Educational Leadership and Critical Theory: What Can School Leaders Learn from the Critical Theorists

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This book shows how critical theory can help school leaders and administrators to prepare students for the ever-changing political, cultural, economic, and societal conditions of the world. The contributors use ideas from critical theorists including Adorno, Fromm, Marcuse and Habermas and connect them with contemporary theories and debates in educational leadership from moral education to critical theories on race, to culturally relevant practice. Educational Leadership and Critical Theory challenges the misconceptions of many present-day educators about the analytical lens offered by the Frankfurt School theorists which is often dismissed by policymakers and practitioners. Written by leading scholars based in the UK, USA, and Canada, the contributors emphasize and explain the importance of educational aesthetics, dialectics, education and civilization, the structural transformation of educations place in the public sphere, and education as revolution and enlightenment.

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Often personal perspectives guide our decisions as leaders. This personal perspective is often exclusive rather than inclusive and fails to consider the input of those around us. Excellent leadership requires an open mind interested in exploring as many options to address issues as possible in order to make more informed and better decisions. The primary message of this work tells us why inclusive thinking is of paramount importance and provides a pathway (critical theory) to promote the type of quality leadership needed in an ever changing environment. -- Cornell Thomas, Professor of Higher Education Leadership, Texas Christian University, USA

Author Bio

Charles L. Lowery is Associate Professor of Educational Leadership at Virginia Tech, USA. Chetanath Gautam is Associate Professor of Educational Leadership at Delaware State University, USA. Robert White is Endowed Professor at Elizabeth City State University, North Carolina, USA. Michael E. Hess is Associate Professor of Educational Studies at Ohio University, USA.