Principal. Me. An Autoethnographic Analysis of Role Conceptualization Within the Principalship

Abstract

Over the course of the past several decades, the principalship has shifted dramatically. Neo-liberal inspired accountability pressures and increasing societal demands have increased the workload of those who lead schools. With mounting job responsibilities and often, fewer resources to work with, principals are being pushed to the limit. A documented principal shortage coupled with the impacts of broad school reform efforts and a shift toward corporate-style accountability have created a turbulent environment for principals to do their work. In this challenging era, it becomes more essential than ever to develop a clearer picture of the work of the school principal. Utilizing qualitative autoethnography as a research method, this study seeks to examine role conceptualization within the principalship. Through a lens of distributed leadership and role theory, a highly contextualized portrait of one principal’s experience provides a template for self-reflexive practice for practitioners and insight for those responsible for training and supporting principals.