The School Improvement Journey: Perspectives on leadership

After introducing the author, some themes central to the article are explored through one school's eight year involvement with the Improving the Quality of Education for All (IQEA) school's improvement initiative. A short account of Sharnbrook Upper Schools evolving journey is presented, based around three different models. From this issues related to maintenance and development, and to leadership are explored. The final phase of the article suggests limitations to the models of transactional and transformational leadership as a means of providing leadership for the long haul in school improvement. Deriving from an analysis of contemporary research about leadership and from grounded understandings about alternative approaches to leadership (in both principle and practice) new leadership themes are presented, which are based around values, shared leadership contexts and capacity creation through learning.