Instructional leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic: The case of Israel

Abstract

The instructional leadership approach requires school principals to give top priority to the continuous improvement of teaching quality and academic outcomes. This study explored how principals of elementary schools in Israel fulfilled their instructional leadership role during COVID-19. Data collection comprised semi-structured interviews with a diverse sample of 36 principals. Data analysis identified three different theories of action. In this study, a theory of action is the conscious or unconscious set of assumptions that explain how principals act professionally in a given situation. According to the first theory of action, moratorium, principals temporarily abandoned instructional leadership. According to the second theory of action, adaptation, principals changed instructional leadership to suit the specific conditions of COVID-19. According to the third theory of action, determination, principals uncompromisingly continued to demonstrate instructional leadership. These findings expand the available knowledge on how school leaders respond and what forms of school leadership practice emerged during COVID-19.