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As the number of 'non-traditional' international schools in some parts of the world rapidly increases, questions are emerging about the legitimacy of this global subset of schools. At the same time, since these schools operate in locations that arguably call for unique solutions to a variety of local challenges, it seems necessary to consider alternative leadership models for them. One such alternative leadership model is the dual-culture co-principalship, a model currently used in some international schools in China and one that may become more important in the future. The aim of this study, then, was to analyze the leadership and management of dual-culture co-principals in international schools in China. This aim was accomplished through an analysis of their sense-making and decision-making processes using a critical incident method and thematic analysis. Five themes emerged from the thematic analysis, revealing a variety of factors and influences on the sense-making and decision-making processes of dual-culture co-principals. When viewed through one particular institutional theory framework, the emerged themes revealed that dual-culture co-principals face a variety of challenges with respect to securing legitimacy for their international school in China. Several implications resulted from this enquiry, and a number of suggestions for future research have been provided.

The research into leadership in schools in different cultures and countries has provided evidence that leadership is practiced differently in different regions, as is shown in the literature review of this thesis, but there has been little attention to the question of how to lead in culturally diverse communities. The purpose of this research is to investigate if leaders use different leadership behaviours for different cultural groups within their staff. The research is focused on three areas of leadership behaviour: communication, building trust and collaboration, and decision-making. The qualitative research methodology involved case studies of eight international school leaders, of schools providing one or more of the International Baccalaureate curriculum programmes (IB World Schools), in seven countries on four continents Europe, Asia, Africa and Americas. Each leader was interviewed with a focus on the three areas listed above. To triangulate data, representatives from leadership teams were then interviewed, school documents related to staff induction and school policies were reviewed, and leaders observed as they participated in group work. 21 interviews were conducted, multiple documents from schools were provided and observations of leaders taken. All records were uploaded to NVivo for data analysis. Each school leader was considered as one case study and findings were initially interpreted within that individual context. Following the completion of the individual case studies' analysis, the findings were then compared across case studies, to consider any emerging themes. The research provides evidence that some international school leaders do indeed deploy their behaviours differently with different cultural groups and sometimes differently between individuals. However, this is done to varying extents depending on the context and the area of action. The most common area of adaptation is found to be in the leaders' style of communication, but methods of building trust and decision-making also showed evidence of adaptation. An additional finding was that leaders often treated a combined group of expatriate staff as one cultural group regardless of nationality while possibly treating individuals within that group differently. A significant finding from all leaders was that none had received any training that supported the development of intercultural understanding or leadership of culturally diverse communities. Further research is needed in culturally diverse communities, to enhance understanding of the specific challenges involved, and to consider how best to prepare and support future leaders working in culturally diverse school communities, whether in national or international schools.

The programme provision in a third of further education (FE) colleges in England is poorly designed, according to Ofsted which inspect colleges in England, and does not provide post-16-year-olds the skills needed for employment. The policy landscape shapes the complex FE college environment. Often programme decision-making at strategic level does not respond to stakeholders’ needs or achieve stability and sustainability of these institutions. The aim of this research was to analyse programme decision-making in FE colleges in England. It focused on how FE colleges use the opportunities and constraints presented by their locality and context to tailor their programme provision whilst under pressure to meet the local needs for the provision of education and training and the expectations of the Ofsted inspection framework. A review of literature on the theories and models of decision-making led to the formation of research questions and a framework for the analysis of programme decision-making in FE college environment. Empirical data was collected by means of college principals and other senior managers in three contrasting FE colleges in England. Documentary analysis provided stimulus for interview questions and corroboration of evidence. The research found that programme decision-making is influenced by the opportunities and constraints presented by the locality of the FE college and a number of internal and external factors. It shows that FE leaders and managers who prioritise leadership for learning, which is characterised by a strong focus on learners’ learning experience, implement management approaches to the organisation of programme provision. Such focus informs the strategic directions to achieve effectiveness of programme provision and accountability, increase engagement with stakeholders and improve the sustainability of the college. The study shows that effective programme decision-making requires a collaborative approach involving the participation of stakeholders to provide a solution-driven method to managing programme provision in FE colleges.

The experience of socialisation for those new to headship can be challenging and often traumatic (Crow, 2007). Research into the socialisation of new headteachers is not extensive and has primarily been concerned with identifying and ordering stages in the socialisation process, for example, phases of headship. Such an approach neither allows for an analysis of the complexity of socialising influences nor does it enable the generation of explanatory theories. The purpose of the current research was to provide an understanding of the socialisation of new headteachers from an analysis of significant socialising experiences. The aims of the research were to: 1.analyse the socialisation of new primary headteachers from a role boundary perspective. 2.test the suitability of the role boundary concept as a rigorous, theoretical and methodological tool that can be applied to researching the field of headteacher socialisation. The research analysed critical incident vignettes from the experiences of seven newly appointed primary school headteachers up to their first three years in post. Data was collected using two research methods; semi-structured interviews and a written log. Twenty two critical incident vignettes were analysed using an interpretive methodology underpinned by an analytical framework based upon the concept of role boundary. The role boundary is described as being the point of delineation between a set of behaviours that are considered to be legitimate in role and those behaviours that are considered illegitimate in role. The role boundary concept allows for an analysis of the socialising experiences of new headteachers as they and the organisation engage in a recurrent, reciprocal and relational socialising process that seeks to establish those behaviours that are, and those that are not, legitimately enclosed by their role boundaries. The research found that socialisation is the process by which the new headteacher and the organisation seek to establish and position their respective role boundaries. Headteachers experience socialisation as a series of emotionally challenging interactions where the central purpose is to establish who has the legitimate authority to take decisions and to take actions in the following three main areas; task role allocation, resource allocation and the creation and application of organisational procedure. These interactions are immediate, are intense and have the potential to lead to conflict where individuals contest the limits of their respective role boundaries. The research finds the concept of role boundary as a theoretical and methodological tool to be of heuristic and analytical value in understanding and explaining headteacher socialisation and presents a role boundary socialisation theory to explain the dynamics of the socialisation process.