THIS PAPER REPORTS ON the emerging findings of the first year of an inquiry-based professional development program called Educational Leadership in Early Childhood Settings (ELECS). The program was funded by the then Early Childhood Policy and Strategic Projects Division of the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development (Victoria, Australia) and delivered under the auspices of the Bastow Institute of Educational Leadership. The intent of the program was to support early childhood educational leaders to mentor early childhood educators in the implementation of the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework (VEYLDF). The paper interweaves some of the initial data drawn from the program evaluations through a review of the early childhood leadership literature. The paper includes examples of participant understandings of themselves as educational leaders and demonstrates how their involvement in the program informed their leadership in relation to the VEYLDF. The paper concludes with a discussion of the outcomes of the program in terms of the participants' changing perceptions of early childhood leadership.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
ArgyrisC. (1991). Teaching smart people how to learn. Harvard Business Review, May–June, 99–109.
2.
BlackmoreJ. (1999). Troubling women: Feminism, leadership and educational change.Buckingham, UK: Open University Press.
3.
BlackmoreJ. (2010). Disrupting notions of leadership from feminist post-colonial positions. International Journal of Leadership in Education: Theory and Practice, 13(1), 1–6.
4.
BlackmoreJ. (2011), Lost in translation? Emotional intelligence, affective economies, leadership and organizational change. Journal of educational administration and history, vol. 43, no. 3, pp. 207–225.
5.
BolmanL., & DealT. (2010). Reframing the path to school leadership.London: Sage.
6.
BorkoH. (2004). Professional development and teacher learning: Mapping the terrain. Educational Researcher, 33(8), 3–15.
7.
BowdenJ., & MartonF. (1998). The university of learning: Beyond quality and competence.London: RoutledgeFalmer.
8.
BrennanD. (1994). The politics of Australian child care: From philanthropy to feminism.Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
9.
DahlbergG., MossP., & PenceA. (1999). Beyond quality in early childhood education and care: Postmodern perspectives.London: Palmer Press.
10.
DegenhardtL., & DuignanP. (2010). Dancing on a shifting carpet: Reinventing traditional schooling for the 21st century.Camberwell: ACER Press.
11.
DesimoneL. (2009). Improving impact studies of teacher's professional development: Toward better conceptualisations and measures. Educational Researcher, 38(3), 181–199.
12.
DillaboughJ. (2005). Gender, ‘symbolic domination’ and female work: The case of teacher education. Discourse: studies in the cultural politics of education.26(2), 127–148.
13.
DuignanP. (1997). The dance of leadership: At the still point of the turning world (Vol. 21). Hawthorn, Victoria: Australian Council for Educational Administration (Victoria) Inc.
14.
EbbeckM., & WaniganayakeM. (2003). Early childhood professionals: Leading today and tomorrow.Sydney: Maclennan & Petty.
15.
Fichtman DanaN., & Yendol-HoppyD. (2005). Becoming an early childhood teacher leader and advocate for social justice: A phenomenological interview study. Early Childhood Teacher Education, 26(3), 191–206.
16.
FitzgeraldT. (2010). Spaces in-between: Indigenous women leaders speak back to dominant discourses and practices in educational leadership. International Journal of Leadership in Education: Theory and Practice, 13(1), 93–105.
17.
GhayeT. (2011). Teaching and learning through reflective practice: A practical guide to positive action. London and New York: Routledge.
18.
GreerM. (2005). The science of savoir faire. Monitor on Psychology, 36, 28–30.
19.
GrieshaberS., & CannellaG. (2001). From identity to identities: Increasing possibilities in early childhood education. In GrieshaberS. & CannellaG. (Eds.), Embracing identities in early childhood education: Diversity and possibilities (pp. 3–22). New York: Teachers College Press.
20.
HallB., HarariO., LedigB., & TondowM. (1986). Manual for The Hall-Tonna inventory of values.New Jersey: Paulist Press.
HardL., & GormanL. (2007). ‘Push-Me’ or ‘Pull-you’? An opportunity for early childhood leadership in the implementation of Queensland's early years curriculum. Contemporary Issues in Early Childhood, 8(1), 50–60.
23.
Henderson-KellyL., & PamphilonB. (2000). Women's models of leadership in the child care sector. Australian Journal of Early Childhood, 37(1), 8.
24.
HoganR., & KaiserR. (2005). What we know about leadership. Review of General Psychology, 9, 169–180.
Jorde BloomP. (1997). Navigating the rapids: Directors reflect on their careers and professional development. Young Children, 52(7), 32–38.
27.
KaganS. L., & HallmarkL. G. (2001). Cultivating leadership in early care and education. Childcare Information Exchange, 140, 7–11.
28.
LarsonC. L., & MurtadhaK. (2002). Leadership for social justice. In MurphyJ. (Ed.), The Educational Leadership Challenge: Redefining Leadership for the 21stCentury (pp. 134–161). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
29.
Lau ChinJ., LottB., RiceJ., & Sanchez-HuclesJ. (2007). Women and Leadership: Transforming visions and diverse voices.Oxford: Blackwell Publishing.
30.
MacNaughtonG. (2005). Doing Foucault in early childhood studies: Applying poststructuralist ideas. London and New York: Routledge.
31.
MoonJ. A. (2002). Reflection in learning and professional development: Theory and practice.London: Kogan Page.
32.
MuijsD., AubreyC., HarrisA., & BriggsM. (2004). How do they manage?: A review of the research on leadership in early childhood. Journal of Early Childhood Research, 2(2), 157–169.
33.
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). (2001). Starting Strong: Early Childhood Development and Care.Paris: OECD.
34.
PollardA. (2005). Reflective teaching: Evidence informed. London and New York: Continuum.
35.
PressF., & HayesA. (2000). OECD thematic review of early childhood education and care policy: Australian background report.ACT: Department of Education, Training and Youth Affairs.
36.
RoddJ. (1996). Towards a typology of leadership for the early childhood professional of the 21st century. Early Childhood Development and Care, 120, 119–126.
37.
RoddJ. (1998). Leadership in early childhood.Buckingham: Open University Press.
38.
RoddJ. (2005). A discussion paper: Leadership: An essential ingredient or an optional extra for quality early childhood provision? Retrieved 22 February, 2012, from www.tactyc.org.uk/pdfs/rodd.pdf.
39.
RoddJ. (2006). Leadership in early childhood. (3rd edn). Crows Nest, NSW: Allen & Unwin.
40.
SengeP. (1990). The fifth discipline: The art and practice of the learning organisation.New York: Doubleday.
41.
Siraj-BlatchfordI., & ManniL. (2006). Effective leadership in the early years sector study.London: Institute of Education.
42.
St. PierreE. A. (2004). Care of the self: The subject and freedom. In BakerB. & HeyningK. E. (Eds.), Dangerous coagulations? The uses of Foucault in the study of education (pp. 325–358). New York: Peter Lang.
43.
StamopoulosE. (2012). Reframing early childhood leadership. Australasian Journal of Early Childhood, 37(2), 42–48.
44.
SumsionJ., CheesemanC., HarrisonL., KennedyA., & StonehouseA. (2009). Insider perspectives on developing Belonging, Being and Becoming: The Early Years Learning Framework for Australia. Australasian Journal of Early Childhood, 34(4), 4–13.
45.
ThorntonK., WansbroughD., Clarkin-PhillipsJ., AitkenH., & TamatiA. (2009). Conceptualising leadership in Early Childhood Education in Aotearoa New Zealand (occasional paper). New Zealand Teachers Council. Retrieved 16 August, 2011, from: www.teacherscouncil.govt.nz.
46.
WaniganayakeM., MordaR., & KapsalakisA. (2000). Leadership in child care centres: Is it just another job?Australian Journal of Early Childhood, 26(1), 13.
47.
WaniganayakeM., CheesemanS., FenechM., HadleyF., & ShepherdW. (2012). Leadership: Contexts and complexities in early childhood education.Melbourne: Open University Press.
48.
WhiteheadK. (2008). The construction of early childhood teachers' professional identities, then and now. Australasian Journal of Early Childhood, 33(3), 34–41.
49.
WoodrowC., & BuschG. (2008). Repositioning early childhood leadership as action and activism. European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, 16(1), 83–93.
