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Abstract
As instructional leadership involves attempts to understand and improve complex systems, this study explored principals’ perceptions regarding possible contributions of systems thinking to instructional leadership. Based on a qualitative analysis, systems thinking was perceived by middle and high school principals to contribute to the following three areas of instructional leadership: (1) improvement of school curriculum, (2) development of professional learning communities, and (3) interpretation of performance data. Systems thinking as a potential enabler of instructional leadership is discussed and implications are suggested.
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Author Biographies
Haim Shaked, PhD, is lecturer at the School of Education, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, Israel. His research areas include system thinking, instructional leadership, educational policy, and qualitative research methods. His book (co-author Chen Schechter) Holistic School Leadership is about to be published by Springer. He can be reached at haim.
Chen Schechter, PhD, is associate professor at the School of Education, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, Israel. His research areas include organizational learning, learning from success, educational change, educational leadership, system thinking, and qualitative research methods. His book (co-author Haim Shaked) Holistic School Leadership is about to be published by Springer. He can be reached at hen.
