Foster anchors his analysis of educational leadership by situating the function of schooling as bureaucratic control over individuals. Within the context of schools as a systemic, rule-bearing institution, Foster challenges the work of educational leaders. Are educational leaders virtuous and free or are they mere agents of the state? Foster pits national/state narratives for disseminating rules and standards against local communities' ethos. Can educational leaders create communal narratives against the domination of the states?