Leading international primary schools: An integrative agenda for building understanding

The success of an international primary school, like any other school, is inevitably related to how it is led. Although research has increasingly focused on school leadership, in general it has been conspicuous by its absence in the international schools arena. The purpose of this article is to encourage discussion and research into international primary school leadership. To do this, the article discusses reasons for the growing interest in international primary schools, argues that research in the area is underdone, reports the findings of a simple study in the area, and suggests a basic integrative framework that may inform future research efforts. The key message is that research into the leadership of international primary schools should take an integrated, not an isolated or detached, form. Copyright © 2009 International Studies in Educational Administration.