The Role and impact of middle leadership and management on the Implementation of school self-evaluation in primary schools in the Republic of Ireland

This study examines the role and impact of middle leadership and management (MLM) in implementing school self-evaluation (SSE) in primary schools in the Republic of Ireland (ROI). It is a mixed methods social research combining both qualitative and quantitative methods. The methods to be employed to acquire the data for analysis are 1. A documentary analysis of the three policy documents issued by the Department of Education and Skills (DES) regarding MLM in primary schools Looking At Our Schools: A Quality Framework for Primary Schools 2016 (LAOS 2016), School Self-Evaluation Guidelines 2016 (SSE 2016) and Circular Letter 0063/2017 Leadership and Management in Primary School (Circular 0063/2017). 2. Online questionnaires completed by primary school principals and teachers. 3. Interviews of primary school principals and teachers and a retired Assistant Chief DES Inspector. The above documents are the seminal policy statements issued by the DES concerning the subject of this thesis, namely the inspection and evaluation rubric of the inspectorate (LAOS 2016), the process of self-evaluation to be conducted by schools (SSE 2016) and the role to be played in both by school senior and middle leadership and management (Circular 0063/2017). There has been a lot of research in recent years into school leadership and evaluation and this has influenced the emergence of these documents. The three key policy documents are examined closely with regard to the role of MLM in implementing SSE in schools. Concepts such as distributed, instructional and collaborative leadership are explored in the documents and are further examined in the online questionnaires and interviews. The research aims to evaluate the scope and extent of the role and impact of MLM in primary schools in implementing SSE in practice.