The changing nature of school principals’ work: Lessons and future directions for school leadership research

Recent research has charted the changing landscape in the work of principals and headteachers (hereafter referred to as ‘principals’) in Western contexts (e.g. Leithwood, Jantzi & Steinbach 2003; Pollock, Wang & Hauseman 2014). In line with the emerging research, this Special Issue documents changes occurring in principals’ daily work in Alabama, the U.S. (by Sun, Johnson & Przybylski), in Ontario, Canada (by Pollock) and in Victoria, Australia (by Drysdale, Gurr & Goode). The Special Issue also illuminates that the changing nature of principals’ work emerges beyond Western societies, with articles concerning Hong Kong (by Cheng & Szeto), Nepal (by Shigh & Allison) and the Philippines (by Buenviaje). The six articles comprising this Special Issue provide a solid contribution to the emerging research on the changing nature of school principals’ work in various countries and jurisdictions. In particular, including relatively uncharted countries such as Nepal and the Philippines further helps the Special Issue to gain scholarly attention and traction. In this commentary article, I have attempted to extract a number of important lessons for international research communities focusing on the work of school principals. I have also sought to capture a fuller picture of the changing nature of principals’ work by comparing, complementing and combining key findings across the six articles, which I hope will be useful for ongoing discussions and future directions in the research area.