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New Zealand Principals: Autonomy at a Cost

  • Chapter
A Decade of Research on School Principals

Part of the book series: Studies in Educational Leadership ((SIEL,volume 21))

Abstract

New Zealand’s public schools have an unusual degree of self-management. Each school has its own parent-elected board of trustees, responsible for the employment of the principal and school performance. Schools operate within national legislation, following the New Zealand Curriculum, but they operate on their own, without ongoing support from, or participation in, a school district. School leaders enjoy autonomy, and yet they also see the need for better connections between schools and across the system, and they find their own career pathways limited.

Since this self-managing school model was introduced in 1989, it has become increasingly evident that it makes it harder to tackle long-standing educational issues, such as the need to improve educational outcomes among the indigenous Māori, and the growing Pasifika population. School leadership of change in teaching and learning to improve outcomes is increasingly emphasised in national policy as a result of these issues and research showing the leadership dimensions that are pivotal in improving student outcomes. This is raising questions about national support for leadership development, ongoing support for leaders and how school leaders can be better connected.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. New Zealand Council for Educational Research, P O Box 3237, Wellington, 6140, New Zealand

    Cathy Wylie, Graeme Cosslett & Jacky Burgon

Authors
  1. Cathy Wylie
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  2. Graeme Cosslett
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  3. Jacky Burgon
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Cathy Wylie .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Principal Development, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden

    Helene Ärlestig

  2. Centre for Research on Educational Leadership and Management, School of Education, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, United Kingdom

    Christopher Day

  3. Centre for Principal Development, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden

    Olof Johansson

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Wylie, C., Cosslett, G., Burgon, J. (2016). New Zealand Principals: Autonomy at a Cost. In: Ärlestig, H., Day, C., Johansson, O. (eds) A Decade of Research on School Principals. Studies in Educational Leadership, vol 21. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-23027-6_13

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-23027-6_13

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-23026-9

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-23027-6

  • eBook Packages: EducationEducation (R0)

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