The Future Challenge of Principal Succession in New Zealand Primary Schools: Implications of Quality and Gender.

The challenge of school leadership succession and supply is a pressing reality for many western countries at the present time as a large number of the 'baby boomer' principals retire within the next five years. In New Zealand there is a looming crisis over both supply and quality of future leaders. This paper explains why quality is such a problem and how the heritage of New Zealand's particular brand of self management reforms has exacerbated this problem. Governors or boards of trustees in New Zealand have shown a preference for male principals but there are problems about the quality of some younger less experienced male applicants. From research on Board of trustees' selection practices of principals, this paper explores some of the gendered implications of such choices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]