Peer-reviewed article
Leadership in early childhood education: The case for pedagogical praxis
Ioanna Palaiologou, Trevor Male ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This article examines how leadership is framed in early childhood education and care in England, looking at the tensions between play-based learning and performance pressures. The authors argue that leadership in this sector should be understood as 'pedagogical praxis'—connecting abstract theory with practical action, while considering leaders' values, backgrounds and perspectives. The study highlights how England's early childhood sector faces contradictions at multiple levels, including ideological debates about the purpose of early learning. The predominantly female workforce has experienced frequent changes to qualifications and curriculum. The authors contend that leadership frameworks must account for the real lived experiences and dispositions of early childhood educators.
Key points
- Early childhood education in England is characterised by contradictions between play-based approaches and pressures toward child performativity
- Leadership in early childhood education should be conceptualised as 'pedagogical praxis' combining abstract theory with practical application
- The predominately female workforce has faced relentless changes in qualifications and curriculum reforms
- Leadership frameworks must consider leaders' deep dispositions, history, culture and subjective perspectives
- Graduate leader qualifications like Early Years Teacher Status have prompted research into what leadership means in this sector
Limitations
This is a conceptual article that does not empirically test or evaluate any specific intervention or programme. It cannot tell us about the measurable outcomes of different leadership approaches on child well-being or development.
Abstract
In this conceptual article, the authors examine the context of early childhood education and care in England and the underpinning predominant ideologies to explore how these impact on the framing of leadership. The English context entails several contradictions (antinomies) at ontological, epistemological and axiological levels, and is heavily influenced by an ideological struggle concerning the value of play within the sector as opposed to a climate of child performativity. Moreover, the predominately female workforce (a factor itself) has faced relentless changes in terms of qualifications and curriculum reforms in recent years. With the introduction of the graduate leader qualification (Early Years Teacher Status), a vast body of research has been seeking to conceptualise what leadership means for early childhood education and care. In this article, the authors argue that these attempts are helpful and contribute to this discourse of leadership, but it needs to be thought of not only abstractly, but also practically. Thus, the authors conclude, the (re)conceptualisation of leadership should locate it as pedagogical praxis after evaluating the inherent deep dispositions of leaders in conjunction with their history, surrounding culture and subjective perspectives/realities.