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Why Use Social, Critical and Political Theories in Educational Leadership?

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Social, Critical and Political Theories for Educational Leadership

Part of the book series: Educational Leadership Theory ((ELT))

Abstract

This chapter provides the rationale for the book and why it is important to consider a range of theoretical approaches to the study of educational leadership. The book sets out to build on previous critical traditions but also draws on a different set of theoretical resources to generate new and different ways of understanding educational leadership and, more importantly, the context in which such a phenomenon is analysed. The chapter sets out to address the need for an understanding of context in education in different ways from how it has traditionally been used or promoted as simply important but lacking any critical analysis of what this means or entails. In doing so, the chapter argues the need for theoretical work in educational leadership. Further discussions in relation to post-structuralism are explored as well as the use of voice and positionality in writing a co-authored text. The final section then provides an overview of the book.

What is important in a text is not what it means, but what it does and incites to do. What it does: the charge of affect it contains and transmits. What it incites to do: the metamorphoses of this potential energy into other things…

Lyotard (1984, pp. 9–10)

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Although we acknowledge the work of Bernard Stiegler in certain texts has engaged with educational issues (see Stiegler, 2010, 2015).

  2. 2.

    Derrida famously uttered ‘This (therefore) will not have been a book’ (Derrida, 1981, p. 3) at the start of the book Dissemination. Derrida then proceeds to deconstruct the functioning and purpose of the preface and its role in a book. Derrida also included introductions in this section so we have reworded this quote to reflect this instance.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Education, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia

    Richard Niesche

  2. School of Education, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia

    Christina Gowlett

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  1. Richard Niesche
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  2. Christina Gowlett
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Niesche, R., Gowlett, C. (2019). Why Use Social, Critical and Political Theories in Educational Leadership?. In: Social, Critical and Political Theories for Educational Leadership. Educational Leadership Theory. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-8241-3_1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-8241-3_1

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  • Online ISBN: 978-981-13-8241-3

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