Leadership as a socially and culturally informed praxis: The question of internationalisation in international school leadership

Résumé 0

Despite the growing size and number of international schools globally, research examining their leadership and communities is still limited. The emerging research interest in this field has not yet fully explored the relationship of leaders with the social fields in which they work and the cultural and social needs of their teachers and students. This article investigates leadership practice and learning in international schools in England and Qatar, offering a brief historical background of the development of these schools in each country. Additionally, the article examines leaders’ response to the multicultural social fields in which they work and the cultural capital of their teachers and students. The article uses Bourdieu’s social theory as a key sociological framework and engages with his concepts, field, capital, habitus, and practice highlighting their interconnection and relevance in the context of this research. The article analyses leadership praxis (knowledge and practice) by building on existing research in social justice leadership, culturally relevant, and culturally responsiveness educational leadership. This article is based on a larger study that addresses the limitations of leadership learning and practice in Qatar and England international schools through a critical realist and a mixed methodological approach. Nonetheless, this article presents only the results of in-depth individual and group interviews (N=24) with senior international school leaders (n=10), middle leaders (n= 9), teachers (n=7), and high-school students (n=16). The findings showed that international schools are characterised by multiculturalism, mobility, and transience, which significantly impacts the experiences of working and learning in these contexts. The findings reflect broad and performative notions of internationalism and substantial gaps in leadership knowledge and practice in relation to the cultural capital and needs of their teachers and students. The discussion of findings engages in a theoretical analysis of the reasons behind these gaps and the impact of neoliberalisation and structuralisation in the field. The article highlights the need for a perspective shift in educational leadership theory that involves a socially and culturally informed praxis and transformative leadership learning and calls for further theorising of internationalisation in educational leadership.