Changes in Local School Practices Following Principal Turnover

Katina Thelin; Sandra Lund

doi:10.30828/real.1818674

Changes in Local School Practices Following Principal Turnover

Abstract

This article reports and discusses a study starting from general knowledge of the importance of school leadership and previous research on the impact of principal turnover. It arrives at the conclusion that principal turnover constitutes a critical, practice-disturbing, and practice-changing event in the local school organisation. The aim of this study is to examine how local school practices change during principal turnover and to characterise how such change unfolds across different dimensions of practice. Drawing on the theory of practice architectures and 497 unique free-text responses from a questionnaire distributed to school staff and parents/guardians in five Swedish municipalities, the analysis shows how leadership transitions affect not only the practice of leading but also a range of interconnected practices within the local education complex. The findings link principal turnover to changes in the semantic, physical, and social dimensions of these practices, highlighting their significance for various stakeholders. Among those most affected by these changes are students with special educational needs and newly arrived students, who appear particularly vulnerable to the effects of principal turnover.

Keywords

Ethical Statement

Formal ethical approval was not sought, as the study did not involve sensitive personal data and was conducted in line with Swedish regulations governing research exempt from ethical review (Swedish Research Council, 2024).

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Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

Leadership in Education

Journal Section

Research Article

Authors

Katina Thelin ^*
0000-0002-4897-6657
Sweden

Sandra Lund
0000-0003-4209-0406
Sweden

Publication Date

March 30, 2026

Submission Date

November 6, 2025

Acceptance Date

March 23, 2026

Published in Issue

Year 2026 Volume: 11 Number: 1

DOI

https://doi.org/10.30828/real.1818674

IZ

https://izlik.org/JA67YW34UL

Cite

RIS / Bibtex

APA

Thelin, K., & Lund, S. (2026). Changes in Local School Practices Following Principal Turnover. Research in Educational Administration and Leadership, 11(1), 1-36. https://doi.org/10.30828/real.1818674

AMA

1.Thelin K, Lund S. Changes in Local School Practices Following Principal Turnover. REAL. 2026;11(1):1-36. doi:10.30828/real.1818674

Chicago

Thelin, Katina, and Sandra Lund. 2026. “Changes in Local School Practices Following Principal Turnover”. Research in Educational Administration and Leadership 11 (1): 1-36. https://doi.org/10.30828/real.1818674.

EndNote

Thelin K, Lund S (March 1, 2026) Changes in Local School Practices Following Principal Turnover. Research in Educational Administration and Leadership 11 1 1–36.

IEEE

[1]K. Thelin and S. Lund, “Changes in Local School Practices Following Principal Turnover”, REAL, vol. 11, no. 1, pp. 1–36, Mar. 2026, doi: 10.30828/real.1818674.

ISNAD

Thelin, Katina - Lund, Sandra. “Changes in Local School Practices Following Principal Turnover”. Research in Educational Administration and Leadership 11/1 (March 1, 2026): 1-36. https://doi.org/10.30828/real.1818674.

JAMA

1.Thelin K, Lund S. Changes in Local School Practices Following Principal Turnover. REAL. 2026;11:1–36.

MLA

Thelin, Katina, and Sandra Lund. “Changes in Local School Practices Following Principal Turnover”. Research in Educational Administration and Leadership, vol. 11, no. 1, Mar. 2026, pp. 1-36, doi:10.30828/real.1818674.

Vancouver

1.Katina Thelin, Sandra Lund. Changes in Local School Practices Following Principal Turnover. REAL. 2026 Mar. 1;11(1):1-36. doi:10.30828/real.1818674