Educative leadership for matters of complexity and contestation: Working through the contradictions of international schools

School leaders negotiate competing priorities. International schools’ typically represent society’s elite, while their mission and values refer to education for a just and equitable world. I argue that the complexities and contradictions common to international schools requires a concept and approach to leadership that enables the negotiation of difference. I take a recent process undertaken by the Council of International Schools (CIS) in response to recent global anti-racism movements as an example representing the practice of ‘industry’, ‘thought’, and ‘educative’ leadership. I then argue that educative leadership is particularly appropriate for international schools in working through complex and contested issues. Copyright © 2022 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.