Educational Leadership Practice and Development from a
Constructive-Developmental Theory Perspective
Objectives and purposes
Demographic changes are altering the population of aspiring and practicing school
leaders and changing the populations school leaders are leading. Those changes need
to be reflected in understandings of school leadership and school leadership
development. Further, as contexts become more complex, a more sophisticated
understanding of the requirements of school leadership is required. This paper seeks to
respond to those developments by bringing constructive-development theory of the
changes during an individual’s lifespan more fully into the educational leadership
practice and development arena. It reports research that analysed the theoretical
perspective, and the expression of the development stages in leadership practice in
educational settings and the way that others experience stage-related practice.
Theoretical framework
The term ‘constructive-developmental’ describes a theme in psychology that explains
the development of meaning-making processes during an individual’s life-span
(Kegan 1980). Various tenets underpin constructive-developmental theory (McCauley
et al., 2006): the active construction of experience; the shared nature and sequential
unfolding and transcending of interpretive schema; the movement from a simple, static
and egocentric perspective to a complex, dynamic, and socio/world-centric one that
parallels increased understanding, insight and effectiveness; the lack of regression in
progression through stages; the impact of environmental complexity on progression;
and the constraining effect of each stage on what people are aware of, what they can
describe, reflect on, change and do.
Various authors have developed constructive-development theories that address the
inter-relating aspects of experience, for example Kegan (1994); McCauley et al
(2006); and Fischer and Tobert (1995). We use Fischer and Torbert’s stages of
Opportunist; Diplomat; Expert; Achiever; Individualist; Strategist; and
Magician/Alchemist as they give rich insights and have been relatively widely used.
Mode of enquiry, method, and data sources
During interviews, 24 senior primary and secondary school leaders in England were
asked to characterise school leaders with whom they have or have had close contact;
and to describe how they were experienced by others including themselves. From the
transcribed data, the dominant leadership stage was identified. Themes from how the
school leaders in all the stages were experienced were identified.
Results
In the paper, we describe the theoretical perspective; the characteristics of the school
leaders in each stage; how the stages were experienced by others; and the implications
for school leadership practice and development. The analysis indicates that the
changes during a school leader’s lifespan enable the development of more appropriate
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school administration practices and that those in the later stages may have more
potential to respond appropriately and to understand the implications of their actions.
Overall, we argue that stage-related theories provide helpful perspectives on leadership
in schools that both draw on and respond to the changing demography and the nature
of our time.
The findings contribute to the development of a meta-narrative of ethical, equitable
and effective school leadership behaviour. The theoretical perspective is grounded in
changes that can occur during an individual’s lifespan. The stages give insights into
how school administrators may act when faced with situations of ethical, culture and
value conflict.
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