School culture is playing an increasingly important role in school performance and educational development. Within the national campaign in China for the innovative and sustainable development of education, local governments in Beijing Municipality have encouraged and facilitated educational innovation toward better school culture. In recent years various initiatives have been undertaken by a select group of schools to develop strategies and further action toward innovation and change. This book documents an investigation of how teachers and principals perceive school culture development in China. A survey was conducted among 1,992 informants from 37 schools (located in four different districts) in Beijing Municipality. The results of this study indicated that the respondents had overall positive perceptions of school culture construction and development in the educational change process. In general, they showed a positive attitude toward the school culture improvement initiatives, reported satisfaction about their current school culture and held confidence in the direction their school culture is heading. The study demonstrated that certain factors, such as school geographical location and respondents’ job duty, job title, and gender, make a difference in how participants perceive their school’s culture. Teachers and principals from a less economically developed district had less awareness of, involvement in, and understanding of school culture development in all its aspects. A notable gap between teachers and principals was identified in their perception of the core values and norms of the school and of communication between teachers and principals. This study suggests that for educational development to be further carried forward successfully, there is an urgent need for better distribution of educational resources (both financial and leadership), common understanding, agreed-upon goals, and efficient communication between principals and teachers. KeywordsEducational philosophy, Ethics, Chinese context, Gender, Learning

This book provides a bridge from learning the theory of school administration to the practical problem solving in which school principals and other leaders engage. This book continues to be based on the research indicating linkages between educational leadership and productive schools, especially in terms of outcomes for children. It supports the understanding that formal leadership in schools is a complex, multi-faceted task that requires continual learning and that effective school leaders must be strong educators focused on the central issues of learning, teaching, and school improvement. School leaders must also be moral agents and social advocates for the children and communities they serve while working with community stakeholders to create learning communities that value and care for others as individuals and as members of the educational community. For those aspiring to become principals or hold leadership positions.

This book discusses distinctive features of the professional learning community concept, practices and processes across six different education systems in the Asia-Pacific region, namely Mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea, Singapore, and the United States. It provides a platform for an exchange of different perspectives and offers alternative possibilities of theorizing professional learning communities across different socio-cultural contexts. Contributors provide valuable insights for policy makers, education researchers and educators in the Asia-Pacific region and elsewhere to deal with critical questions about the improvement of teaching and learning and school improvement in a globalizing world. This book was originally published as a special issue of the Asia Pacific Journal of Education.

The delivery of quality education to students relies heavily on the actions of an institution’s administrative staff. Effective leadership strategies allow for the continued progress of modern educational initiatives. It is crucial to investigate how effective administrators lead their organizations in challenging and difficult times and promote the accomplishments of their organization. Research Anthology on Preparing School Administrators to Lead Quality Education Programs is a vital reference source that offers theoretical and pedagogical research concerning the management of educational systems on both the national and international scale. It also explores academic administration as well as administrative effectiveness in achieving organizational goals. Highlighting a range of topics such as strategic planning, human resources, and school culture, this multi-volume book is ideally designed for educators, administrators, principals, superintendents, board members, researchers, academicians, policymakers, and students.

This report aims to provide an in-depth analysis of teachers’ and school leaders’ perceptions of the value of their profession, their work-related well-being and stress, and their satisfaction with their working conditions. It also offers a description of teachers’ and school leaders’ contractual arrangements, opportunities to engage in professional tasks such as collaborative teamwork, autonomous decision making, and leadership practices.

The OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) examines what students know in reading, mathematics and science, and what they can do with what they know. Volume VI: Are Students Ready to Thrive in an Interconnected World? explores students’ ability to examine issues of local, global and cultural significance; understand and appreciate the perspectives and worldviews of others; engage in open, appropriate and effective interactions across cultures; and take action for collective well-being and sustainable development.

With existing educational leadership models and theories being predominantly western influenced, this book aims to provide more insight into school leadership in China. It pioneers building research- and practice-informed knowledge and unravels the complexities that characterize the scholarship, context and practices of school leadership. School leadership in China is presented through four sub-purposes: investigating how Chinese school leadership is conceptualized in the international and Chinese literature; exploring the shifting context within which Chinese school leaders enact their leadership, and examining key policies that have shaped the practice of leader development; extending the understandings about the complexities of work lives of Chinese school leaders; and further locating indigenous understandings of Chinese school leadership in the political and socio-cultural context of contemporary China, and the theoretical and conceptual context of international school leadership. This text will be particularly useful to international education researchers with focus on educational leadership, comparative education, education policy and education in China.

The Journal of School Leadership is broadening the conversation about schools and leadership and is currently accepting manuscripts. We welcome manuscripts based on cutting-edge research from a wide variety of theoretical perspectives and methodological orientations. The editorial team is particularly interested in working with international authors, authors from traditionally marginalized populations, and in work that is relevant to practitioners around the world. Growing numbers of educators and professors look to the six bimonthly issues to: deal with problems directly related to contemporary school leadership practice teach courses on school leadership and policy use as a quality reference in writing articles about school leadership and improvement.