Educational leaders are seeing the increasing need for practical transformative models and theories to address academic, cultural, and socio-economic gaps separating learners at all levels of the educational system. Applied Critical Leadership in Education explores a leadership model arising from critical theory and critical pedagogy traditions that transforms status quo educational practices. Providing a range of diverse voices of practicing leaders from prekindergarten through higher education, explicit ties to theory and practice are drawn, making leadership for social justice accessible, feasible, and more practical for aspiring and practicing leaders alike.

Features Included:

• Case Studies provide examples of applied critical leadership across early childhood education, elementary school, middle school, high school, district, and higher education levels.
• Theory to Research Applications offer frameworks and key research complementary to cases.
• Checking In presents questions to the reader to respond and further engage with the chapter content.
• Opportunity Recognition and Critical Conversations offer strategies to challenge assumptions of common practices and begin conversations around issues of social justice.
• Backpack includes online or print resources to supplement the material in each chapter.
• Appendix provides a comprehensive example of qualitative case study research from design, to data collection, and analysis.

Applied Critical Leadership in Education provides an innovative way for aspiring and practicing educational leaders to think about and apply leadership practice suited for the educational challenges of today that are necessary for change.

Dr. Lorri J. Santamaría is Associate Dean Postgraduate at the University of Auckland in New Zealand and on faculty in Educational Leadership and Critical Studies in Education.

Dr. Andrés P. Santamaría is an Educational Leadership Faculty member at The University of Auckland and a Researcher for the Starpath Project.

List of Figures and Tables

Preface

Acknowledgements

1. Introduction

Part I: Early Childhood Education and Elementary School Settings

2. Leadership Responsive to Early Childhood Education: Not the Least of These

3. Principal Leadership in an Underperforming Elementary School: The Titanic Syndrome

4. Applied Critical Leadership for Native Education in Mainstream Schools and Districts: Leading by Example

Part II: Middle and Secondary School Settings

5. Middle and High School Applications of Critical Leadership: Voices from the Fringe

6. Applied Critical Leadership in Secondary Education: Teacher Leadership for Change

7. Secondary School Leadership for Social Justice and Equity: The Way Eyes See It

Part III: Higher Education Settings

8. Applied Critical Leadership in Higher Education: From the Director's Chair of Student Affairs

9. Academic Affairs and Higher Education: Applied Critical Leadership in the Ivory Tower

Part IV: Conclusion

10. The Case for Applied Critical Leadership in Pre-Kindergarten through Higher Education

Appendix