Due to the tremendous attack of the COVID-19 pandemic worldwide, educational institutions struggled noticeably to cope with its associated predicament. In the initial stage of the pandemic attack, knowledge about Coronavirus and its socio-economic effects was scarce, and school leaders lacked adequate training on crisis management during a pandemic. Thus, the pandemic posed a dilemma and an ultimate test for educational leaders worldwide. This study aimed to explore the challenges secondary school leaders in Bangladesh encountered during the COVID-19 pandemic, and their leadership strategies to cope with the crisis. The ‘measurement model of crisis leadership’ was applied as the conceptual framework. Using a qualitative approach and thematic analysis framework for data analysis, the study revealed leaders’ considerable academic, financial, and socio-emotional challenges. The leaders were found to apply certain crisis leadership attributes consistent with the ‘measurement model of crisis leadership’. However, the study identified the absence of inclusiveness’ in the framework, thereby proposing the inclusion of ‘equity and social justice’ in the existing framework since leaders' ability to ensure equal access to all students appeared essential during the crisis. Finally, this study brings the recommendations for policy-level reformation in school leadership training on crisis management in Bangladesh to develop leaders’ competence for managing risk effectively and maximizing risk-reduction actions required during critical times.

This study, designed as a basic qualitative research, aims to evaluate the perspectives of Turkish teachers regarding the nationally implemented large-scale assessments in specific subjects. By employing purposive sampling methods, particularly maximum variation sampling, 14 teachers with different seniorities and branches from various high schools were included in the research. Data were collected using a semi-structured interview form prepared by the researcher. Through the application of descriptive analysis, it was found that teachers viewed these assessments more as a preparation for changes in the higher education transition system and as a tool for achieving standardization across the country rather than as an accountability policy instrument. Despite the low-stakes nature of this assessment, it was observed that teachers exhibited responses like those documented in the literature for high-stakes accountability. Additionally, it was found that teachers prepared students for the exams primarily through practice exercises and experienced anxiety before the exams due to the limitation of their autonomy and the comparison of their students and themselves. Furthermore, most participants believed that the assessment results were not effective in determining students' learning, primarily held the students accountable for the results, and considered such assessments as a source of stress. Based on the findings, recommendations were made for practitioners and researchers.

Turnover in middle management can be very expensive for a school, not just financially, but also in terms of providing continuity of leadership, sustainability of management practices, and quality student experiences. Therefore, a rigorous understanding of why middle managers in schools are thinking of leaving post can provide senior leaders an opportunity to develop strategies to reduce this turnover cost. Using the case of Lady Agatha’s Boarding School in England, this paper uses a novel approach to investigate the complexities of school middle management from a social perspective, arguing that by using a Bordieuan lens, researchers can investigate the complex matrix nature of working in middle management. By using the Bordieuan tools of field, habitus, doxa, capital, and symbolic violence, researchers can observe the struggles that the middle managers engage in to acquire capital or resources compared to other actors in the field, as tournaments of socio-political dominance. By using this original ontological turn in analysing turnover antecedents, researchers as well as practitioners could make significant impacts in the way turnover can be understood and its costs mitigated.

Teachers are expected to influence the development of certain attributes, including courtesy, discipline, accountability, and diligence among learners. These attributes echo the basic premise of the child-friendly school framework (CFS) and the ideology of sustainable learning environments. In order for teachers to contribute towards efficacy in schools and in instructional activities, studies indicate that they should be satisfied. However, it has been revealed that in some Lesotho secondary schools, teachers are not happy with their jobs. The reported teachers’ discontent adversely affects their commitment and enthusiasm. In order to reveal the causes of teacher job dissatisfaction in some Lesotho secondary schools, this study adopted a narrative qualitative approach design. This approach was ideal as it enabled 10 purposively identified teachers in Leribe and Maseru to freely narrate their lived experiences. The Herzberg duality theory (HDT) and the Transformational leadership theory (TLT) were adopted as the philosophical underpinning for this study. The inductive thematic analysis approach was used to analyse the data generated for this study. The findings suggest that teacher job dissatisfaction in some Lesotho secondary schools is caused by factors such as the use of resources for personal gain, lack of maintenance, intolerance, and habitual absenteeism among principals. The findings further suggest that strategies including teacher involvement, impartiality, and external school auditing could reduce teacher job dissatisfaction and instead create the opposite effect.

The research's aim is to assess the services offered by Greek public secondary education schools, with the intention of identifying any discrepancies between students' expectations and their perceptions of the final services provided. The gaps discovered indicate that the school's educational services are not meeting student expectations in the five quality dimensions of the SERVQUAL model. To be specific, the average expectations are 4.44, perceptions are 3.11, and gaps are -1.33. The schools examined had a greater discrepancy in the dimensions measuring safety and emotional understanding, which was observed. The fact that the 5 factors are correlated with each other indicates the model's reliability. However, in relation to the independent variables of gender, age, and class, there appears to be a positive correlation across all factors, which is very weak and not statistically significant. In contrast, a low negative correlation appears to be present between only the demographics being considered. Therefore, demographic characteristics do not affect the quality of education in secondary schools. Our findings benefit decision-makers by assisting them in taking corrective actions necessary to enhance the quality of services provided by schools as part of a continuous improvement process in order to achieve a higher level of excellence. 

This study investigates the role of educational leadership in supporting student mental health and promoting equity within schools. It examines three leadership models, transformational, trauma-informed, and equity-focused leadership, and their effectiveness in fostering inclusive school environments. By synthesizing recent empirical studies, this review identifies strategies that enhance student engagement, emotional resilience, and academic performance. The findings reveal that schools with proactive leadership in mental health experience improved student well-being, reduced behavioral challenges, and higher academic success. However, barriers such as resource constraints, inconsistent policy implementation, and a lack of specialized training for school leaders hinder the full integration of mental health initiatives. These challenges disproportionately affect marginalized student populations, underscoring the need for leadership approaches that address systemic inequities in education. This review emphasizes the importance of embedding mental health within broader school policies and practices. By prioritizing psychological safety, fostering strong school-community partnerships, and ensuring equitable access to mental health resources, educational leaders can create sustainable, supportive learning environments. The study offers practical recommendations for policymakers and school administrators to strengthen leadership practices that bridge the gap between academic achievement and student well-being. This research contributes to the ongoing discourse on student mental health and equity, advocating for school environments that nurture both academic and emotional growth.

Instructional leadership is one of the central research trends in school management and leadership. The period from 2002 to 2023 marks the transition from theoretical research to practical research. This study aims to find out research trends on Instructional Leadership from 2002 to 2023, thereby finding new research directions and effective applications in the practice of Instructional Leadership associated with different school contexts at different local, national, and regional. Research directions also need to be expanded with a larger scope associated with educational innovation in the 4.0 revolution. Using the bibliometric analysis method with the support of VOSviewer software, 995 types of research consisting of journal articles, book chapters, conference papers, and books were extracted from the Scopus database. Research results show that there are differences in research on Instructional Leadership in developed and developing countries in different socio-cultural contexts. There was the most significant growth from 2015-2017 in the volume, growth trends, and regional distribution of global IL press products. Leading Authors and IL Research Journals from the US and developing countries. Empirical studies follow three main directions: a school leader with the role of Instructional leadership, scholars who have focused on different aspects of Instructional leadership, and the actions in the instructional leadership models. Instructional Leadership from 2002 to 2023 focuses on teachers as well as student activities.

This study examines the Adversity Quotient (AQ) and resilience of deans in colleges of education in Central Luzon, Philippines, within the context of higher education leadership. Using an explanatory sequential mixed-methods design, the research first employed the Adversity Quotient Profile Questionnaire with 15 purposively selected deans to measure resilience across four dimensions: Control, Origin and Ownership, Reach, and Endurance. Semi-structured interviews were then conducted to provide deeper insights into the quantitative findings. Results revealed a high overall AQ score, with Control and Endurance emerging as the strongest dimensions and Reach identified as an area for growth. Significant relationships were found between AQ and socio-demographic factors, including age, tenure, civil status, and economic status, with effect sizes confirming their practical importance. Thematic analysis of interviews highlighted three resilience strategies: Adaptive Leadership, Support Networks, and Vision-Driven Resilience, illustrating how socio-demographic predictors are reinforced by personal adaptability, relational supports, and mission-driven leadership. The findings demonstrate that resilience in educational leadership is shaped by the interplay of individual, social, and institutional factors. The study contributes to the theoretical discourse on AQ in non-Western academic contexts and offers practical implications for leadership training, mentorship, and policy development in higher education.

This study proposes that special education teachers’ perceptions of psychological empowerment serve as a meaningful indicator of school administrators’ ethical leadership. The Perceptions of Ethical Leadership for Special Education (PELSE) survey instrument was developed to assess this construct, incorporating validated measures of procedural justice and psychological empowerment. Employing a quantitative observational methodology, the study examined responses from 488 special education teachers assigned to online teaching at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Internal consistency reliability for the PELSE was confirmed (α = .76). Findings are interpreted through a retrospective lens, highlighting how ethical leadership was perceived during a period when the U.S. Department of Education reinforced the mandate for continued compliance with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act. The study presents the PELSE as a replicable tool with relevance for pre-service leadership preparation, in-service administrator reflection, and future empirical inquiry into ethical leadership within special education contexts.

Despite the acknowledged importance of effective leadership in driving school improvement and enhancing student outcomes, limited empirical research focuses specifically on teachers' perceptions of leadership behaviour in the Ada East District (AED). This study aimed to explore teacher perceptions of leadership behaviours in basic schools in the AED. A descriptive survey design was used to describe and interpret leadership behaviour and teachers’ effectiveness. The target population for this study consisted of all teachers in basic schools in AED. From the target population, a sample of 96 teachers was selected from the 12 selected basic schools. A simple random sampling technique was employed to choose all 96 teachers of the public basic schools in Ada Basic School. A questionnaire was used to gather data from the teachers. The study revealed that teachers in the basic schools of the AED perceive a strong presence of instructional, curriculum, professional, transformational, and transactional leadership behaviours. The study found that the leadership behaviour of headteachers has a positive and significant impact (p = .000 < .01) on teachers' effectiveness. The study concluded that leadership behaviour accounts for 27.6% of the impact on teacher effectiveness. The Ghana Education Service was recommended to develop and implement professional development programs tailored explicitly for headteachers. Again, the Ministry of Education should reform educational policies to include specific guidelines and expectations for headteachers' leadership behaviours.

This study investigates students’ perceptions and overall satisfaction with the management of the COVID-19 pandemic by their university. A qualitative study was conducted at a public university in Cyprus. Semi-structured interviews with undergraduate and graduate students were used to collect data on the perceived strengths and weaknesses of university actions and policies in relation to the pandemic. According to the findings, the main strengths were the university's prompt response to the pandemic and the specific measures it adopted to manage the crisis. The perceived weaknesses concerned unpopular measures, the efficacy of instructors, technical problems in online teaching and learning, and insufficient resources and support. Respondents were very critical of the separation of students into two categories, namely, the vaccinated and the non-vaccinated, which they considered to be a form of discrimination and exclusion. The paper discusses the implications of the findings for the management of higher education institutions at times of crisis, with reference to the formulation of educational policy to address student needs and to leadership models which can inform relevant policy measures and initiatives.

Teacher collaboration appears essential for creating a dynamic and effective educational environment that supports teachers' professional learning and growth. In various research studies, supportive school leadership has been identified as a key condition for collaborative teacher learning, which enhances teachers’ engagement and professional learning by fostering a climate of trust. Bangladesh is still struggling with the orthodoxy of leadership, which suggests a hierarchical relationship between followers and leaders, posing considerable constraints on teachers' collaboration in the school environment. Applying semi-structured interviews with thematic analysis as a data analysis instrument, this study aimed to explore the existing collaborative practices among secondary school teachers in Bangladesh and the school leaders’ approach to teachers’ collaborative practices through the lens of transformational leadership constructs. The study found a scarcity of teachers' collaborative functions in the school environment and insignificant school leadership support for teachers' collaboration. Teachers encounter considerable constraints, both individually and institutionally, due to excessive workload, inadequate infrastructure, attitudinal issues, and problems with leadership approaches. The study has implications for fostering transformational leadership, as it highlights the constructive impact on teachers' collaboration, given the noticeable absence of transformational leadership practices. Finally, the study provides recommendations for policy-level reform in designing and implementing training and professional development programs for both teachers and school leaders, with a focus on collaborative practices in similar contexts.