National Curriculum Development as Educational Leadership: A Discursive and Non-affirmative Approach

China has a long history of education, and its institutionalized educational leadership and administration can be traced back more than 2,000 years. Since then, educational leadership and administration systems have evolved with the development of society, politics, economy, and culture, and an educational leadership and administration system with significant Chinese characteristics has been formed. The current educational leadership and administration system in China is stipulated by different laws and regulations of the country. The State Council and the local people’s governments at various levels are responsible to guide and administer educational work under the principles of administration by different levels and a division of responsibilities. This educational leadership and administration system in China is related not only to the history of the centralized culture but also to the administration system of the country. At the beginning of the 21st century, the world is undergoing significant development, profound change, and major adjustments, while China is currently at a key stage for reform and development. World multi-polarization, globalization of the economy, development of the knowledge economy, dramatic changes in science and technology, competition for talent worldwide, and the trend toward industrialization, informatization, urbanization, marketization, and internationalization in China pose a severe challenge to education and its administration. At the same time, some serious problems in educational leadership and administration remain to be solved. Facing these challenges and problems, the government called for reforms to promote the educational governance system and modernization of the educational governance capability to educational administration. The new educational governance system emphasizes empowerment, autonomy, shared governance, social participation in policymaking, and administration.

Efforts at national curriculum development and co-ordination in Australia date from the late 1960s and early 1970s. The first phase of national curriculum activity involved the creation of national committees. A second phase commenced with the creation of the Curriculum Development Centre, although the work of the CDC was affected significantly by the decision (1980–81) to wind the centre down. Now, with the re-emergence of the CDC in a new form, a third phase of national curriculum activity has commenced. The Language Development Project (LDP) was the last of three national curriculum projects initiated in the 1970s, and the only one wholly developed by the CDC. The processes of planning and generating LDP activity were therefore different from earlier national curriculum initiatives. It is argued that the experience of the LDP offers important lessons for future national curriculum development, both in terms of models of co-ordination and management, and in terms of appropriate patterns for the involvement and development of teachers.

Despite the ubiquity of programmes in educational administration and leadership little is known about the resources used to teach them. This article reviews the sources currently employed in such programmes in Australia by examining the textbooks, book chapters and journal articles specified for 53 separate units (papers) offered at 15 of the key institutions that responded to requests for copies of their reading lists. Surprisingly, few of the units prescribed textbooks (35), relying instead on book chapters (243) and journal articles (362). While there was a very eclectic spread of sources across institutions, 10 major themes emerged. However, there appeared to be little emphasis on Australian research on educational leadership and little reference to major Australian authors of the previous decades. This may be because the field has become global. The second part of the article therefore examines an audit of the contributions made by Australian authors to the global literature represented by leading journals in the field. The audit shows that during the period 1977–2007 an average of 12–13% of papers in key journals were contributed by Australian authors, perhaps more than might be expected given the comparative size of the Australian community.

School Reform: The District Policy Implications of the Effective Schools Literature

Finland is a country with two national languages,1 Finnish and Swedish. Finland is by no means the only officially bilingual country in the world, but opposite to the situation in many other countries, Finnish bilingualism is highly appreciated internationally, as it is regarded as well functioning (see e.g. McRae, 1999). Compared to two other well-known examples of officially bilingual countries, Canada and Belgium, Finland excels by truly attributing both languages equal status, whereas in the other two the formal recognition of the minority language in the public sphere has remained essentially symbolic (Schnapper, 2004). So, multilingualism being a catchword of today, Finland seems quite successful in that respect. However, this model state of bilingualism faces serious problems despite the noble intentions of ensuring its citizens’ constitutional rights through the use of their mother tongue. This can be seen, for instance, in cases where public authorities lack sufficient command of the other national language to be able to serve the citizen in his/her native tongue. As the state aims at avoiding these kinds of shortcomings, both national languages are part of the national core curriculum for basic education (National Board of Education, 2004) to provide the citizens with language skills in the other national language. However, not everybody is satisfied with an educational practice in which the large majority is obliged to study the minority’s language for a three-year minimum.

The National Development Programme for Low Rectal Cancer in England (LOREC) was commissioned in response to wide variation in the outcome of patients with low rectal cancer. One of the aims of LOREC was to enhance surgical techniques in managing low rectal cancer. This study reports on the development and evaluation of a novel national technical skills cadaveric training curriculum in extralevator abdominoperineal excision. Three sites were commissioned for the cadaveric workshops, each delivering the same training curriculum. Training was undertaken in pairs using a fresh-frozen cadaveric model under the supervision of expert mentors. Global assessment score (GAS) forms were developed to promote reflective learning. Feedback on the impact of the workshop was obtained from a sample of delegates at the end of the course, and also after 3-23months via an online questionnaire. Overall 112 consultant colorectal surgeons attended one of 15 cadaveric technical skills training workshops. Seventy-six per cent of delegates reported easy identification of anatomy in the cadaveric model; 67% found tissue planes easy to interpret. Ninety-six per cent of delegates felt the workshop would influence their future practice; 96% reported increased awareness of important anatomy. Only 2% of delegates wished to pursue supplementary formal training from LOREC. Fresh-frozen cadavers could provide an effective training model for low rectal surgery. A structured 1-day cadaveric workshop has facilitated the dissemination of technical skills for management of low rectal cancer. Attending the cadaveric workshop enhanced delegates' confidence in performing this procedure.

The New Zealand education system has experienced considerable reform and policy change since 1989. These have occurred in the context of major economic, social and public sector reforms. Fiske and Ladd (2000) comment that “Rarely has any country engaged in such a sustained and far-reaching overhaul of its education system.” In 1989 major administrative reforms were initiated followed closely by the development of a new national curriculum and qualifications framework. From 1996 to 2002 the emphasis shifted much more directly onto a sharpening professional and policy focus directed towards lifting achievement. The period since 2002 has extended the focus on raising student achievement through a concentrated emphasis on increasing the effectiveness of teaching and strengthening the roles of family and community as the two most important “levers” to influence student achievement. Associated with this has been a major investment in building a strong evidence base, professional development more strongly designed and judged in relation to its impact on student outcomes and increased monitoring of the performance of the school system. Over this period the “role of government” has evolved from one that initially emphasised a sharp separation of roles to one that now looks for greater clarity and understanding of the different roles and relationships between government, schools, profession and communities within a system characterised by interdependent relationships.

Educational leadership scholarship, research on school individuals at the helm of achieving school goals, is well documented. However, less is known regarding educational leaders’ research in professional doctorate programmes, where practice may influence scholarship. This study sought to add to professional doctorate research by using directed qualitative content analysis guided by educational administration schools of thought described in a review of the literature to uncover educational leaders’ interests and concerns through an examination of 101 professional doctorate dissertations completed between 2013 and 2019. Of the 101 dissertations analysed, 88 aligned with the educational administration corpus. Educational leaders focused the majority of their research on school improvement and school effectiveness (65.9%), while leading teachers (5.7%) was of less concern. This result suggests that educational leaders with the agency or power to implement the findings from their doctoral dissertation may consider research in school improvement and school effectiveness as the most critical education administration school of research. Results from this study could be used by other educational leadership programmes to determine the prevalence of education administration research, examine the role of practice in research completed, and to broaden the scope of leaders’ research.

The special edition of JEAH published in August 2006 on ‘Administration and Leadership in Education: A Case for History?’ argued that history has been seriously undervalued in the study of administration and leadership in education. My introductory editorial explained why this mattered and outlined the framework in which the papers it contained were set. It then examined the concepts of administration and leadership in education and considered them as a field (or fields) of knowledge. In an exploration of how knowledge is produced, it discussed history as a form of knowledge and considered the contribution it could make to the study of the field. This was followed by a review of what was asked of the contributors and their response. The editorial concluded with ideas for future work. At the request of the new editors of the journal, this paper is a revised and extended version of my earlier editorial. Some aspects have been shortened (e.g., the review of contributions), others extended (e.g., views on history and its role), and some new material has been added (e.g., a discussion of the history of the field in the UK as represented in attempts to review the field since George Baron’s ground‐breaking keynote given at the first research conference of the British Educational Administration Society held in Birmingham in 1979).

This study aims to understand the implementation of character internalization through the Living Qur'an at Al-Washliyah Labuhanbatu Utara Elementary School. This qualitative study employs a phenomenological approach to explore the experiences of students and educators in applying Qur'anic values in daily life. The findings reveal that the Living Qur'an is implemented through Qur'anic education that goes beyond mere memorization, emphasizing understanding and practicing moral values such as honesty, perseverance, and mutual assistance. The internalization strategies employed include teacher modeling, group discussions, and experiential learning approaches. However, this study also identified several challenges, such as limited facilities, a lack of deep understanding of the Living Qur'an among educators, and inconsistencies between the national curriculum and religion-based character development. Despite these challenges, the implementation of the Living Qur'an at Madrasah Ibtidaiyah Al-Washliyah has had a positive impact on the character development of students. This study is expected to contribute to the development of a Qur'an-based character education model in madrasahs.

Over 2007-2009 we have worked with the national curriculum's key competencies to establish their place and purpose in the social sciences learning area. As a result, our initial teacher education (ITE) primary social studies programmes involve pedagogy that conceives key competencies as analogous to social inquiry thinking and skills processes. Our team was keen to research ways ITE students identify and embed key competencies in their social inquiry planning decisions. The research also sought student reflection of how engagement with key competencies might influence their future social studies teaching and learning. The article offers a storying of ways the curriculum element of key competencies has been developed, implemented, researched and reflected upon within ITE primary social studies curriculum.

Problem. There appears to be a growing uneasiness with much of current educational administrative theory and practice. It is hypothesized that this is largely due to inadequacies of the fundamental presuppositional platforms upon which these theories, practices, and methods are built. Purpose. The primary purpose of this study is to discover and present the fundamental and broadly generalizable presuppositional platforms upon which the theory, methodology, and practice of educational administration should be built, and to develop and present a theoretical model for the educational administrative function that is built upon these presuppositional platforms. Method. The method may be described as a creative historical dialogue where the construction of a thesis and the gradual elaboration of an idea takes the form of adeductive concept oriented synthesis. Larger meanings are developed from a wide variety of multi-disciplinary concepts. This deductive synthetic methodology is characterized by a high degree of autonomy, creativity, and individual effort. Findings. By subjecting all of reality to a total of man's inquiry, the dimensions of reality are revealed. Therefore, every entity of reality is considered to have an origin (Whence?), to exist in time (When?), and space (Where?), plus an anticipated future destiny (Whither?). Additionally, every entity is characterized by three--physical (What? Who?), pattern (How?), and purpose (Why?)--intrinsic dimensions. This ternary concept of reality appears to suggest a perfect totality, where the origin of the physical materials and the patterns of organization and interaction in a purposive manner have their origin outside of these dimensions themselves. Within this view, man has a ternary nature where the physical, pattern-mental, and purpose-moral-spiritual dimensions are interactively engaged in a developmental yet continuous and dynamic totality of living activity. The methodology of structuralism and a variety of selected disciplines appear to be supportive of this ternary view of man. The educational social structure constitutes a specific structure located within a megaparadigm of social structures and is characterized by the ternary physical, pattern, and purpose dimensions and the internal relationships that exist among these three dimensions, together with the external relationships that exist between every entity and structure within the total environment. Central to these structures is theposition and ternary nature of man. The complex matrices of entities, persons, dimensions, and relationships, therefore, constitute the comprehensive and wide generalizable presuppositional features. It is within this view that educational administrative function may be viewed. Conclusion. Educational administration is, therefore, a ternary function where physical, pattern, and the purposive dimensions of educational administrative situations, actions, and evaluations are located in a ternary educational social structure. These, in turn, are all located in a ternary megaparadigm of social structures which require an account of the total ternary environment. Therefore, the educational administrative function may be seen as flowing out from the complex matrices of the three-dimensional nature (physical, pattern-mental, purpose-moral-spiritual) of reality, man and his social structures, and the three correlated ternary components of situations, actions, and evaluations where quantitative and realistic, qualitative and effective, and purposive and responsible features of educational leadership and administration occur as a ternary function.

List of Contributors. Introduction. Chapter 1 Understanding the Ethical Failures of Law Enforcement. Chapter 2 I am Second: Ethical Leadership and Self-Denial. Chapter 3 Ethical Issues in School Search and Seizure. Chapter 4 Ethical Issues for a Police Psychologist. Chapter 5 Responsible Action as a Construct for Ethical Leadership: Investigating the Effect of School and Community on Police Involvement in Student Disciplinary Affairs. Chapter 6 The Challenges of School-Police Partnerships in Large Urban School Systems: An Analysis of New York City's Impact Schools Initiative. Chapter 7 Institutional Moral Architecture: From Schools to Prisons. Chapter 8 In Pursuit of Equity and Excellence in Law Enforcement Leadership. Chapter 9 Theories of Criminal Justice: The Influence of Value Attributions on Correctional Education. Chapter 10 The Value Struggle Between the Families of Law Enforcement: The Family at Home and the Family at Work. Chapter 11 Discrimination Under Section 504 and the Americans with Disabilities Act. Chapter 12 Youth Detention Facilities and Restorative Justice: Lesson for Public Education. About the Authors. Index. Leadership in Education, Corrections and Law Enforcement: A Commitment to Ethics, Equity and Excellence. Advances in Educational Administration. Advances in Educational Administration. Copyright page.

<p><b>This comparative project explored educational leaders’ views, practices, and experiences in relation to school culture, climate, leadership, and student success in three international contexts: New Zealand, Finland, and Ghana. Taking an interpretive methodological stance, the study used policy documents, observations, artefacts, and interviews as data sources. A total of twenty-seven participants (school leaders, university experts, and Ministry officials) took part; nine from each of the three countries. </b></p><p>Key insights from the study include identifying positive aspects from each of the three countries. Generally, each of the cases showed positive relationships between students’ success and teacher-teacher, teacher-students, teacher-principal, shared leadership, teamwork, school-based guidance and counselling, and more. Specifically, for New Zealand, positive impetus for students’ success included, respect for teaching, use of local curriculum, a clear and relevant Education Act, and free tuition. For Finland, the positive variables included respect for teaching, local-based curriculum, school-based psychologists, and free tuition and school meals. For Ghana, these included school-based Christian Chaplains and Imams, a free boarding system which included tuition and meals, and a relevant quota system to encourage minority inclusion in education. </p><p>While partially confirming the relevant literature on effective school leadership and students’ success, the study argues for a deeper understanding of the subject to include issues of global socio-cultural, socio-political, and socio-economic undercurrents and trends; symbolic capital; and hierarchical decision-making models’. </p><p>It is these sociological variables, forms and relationships, and dimensions of a complex education subsystem which act as catalysts for the daily practices of school leadership that influence students’ success. </p><p>The study offers (a) a theoretical framework for analysing school leadership and students’ success and (b) key recommendations for Ministries of Education and school administration and leaders. </p>

This article examines the intersection of three concepts in education – cultural security, globalization and the postcolonial critique – are related in order to advance the application of cultural security studies in educational administration and leadership. The first section discusses constructivist security studies as they apply to socio-cultural and political aspects of educational values, identity formation and cultural norms in non-Western contexts can be viewed as securitized. The second section presents connections between security studies and globalized education by demonstrating how the latter can be defined as a cultural security problem. The next section shows similarities between cultural security and postcolonial critiques as they relate to foreign curriculum and pedagogy for educational leadership as a form of re-colonization that can undermine the integrity of other cultures, using the United Arab Emirates as an example. The final section discusses this critique in relation to an illustrative country, the United Arab Emirates. The conclusion discusses the implications for educational administration as a field of study, research and practice.