Social Justice Leadership in Education: What Do School Principals Do for Social Justice?

Year 2023, Volume: 10 Issue: 6, 152 - 174, 01.11.2023

Çiğdem Ayanoğlu , Gökhan Arastaman

https://doi.org/10.17275/per.23.94.10.6

Cited By: 1

Abstract

This study aims to explore school principals' perceptions of social justice in education and their social justice leadership behaviors at school. The data of the study, which was conducted with the phenomenology design, one of the qualitative research methods, were obtained through semi-structured interviews with nine school principals and then analyzed by thematic analysis. The results of this study reveal that school principals mostly have distributive and recognitional justice perceptions of social justice in education and participatory justice perceptions at a relatively lower level. It has been revealed that principals have perceptions of distributive justice with the phenomena of equality, equality of opportunity, and fairness; recognitory justice with the phenomena of awareness of disadvantaged groups, supporting disadvantaged groups, and respect for diversity; and participatory justice with the phenomenon of democracy. It was found that school principals mostly exhibited social justice leadership behaviors concerning the dimensions of critical consciousness and support, while their behaviors in relation to the dimension of inclusion were limited compared to the other two dimensions. In their schools, principals exhibited respect for diversity among students, awareness of social injustices, raising critical consciousness about social justice, providing financial support, supporting students' academic and social development, creating an inclusive educational environment, and participatory management behaviors. Some implications were made for school principals' leadership behaviors regarding the conduct of educational activities within the framework of the principle of social justice. It has been revealed that we need to rethink the duties of school principals on how they ensure justice in education services, how they protect disadvantaged groups, and how they distribute resources.

Keywords

social justice in education, social justice leadership, school principal

References

• Alsbury, T. L., & Shaw. N. L. (2005). Policy implications for social justice in school district consolidation. Leadership and Policy in Schools, 4, 105-126. doi: 10.1080/15700760590965578
• Arastaman, G., & Tuncer, F. (2022). Leadership challenges in multicultural schools. In F. W. English (Ed.), The Palgrave handbook of educational leadership and management discourse (pp. 1471-1489). Springer Nature.
• Archer, L., Hutchings, M., Leathwood, C., & Ross, A. (2003). Widening participation in higher education implications for policy and practice. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/313723922_Widening_participation_in_higher_education_Implications_for_policy_and_practice
• Bates, R. (2006). Educational administration and social justice. Education, Citizenship and Social Justice, 1(2), 141- 156. doi: 10.1177/1746197906064676
• Berkovich, I. (2014). A socio-ecological framework of social justice leadership in education. Journal of Educational Administration, 52(3), 282-309. doi: 10.1108/JEA-12-2012-0131
• Blackmore, J. (2002). Leadership for socially just schooling: More substance and less style in high-risk, low-trust times? Journal of School Leadership, 12, 198-222. doi: 10.1177/105268460201200206
• Bogotch, I. (2002). Educational leadership and social justice: Practice into theory. Journal of School Leadership, 12(2), 138–156. doi: 10.1177/105268460201200203
• Boske, C. (2014). Critical reflective practices: Connecting to social justice. In International Handbook of Educational Leadership and Social Justice (289-308). Springer. doi: 10.1007/978-94-007-6555-9_17
• Boyles, D., Carusi, T., & Attick, D. (2009). Historical and critical interpretations of social justice. In W. Ayers, T. Quinn, & D. Stoval (Eds.), Handbook of social justice in education (pp. 30-43). Routledge Handbooks Online. doi: 10.4324/9780203887745
• Bozkurt, B. (2017). A Study of Developing an Assessment Tool for Social Justice Leadership Behaviors of School Principals [A Study of Developing an Assessment Tool for Social Justice Leadership Behaviors of School Principals.]. Gaziantep University Journal of Social Sciences, 16(3), 721-732. doi: 10.29333 10.21547/jss.300050
• Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77-101. doi: 10.1191/1478088706qp063oa
• Brooks, J. S., & Miles, M. (2006). From scientific management to social justice . . .andback again? Pedagogical shifts in the study and practice of educational leadership. International Electronic Journal for Leadership in Learning, 10(21). Retrieved from https://journals.library.ualberta.ca/iejll/index.php/iejll/article/download/621/283/621.
• Brown, K. M. (2005). Transformative adult learning strategies: Assessing the impact on pre-service administrators’ beliefs. Educational Considerations, 32(2), 17-26. doi: 10.4148/0146-9282.1242
• Büyükgöze, H., Şayir, G., Gülcemal, E., & Kubilay, S. (2018). Examining how social justice leadership relates to student engagement in high schools. Cukurova University Faculty of Education Journal, 47(2), 932-961. doi: 10.14812/cuefd.373808
• Capper, C. A., & Young, M. D. (2014). Ironies and limitations of educational leadership for social justice: A call to social justice educators. Theory Into Practice, 53, 158-164. doi: 10.1080/00405841.2014.885814
• Chiu, M. M., & Walker, A. (2007). Leadership for social justice in Hong Kong schools: Addressing mechanisms of inequality. Journal of Educational Administration 45(6),724-739. doi: 10.1108/09578230710829900
• Coe, R., Waring, M., Hedges, L. R., & Arthur, J. (2017). Eğitimde araştırma yöntemleri ve metodolojileri [Research methods and methodologies in education]. A. Erözkan, E. Büyüköksüz (Eds.), Ankara: Anı Publications.
• Cooper, C. W. (2009). Performing cultural work in demographically changing schools: Implications for expanding transformative leadership frameworks. Educational Administation Quarterly, 45(5), 694-724. doi: 10.1177/0013161X09341639
• Creswell, J. W. (2003). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative and mixed methods approaches. California: Sage Publications. Retrieved from https://www.ucg.ac.me/skladiste/blog_609332/objava_105202/fajlovi/Creswell.pdf.
• Creswell, J. W. (2016). Nitel araştırma yöntemleri: Beş yaklaşıma göre nitel araştırma ve araştırma deseni [Qualitative research methods: Qualitative research and research design according to five approaches]. Ankara: Siyasal Publications.
• Creswell, J. W. (2021). Beş yaklaşıma göre nitel araştırma ve araştırma deseni [Qualitative research methods – Qualitative research and research design according to five approaches]. M. Bütün and S. B. Demir (Trans.). Ankara: Siyasal Kitabevi.
• Dantley M. (2007). Re-radicalizing the consciousness in educational leadership: The critically spiritual imperative toward keeping the promise. In D. Carlson, & C. P. Gause (Eds.), Keeping the promise: Essays on leadership democracy and education (pp. 159-176). Lang.
• DeMatthews, D. (2014). Dimensions of social justice leadership: A critical review of actions, challenges, dilemmas, and opportunities for the inclusion of students with disabilities in US Schools. Revista Internacional de Educación para la Justicia Social 3(2),107-122. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/281849927
• Enslin, P. (2006). Democracy, social justice and education: Feminist strategies in a globalising world. Educational Philosophy and Theory, 38(1), 57-67. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-5812.2006.00174.x
• Ferreira, F. H. G., & Gignoux, J. (2010). Eğitimde fırsat eşitsizliği: Türkiye örneği, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti Devlet Planlama Teşkilatı ve Dünya Bankası Refah ve Sosyal Politika Analitik Çalışma Raporu [Inequality of opportunity in education: The case of Turkey, State Planning Organization of the Republic of Turkey and the World Bank Welfare and Social Policy Analytical Study Report]. Retrieved from https://abdigm.meb.gov.tr/projeler/ois/egitim/006.pdf.
• Fraser N. (2001). Social justice in the knowledge society: Redistribution, recognition and participation. Retrieved from https://www.mujeresenred.net/IMG/pdf/Social_Justice-Nancy_Fraser.pdf.
• Fraser, K. (2012). Exploring the leadership practices of social justice leaders at urban charter schools. (PhD Thesis). University of San Francisco. Retrieved from https://repository.usfca.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1036&context=diss.
• Furman, G. C. (2012). Social justice leadership as praxis: Developing capacities through prepa-ration programs. Educational Administration Quarterly, 48(2), 191-229. doi: 10.1177/0013161X114273
• Furman, G. C., & Gruenewald, D. A. (2004). Expanding the landscape of social justice: A critical ecological analysis. Educational Administration Quarterly, 40(1), 47-76. doi: 10.1177/0013161X03259142
• Furman, G. C., & Shields, C. M. (2005). How can educational leaders promote and support social justice and democratic community in schools? In W. A. Firestone & C. Riehl. (Eds.), A new agenda for research in educational leadership (pp.119-137). New York: Teachers College Press. Retrieved from http://eaq.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/43/1/138.
• Gaudelli, W. (2001). Reflection on multicultural education: A teacher’s experience. Multicultural Education, 8(4), 35-37. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/234600678.
• Gewirtz S. (2006). Towards a Contextualized Analysis of Social Justice in Education. Educational Philosophy and Theory, 38(1), 70-81. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-5812.2006.00175.x
• Goddard, J. T. (2005). Toward glocality: Facilitating leadership in an age of diversity. Journal of School Leadership, 15, 159-177. doi: 10.1177/105268460501500204
• Goldfarb, K. P., & Grinberg, J. (2002). Leadership for social justice: Authentic participation in the case of a community center in Caracas, Venezuela. Journal of School Leadership, 12, 157-173. doi: 10.1177/105268460201200204
• Grix, J. (2004). The Foundations of Research. Palgrave Macmillan. Retrieved from https://www.scribd.com/document/362996653/Grix-2004-The-Foundations-of-Research#.
• Guba, E. G. & Lincoln, Y. S. (1982). Epistemological and methodological bases of naturalistic inquiry. Educational Communication and Technology Journal, 30(4), 233-252. Retrieved from https://www.jstor.org/stable/30219846
• Gürgen, B. (2017). Examining the Perception of Social Justice in Schools. (Master’s Thesis). Eskişehir Osmangazi University Institute of Educational Sciences, Eskişehir. Retrieved from http://openaccess.ogu.edu.tr:8080/xmlui/handle/11684/1440.
• Hallinger, P. (2016). Bringing context out of the shadows of leadership. Educational Management Administration and Leadership. doi: 10.1177/1741143216670652.
• Houser, J. (2015). Nursing research: Reading, using, and creating evidence. Burlington: Jones ve Bartlett Learning. Retrieved from http://samples.jbpub.com/9781284110043/Table_of_Contents.pdf.
• Hunt, J. A. (1998). Of stories, seed and the promises of social justice. In W. Ayers, J. A. Hunt & T. Quinn (Eds.), Teaching for social justice. New York: New Press & Teacher’s College Press. doi: 10.2307/2668128
• Hurst, C. (2016). Social inequality: Forms, causes, and consequences. New York: Routledge. doi: 10.4324/9781315536859
• Jansen, J. D. (2006). Leading against the grain: The politics and emotions of leading for social justice in South Africa. Leadership and Policy in Schools, 5, 37-51. doi: 10.1080/15700760500484027
• Jean-Marie, G. (2008). Leadership for social justice: An agenda for 21st century schools. The Educational Forum, 72, 340–354. doi: 10.1080/00131720802362058
• Jean-Marie, G., Normore, A.H., & Brooks, J.S. (2009). Leadership for social justice: Preparing 21 st century school leaders for a new social order. Journal of Research on Leadership Education, 4(1), 1-31. Retrieved from https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ875408
• Joffe, H. (2011). Thematic Analysis. In D. Harper, & A. R. Thompson (Eds.), Qualitative Research Methods in Mental Health and Psychotherapy: A Guide for Students and Practitioners (pp. 210-223). Chichester: John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. doi: 10.1002/9781119973249.ch15
• Karagiannis, A., Stainback, W., & Stainback, S. (1996). Rationale for inclusive schooling. In S. B. Stainback & W. C. Stainback (Eds.), Inclusion: A guide for educators (pp. 3-16). Paul H. Brookes Publishing. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED461198
• Kenny, M. E., & Romano, J. L. (2009). Promoting positive development and social justice through prevention: A legacy for the future. In M. E. Kenny, A. M. Horne, P. Orpinas, & L. E. Reese (Eds.), Realizing social justice: The challenge of preventive interventions (pp. 17–35). N.C. USA: American Psychological Association. doi: 10.1037/11870-001
• King, F., & Travers, J. (2017). Social justice leadership through the lens of ecological systems theory. In P. S. Angelle (Ed.) A Global Perspective of Social Justice Leadership for School Principals (pp. 147-166). Charlotte, NC, USA: Information Age Publishing. Retrieved from https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/978-3-030-10874-8.pdf.
• Koçak, S., & Özdemir, M. (2019). Examining teachers’ opinions on social Justice leadership. Journal of Human Sciences, 16(4), 1164–1179. doi: 10.14687/jhs.v16i4.5871
• Kondakçı, Y., Kurtay, M. Z., Oldaç, Y. İ., & Şenay, H. H. (2016). Türkiye’de okul müdürlerinin sosyal adalet rolleri [Social justice roles of school principals in Türkiye]. In K. Beycioğlu, N. Özer, D. Koşar and İ. Şahin (Ed.), Eğitim yönetimi araştırmaları [Educational administration research] (pp. 353-361). Ankara: PegemA.
• Leithwood, K. A., & Riehl, C. (2005). What do we already know about educational leadership? In W. A. Firestone & C. Riehl (Eds.), A new agenda for research in educational leadership (pp. 12-27). New York: Teachers College Press. Retrieved from http://eaq.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/43/1/138
• Łuczynski, J. (2011). Zarz adzanie edukacyjne a wychowanie uczniów w szkole. Kraków: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Jagiello ´nskiego. Retrieved from https://ruj.uj.edu.pl/xmlui/bitstream/handle/item/83226/luczynski_zarzadzanie_edukacyjne_a_wychowanie_2011.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y.
• Lugg, C.A., & Shoho, A.R. (2006). Dare public school administrators build a new social order? Social justice and the possibly perilous politics of educational leadership. Journal of Educational Administration, 44(3), 196-208. doi: 10.1108/09578230610664805
• Marshall, M. N. (1996). Sampling for qualitative research. Family Practice, 13(6), 522-526. Retrieved from https://academic.oup.com/fampra/article/13/6/522/496701?login=true.
• Mason, J. (2002). Qualitative researching. Sage Publications. Retrieved from http://www.sxf.uevora.pt/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/Mason_2002.pdf.
• Mayer, S. E. (2003). What is a “disadvantaged group?” Retrieved from https://studylib.net/doc/8720705/what-is-a-%E2%80%9Cdisadvantaged group%3F%E2%80%9D
• McKenzie, K. B., & Scheurich, J. J. (2004). Equity traps: A Useful construct for preparing principals to lead schools that are successful with racially diverse students. Educational Administration Quarterly, 40, 601-632. Retrieved from https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ739200.
• McKenzie, K. B., Christman, D. E., Hernandez, F., Fierro, E., Capper, C. A., Dantley, M., & Scheurich, J. J. (2008). From the field: A proposal for educating leaders for social justice. Educational administration quarterly, 44(1), 111-138. Retrieved from https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/0013161X07309470.
• Merriam, S. B. (2009). Qualitative research: A guide to design and implementation; Revised and expanded from qualitative research and case study applications in education. San Francisco, CA: JosseyBass A Wiley Imprint.
• Muijs, D., Harris, A., Chapman, C., Stoll, L., & Russ, J. (2010). Improving schools in socioeconomically disadvantaged areas-A review of research evidence. School Effectiveness and School Improvement, 15(2), 149-175. doi: 10.1076/sesi.15.2.149.30433
• Murillo, J. F., Krichesky, G. J., Castro, A. M., & R. Hernández-Castilla, R. (2010). Liderazgo para la inclusión escolar y la justicia social. Aportaciones de la investigación. Revista Latinoamericana de Inclusión Educativa, 4(1), 169–186. Retrieved from http://www.rinace.net/rlei/numeros/vol4-num1/art8.pdf
• Oakes, J., Quartz, K. H., Ryan, S., & Lipton, M. (2000). Becoming good American schools, Phi Delta Kappan, 81(8), 568-576. Retrieved from https://journals.sagepub.com/loi/pdka/group/d2000.y2000.
• Oplatka, I. (2010). The place of “social justice” in the field of educational administration: A journal based historical overview of emergent area of study. I. Bogotch ve C. M. Shields (Ed.), International handbook of educational leadership and social justice (pp. 15-36). Springer International Handbooks of Education. doi: 10.1007/978-94-007-6555-9_2
• Oplatka, I., & Arar, K. H. (2015). Leadership for social justice and the characteristics of traditional societies: ponderings on the application of western-grounded models. International journal of leadership in education, 19(3), 352-369. doi: 10.1080/13603124.2015.1028464
• Özdemir, M. (2017). Examining the relations among social justice leadership, attitudes towards school and school engagement. Education and Science, 42(191), 267-281. doi: 10.15390/EB.2017.6281
• Özdemir, M., & Kütküt, B. (2015). Development of Social Justice Leadership Scale (SJLS): The Validity and Reliability Study. Journal of Ahi Evran University Kirsehir Education Faculty, 16(3), 201-218. Retrieved from https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/pub/kefad/issue/59449/854081.
• Patton, M. Q. (2005). Qualitative research. Chichester: John Wiley and Sons, Ltd. Retrieved from https://sci-hub.se/10.1002/0470013192.bsa514.
• Reyes, P., & Wagstaff, L. (2005). How does leadership promote successful teaching and learning for diverse students? In W. A. Firestone & C. Riehl (Eds.), A new agenda for research in educational leadership (pp. 101-118). New York: Teachers College Press. Retrieved from http://eaq.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/43/1/138
• Richardson, J. W., & Sauers, N. J. (2014). Social justice in India: perspectives from school leaders in diverse contexts. Management in Education, 28(3), 106-109. doi: 10.1177/0892020614535799
• Ryan, J. (2006). Inclusive leadership and social justice for schools. Leadership and Policy in Schools, 5, 3-17. doi: 10.1080/15700760500483995
• Ryan, J., & Higginbottom, K. (2017). Politics, activism, and leadership for social justice in education. In D. Waite & I. Bogotch (Eds.), The Wiley international handbook of educational leadership (pp. 103-123). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Retrieved from https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/book/10.1002/9781118956717.
• Ryan, J., & Rottmann, C. (2007) Educational leadership and policy approaches to critical social justice. Journal of Educational Administration and Foundation 18(1/2), 923. Retrieved from http://fcis.oise.utoronto.ca/~jryan/pub_files/Intro.pdf.
• Sarid, A. (2021). Social justice dilemmas: a multidimensional framework of social justice educational leadership. Leadershıp and Polıcy in Schools, 20(2), 149-167. doi: 10.1080/15700763.2019.1631856
• Scanlan, M. (2007). School leadership for social justice: A critique of starratt's tripartite model. Values and Ethics in Educational Administration, 5(3), 1-8. Retrieved from https://epublications.marquette.edu/edu_fac/48.
• Shields, C. M. (2004). Dialogic leadership for social justice: Overcoming pathologies of silence. Educational Administration Quarterly, 40(1), 109-132. doi: 10.1177/0013161X03258963
• Skrla, L., & Scheurich, J. J. (2001). Displacing deficit thinking in school district leadership. Education and Urban Society, 33, 235-259. doi: 10.1177/0013124501333
• Skrla, L., Scheurich, J. J., Garcia, J., & Nolly, G. (2004). Equity audits: A practical leadership tool for developing equitable and excellent schools. Educational Administration Quarterly, 40, 135-163. doi: 10.1177/0013161X03259148
• Smith, J. A., & Osborn, M. (2003). Interpretative phenomenological analysis. In G. M. Breakwell (Ed.), Doing social psychology research (pp. 229-254). England: Blackwell Publishing; British Psychological Society. Retrieved from https://www.scirp.org/(S(351jmbntvnsjt1aadkozje))/reference/ReferencesPapers.aspx?ReferenceID=1389608.
• Suri, H. (2011). Purposeful sampling in qualitative research synthesis, Qualitative Research Journal, 11(2), 63-75. doi: 10.3316/QRJ1102063.
• Tarrou, A. H., & Holmesland, I. S. (2002). Building equality and social justice through education. European Education, 34(2), 13-25. doi: 10.2753/EUE1056-4934340213
• Theoharis, G. (2007a). Social justice educational leaders and resistance: Toward a theory of social justice leadership. Educational Administration Quarterly, 43, 221–258. doi: 10.1177/0013161X06293717
• Theoharis, G. (2007b). Navigating rough waters: A synthesis of the countervailing pressures against leading for social justice. Journal of School Leadership, 17, 4-27. Retrieved from https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/105268460701700101
• Theoharis, G. (2008). Woven in deeply: Identity and leadership of urban social justice principals. Education and Urban Society, 41(1), 3-25. doi: 10.1177/0013124508321372
• Tomul, E. (2009). Managers' views on social justice practices in primary schools. Education and Science, 34(152), 126-137. Retrieved from http://egitimvebilim.ted.org.tr/index.php/EB/article/view/597.
• UNESCO, (2022). 244M children won’t start the new school year (UNESCO). Retrieved from https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/244m-children-wont-start-new-school-year-unesco.
• Walzer, M. (1983). Spheres of Justice, Blackwells. Retrieved from https://www.academia.edu/29670032/Michael_Walzer_and_Spheres_of_Justice.
• Wang, F. (2018). Social Justice Leadership-Theory and Practice: A Case of Ontario. Educational Administration Quarterly, 5(3), 470-498. doi: 0013161X18761341.
• Wasonga, T. A. (2009). Leadership practices for social justice, democratic community, and learning: school principals’ perspectives. Journal of School Leadership, 19, 200-224. doi: 10.1177/105268460901900204
• Williamson, H. (2022). Why wouldn’t you want to be a social justice warrior? Retrieved from https://www.independent.co.uk/voices
• Zufiaurre, B., & Wilkinson, J. (2014). School leadership: Is a shift from efficient management to social justice possible? Perspectiva Educacional Formacion de Profesores, 53(1), 114-129. doi: 10.4151/07189729-Vol.53-Iss.1-Art.192