Abstract
In this chapter, US, Danish, and Australian cases studies are used to illustrate how a focus on democratic instructional leadership as key to the success of school principals in the midst of accountability and neoliberal pressures. Drawing on extant literature on instructional in the United States, Denmark , and Australia as well as a model of leadership derived from the ISSPP case studies, principals are shown to have a significant, albeit primarily indirect, impact on teaching and learning. Specifically, successful instructional leaders influence the quality of instruction, curriculum design, assessment and student learning and enhance personal, professional, organizational, and community capacity. In all of the Australian and the US cases, broad outcomes are also evident, including student academic and non-academic achievement, as well as community social capital outcomes. Some of the cases, however, demonstrated a narrowing of the curriculum as a result of current accountability pressures to improve student achievement on state tests. The chapter concludes with an examination of the tension, dilemmas, and opportunities for “successful” instructional leadership in a global accountability environment.
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Ylimaki, R.M., Gurr, D., Moos, L., Kofod, K., Drysdale, L. (2011). Democratic Instructional Leadership in Australia, Denmark, and the United States. In: Ylimaki, R., Jacobson, S. (eds) US and Cross-National Policies, Practices, and Preparation. Studies in Educational Leadership, vol 12. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-0542-5_4
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