School leadership in Israel amid COVID-19: A systematic review

Abstract

This review examines how school leadership in Israel was studied during the COVID-19 pandemic and identifies the central themes in the emerging literature. Following PRISMA guidelines, twenty-four peer-reviewed publications were analyzed using inductive thematic synthesis. Three thematic areas were identified: emotional and relational leadership, crisis and agentic leadership, and instructional and inclusive leadership. Themes related to equity and learning continuity appeared far less frequently, pointing to notable gaps in Israeli scholarship. Beyond offering the first systematic review of Israeli research on this topic, the study provides a theoretical contribution by questioning the assumption that crisis leadership is a universal or uniformly defined construct. The findings illustrate that leadership during crises is shaped by local social, cultural, and political conditions, which influence what leaders prioritize and how they act. The patterns that emerged in the Israeli context reveal underlying cultural logics and value orientations that frame how leadership is understood and practiced in moments of disruption. By showing how crisis leadership takes different forms across contexts, the review extends theoretical conversations about leadership in emergencies and underscores the importance of situating global models within specific cultural settings.