Leadership and women

The space between us. Narrating the stories of senior female educational leaders in Malta

Datos Bibliográficos

ID21784124
AutoresRobert Vella (0000-0003-0355-1257, autor de correspondencia)
Año2022
Volumen50
Número1
Páginas121-139
Fecha de publicación2022-01-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaEducational Management Administration & Leadership (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 1741-1432 • E-ISSN: 1741-1440
EditorialSAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/1741143220929034
OpenAlexW3033562983
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas5
Referencias citadas48

The main objective of this research is to investigate the perceptions and experiences of senior female educational leaders in Malta, where senior leaders are considered as those leaders from the Minister of Education to leaders at directorial level. Although Malta’s laws relating to gender equity are in line with those of the European Union, traditional beliefs and values, including those shaped by the Catholic Church, mean that in many areas of social life, women and girls continue to be perceived as inferior. The study is framed within a constructivist and interpretivist paradigm and takes a narrative approach. Throughout 2017 to 2018, in-depth interview data was collected from eight senior female leaders in the Maltese education department. Data used from an ongoing doctoral study was analysed manually using a hybrid method in order to establish the relevant themes. The findings from the study demonstrated that women in educational leadership roles in Malta have to face challenges specific to their being female. The study recommends, among other things, real family friendly measures by organisations, organised professional development programmes for women in leadership and for those aspiring to be leaders, and training programmes focused on how to build healthy collegial relationships

Educational leadership · Instructional leadership · Maltese · Narrative · Pedagogy · Political science · Public relations · Qualitative research · Semi-structured interview · Social science · Sociology · Gender Diversity and Inequality · Gender Roles and Identity Studies · Gender Studies · Teacher Education and Leadership Studies