Ethical Leadership in Education

Over many years as practitioners, teachers, and researchers in higher education working to understand the nature and theory of educational leadership, it became clear to us that much of the extant literature is inaccessible. Reasons for this inaccessibility range from a lack of open content and real world case studies (as opposed to fictitious); instances of offensive and outdated language that prioritize Western belief systems; frameworks that ignore the contributions of Indigenous scholars; and minimal consideration for global contexts.

At the intersection of educational leadership and open education, we believe that there are opportunities to broaden educators’ and learners’ capacity to untangle major problems and issues that confront us all, particularly as educational environments become increasingly diversified.

Because theory is useful not only for understanding different perspectives of the world but also for framing educational leadership in ways that allow it to be practiced responsibly, we sought ways to make the study of ethics more accessible to students. We found that when students could see connections between theoretical concepts and how these concepts fit together, they had a better idea of how to collaboratively explore and use multiple frameworks to untangle ethical dilemmas. Furthermore, it gave them the vocabulary to advocate for more socially just systems.

Many scholars have previously attempted to combine multiple ethical lenses to resolve dilemmas that educational leaders face (e.g., Starratt (1994), Shapiro and Stefkovich (2016), and Wood and Hilton (2012)). However, few models are as comprehensive and culturally diverse as represented in this open textbook.

Part I: Ethical Lenses

The first part of this textbook approaches theory through the diverse perspectives of women in academia from Canada, India, Nigeria, and the St’at’imc First Nation and the disciplines of agriculture, education, and engineering. These diverse viewpoints offer a richer, nuanced perspective of leadership ethics from deep within the academy — teachers, students, and formal and informal leaders — offering a hopeful and, at times, subversive approach to decolonizing educational systems.

We describe eight theoretical paradigms through which to view ethical dilemmas: St’at’imc matriarchal leadership and the ethics of justice, critique, care, self-care, community, discomfort, and the profession. We finish Part I by presenting a conceptual framework (a “Bird’s Eye View”) that leaders can apply for more comprehensive decision-making.

As you read this text, you will be asked to question your own beliefs about how you determine what is right and wrong. You will be asked to critically reflect on such questions as:

• How might we balance the individual needs of students and advocate for more socially just educational systems?
• What might we learn from the Land, our first teacher, about leadership?
• How might we incorporate eco-justice into our analysis of right and wrong?

Moral decision-making and ethical leadership starts from within and gradually expands outward, growing in focus and understanding as we come to know ourselves better, as well as the communities we work within.

Part II: Ethical Dilemmas

The second part of this book engaged Master of Education students as co-authors in the development of case studies. In creating this text and as part of an assignment for a graduate course in education, student authors were asked to select a real-world example of an ethical dilemma in higher education and examine it from both a practical and theoretical perspective. Drawing on scholarly and popular research and analyzing findings from multiple ethical frames, students were asked to pose alternative approaches to resolving the dilemmas.

Open Philosophy

This textbook incorporates the concept of sustainable/renewable assignments where students’ assessments have life beyond the course (Hoare, 2024). Clinton-Lisell (2021) argued that open pedagogy provides an opportunity “for students to be knowledge creators rather than only knowledge consumers” (p. 256). It has been argued that renewable assignments may support representational justice through the equitable expression of historically denied and underrepresented voices in educational materials and resources (Lambert, 2018). Similarly, Wilson and Montgomery (2022) highlighted how women researchers have pioneered the use of open publishing to support diverse and equitable forms of scholarship.

This book also offers an invaluable opportunity to address what McKerrow and Bullerdieck (2006) have described as the need for non-dominated discourse in educational leadership, which they proposed as a best practice for ethical educational administration. Non-dominated discourse is a framework allowing for all voices to emerge and is based on the belief that:

• The interests of each individual must be fairly considered.
• Each individual should have a fair influence over decisions emerging from discourse.
• Those affected by a decision should be a part of the decision-making process.
• Accountability must be directed toward those who are directly affected by a decision.

Because each chapter is based on the vision and understanding of its co-authors, it may not be the same conception or interpretation that readers have of the theories or dilemmas presented. Therefore, our goal is to provide a text that can be modified and supplemented by readers. The open educational resource (OER) format and Creative Commons licensing allow readers to adopt, adapt, and comment on the original content.

Other students and researchers, or even the original authors, can, therefore, create new editions of this book that may present a different, broader, or more social understanding of these theories and dilemmas. We look forward to the evolution of these chapters and the book as a whole. We, along with the student authors, expect that this book will be useful to varied readers. We see it being used as an overview to initiate deeper exploration of educational leadership and open pedagogy.

References

Clinton-Lisell, V. (2021). Open pedagogy: A systematic review of empirical findings. Journal of Learning for Development, 8(2), 255–268. https://doi.org/10.56059/jl4d.v8i2.511

Hoare, A. (2024, January 22). Using sustainable assignments and open educational practices to promote active learning. In Progress: TRU Centre for Excellence in Learning and Teaching. https://celt.trubox.ca/using-sustainable-assignments-and-open-educational-practices-to-promote-active-learning/

Lambert, S. R. (2018). Changing our (dis)course: A distinctive social justice aligned definition of open education. Journal of Learning for Development, 5(3), 225–244. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1197463

McKerrow, K., & Bullerdieck, E. (2006). Best practice for ethical educational administration: Non-dominated discourse. In F. L. Dembowski & L. K. Lemasters (Eds.), Unbridled spirit: Best practices in education administration – The 2006 yearbook of the National Council of Professors of Educational Administration (pp. 198–205). NCPEA Publications.

Shapiro, J. P. & Stefkovich, J. A. (2022). Ethical leadership and decision making in education (5th ed.). Routledge.

Starratt, R. J. (1994). Building an ethical school: A practical response to the moral crisis in schools. Falmer Press.

Wilson, K., & Montgomery, L. (2022, July 14). Changing the gender narrative with open access. LSE Impact Blog. https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/impactofsocialsciences/2022/07/14/changing-the-gender-narrative-with-open-access/

Wood, J. L., & Hilton, A. A. (2012). Five ethical paradigms for community college leaders: Toward constructing and considering alternative courses of action in ethical decision making. Community College Review, 40(3), 196–214. https://doi.org/10.1177/0091552112448818