A systematic review of systems leadership in education: Taking a social justice lens

Glowach, Terra

Abstract

Early conceptual work on systems leadership in education emphasized social justice concerns, often through reference to the ‘moral purpose’ of those in positional authority. However, over time, we have seen a shift in focus from moral purpose to instrumentalism and a critique of hierarchical power dynamics. By revisiting the centrality of moral purpose in early conceptual work, clarifying its import and tracking its narrative through international education research, this systematic review of systems leadership in education research (2005–2023) identifies three waves of education literature which evolve from conceptual to critical, revealing key constraints and opportunities for applying a social justice lens. Despite obstacles including the co-option of systems leadership by ‘top-down’ managerialist structures, this review also highlights concrete recommendations in the literature on how systems leadership can be reclaimed for the purpose of addressing specific and entrenched social injustices such as systemic racism in schools.

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Mar 12, 2025
• Online Publication Date: Mar 20, 2025
• Deposit Date: Mar 22, 2025
• Publicly Available Date: Mar 25, 2025
• Journal: International Journal of Leadership in Education
• Print ISSN: 1360-3124
• Electronic ISSN: 1464-5092
• Publisher: Taylor & Francis (Routledge)
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Pages: 1-18
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13603124.2025.2481060
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/13970687
• Additional Information: Peer Review Statement: The publishing and review policy for this title is described in its Aims & Scope.; Aim & Scope: http://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?show=aimsScope&journalCode=tedl20; Published: 2025-03-20