Despite making up most of the teaching workforce, women remain underrepresented in school principal positions.
New research from graduate researcher, Kylie Cotter, is shedding light on the organisational barriers that can prevent women from pursuing these leadership roles.
The study, which focused on Victorian secondary schools, examined factors including recruitment and selection practices, flexible work arrangements, mentoring, succession planning and leadership development.
Kylie found that women’s leadership aspirations are significantly shaped by the cumulative impact of gendered organisational practices.
“Although formal policies supporting equity and flexible work arrangements often exist, participants reported that these policies were inconsistently enacted or difficult to access in practice.”
Kylie says the findings suggest that policy alone is insufficient to achieve gender equity in school leadership.
“Importantly, the research shifts attention away from individual ‘fixes’ and towards the need for structural and organisational reform.”
