Can simply talking about policy strengthen democracy? Drawing on data collected for case studies of one Canadian and two U.S. grassroots organizations, we demonstrate that taking part in policy dialogues hosted by grassroots organizations enables participants to gain greater clarity regarding policy issues, policy processes, and citizens'…

Teachers who have held leadership roles at the school, district, or provincial level have the potential to contribute to student and school success when they return to classroom teaching. The contrasting experiences of two teacher leaders who returned voluntarily to classroom teaching are analyzed using Owens's (2004) social constructivist…

Examining legislative change between 1997 and 2013, and analyzing the governance of Manitoba's post-secondary system using military concepts of strategy, operations, and tactics, this article argues that there has been a trend since 2006 of a general loss of university autonomy in the province. The article finds that changes in public policy…

The role of the school leader (principal) in supporting educational reform is explored through a case study of one high school implementing the Three Block Model of UDL (Katz, 2012a) in an effort to meet the needs of a diverse student population. This case study is a part of a much larger study exploring outcomes for students and teachers of…

This case study examines the tensions of social justice and culturally relevant leadership. It also examines the challenges of school administration and building cohesive teams. This case engages readers in theorizing about social justice and culturally relevant school leadership as well as thinking about practical ways to make the endeavour…

Rachel Wilson is a novice principal and new school leader of a large English junior-senior high school located in a rural township of a maritime province in Canada. Upon her appointment, she was challenged with having to establish herself as a credible leadership choice for the venue in addition to having to engage in new role learning as a…

Better School District introduced its assessment and evaluation policy and regulations in 2006. Three years later, the Director of Education learned that the policy was not fully implemented in all schools. The main issue was teacher noncompliance with the provision of interventions for students who miss assignments and tests or submit work late.…

This case study presents the struggles faced by a school administration in implementing a professional learning community (PLC) initiative without additional funds earmarked for implementation. In this case, Emily, the principal of Bayside Public School, creates a Buddy Day system for students that provides teachers with time during the school day…

As elsewhere in Canada, the provincial educational system has adopted an accountability framework to improve student success by putting the emphasis on the rendering of accounts and production of a success plan. However, the implementation of school success plans is not always self-evident for socioeconomically disadvantaged communities. This case…

One way to support aspiring and current administrators is through the use of case study teaching (Barnes, Christensen, & Hansen, 1994). Using case studies as a teaching and learning tool helps bring real-life situations into principal preparation and support programs. Case study approaches provide students with time to interrogate contemporary…

The following dramatized classroom scenario depicts a teacher struggling with the nature of an inclusive learning environment, with instructional leadership and supervision of instruction as the theoretical and practical backdrop. The purpose of this article is to demonstrate how the use of a TAR (theatre as representation) case study can be used…

Many Canadian universities report an under-representation of Aboriginal scholars in their professoriate. Employment equity policy seeks to redress the under-representation of marginalized groups in the Canadian workforce, including Aboriginal peoples. This article presents the findings of a case study which sought to examine, from the perspective…

This qualitative case study explores the implementation of restorative justice within one Ontario Public School. Restorative justice is a philosophy and a process for dealing with harmful behaviour, viewing such behaviour as a violation of relationships, not rules. My research seeks to present how restorative justice has been implemented in one…

This article argues for the importance of broad and on-going research to support initial or pre-service teacher education program admissions. Examples from a large initial teacher education program at one Canadian university illustrate the contributions of research to the evaluation and refinement of admission processes. These examples include…

This study of one mid-sized Canadian school district employed a case study approach to uncover and document the influences of organizational socialization, sensemaking, and perceptions of self-efficacy on the development of administrators' role identities. Findings describe formal and informal socialization processes experienced by administrators,…