Education policies are rarely implemented as they have been written or planned. Instead, school principals interpret and apply these policies according to their professional role identity and sensemaking. This study highlights the importance of the micro-institutional context. Specifically, it addresses the professional role identity and…

Purpose: In times of reform and consequential changes, school superintendents act as mediators between government policies and those who implement them in the field. This article explores the perceptions of school superintendents in Israel concerning their professional development (PD) process, especially during the implementation of Israeli…

Effective implementation of educational reforms requires collaboration between stakeholders. The current paper describes and analyzes the findings of a qualitative research, which examined the perceptions of the three hierarchic levels of stakeholders, assigned by the Israeli Ministry of Education in 2010 to introduce and implement a new policy…

Mid-level roles in education have been widely explored, primarily in schools, but little research has been conducted during the systemic reform that involves creating a mid-level role between end units and the system. The present study explores the sense-making of early childhood leaders (ECLs) at the initial stage of their new role as mid-level…

This study explores the experiences of high school middle leaders implementing a generally outlined reform, which required educators to exercise judgment regarding how to meet the reform's goals. Exploring 65 middle leaders' perceptions regarding the implementation of the Meaningful Learning Reform in Israel revealed that they experienced two main…

Instructional leadership can be defined as an educational leadership approach whereby the school principal is involved in a wide range of activities aiming to improve teaching and learning for all students. Surprisingly, the literature about instructional leadership practices has not mentioned school leaders' practices for hiring appropriate…

The transition from teaching to assistant principalship is a turning point in a teacher's professional career. This transition not only reflects a change in one's hierarchical standing at the school but also constitutes a stage that affects one's administrative identity and aspirations to further advance in the management arena. Despite the…

This article discusses challenges facing novice principals (hereinafter: NPs) and the coping strategies they develop at the inception of their managerial careers. Qualitative research employed semi-structured interviews with 40 principals in the Arab education system in Israel. Findings indicated that Arab NPs face conflicting demands of their…

All large high schools have teachers in middle tier roles who help run the school, and subject leaders (SLs) who engage in administrative and pedagogical practices to improve departmental achievements. By applying structuration theory (Giddens, 1984. "The constitution of society: Outline of the theory of structuration." Berkeley, CA:…

In an ideal school, where inclusion is implemented successfully, staff members collaborate and create an inclusive environment in their schools. In order to achieve such a sustainable environment of inclusion, pedagogical, organisational and psychological restructuring should occur, and a strong inclusion-oriented leadership has to be activated.…

Thirty-five teachers (20 females and 15 males) from a total of 60 were chosen via random sample to answer a closed-end questionnaire. The role-statements were obtained from the official Israeli document listing the 19 roles of the headteacher. The questionnaire examined the following questions in relation to the gender of the teachers: (1) To what…

A survey of 90 department heads in six Israeli universities concerning their role perceptions, role fulfillment, and satisfaction with role fulfillment found five main role factors and significant differences between fulfillment of roles and the desire to fulfill them. (MSE)