Making Educational Leadership “Educational”

Abstract

Educational leadership preparation and practice typically concentrate on managerial exigencies at the neglect of definitive functions of the institution of schooling. Educational leadership, however, is truly “educational” when its processes focus on fostering student learning of a worthwhile curriculum and when these processes are themselves educative. This article aims to inform current efforts to reform educational leadership preparation by drawing from historic sources and sources outside the conventional educational administration literature and by highlighting the neglect of the curriculum imperative in such recent efforts. Recent attention to the educational dimension of school leadership by the educational leadership community should be pursued further through collaboration among academic specializations and advocacy by professional organizations in the field of education.