opportunities (environmental influence), combine multiplicatively over time and accumulate to produce a highly skewed number of publications. The distribution would not conform to the normal curve for researchers when past influence, preferential attachment, and environmental influences are taken into consideration. At the moment, the large majority of reviewed studies, using inferential statistics of mean and standard deviations, does not account for such dynamic influences upon the variables. Is there an alternative that could complement this limitation?

7.3.2 Linearity in a Predominantly Closed System

The dominant analytical tools adopted in educational leadership research involve relational and associational analyses of the effects of leadership actions and interventions in schools. The focus is on identifying variables, factors, and their associations in providing explanations of successful practices. The central concept of relations is based on the assumption of linearity. Linearity means two things: Proportionality between cause and effect, and superposition (Nicolis, Prigogine, & Nocolis, 1989 ). According to this principle, complex problems can be broken down into simpler problems, which can be solved individually. That is, the effects of interventions can be reconstructed by summing up the effects of the single causes acting on the single variable. This, then, allows establishing causality efficiently.

However, this assumption forces researchers to accept that systems are in equilibrium. The first implication is that the number of possible outcomes in a system is limited (because of the limited number of variables within a closed system). The second implication is that moments of instability, such as through an intervention from the school leader, are brief, whereas the duration of the stability of the final outcome is long. In that case, one can measure effects or establish relations, and accept its data value as a true indication of the cause of intervention. For this to be true, however, the many variables in the school (as a closed system) must be assumed to be independent. Other possibilities to this assumption are to have interdependence, mutual causality, and the occurrence of possible external influences in the larger system (e.g. political or economic change).

The goal of school leadership is to improve student achievement. Student achievement is demonstrable, even though there are considerable differences of opinion about how to define improvement in learning or achievement (Larsen-Freeman, 1997 ). This is because much research assumes that the classroom is a closed system with defined boundaries, variables, and predictable outcomes. This mechanistic linear view neglects students as active constructors of meaning with diverse views, needs, and goals (Doll Jr, 1989 ). It is debatable to draw the association directly that teachers’ pedagogy results in learning. Luo, Hogan, Yeung, Sheng, and Aye ( 2014 ) found that Singapore students attributed their academic success mainly to internal regulations (effort, interest, and study skills), followed by teachers’ help, teachers’ ability, parents’ help, and tuition classes. While the study appears to support linearity and attribute students’ academic success to identified variables, there is still much less certainty about other aspects, such as the interaction effects among the variables. The use of generalized linearity cannot account for the interactions among students – how they motivate each other, how they compete, and how they derive the drive to perform. Researchers studying student achievement tend to seek to reduce and consolidate variables in order to discover order while denying irregularity.

Due to its simplicity, linearity became almost universally adopted as the true assumption along with its corresponding measures in educational leadership research. School improvement, student learning, staff capacity, and efficacy are much more complex than directly assigned proportionality between factors and outcomes, and identifying superposition. Cziko ( 1989 , p. 17) asserted that “complex human behaviour of the type that interests educational researchers is by its nature unpredictable if not indeterminate, a view that raises serious questions about the validity of quantitative, experimental, positivist approach to educational research.” In general, school improvement ought to include a notion of and methodology for describing non-linear cognitive systems or processes and to accept that research questions cannot be simplified to find answers from regression models alone, particularly research questions that involve non-specified outcome variables. For instance, school success, in addition to internal variables and factors, simultaneously includes influence by changes in government policies and conflicting demands of multiple stakeholders (e.g. economic and society-related stakeholders). Relying only on the linearity within a closed system will limit any understanding of such interdependencies and mutual influences. Therefore, a holistic and more complete understanding of social phenomena, such as why some school systems in some countries are more successful than others, requires an appreciation and application of research methods that include the elements of open and closed systems. The alternative to linearity – non-linearity, emergence, and self-organization – as an alternate view of reality shall be discussed in the fourth part of this chapter.

7.3.3 Explanatory, Explorative, and Descriptive Research

One of the research aims in social science is the understanding of subjectively meaningful experiences. The school of thought that stresses the importance of interpretation and observation in understanding the social situation in schools is also known as ‘interpretivism.’ This is an integral part of qualitative research methodologies and analytical tools adopted in educational leadership research. The interrelatedness of different aspects of staff members’ work (teaching, professional development), interactions with students (learning, guidance, etc.), cultural factors, and others, form a very important focus of qualitative research. Qualitative research practice has reflected this in the use of explanatory, explorative, and descriptive methods, which attempt to provide a holistic understanding of research participants’ views and actions in the context of their lives overall.

Ritchie, Lewis, Nicholls, and Ormston ( 2013 ) provide clear explanations for the following research practices: Exploratory research is undertaken to explore an issue or a topic. It is particularly useful in helping to identify a problem, clarify the nature of a problem or define the issues involved. It can be used to develop propositions and hypotheses for further research, to look for new insights or to reach a greater understanding of an issue. For example, one might conduct exploratory research to understand how staff members react to new curriculum plans or ideas for developing holistic achievement, or what teachers mean when they talk about ‘constructivism,’ or to help define what is meant by the term ‘white space.’

A significant number of qualitative studies reviewed in this paper are about description as well as exploration – finding the answers to the Who? What? Where? When? How? and How many? questions. While exploratory research can provide description, the purpose of descriptive research is to answer more clearly defined research questions. Descriptive research aims to provide a perspective for social phenomena or sets of experiences.

Explanatory research addresses the Why questions: Why do staff members value empowerment? Why do some staff members perceive the school climate negatively and others do not? Why do some students have a high self-motivation and others do not? What might explain this? Explanatory, in particular qualitative research assists in answering these types of questions, which allows ruling out rival explanations, guidance to come to valid conclusions, and developing causal explanations.

An obvious limitation of explanatory, explorative, and descriptive educational leadership research is that this is done after an intervention; another limitation constitutes the mere focus on outcomes. If research tapped into this process before interventions were implemented, then two reasonable questions would be:

Will an intended school vision or policy have the desired positive reception among staff members?

How can one predict the kind of reception or perception staff members might have?

The answers would be useful for school leaders in order to initiate intervention measures before serious damage occurs. It would be most useful to be able to extrapolate those answers to the larger system, where policy makers are interested in predicting likely outcomes of the policy prior to its implementation. An example of this kind of research is the development of models known as simulations. Computer simulation is known as the third disciplined scientific methodology. This concept will be discussed in the latter section on alternative methodologies.

A summary of the limitations of current methodologies in educational leadership is concisely captured by Leithwood and Jantzi ( 1999 , p. 471): “Finally, even the most sophisticated quantitative designs used in current leadership effects research treat leadership as exogenous variable influencing students, sometimes directly, but mostly indirectly, through school conditions, moderated by student background characteristics. The goal of such research usually is to validate a specific form of leadership by demonstrating significant effects on the school organization and on students. The logic of such designs assumes that influence flows in one direction – from the leader to the student, however tortuous the path might be. But the present study hints at a far more complex set of interactions between leadership, school conditions, and family educational culture in the production of student outcomes.”

7.4 The Current Landscape of Schooling

7.4.1 complexity of schools: systems and structures.

Murphy ( 2015 ) examined the evolution of education from the industrial era in the USA (1890–1920) to the post-industrial era of the 1980s. He concluded that post-industrial school organizations have fundamentally shifted in roles, relationships, and responsibilities. The shift is seen in the blurring of distinctions between administrators and teachers; general (expanded) roles instead of specialization, where specialization is no longer held in high regard, as compared to the industrial era, with greater flexibility and adaptability. In terms of structures, the traditional hierarchical organizational structures are giving way to structures that are flatter.

This shift in roles, relationships, and responsibilities has (also) contributed to the increasing complexity of schools. The direct and indirect involvement between and among a growing circle of stakeholders within the school and between government, employers, and communities clearly support the view that schooling is no longer seen as a closed system. It is both a closed and open system (Darling-Hammond, 2010 ; Hargreaves & Shirley, 2009 ; Leithwood & Day, 2007 ). Leithwood and Day ( 2007 ) state that “Schools are dynamic organizations, and change in ways that cannot be predicted,” as they reviewed leadership studies from eight different countries. Open systems are “a system in exchange of a matter with its environment” (Von Bertalanffy, 1968 , p. 141). Schools as an open system are therefore seen as part of a much larger network rather than an independent, self-standing entity.

Thus, to understand the processes still existing within the schools, it is critical to study the interrelations between those entities and their connections to the whole system. The interrelationships among stakeholders are non-linear and discontinuous, so even small changes in variables can have a significant impact on the whole system. This notion of small change leading to global change is reflected in the example of the current ‘world-class education system’ movement. From countries as diverse as the United Arab Emirates, Brazil, Hong Kong, Singapore, Vietnam, Australia, and the United States of America, a common theme found in education reform documents is the term “world-class education.” This term has become widely associated with comparative results on international tests, such as Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), and the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), which purports to measure certain aspects of educational quality. Indeed, the term is frequently used by countries that have attained high scores in these international tests as a strong indicator of being world-class. This seemingly small aspect of change (i.e. the comparing of achievements in Mathematics and Science) has impacted developing and developed nations in reforming their education system and in calling their ongoing education reforms as moving towards a ‘world-class education system.’

Thus, interrelationships in an open system require sophisticated analyses of their systemic nature. A reductionist and linear sequential relationship investigation would not be sufficient in order to bring about further change. To remain of value with the current trends, educational leadership researchers, who adopt complexity methodology, would help practitioners shaping the future by creating an environment of valid knowledge.

7.4.2 Shared and Distributed Leadership

The idea of distributed leadership connects well with the trend towards greater decentralization (since the 1980s) and school autonomy through which school leaders are expected to play a greater role in leadership beyond the school borders and requires them to make budgetary decisions, foster professional capacity development, and play a role in the design of school buildings, and many more aspects (Glatter & Kydd, 2003 ; Lee, Hallinger, & Walker, 2012 ; Nguyen, Ng, & Yap, 2017 ; Spillane, Halverson, & Diamond, 2001 ).

A core function of leadership – distributed leadership included – is decision-making. The most popular discussion of decision-making of the twenty-first century emanates from the concept of decentralization. Decentralization includes delegating responsibilities, practice of distributed leadership, and practice of distributed or shared instructional leadership (Lee et al., 2012 ; Nguyen et al., 2017 ; Spillane et al., 2001 ).

Glatter and Kydd ( 2003 ) identified two models of decentralization, which have important implications for school leaders, namely local empowerment and school empowerment. In local empowerment, the transfer of responsibilities takes place from the state to the districts, including schools with reciprocal rights and obligations. Therefore, school leaders are expected to play a greater role in leadership beyond school borders. Within the context of school empowerment or autonomy, decision-making by the school has been a consistent movement since the 1980s. The increase in autonomy required the school leaders to make budgetary changes, promote professional capacity development, rethink the design of school buildings, and consider many more aspects.

How might national and state policy frameworks (including curriculum and assessment, school quality and improvement) successfully engage and interact with key activities and characteristics of the school (including learning focus, structure, culture, and decision-making capacity)? What considerations must be taken when formulating policies of curriculum and implementation of policies within the classroom (class size, teaching approaches, and learning resources)? How does one optimize the capacity and work of school leaders to influence and promote effective learning? How might one be informed of the processes of influence beyond relying on interpretive and explanatory qualitative studies? Indeed, any attempt to design and carry out a comprehensive analysis of the ways in which leaders influence and promote successful outcomes through their decision-making will require specific methods and procedures beyond the traditional research methods (Leithwood & Levin, 2005 ). In particular, distributed leadership research stands to gain the most if relevant research methodologies were adopted that could be informative of the workings/actions of school leadership.

7.5 What Are the Alternatives to Current Social Science Methodologies for Educational Leadership?

As stated earlier, it is important to ensure that any alternative research methodologies proposed must adhere to the characteristic of disciplined inquiry. To further expand on this characteristic, Cronbach and Suppes stated that “Disciplined inquiry does not necessarily follow well-established, formal procedures. Some of the most excellent inquiry is free-ranging and speculative […] trying what might seem to be a bizarre combination of ideas and procedures…” (Cronbach & Suppes, 1969 , p. 16).

Drawing from the statement by Cronbach and Suppes, there are two other important points about disciplined inquiry that must be addressed here. Disciplined inquiry is not solely focussed on establishing facts. The methods of observation and inquiry are critical in defining which selection of facts of a phenomenon are found. Establishing facts can be done through a selection of observations and/or data collection methods. This point is not meant to raise the philosophical argument of positivism and post-positivism although it may be implied. Rather, from a pragmatic perspective, and to adhere to the characteristic of disciplined inquiry, one should be open to different types of observations and data collection methodologies, and thus different types of facts, as long as the definition of disciplined inquiry is adhered to. To further support this view, it must be understood that the field of educational leadership is not a discipline by itself. As in any field of study, one should not be limited to a single discipline to dictate and direct the focus and forms of studies. Instead, procedures and perspectives of different disciplines, such as biology, chemistry, economics, geography, politics, anthropology, sociology, and others might bear on the research questions that can be investigated.

7.5.1 Brief Introduction to Complexity Science from an Educational Leadership Perspective

Complexity science appeared in the twentieth century in response to criticism of the inadequacy of the reductionist analytical thinking model in helping to understand systems and the intricacies of organizations. Complexity science does not refer to a single discipline; like in social science, a family of disciplines (psychology, sociology, economics, etc.) adopt methodologies to study society-related phenomena. Complexity science includes the disciplines of non-linear dynamical systems, networks, synergetics, and complex adaptive systems, and others.

The cornerstone concept of complexity science is the complex system. Complex systems have distinctive characteristics of self-organization, adaptive ability, emergent properties, non-linear interactions, and dynamic and network-like structures (Bar-Yam, 2003 ; Capra, 1996 ; Cilliers, 2001 ). By looking at the complex system of an organization, leadership should, consequently, be viewed in a different light. A complex system is a ‘functional whole,’ consisting of interdependent and variable parts. In other words, unlike a conventional system (e.g. an aircraft), the parts need not have fixed relationships, fixed behaviours, or fixed quantities. Thus, their individual functions may also be undefined in traditional terms. Despite the apparent tenuousness of this concept, these systems form the majority of our world, and include living organisms and social systems, along with many inorganic natural systems (e.g. rivers). The following is a brief introduction of key concepts of complexity science. These concepts are also the methodological assumptions for complexity science.

7.5.2 Emergence

Emergence is a key concept in understanding how different levels are linked in a system. In the case of leadership, it is about how influence happens at the individual, structural, and system levels. These different levels exist simultaneously, and one is not necessarily more important than the other, rather they are recognized as co-existing and linked.

Each level has different patterns and can be subjected to different kinds of theorization. Patterns at ‘higher’ levels can emerge in ways that are hard to predict at the ‘lower’ levels. The challenge (long-acknowledged in leadership research) is to understand how different levels interact and affect school outcome or school improvement. This question of the nature of ‘emergence’ has been framed in a variety of ways, including those of “macro-micro linkage,” “individual and society,” the “problem of order,” and “structure, action and structuration” (Giddens, 1984 ). In this paper, Giddens’ explanation of emergence as the relationship between the different levels through the “structure and agency” is adopted.

Giddens stated that the term “structure” referred generally to “rules and resources.” These properties make it possible for social practices to exist across time and space and that lends them ‘systemic’ form (Giddens, 1984 , p. 17). Giddens referred to agents as groups or individuals who draw upon these structures to perform social actions through embedded memory, called memory traces. Memory traces are, thus, the vehicle by which social actions are carried out. Structure is also, however, the result of these social practices.

7.5.3 Non-linearity

Non-linearity refers to leadership effects or outcomes that are more complicated than being assigned to a single source or single chain of events. Influence and outcome are considered linear if one can attribute cause and effect. Non-linearity in leadership, however, means that the outcome is not proportional to the input and that the outcome does not conform to the principle of additivity, i.e. it may involve synergistic reactions, in which the whole is not equal to the sum of its parts.

One way to understand non-linearity is about how small events lead to large scale changes in systems. Within the natural sciences, the example often cited (or imagined) is that of a small disturbance in the atmosphere in one location, perhaps as small as the flapping of a butterfly’s wings, tipping the balance of other systems, leading ultimately to a storm on the other side of the globe (Capra, 1997 ).

7.5.4 Self-Organization

Self-organization happens naturally as a result of non-linear interactions among staff members in the school (Fontana & Ballati, 1999 ). As the word describes, there is no central authority guiding and imposing the interactions. Staff members adapt to changing goals and situations by adopting communication patterns that are not centrally controlled by an authority. In the process of working towards a goal (e.g. solving a leadership problem), self-organizing staff members tend to exhibit creativity and novelty as they have to quickly adapt and to find ways and means to solve the problem and achieve the goal.

This particular phenomenon is best observed in distributed leadership (Ng & Ho, 2012 ; Yuen, Chen, & Ng, 2015 ). As a result of interactions among members, the emergence of new patterns in conversation happens. This is an important aspect of self-organization. When there are no new patterns in conversations, there are no new ideas and no novel ways to solve problems. It must be noted that new patterns of conversation depend upon the responsiveness of its members towards each other and their awareness of each other’s ideas and responses. As a result of the behaviour of interacting members, learning and adaptation, i.e. novel ways of solving problems emerge.

As stated earlier, complexity science is interdisciplinary and as such, there are multiple methods and ways to study complexity phenomena. It is nearly impossible to delve into these methodologies in a meaningful manner within the scope of one paper.

The intention with this paper is to propose alternative social science methodologies and analytical tools to perform educational leadership research. The following section will highlight one of the methods used in complexity science research that provides an alternative to the limitations identified in current research methodologies in educational leadership research.

7.6 Social Network Analysis as an Alternative to Normal Distribution and Linearity

Social Network Analysis (Scott, 2011 ; Wasserman & Faust, 1994 ) focuses on relational structures that characterize a network of people. These relational structures are represented by graphs of individuals and their social relations, and indices of structure, which analyze the network of social relationships on the basis of characteristics such as neighbourhood, density, centrality, cohesion, and others. The Social Network Analysis-method has been used to investigate educational issues, such as teacher professional networks (Baker-Doyle & Yoon, 2011 ; Penuel, Riel, Krause, & Frank, 2009 ), the spread of educational innovations (Frank, Zhao, & Borman, 2004 ), and peer influences on youth behaviour (Ennett et al., 2006 ). Table 7.4 provides examples of the types of data collected, and the analytical methods and analytical tools used in social network analysis.

In network analysis, indicators of centrality identify the most important vertices within a graph. Two separate measures of degree centrality, namely in-degree and out-degree, are used. In-degree is a count of the number of ties directed to the node (agent/individual) and out-degree is the number of ties that the node (agent/individual) directs to others. When ties are associated to positive aspects, such as friendship or collaboration, in-degree is often interpreted as a form of popularity and out-degree as a form of gregariousness.

For example, the study of Bird and colleagues (Bird, Gourley, Devanbu, Gertz, & Swaminathan, 2006 ) introduces social network analysis and the evidence of long-tailed distribution, which is a distinctive digression from the traditional social science study and the normal distribution associated with it. The evidence from social network measures in this research suggests that “developers who actually commit changes, play much more significant roles in the e-mail community than non-developers” (Bird et al., 2006 , p. 142). What this conclusion alludes to is that knowledgeable and active developers who demonstrate their ability by actively responding and making changes (out-degree) based on feedback are more often contacted by e-mail queries from other users.

7.6.1 How Does Social Network Analysis Contribute to Educational Leadership Research?

The usefulness of social network analysis is reflected in a study (co-conducted by the author) on instructional leadership practices in primary schools in a centralized system where hierarchical structures are in place (Nguyen et al., 2017 ). It is noteworthy that the hierarchical structure’s inherent reliance on a ‘supreme leader’ is greatly mitigated by the emergence of heterarchical elements. In brief, hierarchical structures, on the one hand, are vertical top-down control and reporting structures. Heterarchical structures, on the other hand, are horizontal. The findings revealed that at the teachers’ and other key personnel’s horizontal levels of hierarchy, spontaneous interactions and collaborations take place within a group and amongst groups of teachers. Through these horizontal professional interactions, individuals exert reciprocal influences on one another, with the minimal effects of authority power. In this structure, distributed instructional leadership appears to be deliberately practiced. Key personnel and teachers work in collaborative teams and are supported by organizational structures, initiated by the principals. This is where various instructional improvement programmes and strategies are initiated, implemented, and led by staff members. This would be highly impossible, if the principal practices were heavily based on hierarchical instructional leadership.

This study implies that decision-making on instructional improvement programmes is rigorously and actively practiced by teachers at the heterarchical level. Decision-making involves getting support for resources and approval from authorities over the teachers. In an organizational hierarchical structure, it would be the authority immediately above the teachers - the Head of Department, followed by the Vice Principal, and finally the Principal. Typically, such a reporting and resource seeking structure would be ineffective in creating instructional improvement programmes. If one was to redo the study and adopt social network analysis measures, how would the findings be presented? The figures below are hypothetically generated to provide a possible way to interpret hierarchical and heterarchical structures: Fig. 7.1 shows a social network representation, which provides an alternative way to represent hierarchy. The central (purple dot) represents the Principal, while the connected red dots to the Principal are the Head of Departments. The Head of Departments then oversees Subject Heads and finally teachers. Implying from our study, where heterarchical elements are exhibited, social network representation will most plausibly provide the means to represent the elements in Fig. 7.1 .

Expected and actual reporting and decision-making pathways in managing teaching and learning

Note: In B, T1 = perceived authority for immediate action (e.g. allocation of resources, ability to act); T2 = perceived trust; T3 = pilot curriculum project

What is immediately evident, is that the representation provides a more realistic way to look at social interactions involving decision-making. The connected dots among teachers could reveal who they interact most with. In addition, what would be most revealing is the emergence of how teachers in hybrid hierarchical and heterarchical structures make decisions. Specifically, the emergence of by-passing the constraints of a typical top-down hierarchical structure by directly getting support from centrality – the principal, who controls and provides resources and who also approves final decisions.

In summary, the discussion on one of the complexity science methodologies/social network analysis presents opportunities to reframe educational leadership research. It is now possible to ask research questions that are not bound by the constraints of current social science methodologies. Here are a number of questions using Social Network Analysis alone:

What is the local (indigenous) knowledge base of instructional leadership and how does it emerge?

How do different level leaders (Ministry of Education, Superintendents, Principals, etc.) shape the perception of curriculum policies in schools? (And – for specific local understanding – who are the influential personnel impacting curriculum and policy implementation?)

Examination of ties among school departments that affect school improvement: What are the implications for long-term strategy processes for school improvement in light of the complex and adaptive nature of departments?

What does engagement in decision-making look like?

How do aspects of relations within the network: structural (pattern of interaction, face-to-face interaction), affective (benevolence and trust), and cognitive (mutual knowledge about each other’s skills and knowledge, and shared systems of meaning) affect professional development and learning?

Will an intended school vision/policy enjoy the desired positive reception among staff members?

7.7 Conclusion

This chapter contains the review that social science methodologies and analytical tools have been consistently and almost universally adopted in educational leadership research for the last three decades. This paper also highlights a number of limitations of current social science methodologies. The alternative complexity science research methodologies proposed are not merely alternative or novel ways of examining the problems or issues encountered. What is more valuable is that these alternative methodologies bring with them their contrasting disciplinary roots and their corresponding (new) questions. The interest in the effects of educational leadership on school improvement can now be investigated by asking different research questions. One could, indeed, go deeper, wide-angle or zoom-in, and even make predictions by revisiting the basic question of “What do we wish to know about school improvement that we do not yet know enough about?”

By being open to alternative methodologies, one has nothing to lose but everything to gain in the scholastic pursuit of knowledge in the field of educational leadership and management. Researchers must avoid being educational leadership researchers who see the world merely from the perspectives that they have lived in; they should also avoid accepting these perspectives as the only perspectives without questions. The choice of research method or combination of methods affects the type of research questions asked (although, in practice, the questions are also often shaped by the researchers’ training and area of expertise). Ideally, one should not be constrained by methods before asking research questions. Research questions are the primary drivers of the quest for knowledge. This is the basis from which the most relevant methodologies are found that can answer research questions and provide researchers with the findings that can contribute to theory formation, knowledge building, and translation into practice. The author, therefore, proposes the following implications for practice and for research:

Introduce complexity science (and also other disciplines) as additional graduate research courses. One can still tap on the transmission-form of knowledge transfer and supervisor-supervisee platform.

Partner with established experts in the discipline of complexity science to leverage and speed up transfer of learning and research skills among educational leadership professors.

Engage in epistemological and ontological discussions (including generalizability of findings) on complexity theory – to deepen our understanding of the advantages and limitations of complexity science disciplined inquiries.

Expand educational leadership journals to accept findings and research that do not necessarily conform to social science methodologies alone.

Finally, reframing educational leadership research is an imperative in the light of diminishing researchable aspects due to the limitations of current methodologies. I, the author, want to reiterate that I do not advocate replacing existing social science methodologies. I acknowledge that social methodologies are still essential and vital. The full spectrum of social science research methodologies is needed to continue contributing to theory development in educational leadership and management. However, one also needs alternatives and complementary approaches to social science, such as complexity science methodologies for both theory development and theory building. The important thing to remember is that the questions come first and the methods follow.

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NG, D. (2021). Reframing Educational Leadership Research in the Twenty-First Century. In: Oude Groote Beverborg, A., Feldhoff, T., Maag Merki, K., Radisch, F. (eds) Concept and Design Developments in School Improvement Research. Accountability and Educational Improvement. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-69345-9_7

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Thesis Helpers

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277 Top Leadership Research Topics for Your Thesis

For most students, working on leadership research topics is a fascinating task. That’s because this subject spans different disciplines, including education, management, sociology, politics, and psychology. For this reason, many learners choose these topics when writing college and university papers.

In most cases, educators do not specify the topic for learners. That means every learner must choose or develop a topic for their academic paper. Consequently, learners look for leadership areas that interest them and then pick their leadership paper topics.

Here are pointers for selecting a topic for your leadership essay or paper:

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Organizational Leadership Dissertation Topics

Organizational leadership is an exciting research field. What’s more, you can use a topic in this category to impact a difference in an organization. And this can enhance your employability when seeking a job. Depending on your dissertation requirements, you can pick and work with any of these topics.

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Do you want to write a research paper or essay about nursing leadership? If yes, pick any of these brilliant nursing leadership paper topics.

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These are brilliant leadership discussion topics. However, prepare to research your preferred idea before you write a speech about it. That way, you will come up with a presentation that will move your audience.

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Perhaps, you want to write about a leadership issue that managers will find interesting to read. In that case, these leadership research paper topics will interest you.

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These are brilliant leadership essay topics for managers. However, you need time to research any of these topics to write a winning paper.

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UKnowledge > College of Education > Educational Leadership Studies > Theses & Dissertations

Theses and Dissertations--Educational Leadership Studies

Theses/dissertations from 2024 2024.

DISTRIBUTED LEADERSHIP IN INTERNATIONAL SCHOOLS ACROSS THE ASIA PACIFIC: A SEQUENTIAL EXPLANATORY STUDY , Robert A. Appino

THE INFLUENCE OF INDEPENDENT SECONDARY SCHOOL HEADS ON SHAPING ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE , Ian D. MacPhail

LEADERSHIP STRATEGIES AND MULTI-FRAME THINKING OF RURAL SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENTS’ DURING PERIODS OF CRISIS , Steven J. Moses

MC Means Mentor the Child: Examining School-Based Hip-Hop Clubs for Youth Empowerment, Leadership Development, and Capacity for Change , Daniel Wolford

Theses/Dissertations from 2023 2023

An Exploration of Effective District Practices For Enculturating and Retaining Kentucky's Newest Teachers in the Profession , Cari Lea Boyd

Principals as Instructional Leaders: Building Knowledge of Applied Learning to Confidently Lead Implementation , Janell Lynn McClure

ADDRESSING A COHORT DISCREPANCY AMONG NINTH-GRADE STUDENTS AT A RURAL/SUBURBAN HIGH SCHOOL , Bryley Keaton Murphy

UNDERSTANDING FIRST-YEAR UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS SAFETY, SAVVINESS, AND SOCIAL ETIQUETTE ONLINE , Collis Ray Robinson

Investigating the Relationship Between Empowerment and Secondary Science Teachers’ Technology Integration Knowledge , Jane Elizabeth Walsh

Theses/Dissertations from 2022 2022

Impacting Website Visitor Engagement Through Information Provision , Will Buntin

Using Communities of Practice to Support At-Home Gospel Learning from a Release Time Seminary Classroom , Nicholas A. Davis

IMPROVING SELF-EFFICACY OF TEAMS SUPPORTING ADMINISTRATORS AND TEACHERS THROUGH COMMUNITIES OF PRACTICE , Boyd Gudgel

The Power of Connections: An Online Doctoral Program's Use of Strategic Onboarding to Enhance the Doctoral Experience , Jeri Heileman

CAREER DEVELOPMENT AND EMPLOYABILITY SKILL INTEGRATION WITHIN THE EQUINE SCIENCE AND MANAGEMENT UNDERGRADUATE PROGRAM AT THE UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY , Savannah Faye Robin

Meeting Transfer Students Where They Are: A New Organizational Approach to Transfer Student Communication, Support, and Recruitment , Daniel Wright

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Fostering A Sense of Community Among Teachers Via A Community of Practice: A Mixed-Methods Action Research Study , Apryl Clark Moore

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A Constructive Approach to Managing Faculty Conflict: An Action Research Study , Natasha L. Davis

INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL HEADS’ SELF-EFFICACY AND GOVERNANCE: AN INTERVENTION , Joshua Ashley Garrett

BUILDING COMMUNICATION, COLLABORATION, AND SELF-EFFICACY AMONG ELEMENTARY SCHOOL COUNSELORS THROUGH COMMUNITIES OF PRACTICE , Garrett Rimey

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NEW TEACHER INDUCTION: IMPROVING TEACHER SELF-EFFICACY , William Jesse Bacon

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New advances in technology are upending education, from the recent debut of new artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots like ChatGPT to the growing accessibility of virtual-reality tools that expand the boundaries of the classroom. For educators, at the heart of it all is the hope that every learner gets an equal chance to develop the skills they need to succeed. But that promise is not without its pitfalls.

“Technology is a game-changer for education – it offers the prospect of universal access to high-quality learning experiences, and it creates fundamentally new ways of teaching,” said Dan Schwartz, dean of Stanford Graduate School of Education (GSE), who is also a professor of educational technology at the GSE and faculty director of the Stanford Accelerator for Learning . “But there are a lot of ways we teach that aren’t great, and a big fear with AI in particular is that we just get more efficient at teaching badly. This is a moment to pay attention, to do things differently.”

For K-12 schools, this year also marks the end of the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funding program, which has provided pandemic recovery funds that many districts used to invest in educational software and systems. With these funds running out in September 2024, schools are trying to determine their best use of technology as they face the prospect of diminishing resources.

Here, Schwartz and other Stanford education scholars weigh in on some of the technology trends taking center stage in the classroom this year.

AI in the classroom

In 2023, the big story in technology and education was generative AI, following the introduction of ChatGPT and other chatbots that produce text seemingly written by a human in response to a question or prompt. Educators immediately worried that students would use the chatbot to cheat by trying to pass its writing off as their own. As schools move to adopt policies around students’ use of the tool, many are also beginning to explore potential opportunities – for example, to generate reading assignments or coach students during the writing process.

AI can also help automate tasks like grading and lesson planning, freeing teachers to do the human work that drew them into the profession in the first place, said Victor Lee, an associate professor at the GSE and faculty lead for the AI + Education initiative at the Stanford Accelerator for Learning. “I’m heartened to see some movement toward creating AI tools that make teachers’ lives better – not to replace them, but to give them the time to do the work that only teachers are able to do,” he said. “I hope to see more on that front.”

He also emphasized the need to teach students now to begin questioning and critiquing the development and use of AI. “AI is not going away,” said Lee, who is also director of CRAFT (Classroom-Ready Resources about AI for Teaching), which provides free resources to help teach AI literacy to high school students across subject areas. “We need to teach students how to understand and think critically about this technology.”

Immersive environments

The use of immersive technologies like augmented reality, virtual reality, and mixed reality is also expected to surge in the classroom, especially as new high-profile devices integrating these realities hit the marketplace in 2024.

The educational possibilities now go beyond putting on a headset and experiencing life in a distant location. With new technologies, students can create their own local interactive 360-degree scenarios, using just a cell phone or inexpensive camera and simple online tools.

“This is an area that’s really going to explode over the next couple of years,” said Kristen Pilner Blair, director of research for the Digital Learning initiative at the Stanford Accelerator for Learning, which runs a program exploring the use of virtual field trips to promote learning. “Students can learn about the effects of climate change, say, by virtually experiencing the impact on a particular environment. But they can also become creators, documenting and sharing immersive media that shows the effects where they live.”

Integrating AI into virtual simulations could also soon take the experience to another level, Schwartz said. “If your VR experience brings me to a redwood tree, you could have a window pop up that allows me to ask questions about the tree, and AI can deliver the answers.”

Gamification

Another trend expected to intensify this year is the gamification of learning activities, often featuring dynamic videos with interactive elements to engage and hold students’ attention.

“Gamification is a good motivator, because one key aspect is reward, which is very powerful,” said Schwartz. The downside? Rewards are specific to the activity at hand, which may not extend to learning more generally. “If I get rewarded for doing math in a space-age video game, it doesn’t mean I’m going to be motivated to do math anywhere else.”

Gamification sometimes tries to make “chocolate-covered broccoli,” Schwartz said, by adding art and rewards to make speeded response tasks involving single-answer, factual questions more fun. He hopes to see more creative play patterns that give students points for rethinking an approach or adapting their strategy, rather than only rewarding them for quickly producing a correct response.

Data-gathering and analysis

The growing use of technology in schools is producing massive amounts of data on students’ activities in the classroom and online. “We’re now able to capture moment-to-moment data, every keystroke a kid makes,” said Schwartz – data that can reveal areas of struggle and different learning opportunities, from solving a math problem to approaching a writing assignment.

But outside of research settings, he said, that type of granular data – now owned by tech companies – is more likely used to refine the design of the software than to provide teachers with actionable information.

The promise of personalized learning is being able to generate content aligned with students’ interests and skill levels, and making lessons more accessible for multilingual learners and students with disabilities. Realizing that promise requires that educators can make sense of the data that’s being collected, said Schwartz – and while advances in AI are making it easier to identify patterns and findings, the data also needs to be in a system and form educators can access and analyze for decision-making. Developing a usable infrastructure for that data, Schwartz said, is an important next step.

With the accumulation of student data comes privacy concerns: How is the data being collected? Are there regulations or guidelines around its use in decision-making? What steps are being taken to prevent unauthorized access? In 2023 K-12 schools experienced a rise in cyberattacks, underscoring the need to implement strong systems to safeguard student data.

Technology is “requiring people to check their assumptions about education,” said Schwartz, noting that AI in particular is very efficient at replicating biases and automating the way things have been done in the past, including poor models of instruction. “But it’s also opening up new possibilities for students producing material, and for being able to identify children who are not average so we can customize toward them. It’s an opportunity to think of entirely new ways of teaching – this is the path I hope to see.”

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2024 Graduate Leadership Awards

Twelve graduating students are recognized for their service and lasting contributions to graduate student life at penn..

Each year, the Penn honors student leaders who are graduating from Penn with two awards: the  President & Provost’s Honor for Developing New Initiatives in Graduate & Professional Student Life  and the  Dr. Andy Binns Award for Outstanding Service to Graduate and Professional Student Life .

This year, 12 graduating students are being recognized for their service and lasting contributions to graduate student life at Penn. Natalie Delgado, MSW, School of Social Policy & Practice (SP2); Mario Gallardo, MSMS, Perelman School of Medicine (PSOM); Emily Getzen (Ph.D., Biostatistics, PSOM); Michael Krone, JD/MBA, Penn Carey Law & the Wharton School ; Sparsh Maheshwari, MSNPL & MSSP, SP2; Gaurav Mangal, MSE, Electrical Engineering, School of Engineering and Applied Science (SEAS); Gabrielle Newell, MSEd, Graduate School of Education (GSE); Maxwell Pisciotta, Ph.D., Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, SEAS; Paradorn (Joe) Rummaneethorn, Ph.D., Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, SEAS; Anusha Singhal, MBIOT, SEAS; Ananth Srinivas (Ph.D., Earth and Environmental Science, SAS); and Kaixi (Alex) Yang, I-MPA, School of Arts & Sciences .

The President & Provost’s Honor for Developing New Initiatives in Graduate & Professional Student Life award is presented to students who have initiated lasting new developments that have enhanced graduate and professional student life at Penn. The Dr. Andy Binns Impact Award for Outstanding Service to Graduate and Professional Student Life is presented to graduate or professional students who, upon their graduation from Penn, have significantly impacted graduate and professional student life through service involvement in student life initiatives or organizations. 

Read more at the Graduate Student Center .

Class of 2025 relishes time together at Hey Day

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Picturing artistic pursuits

Hundreds of undergraduates take classes in the fine arts each semester, among them painting and drawing, ceramics and sculpture, printmaking and animation, photography and videography. The courses, through the School of Arts & Sciences and the Stuart Weitzman School of Design, give students the opportunity to immerse themselves in an art form in a collaborative way.

Penn celebrates operation and benefits of largest solar power project in Pennsylvania

Solar production has begun at the Great Cove I and II facilities in central Pennsylvania, the equivalent of powering 70% of the electricity demand from Penn’s academic campus and health system in the Philadelphia area.

Education, Business, & Law

Investing in future teachers and educational leaders

The Empowerment Through Education Scholarship Program at Penn’s Graduate School of Education is helping to prepare and retain teachers and educational leaders.

‘The Illuminated Body’ fuses color, light, and sound

A new Arthur Ross Gallery exhibition of work by artist Barbara Earl Thomas features cut-paper portraits reminiscent of stained glass and an immersive installation constructed with intricately cut material lit from behind.

• Frontiers in Education
• Leadership in Education
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Educational Leadership and Sustainable Development

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About this Research Topic

The serious social, economic and environmental problems facing humanity require inspiring and proactive leaders. Indeed, the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030 requires people who drive the transformation and empowerment of their communities. In this context, educational leaders are called upon to play a key role, as education is one of the main ways to guarantee the well-being and prosperity of humanity. Among other aspects, they must ensure the necessary organizational conditions in the institution to generate a shared vision committed to sustainability, as well as align curricular practices and the institutional approach with the principles of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD). Recent research in this area has shown that educational leaders, both formal and informal, face numerous barriers when trying to implement ESD in the classroom. Among others, the scientific literature alludes to a lack of specific training, bureaucratic overload, and scarcity of time and resources. From their point of view, the integration of the SDGs in educational institutions is an essential element, but other priority issues must also be addressed. In practice, this means that their efforts are limited to mere one-off actions, in many cases without continuity. To this must be added the difficulties encountered in generating a collective awareness that is truly committed to sustainable culture, both among students, teachers, and the environment. It has also been shown that the most appropriate leadership models for promoting ESD are those of a more participatory, dialogic, and distributed nature. In fact, the construction of collaborative networks, student interest and personal commitment are some of the elements that encourage them to continue their work. Despite all this, the connection between educational leadership and sustainable development remains, for the moment, an emerging issue, and further research is needed to identify new possibilities for reflection and action. This Research Topic thus becomes a forum for the scientific community to share its research on leadership and sustainable development at all stages and levels of education. The call for papers is open to theoretical studies, educational experiences, and empirical research. Proposals are expected to address one of the following themes or other related issues: − Models of educational leadership and sustainable development. − Facilitating and hindering elements of sustainability in educational spaces. − Training for educational leadership and sustainable development. − Best practices for educational leadership and sustainability. − ESD and educational leadership. − Innovation, creativity, and sustainable development in educational institutions. − Curricular integration of the SDGs. − Diagnosis and evaluation of sustainability in educational organizations. − Ethics, leadership, and sustainable development. − Policies and strategies to promote ESD in educational spaces. − Training and commitment of students to sustainable development.

Keywords : Educational leadership, Education for sustainable development, Educational institutions, 2030 Agenda, Sustainable Development Goals, Informal leadership, Formal education, Sustainability

Important Note : All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.

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School Boards Are at a Critical Juncture. Here’s What DU Is Doing About It.

Joy hamilton.

Publications and Research Writing Manager

The Morgridge College of Education is collaborating with Colorado school boards to address school closures, mental health and teacher retention.

Colorado’s school boards grapple with a range of issues, from fluctuating enrollment and changes in state funding to concerns about school safety and persistent teacher shortages. In recent years, the COVID-19 pandemic and heightened political attention have thrust school boards into even more turbulent waters.   

“ Effective school boards serve as strong advocates for their community ,” says Lolita Tabron , associate professor in Morgridge College of Education (MCE).  As representatives of their community, they are well positioned to catalyze widespread democratic engagement to address the needs of their local school community, Tabron added.

That’s why Provost Mary Clark,  Dean Knight-Manuel  and  Emeritus Chancellor Dan Ritiche   gathered a year ago to address a question frequently on their minds: How might MCE support the important work of Colorado school boards?

“ That led to loads of research to learn more about school board’s needs and issues our Colorado school boards are facing, ” says Starla Sieveke-Pearson , clinical assistant professor in  educational leadership and policy studies

So, Pearson, Tabron and  Doris Candelarie, clinical associate professor in educational leadership and policy studies,  set out to lend MCE’s research and networking prowess to leaders who serve Colorado’s 800,000+ students impacted by school boards. Made up of democratically elected, unpaid members who are mandated to execute state policy and law, school boards play a crucial role in educational governance, says Pearson.

The result was a year’s worth of research leading up to the University of Denver’s inaugural School Board Symposium , in which school board directors from 29 districts — some waking before sunrise to travel from Gunnison, La Junta and the Roaring Fork Valley — gathered on DU’s campus for day of discussion, networking and, ultimately, action to address K-12’s most pressing challenges.

School closures, mental health crisis and teacher shortages

MCE’s research started with gathering input from school board members across the country and in Colorado to determine hot topics facing school boards. Four themes emerged that served as the symposium’s focus: 1) superintendent relationships, 2) shifting enrollment and school closures, 3) youth mental health and 4) teacher shortages, recruitment and retention.     

In preparation for the event, Doctoral students in MCE's educational leadership and policy program—who are experienced practitioners within K-12 schools—prepared literature briefs with faculty containing research on the symposium’s themes.  This provided participants with cutting-edge information to inform decision-making.

Panel speakers represented a diverse range of experiences. Jeffco Public Schools superintendent Tracy Dorland, for instance, shared the difficult process of closing 21 out of 180 schools and encouraged school board members to lead with courage, heart and honesty.

“It's just extremely challenging work with lots of emotion,” Dorland told participants.

Declining birth rates, rising housing costs and suburban flight are all factors impacting school closures, which has recently been complicated by an influx of migrant students.

“ It’s not just data—it’s data and stories. What are the lived experiences of people in these communities?” added Dr. Carrie Olson, former teacher and current president of the Denver school board during the panel.

Bringing together academic and practitioner perspectives

From the onset, DU faculty intentionally merged academic and on-the-ground practitioner expertise in an effort to support school boards that are often siloed and create an atmosphere conducive to community building and collaboration.      “It was empowering to be in community with so many leaders engaging in conversations on pressing topics that are impacting our students, teachers and communities,” says Katilyn Daniel, a PhD student who created fact sheets for the symposiu m. 

The symposium’s atmosphere was intimate, with panelists speaking on problems keeping them up at night. For some, the youth mental health crisis causes many sleepless nights.

“I think about the children who had experienced the trauma in the last five years that hasn't been collected,” said Jillian Blueford, clinical assistant professor in the department of counseling psychology.

Blueford presented data that 1 in 13 students in Colorado will lose a parent or sibling by the age of 18, a statistic that she knows well, having lost her mom at a young age. 

“The systems and the policies and lack of resources and lack of mental professionals we have in schools is causing more trauma for students,” she adds.

As part of the symposium, MCE faculty documented various mental health initiatives to support education, prevention and intervention in an effort to help directors accomplish milestones in supporting youth in crisis.  

“These conversations were a reminder that with partnerships, collective action and commitment, our school communities can increase mental health care access for all students. No one has to do this work alone,” says Daniel.

Creating a roadmap for the future

“ Coming together to grapple with these hot topics collectively will be immensely impactful, ” says Tabron.   

Organizers say the symposium is something between an “inaugural event and a maiden voyage,” indicating MCE’s long-term commitment to supporting school boards in the years to come as they navigate an educational system constantly in flux.

“It is my hope that the Morgridge College of Education can be a partner for school boards today and well into the future, as we are well aware of the invaluable impact of school board members in representing the voices of the families and communities that you serve,” Dean Michelle Knight-Manuel told the 51 attendees during opening remarks for the event.    

In addition to research presentations and discussions, MCE used the symposium to identify what additional needs school board directors have that DU might support in the future.   

“We see ourselves as a bridge, a connector,” says Tabron, “to not only just the research but also to an extraordinary community of colleagues. We want them to know they're not alone and that we're there to support them.”   

For more information on the symposium and literature briefs on the four themes, visit the event website .  

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• Half of Latinas Say Hispanic Women’s Situation Has Improved in the Past Decade and Expect More Gains

3. Educational and economic differences among Latinas today

Table of contents.

• Assessing the progress of Hispanic women in the last 10 years
• Views of Hispanic women’s situation in the next 10 years
• Views on the gender pay gap
• Latinas’ educational attainment
• Latinas’ labor force participation
• Latinas’ earnings
• Latinas as breadwinners in their relationships
• Bachelor’s degrees among Latinas
• Labor force participation rates among Latinas
• Occupations among working Latinas
• Earnings among Latinas
• Latinas as breadwinners in 2022
• Appendix: Supplemental charts and tables
• Acknowledgments
• The American Trends Panel survey methodology
• Methodology for the analysis of the Current Population Survey

Though Latinas have collectively seen socioeconomic gains, their educational and economic circumstances are varied. Younger Latinas and U.S.-born Latinas, for instance, are more likely to report having a bachelor’s degree than older and immigrant Latinas, respectively. This chapter explores how other characteristics such as spouse or partner ethnicity and presence of their children at home are associated with differences in educational and economic outcomes.

Some Latinas are more likely than others to have a bachelor’s degree.

• Age: Younger Latinas (ages 25 to 29) are about twice as likely as older Latinas (ages 65 or older) to hold a bachelor’s degree (30% vs. 14%).
• Nativity: U.S.-born Latinas are more likely than those born outside the U.S. to hold a bachelor’s degree (30% vs. 19%).

Though labor force participation rates have increased in the last two decades for Latinas overall, some are more likely to be employed or seeking work. Among civilians ages 25 to 64:

• Education: Latinas with a bachelor’s degree or higher are more likely than those with a high school education or less to participate in the labor force (82% vs. 60%).
• Nativity: U.S.-born Latinas are more likely than Latinas born outside the U.S. to participate in the labor force (75% vs. 64%).
• Spouse or partner: Latinas who are living with a Hispanic spouse or partner are less likely to work or seek work than those living with a non-Hispanic partner (63% vs. 77%).
• Children at home: Latinas with children in the home are less likely to work or seek work than Latinas without (67% vs. 73%).

Among civilian Latinas ages 25 to 64 who were employed or looking for work in 2023, 15% work in office and administrative support occupations. Similar shares work in management, business and financial occupations (13%) and education, legal, community service, arts and media occupations (12%).

The kinds of occupations Latinas most recently worked in are also associated with whether they have a bachelor’s degree. Among civilian Latinas ages 25 to 64 who were employed or looking for work in 2023:

• Those with a bachelor’s are most likely to have education, legal, community service, arts and media jobs (27%) or management, business and financial jobs (24%).
• For those without a bachelor’s, the most common occupational groups are office and administrative support (17%) and health care support, protective service, and personal care and service (15%).
• Those with a bachelor’s degree are less likely than those without one to work in health care support, protective service, and personal care and service occupations (6% vs. 15%, respectively) and building and grounds cleaning and maintenance occupations (3% vs. 12%).

Though wages have increased for Latinas overall in the last two decades, some earn more than others. Among Latinas ages 25 to 64 who are not self-employed:

• Education: Latinas with a bachelor’s degree make $28.85 per hour (at the median) while those with a high school education or less earn $16.67 per hour.
• Nativity: U.S.-born Latinas make more per hour than immigrant Latinas ($21.25 vs. $17.90).
• Spouse or partner: Hispanic women who live with a spouse or partner earn roughly the same as those without a spouse or partner. However, Hispanic women living with a non- Hispanic spouse or partner make significantly more at the median than those living with a Hispanic spouse or partner ($25.00 vs. $19.00).
• Children at home: Latinas living with their children earn about the same as Latinas not living with their children ($18.50 vs. $20.00).

Overall, 13% of Hispanic women living with their spouse or partner are the breadwinners of their couples. Another 28% of Latinas are in financially egalitarian relationships, while the remaining 59% are living with a breadwinner spouse or partner.

Some Latinas are more likely than others to be either their relationships’ breadwinners or in financially egalitarian relationships with their spouse or partner.

• Education: Latinas with a bachelor’s degree or higher were more likely than those with a high school education or less to be breadwinners (16% vs. 9%, respectively) or in financially egalitarian relationships (35% vs. 24%).
• Spouse or partner: Hispanic women living with a partner or spouse who is not Hispanic were more likely than those with a Hispanic spouse or partner to be the breadwinner of their relationship (16% vs. 12%, respectively). They were also less likely than their Hispanic-partnered counterparts to say their spouse or partner was the breadwinner (54% vs. 61%).

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Key facts about U.S. Latinos with graduate degrees

Hispanic enrollment reaches new high at four-year colleges in the u.s., but affordability remains an obstacle, u.s. public school students often go to schools where at least half of their peers are the same race or ethnicity, what’s behind the growing gap between men and women in college completion, for u.s. latinos, covid-19 has taken a personal and financial toll, most popular, report materials.

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