British Journal of Educational Studies

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Headteacher as a Pedagogical Leader: a

Comparative Study of Headteachers in Sweden
and England

Stephan Rapp

To cite this article: Stephan Rapp (2010) Headteacher as a Pedagogical Leader: a Comparative
Study of Headteachers in Sweden and England, British Journal of Educational Studies, 58:3,
331-349, DOI: 10.1080/00071001003752229

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Published online: 09 Jul 2010.

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British Journal of Educational Studies
Vol. 58, No. 3, September 2010, pp. 331349

HEADTEACHER AS A PEDAGOGICAL LEADER:

1467-8527
0007-1005
RBJE
British Journal of Educational Studies
Studies, Vol. 1, No. 1, Sep 2010: pp. 00

A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF HEADTEACHERS

IN SWEDEN AND ENGLAND
by STEPHAN RAPP, Jnkping University, Sweden
Headteacher as Pedagogical Leader

ABSTRACT: This is a comparative study, drawing on data obtained from

interviews conducted with headteachers, that compares the roles of Swedish
and British headteachers as pedagogical leaders. For its analytical framework
the study uses the qualitative research approach known as phenomenography
and, in the context of the guiding legal documents related to education,
examines the studys findings as frame factors and as tight and loosely
coupled systems. Based on interviews with the studys subjects (five Swedish
and five English headteachers), discernible differences were noted between
Swedish and English headteachers in their roles as pedagogical leaders.
Both groups are responsible for the administration and management of the
school but, compared to the Swedish headteachers, their English counterparts
have greater personal responsibility for the schools overall performance
and are more focused on providing leadership in teaching and learning. In
contrast, the Swedish headteachers had a greater separation of the two roles,
with the headteacher taking responsibility for administration and leaving
responsibility for teaching and learning to the teachers.
Keywords: headteacher, pedagogical leadership, tight and loosely coupled
organisations, accountability

1. INTRODUCTION
A distinct, strong and effective leadership is today considered a pre-requisite for
an organisations success. In the education milieu such leadership by headteachers
is particularly important. Vast demands are placed upon them in their roles as
school leaders. These demands are articulated and set out in the various policies
and guidelines governing schools and include the core obligation of the
headteacher to be responsible for the development of the pupils academic skills
(Rapp, 2006; SOU, 2004: 116).
The current role of the headteacher should be seen within the contemporary
global situation. Competition among countries is intense in todays global
economy and a countrys economic performance and the welfare of its citizens is
related to the qualifications and skills of its population. But the relationship
between the education system and the economy is not clear-cut. While many
have asserted that it is the role of a countrys national school system to develop
these qualifications by ensuring quality education for the younger generation,

ISSN 0007-1005 (print)/ISSN 1467-8527 (online)

2010 Society for Educational Studies
DOI: 10.1080/00071001003752229
http://www.informaworld.com
332 HEADTEACHER AS PEDAGOGICAL LEADER
thus enabling a country to compete in the international market (Andersson,
2008), it should be noted that from some studies a contrary view emerges,
suggesting that the personal benefit of education is greater than the benefits to the
community (Bjrklund, 1999). On the other hand, other studies give credence to
the view that education is important for a countrys economic development. For
example, the implementation of many inventions and discoveries over the past
century in the manufacturing and pharmaceutical industries and in the IT industry
is, according to these researchers, a result of a well-educated workforce (Bjrklund
and Lindahl, 2005).
Globalisation, together with technical development, has created new
opportunities but has also increased competition among countries. Partly in
response to political expediency governments have increased their emphasis on
training, expanding its scope (Bjrklund and Lindahl, 2005). In England, for
example, there was the former Prime Minister Tony Blairs well-known campaign
mantra in which he described his partys three main priorities for government as
being Education, education, education (Ball, 2008). The Swedish government
has also taken a similar position, as seen, for example, in the government declaration
that describes education as central to the countrys development (http://
www.regeringen.se). For both countries, as expressed in governmental statements,
the main objective for the national education system, as well as for every school,
is to assure that it imparts to its students the requisite academic skills to participate
successfully in society. This has increased the demands placed upon headteachers.
The over-riding aim of this article is to contribute to our knowledge of Swedish
and English headteachers as pedagogical leaders. The concept of pedagogical
leadership is well known in Swedish schools (Rapp, 2009), but less used in
England where the concepts educational leadership (Law and Glover, 2000)
and instructional leadership (Smith and Andrews, 1989) are more common.
Nevertheless, the term pedagogical leadership is not unknown to English
headteachers and does not appear to create confusion when it is heard (Webb, 2005).

2. REKTOR/HEADTEACHER
The Swedish Rektor
In Swedish the commonly used word for headteacher is rektor. This term dates
back to the medieval period when it referred to the director of seminary schools
that trained priests (Ullman, 1997). Today it is the Swedish term used to designate
any headteacher. In 2007 there were approximately 8,300 individuals holding
school leadership positions, 70 per cent in the position of headteacher (rektor),
and the other 30 per cent in other leadership positions, such as that of assistant
headteacher (Ds, 2007: 34).
Compulsory schooling in Sweden begins in the year that the child turns seven
and finishes in the year that the young person turns sixteen. Hence, this represents
nine years of compulsory schooling. The vast majority of Swedish schools are
 HEADTEACHER AS PEDAGOGICAL LEADER 333
under the direct authority of the municipality, but the number of independent
schools has increased rapidly in recent years. In the former case, headteachers
and teachers are employed by the community, whereas in the independent
schools they are employed by the owner of the school. (Only schools administered
by the municipality are discussed in this article.) Many community schools have
a local committee whose role is only to advise the school; it has no actual power
to make decisions. Instead, decision-making power resides with the politically-
appointed school board and the headteacher.
School as institution is a social establishment with certain tasks and functions
that emerge from the state and society (Berg, 1993). In Sweden there is one
school law, namely, the Education Act, which operates at an overarching level to
regulate the schools work. Beneath this law there are ordinances for different
school forms, curriculum and syllabus. Until the 1990s schools were governed by
detailed regulations, but thereafter governance by regulations was changed to the
establishment of goals for schools. The school of today has many hundreds of
goals that can be found in the Education Act, the curriculum and the syllabus.
Most schools have, to a great extent, decided on priorities among these goals and
each school must produce a quality report on an annual basis. In addition, every
municipality must deliver a quality report to the national government annually.
A Swedish headteacher has two principals or masters: 1) the national govern-
ment, which through statutory guidance documents directly sets the headteacher
tasks, and 2) the municipality, which employs the headteacher and provides
budgetary resources to the school as well as delegating some decision-making to
the head (Rapp, 2001). Additionally, the municipalities have responsibility for
school buildings.
Swedish trades unions are quite powerful and there is strong job security in
Sweden. Hence, the unions play a strong role in the schools. Every decision a
headteacher makes has to be negotiated with the union(s) representing the school
employees. In addition, job security regulations strengthen the role of Swedish
unions in the schools. Headteachers or teachers whose achievement results are
substandard seldom lose their jobs.
Great responsibility is placed on the employer to give the employed opportunities
to increase their skills and this is one of the headteachers responsibilities. However,
in the domains of administration and teaching and learning commonly there is a
separation of responsibilities between teachers and the headteacher. While the
headteacher takes the responsibility for the administration it is the teacher who
takes care of teaching and learning, i.e., the invisible contract.
Previously the responsibility for the inspection of schools was a task for the
Swedish National Agency for Education and each school was inspected every
sixth year, but since autumn 2008 this responsibility has been assigned to a new
authority, the National School Agency, and inspections have been increased to
every third year. It is the task of this authority to scrutinise school quality, to
inspect municipalities and schools on a regular basis and to provide reports on
shortcomings in quality (see Figure 1) (www.skolinspektionen.se).
334 HEADTEACHER AS PEDAGOGICAL LEADER

Government Municipality
National
School
Inspection
Headteacher

Figure 1. Governance model for Swedish headteachers

In the Swedish school system one of the headteachers key tasks is to be the
pedagogical leader of the school; this is explicitly set out in Curriculum for the
compulsory education system, preschool class and leisure-time 1994, commonly
referred to as Lpo 94, which sets out the guidelines and requirements for the com-
pulsory school system (Lpo, 94). In setting out the duties of the headteacher, Lpo
94 asserts that the headteacher, who is both a pedagogical leader and a manager of
teaching and non-teaching staff, has overall responsibility for making sure that the
activity of the school as a whole is focused on attaining the national goals. As well,
the headteacher is responsible for drawing up a local work plan and is charged with
following up and evaluating the results achieved by the school in relation to the
national goals, which are set out in both the school plan and the local work plan.
Ultimately, the headteacher is responsible for the results of the school. This means,
as designated in Lpo 94, that within certain limits, the headteacher is responsible
for such tasks as ensuring that pupils have access to guidance; that proper teaching
materials are available; that there is provision for access to libraries, computers, and
other learning aids; that teaching and pupil welfare are organised so that pupils
receive the special support and help they need; that contacts are established
between the school and the home in the event that a pupil experiences problems
and difficulties at school; and that staff members receive the training and develop-
ment necessary to enable them to carry out their tasks professionally.

The Headteacher in England

In England significant differences exist in the legal demands and rules that gov-
ern schools administered by the local authorities, compared to schools that are
independently administered. Consequently, the independent schools do not have
to teach the National Curriculum nor are they subject to many of the rules applic-
able to local authority schools. In this article only the situation of these local
authority-run schools is discussed.
English pupils start in primary school in the year that the child reaches the age
of five, although many students, depending on their local authoritys school admis-
sions policy, start at a younger age. At the age of eleven they transfer to secondary
school and at the age of sixteen become students in the sixth form (the term com-
monly used to describe the final two years spent in a secondary school) or move to
a sixth-form college, a further-education college or enter a work-based programme.
Unlike the relatively homogenous Swedish system, England has many different
 HEADTEACHER AS PEDAGOGICAL LEADER 335
types of school (Enkvist et al., 2004). There are independent schools, schools for
boys, schools for girls and schools administrated by faith-based groups such as
Catholic foundations and Muslim assemblies (Parker-Jenkins et al., 2005). In some
parts of the country there are still selective grammar schools for those students who
at age eleven pass an examination and secondary modern schools for those who
do not. The picture is further complicated by the recent development of academy or
charter schools, which are publicly funded independent schools.
As mentioned earlier there is one school law (the National Education Act) in
Sweden that at an overarching level regulates the operation of schools. This is
clearly a major difference between the Swedish and English systems. In England
there are several acts that establish the main elements of education law and the
duties and powers of headteachers are therefore embedded across the various acts
currently in force. Furthermore, in England there are numerous binding statutory
regulations made under provisions or power within an Act of Parliament.
English state schools, although usually maintained by a local authority, are
largely self-managing, responsible for their own budget and accountable for all
aspects of their performance. Each primary and secondary school has a governing
body (Department for Education and Skills, 2008). These governing bodies are
responsible and accountable for all major decisions about the school and its
future. While they can delegate most of their functions to committees or individuals,
it is the governing bodies that remain accountable for any decisions taken. Governors
have a legal responsibility to direct the school in a manner that promotes high
standards of educational achievement. Governing bodies have three key roles:
setting strategic direction, ensuring accountability and monitoring and evaluation
(National Governors Association).The headteacher is appointed by the governing
body and is responsible for the internal organisation, management and control of
the school and the implementation of the strategic framework established by the
governing body. The headteacher advises the governing body in relation to the
establishment and review of the strategic framework (Earley, 2003).
Teachers in England do not have the same level of job security as their Swedish
colleagues. For example, if their results are poor, English teachers risk losing
their jobs. Additionally, the personal responsibility that is assigned to the teacher
in England results in demands for accountability. This leads us to conclude that
teacher unions and teachers in England do not have the same level of power
as their Swedish counterparts.
The previous relationship between schools and the central and local govern-
ment was changed by the establishment of a new position known as the School
Improvement Partner (SIP).The main purpose of this new educational role is to
improve standards in all schools by giving greater autonomy and responsibility to
the school within the context of more intelligent accountability and reduced
bureaucracy (Education England, 2000). The School Improvement Partner is
seen as a conduit between central government, the local authority and the school.
The SIP, who is often someone with current or recent headship experience, must
meet national standards qualifications and be accredited. The individual is
336 HEADTEACHER AS PEDAGOGICAL LEADER

Government

Local Education Authority

Ofsted
Governing Body
School Improvement
Partners (SIP)

Headteacher

Figure 2. Management of English headteachers

employed and allocated to the school by the local authority and is therefore external
to the school. Typically SIPs will work with an individual school for the equivalent
of five days each year; an average of three days will be spent in school and the
rest will be used for other activities such as report writing. The SIPs report will
be given to the governing body, and in that report the headteachers work as a
performance manager is evaluated (see Figure 2). The Office for Standards in
Education, Childrens Services and Skills (Ofsted) is responsible for inspecting
and regulating schools to ensure excellence in the care of children and young
people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages (Ehren and Visscher,
2006, 2008). Their findings are published in inspection reports on their website
(www.ofsted.gov.uk).
The core purpose of the headteacher is to provide professional leadership and
management for a school, thereby promoting a secure foundation from which to
achieve high standards in all areas of the schools work. To gain this success a
headteacher must establish a milieu for high-quality education by effectively
managing the teaching and learning environments and by using personalised
learning to realise the potential of all pupils. Headteachers must establish a school
culture that promotes excellence, equality and high expectations of all pupils.
As the leading professional in the school, accountable to the governing body,
the headteacher provides vision, leadership and direction for the school and
ensures that it is managed and organised to meet its aims and targets. To this end,
working with others in the school milieu, the headteacher is responsible for
1) evaluating the schools performance, 2) identifying its priorities and efforts
towards continuous improvement and raising standards, 3) ensuring equality of
opportunity for all, 4) developing policies and practices and 5) ensuring that
resources are efficiently and effectively used to achieve the schools aims and
objectives and for the day-to-day management, organisation and administration
of the school.
Furthermore, the headteacher, working with and through others, is expected
to secure the commitment of the wider community to the school by developing
and maintaining effective partnerships with, for example, other schools, other
services and agencies for children, the local authority, higher education institutions
 HEADTEACHER AS PEDAGOGICAL LEADER 337
and employers. Through such partnerships and other activities, headteachers play
a key role in contributing to the development of the education system and, in collabo-
ration with other headteachers and the local authority, to raising standards locally.
Drawing on the support provided by members of the school community, the
headteacher is responsible for creating a productive learning environment that is
engaging and fulfilling for all pupils (Department for Education and Skills, 2008).

3. PURPOSE, METHOD AND THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

The purpose of this article is to increase the knowledge about headteachers as
pedagogical leaders in Sweden and in England. The following three questions
have guided the study.

(1) What are the major factors influencing headteachers in their role as peda-
gogical leaders?
(2) Are there differences between Swedish and English headteachers in how
they look upon their role as pedagogical leaders?
(3) What personal responsibility rests on the headteacher as a pedagogical
leader?

The goal of this research was to understand and describe actual situations and
thereby increase our knowledge of the headteacher as a pedagogical leader.
Accordingly, for this research the research methodology employed was the interview
method. The interview subjects chosen were five Swedish headteachers with
responsibility for comprehensive schools and five English headteachers with
responsibility for primary or secondary schools.
The interviews were both explorative and descriptive in nature. A semi-structured
interview with open formulated questions was used (Cohen and Manion, 1989;
Denzin and Lincoln, 1998; Kvale 1997). All interviews were recorded and parts
that were of interest for the study have been transcribed. Through these inter-
views it was possible to understand the interviewees views on parts of her/his
life world (Schutz and Luckmann, 1974).
In the analysis the phenomenographic method was used. From a phenomeno-
graphic point of view a conception is a way of seeing something, and from the
collected data it has been possible to improve the understanding of headteacher
as a pedagogical leader. The main point in the phenomenographic method is to
analyse the world from the investigated persons subjective conceptions. These
conceptions are arranged in qualitatively-divided categories of descriptions
where the units of analysis are used to show distinctions in terms of similarities
and differences in content related quality (Kroksmark, 1995; Marton, 1981). The
interest is directed to the understandings on a collective level and none of them is
more important than any other and they have not been placed in any rank order.
Phenomenography does not make any pretence of allowing the generalisation
of results to a broader population and the concept of generalisation is not looked
338 HEADTEACHER AS PEDAGOGICAL LEADER
upon as a central part of this study. Transfer of concepts is of more importance
here. Transferability means that the results can be applied to another situation,
context or to a later point in time. The defining difference between the two concepts
is that in transferability it is the person considering the results that makes the
decision about its transferability whereas in generalisation it is the individual
researcher that makes decisions about generalised conclusions (Wibeck, 2000).

Frames Tight and Loosely Coupled Organisations

Frame factor theory is a Swedish theory that has achieved an international repu-
tation. Using this theory the researcher can show how economic and legal rules
confine and influence educational processes (Lundgren, 1986). In this study, in
which Swedish and British headteachers are compared, frames in guidance doc-
uments will be of vital importance, given that these frames delineate the border
for the pedagogical context. The frames define the space or field on which dif-
ferent actions, conceptions and ideas can take place (Linn, 1999). The frames
provide room for a certain process but do not show the possibilities nor are they
the reasons for a particular effect. On the other hand, if a clear aim for a certain
process exists, the frames may have to be adjusted to make that process possible
(Lundgren, 1989). In this study the regulations, namely, the Lpo 94 in Sweden and
the National Standards for Headteachers in England as well as the various supporting
legal requirements, constitute frames for the practice of pedagogical leadership.
The frame factor theory can show how economic and legal rules confine and
influence educational processes, but there can also be factors other than economy
and legality that influence and delineate the boundaries of such processes. In this
study the legal process of performance management and power in terms of legality,
legitimacy and school culture will constitute the frames in which the results are
contrasted. These frames will from different angles allow us to see the
headteacher as a pedagogical leader. Each frame or, in other words, each perspective
is like a window presenting us with particular views, but with the limitation that
the view is in only one direction.
In this article I will first describe two frames, namely, 1) performance
management and 2) power in terms of legality, legitimacy and culture. Then we
will look at conceptions of tight and loosely coupled systems, after which I will
relate my findings to these theories/ concepts. Finally I will return to exploration
and implications of these frames for professional identity and practice.

First Frame: Performance Management

Performance is the sum of behaviour and results; neither component can be
viewed as independent of the other. The governors, headteachers and teachers all
have key roles to play and responsibilities to discharge in the performance
management process.
 HEADTEACHER AS PEDAGOGICAL LEADER 339
In England, one of the tasks assigned to a headteacher, as designated in the
statute concerning School Teacher Performance Management found in the
Education Regulations 2006, is to assume leadership in the performance management
of the school. In fulfilling this legal responsibility the headteacher must evaluate
standards of teaching and learning and must ensure that proper standards of
professional practice are established and maintained. The headteacher is also
required to provide the governing body with a written report every year on the
operation of the schools performance management policy, effectiveness of the
schools performance procedures and of the teachers training and development
needs (DfES, 2008).
The situation in Sweden with regard to this type of policy is noticeably different.
Swedish schools do not have a performance management policy and conse-
quently there is no governing body to which to report. However, headteachers in
Sweden are required to be pedagogical leaders and, in some legal parts, this can
be comparable to being the performance manager of the school. For example, in
the document setting out the education regulations the headteacher is described
as a manager of teaching and non-teaching staff and has overall responsibility
for making sure that the activity of the school as a whole is focused on attaining
the national goals. In addition to these tasks, the headteacher is responsible for
evaluating pupils results (Lpo, 94).

Second Frame: Power in Terms of Legality Legitimacy and Culture

A headteachers ability to use his/her power is based on two factors, namely,
1) legality and 2) legitimacy. The first concerns any right to make decisions that
the principal has delegated to the headteacher. The second concerns the kinds of
decision made by the headteacher which the school employees might deem valid.
Even if legality and legitimacy can be looked upon as two definable parts, they
are not independent of each other. If the principal gives the headteacher a clear
legal right to make a decision, for example in matters of employment and dismissal,
the legality of this decision-making power will impact on its being seen as legiti-
mate and similarly if, in the way that the decision is executed, the decision is seen
as legitimate it will strengthen the legal right of the decision-maker, in this case
the headteacher. Clearly, a headteachers power is strengthened by possessing
both the legal and the legitimate rights to make decisions.
In addition, every school has its own culture one that develops from that
schools history, the norms of its occupational groups, factors in its environmental
surroundings, symbolic artefacts and so on. The culture can be likened to a mishmash
of single social phenomena (Berg, 1995; Persson, 2003). Frames in centrally
regulated guidance documents such as the curricula show the boundaries that
schools must be managed within, but it cannot be taken for granted that these
frames constitute an equal basis for the schools functioning. Each schools culture
will be a strong source for steering teaching and learning and for determining its
priorities.
340 HEADTEACHER AS PEDAGOGICAL LEADER
In the interviews that were conducted for this study questions about the culture
in the headteachers schools were not included. While it may have been of some
benefit to have had such information, its lack is not unduly significant given that
the findings of this study used a macro perspective, i.e., looked at the schools
culture from an overhead perspective. Each country, in this case England and
Sweden, has its own history of schooling and the steering of schools and these
are factors which, at least on a macro level, influence the cultures frames.

Tight and Loosely Coupled Systems

Each organisation has a more or less tight connection between levels within the
system (Dalin, 1994; Weick, 1995). In a loosely coupled system different levels
make their own decisions and one cannot be certain that demands from levels
above will be fulfilled (Morgan, 2006). An example is the Swedish regulation
requiring headteachers to be responsible for following up and documenting each
students results in every subject even though this is a regulation one cannot be
certain that it will be carried out in schools (Skolverket, 2007).

4. RESULTS
Swedish Headteachers
In Sweden a headteacher can be employed without being a qualified teacher. Indeed,
one of the headteachers who took part in this study did not have teaching qualifica-
tions. Several interviewees, but not all, expressed the view that to be a pedagogical
leader one should have a background as a teacher and/or have teaching experiences.
A typical comment was, I think it is important to be an educated teacher. I can dis-
cuss pedagogical matters and the teachers know that I can deliver in a classroom.
The state has made it clear that the headteachers are the pedagogical leaders of
schools and has accordingly placed personal responsibility on them. Nevertheless, the
results of interviews conducted for this study reveal that not all headteachers were
aware of this pedagogical leadership regulation. Several of them said that they defined
the meaning of the concept for themselves: What does it actually mean to be a peda-
gogical leader? Maybe it is something else than I think it is. An underlying assump-
tion for fulfilling the pedagogical leadership role is good knowledge of guidance
documents such as the curriculum, syllabi and so on. Yet, several headteachers felt that
they did not have these skills and consequently had a poorer basis on which to practise
this leadership role. This was reflected in the following comment, You cannot study
the steering documents every morning. You must have learned them once and have
built a feeling in your body and then it is from that feeling that you carry out your job
someone can say that you have done something wrong, well, okay then.
The Swedish school is directed by goals and results. Goals can be seen as
a) those related to knowledge and b) those related to fundamental values. The
knowledge goals include different subjects as they are presented and regulated in
 HEADTEACHER AS PEDAGOGICAL LEADER 341
the syllabus. The fundamental values are found in several guidance documents
such as the Education Act and curriculum. The investigations show that
headteachers did not look upon themselves as personally responsible for students
results, nor did they describe any strategies to support teachers in improving
results. Furthermore, several of the investigated schools did not systematically
follow-up results. So headteachers were not held responsible for students results
and municipalities did not hold headteachers accountable for students results.
However, all headteachers looked upon themselves as being accountable for the
schools finances; not succeeding in this area would lead to a sense of failure of
personal responsibility, I do not know if they have any other expectations on me,
other than to balance the budget.
On a yearly basis each school and each municipality has to draw up a statement
of quality. These statements take different forms and do not always have a direct
effect on the schools or the municipalities work in quality improvement.
The National Agency of Education (Skolverket, 2007) declares that even
administrative staff and responsible politicians do not have enough knowledge
about different activities and working practices in schools, or the attainment of
goals and results in terms of school performance. The only results that are made
public are students grades from school year nine. Because of the weak follow-up
and performance management system, there is only a loose connection between
different levels in the system (state-municipality-headteacher-teacher). Each
level makes its own decisions but it cannot be assumed that these decisions affect
any other level. As stated above, under the new School Inspection authority,
inspections will be carried out every third year rather than every sixth.
Headteachers have fixed and specific tasks in school. These tasks are not
recognised as including oversight of the teachers responsibility for student
results (Skolverket, 2000). Teachers seem to look upon the headteacher more as a
colleague than as a principal. They will happily welcome her/him to visit lessons,
but they do not want to be judged on their teaching. As one interviewee said, I
am not sure if the teachers want to have a pedagogical leader. They want to maintain
themselves. It appears that the invisible contract, with the teacher taking care
of the teaching and learning and the headteacher taking care of the administra-
tion, is still alive in those Swedish schools that took part in this study.

English Headteachers
Even if the concept pedagogical leadership is not much used in England it was
obviously understood. One headteacher declared that, To me it would be a leader
of the learning, of the understanding of teaching and learning, the pedagogy. How
you deliver learning and teaching an understanding of the craft, the profession
to understand how children learn before you teach.
England requires headteachers to be qualified teachers and this requirement is
seen as quite instrumental. One headteacher said, I actually established myself
as a teacher as well as a learner because, to have credibility with my staff, they
342 HEADTEACHER AS PEDAGOGICAL LEADER
have to be able to see that I can deliver in a classroom as well. Another
headteacher expressed his view of the usefulness of being a qualified teacher in
this example: My teachers in maths were telling me that certain levels couldnt
be achieved. So alongside another member of the staff we went in[to the classroom]
and proved them wrong, and the argument is now gone.
The headteacher is appointed by the governing body and the main target for
her/him is to provide effective teaching so effective learning can take place
(Gunter and Forrester, 2008). The day-to-day management of the school is the
responsibility of the headteacher and the schools teachers and support staff, but
the strategic development of the school is a responsibility of the governing body.
English headteachers do not report directly to the state; they only report to their
governing body. However, during the three-yearly inspections, the government
inspection agency, Ofsted, examines whether the governing body is doing its job.
The national Every Child Matters Agenda includes fundamental values for
English schools and Ofsted follows up the agendas outcomes at school level
during the regular inspections. Children are assessed from the minute they come
to school and every single schools results are published. That means that everyone
who wants to can easily compare each schools outcomes.
Alongside responsibility for the schools finances, the headteacher is responsible
for the students results as well. Because of that she/he has to follow up and eval-
uate the outcomes and has therefore, among other things, to observe lessons. One
part of this observation is formal as it is a part of performance management.
Commenting on this aspect one headteacher described it as a situation where I
have a legal responsibility to do that and to report and follow the legal process of
performance management. The report, which shows the teachers performance,
is given both to the teacher and to the governing body. The governing body also
evaluates the headteachers work and is aided by the SIP who, as the adviser to
the governing body, recommends to them whether the head has achieved the
objectives set. This results in a tight connection between different levels from the
overall focus to the governing body and SIP to the headteacher. If a schools
results are not good enough the headteacher is held personally accountable. For
example, if a school has failing results, then usually the headteacher would be
held responsible, and if the poor results were serious the headteacher might have
to leave the job. As one respondent said, It does not happen very often. But it
can happen and has happened.
One headteacher said that the expectation from the teachers is that she should
be a person who understands what it takes to learn. As headteacher I might be
called upon to go and observe a lesson and if I cant deliver a good lesson myself,
how can I recognise somebody elses? I think you have to be a good practitioner
to be able to be a good headteacher. Concerning responsibility another
headteacher said, The buck stops with you. In other words, as expressed by
another interviewee, The head carries the responsibility. Any decision that is
made within the school, at the end of the day, the head is responsible whether you
have made the decision or not.
 HEADTEACHER AS PEDAGOGICAL LEADER 343
5. CONCLUSION OF FINDINGS. RESULTS RELATED TO FRAMES
The schools governing document expresses the political intention that guides its
activities and from a rationalistic point of view what is defined in statutory
documents should be fulfilled in every school. However, there are several
reasons why this is not always the case. Policy is formed in different places by
different people and there can be a wide variety of participation in the policy process
(Dalin, 1994). Furthermore, the policy documents are often designed in a way
that allows for construing them within broad frames, which opens the way for
personal values to enter when interpretations need to be done (Rapp, 2001). Policy
in practice is subject to recontextualisation and reinterpretation and different
policies may be in contradiction when joined up in practice. The state itself is
increasingly dispersed as it moves from public sector provision to an outsourcing,
contracting and monitoring role, but it is also at the same time more extensive,
intrusive, exercises more surveillance and is more central (Ball, 2008). In this
type of steering system every headteacher has to fulfil the requirement of being
the pedagogical leader.

Performance Management
As mentioned earlier, headteachers in Sweden are required to take on the role of
pedagogical leader and in some legal aspects that role is very much like being
the performance manager of the school. But, even though the Swedish
headteacher is a manager of teaching and non-teaching staff and has overall
responsibility for ensuring that the schools activities are focused on attaining the
national goals and, as well, is responsible for evaluating the pupils results (Lpo,
94), there is no official performance management policy and no governing body
to which the headteacher must report.
Whereas the Swedish state has made it clear that headteachers are the peda-
gogical leaders of schools and has accordingly placed personal responsibility on
them, not all headteachers are aware of this pedagogical leadership regulation.
Furthermore, headteachers do not look upon themselves as personally responsible
for students results and are, in fact, not held responsible for students results.
Even though their state-mandated role is to be pedagogical leaders, many of them
do not have strategies to support teachers in efforts to improve results.
In England, as a part of his/her legal role as the performance manager, the
headteacher has to evaluate standards of teaching and learning and ensure proper
standards of professional practice are established and maintained. Unlike the
Swedish headteacher, the English counterpart has to provide the governing body
with a written report every year on the operation of the schools performance
management policy, the effectiveness of the schools performance procedures
and teachers training and development needs. Furthermore, English headteachers
must lead the school forward in terms of effective education, making sure that
children reach their full potential. The headteachers job is to set expectations
344 HEADTEACHER AS PEDAGOGICAL LEADER
for achieving standards and to facilitate meeting and even raising those expectations.
Every three years the headteachers fulfilment of the legal responsibilities of the
role of performance manager is evaluated when Ofsted directly asks the
headteacher whether the performance management regulation is being fulfilled.

Power in Terms of Legality Legitimacy and Culture

The capacity for a headteacher to use her/his power is based on the two factors of
legality and legitimacy but it can also be limited by aspects in the school culture.
In every country the school history and steering mechanisms of the school will
have an influence on the schools culture. In Sweden the headteacher has been
given, in the statutory documents, a clear legal platform. The headteacher is both
a pedagogical leader and a manager of teaching and non-teaching staff and has in
those statutory documents been given extensive decision-making rights. Never-
theless, because of the school culture, the work domain of many headteachers is
relegated to the administration while the teachers occupy the domain of teaching
and learning. For example, in Sweden it is not common for a headteacher to come
into the classroom in order to judge a teacher; evaluation and documentation of
the teachers skills is seldom done. Because of a weak follow-up system, Swedish
headteachers seldom have control of their pupils achievements and the school
board has no requirements that the headteacher should be responsible for the results.
In conclusion, in Sweden, the legality that is given to the headteacher in the
statutory document sometimes is undermined by the prevailing school culture.
Accordingly, the headteachers legitimacy is, in this regard, weak and the distri-
bution of power existing in the school culture remains in force.
On the other hand, in the English system the headteacher has a legal requirement
to be the schools performance manager. That includes, among other things,
being responsible for the schools results. The Swedish distribution of tasks in
which teaching and learning fall within the teachers domain while administration
is the domain of the headteacher seems not to be followed in England. The
headteacher is employed by the governing body and gives reports about the
schools results to it. There is no doubt about the headteachers responsibility for
the outcomes and that, in turn, influences the school culture and the school
leaders legitimacy. In England formal observation is part of performance
management and thus this is a task which the headteacher has a legal responsibility
to fulfil and must report this evaluation both to the teacher and to the governing
body. The headteacher, on a regular basis, visits lessons and has therefore a good
knowledge about what is going on, and thus is aware where teachers are being
successful and where they are not being so successful. Consequently, the
headteacher has the knowledge to be able to spread the success to everybody
so best practice can take place in every classroom. When the headteacher fulfils
the legal demands in the statutory documents his/her legitimacy is also increased.
The expectations of the head as pedagogical leader are set out in the Swedish
curriculum and in the English National Standards for Headteachers. One can say
 HEADTEACHER AS PEDAGOGICAL LEADER 345
that these legal document set out frames for the headteachers work. A comparison
of these documents shows that in Sweden the headteacher acts as both a pedagogical
leader and head of teaching and non-teaching staff and therefore has overall
responsibility for making sure that the activity as a whole is focused on attaining
the national goals. The headteacher is responsible for drawing up a local work
plan as well as following up and evaluating the results achieved in relation to the
national goals. In England the headteacher has, according to the National Stand-
ards for Headteachers, the responsibility to provide professional leadership and
management for a school. To deliver this a headteacher must establish high qual-
ity education by managing teaching and learning effectively and using personal-
ised learning to realise the potential of all students. Headteachers are expected to
establish a culture that promotes excellence, equality and high expectations of all
pupils. The headteacher is accountable to the governing body and is also respons-
ible for evaluating the schools performance.
We find in this study that many Swedish headteachers do not fulfil the require-
ments that are regulated in statutory documents. Instead, the focus in Swedish
schools seems to be on the process what you are doing and how you are doing it
in the classroom rather than on the results, i.e., the outcome (see Figure 3).
The culture in Swedish schools is affected by the invisible contract, (the
headteacher takes care of the administration and the teacher takes care of the teach-
ing and learning). In order for a headteacher to take responsibility as the pedagogi-
cal leader the headteacher has to be able to give direction and guidance to teachers
at the classroom level. That requires clear aims, and means that the headteacher
must follow up the teaching and learning activities and, as well, evaluate pupils
results. Even though these are clearly desirable goals, it appears in Sweden that the
process often seems to be of more importance than the outcomes. An important
element in this is the school political boards demands on the headteacher. To
change the Swedish system in a direction towards a personal responsibility would
mean that the systems of power distribution would have to be changed.
Fulfilling the requirements of performance manager seems to be the focus for
English headteachers. That, together with the close connection to the governing
body, gives the headteacher an obvious legal platform. Because of the clear
responsibility for reaching the aims the headteacher concentrates on the pupils
results (see Figure 4). The Swedish division of responsibility for administration
and for teaching does not have its counterpart in England. Unlike the Swedish
headteachers, the legal responsibility on English headteachers to achieve particular
goals gives them the legitimacy, when the results are not good enough for
example, to walk into the classroom, intervene in the process and facilitate.

Results/
Aim PROCESS
Outcome

Figure 3. Swedish schools focus on the process

346 HEADTEACHER AS PEDAGOGICAL LEADER

RESULTS/
Aim Process
OUTCOME

Figure 4. English schools focus on the results/the outcome

Tight connection between different

levels in the system
Yes No

Headteachers are Yes England

accountable for
the students results No Sweden

Figure 5. Headteachers in Sweden and England

Though it may be problematic to draw conclusions from a general point of

view, this study has served to outline clearly some major differences between
Swedish and English headteachers.
My findings show a similarity between the investigated headteachers in Sweden
and England in terms of their responsibility for the schools finances. However,
there are two notable and distinct differences between the two groups. These two
differences, so clear that they signal that Swedish and English headteachers have
differing roles, are described below:

(1) School as a part in a tight or loosely coupled system: In Sweden schools

are a part of a loosely coupled system (state-municipality-headteacher-
teacher). In particular it seems that the connection between each school and
the municipality board is unclear, and the board seldom follows up to
determine to what extent schools have achieved the national goals. Schools
in England are a part of a more tightly coupled system. Goals that every
school is supposed to reach are, through the system of following-up results,
much clearer than in Sweden. Because of that, the system for following-up
results will provide frames that are valid for the single school.
(2) Headteachers accountability: Swedish headteachers did not have any
common image as to the meaning of pedagogical leadership. When the
concept was mentioned to the English headteachers they all spoke about
responsibility for teaching and learning and their accountability for the
students results. These two points are illustrated by Figure 5.

Future Research
One of the key elements in the English policy ensemble is the use of a highly
prescriptive system of accountability performance indicators, inspections,
 HEADTEACHER AS PEDAGOGICAL LEADER 347
league tables and achievement targets. Schools are rated and compared in terms
of achievements measured by tests and examinations, for which students are
carefully prepared. But the question is whether these tests measure valid, worthwhile
or meaningful outputs. In terms of economic competitiveness, is what is
measured here what is needed (Ball, 2008)? Notwithstanding this question, many
countries including Sweden have been and are being affected by English school
development and operate quite uncritically in the same direction. Implications
that this path will have for national school systems and for schools will undoubtedly
pave the way for several interesting research areas.
In the introduction the importance of developing academic skills was men-
tioned, and developing academic skills was identified as being at the core of the
headteachers pedagogical leadership. Today many international surveys exist
that compare school systems of various countries as well as their students skills.
One such well-known survey is the OECDs Programme for International Student
Assessment (PISA), an international standardised assessment administered to
15-year olds in more than 50 countries. In the PISA survey the students skills in
mathematics, science and reading comprehension were measured. The result
shows that England is one of the top ten countries (McKinsey, 2007) while
Swedish students results are less stellar. In what way and to what extent peda-
gogical leadership by headteachers influences the students development of
academic skills is an interesting question to explore further, and the comparative
method could be a fruitful starting-point.

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Correspondence
Dr Stephan Rapp
Associated Guest Lecturer
School of Education and Communication
Jnkping University /
Director of Education, Jnkping Municipality
Sweden
E-mail: stephan.rapp@jonkoping.se