Judging What They Do: Formal, Informal, and Self Appraisal of New Zealand (Rural) Primary School Principals

As in other western market economies, New Zealand government education policy reflects neoliberal economic thinking, neo-conservative ideals and practices of an audit culture. New Zealand’s self-managing schools’ policy, introduced in 1989, changed significantly the complexity of school principals’ work. Leadership frameworks and professional standards have ‘captured’ this complexity and support appraisal of principals. Neoliberal/neoconservative thinking has also influenced educational leadership research by focusing on individual leader characteristics and specific cases of ‘successful’ school principalship. Instead in this study formative assessment research provides the lens to (re)consider appraisal experience of six school principals in small rural primary schools. Using a contemporary-pragmatist approach, interviews, abductive processes of analysis and literary forms of representation were chosen as appropriate research design elements. The research concern was: to what extent does principal appraisal recognise the nature and complexity of expectations of principal work in specific school settings and consider the human being undertaking this work? Insights from this study come under the umbrella phrase it is people that matter. Thus, appraisal in this study reflects the nature of principals’ work—in the significance of interaction, management and professional judgement—more than aspects of administration or assessment. Recommendations include: future appraisal policy values principal-appraiser interaction; principal preparation and professional development programmes advocate for the importance of self-care and management in principalship; and research further explores the nature and influence of school communities on principals’ decision-making and the judgement of principals’ work.

Grantor dc:publisher.institution

The University of Waikato

Year dc:date.issued

2017

Author dc:creator

• Earl Rinehart, (Suzanne) Kerry

Advisors dc:contributor.advisor

• Alcorn, Noeline
• Ussher, William (Bill) Grant

• Principal appraisal,
• contemporary pragmatism
• New Zealand Primary schools
• rural education
• formative assessment
• summative assessment
• literary representation
• research poetry
• educational leadership
• professional standards
• principals' work
• professional learning
• self care
• self-appraisal
• school community
• educational management
• judgement of principals work

Statement dc:rights

• All items in Research Commons are provided for private study and research purposes and are protected by copyright with all rights reserved unless otherwise indicated.

Licence

• https://researchcommons.waikato.ac.nz/bitstreams/3f85f4ad-085b-4f83-8393-1c3ed525aeae/download