Rethinking Educational Leadership

In this cutting edge book, Fenwick W. English and Lisa Catherine Ehrich introduce an alternative way of thinking about educational leadership. Paying particular attention to the pivotal role of theory in understanding, improving and ultimately changing current practice, the authors present a unique means to rethink the field.The book explores the history of educational leadership, analysing portraits of leaders throughout history to illustrate how key concepts have evolved. The authors propose critiques of popular social science models, management fads and leadership standardization, making an innovative case for school leader preparation to be informed by aesthetic understandings. Evaluating aesthetics as a vital reinforcement of the human dimensions of leadership, they unearth the philosophical assumptions that underpin the practice.Making a pioneering interjection in the field, Rethinking Educational Leadership is essential for scholars and students of educational leadership and administration, providing an alternative approach to the traditional social science model inherent in current educational leadership thinking. It will further benefit educational leaders and administrators looking for innovative pathways for developing their leadership practice.