ABSTRACT
Almost 30 years ago, the educational leadership field initiated a major paradigm shift in scholarly focus, through the influence of William Foster (1986) and others, shifting from an emphasis on organizational theory, management, and logical positivism toward a conception of leadership informed by theories from other fields and disciplines (e.g., women’s studies, critical theories). Prior to this proposed shift in scholarly focus, the educational leadership field grounded studies in classic organizational theories, situating leadership primarily in a functionalist, managerial paradigm. From the shift toward more critically oriented societal aims came the rise of additional empirically developed approaches, most notably social justice leadership aimed at inclusive school practices and community changes. While still relatively few in number, empirical studies of preparation programs reviewed in the previous volume illustrate this shift toward critically oriented leadership, with a growing number of leadership studies focusing on preparation for social justice aims, content, and methods.
