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The increase in child poverty in Spain highlights the importance of equality and inclusion of students at risk of social exclusion in the Spanish educational system. Recent research emphasises the importance of educational leadership, particularly from school principals, as a tool to improve the learning of these students. The main aim of this study is to establish the characteristics of school management in disadvantaged contexts in western Andalusia (Spain), placing special emphasis on the factors considered to hinder or aid effective leadership from principals. A mixed methodology was used in this process, surveying 282 teachers and interviewing 14 principals, and employing descriptive and contrastive statistics techniques. According to the teachers surveyed, principals tend to follow good educational leadership practices. However, the disadvantaged contexts present obstacles to their effective execution. While improvements are observed in the continuity of teaching staff, there is an urgent need to improve the qualifications of teachers working with students at risk of exclusion. In conclusion, principals need greater autonomy in relation to teachers and teaching practice.

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The threat of depopulation in the rural areas making up what has become to be known as “empty Spain” is currently an extremely urgent national issue. Women are a fundamental pillar of rural sustainability, but the lack of decent living conditions has led to their mass exodus to the country’s cities. We analysed the factors undermining their health and well-being, thus leading to their dissatisfaction and their subsequent desire to abandon the countryside for a better life. A mixed methodology was employed, combining qualitative and quantitative data collection techniques. For data collection, an ad hoc questionnaire was developed before being administered to members of the Rural Development Groups of the Celtiberian Highlands, while some of their number were also interviewed. Rural women experience personal dilemmas that prompt them to migrate. These include choosing between living in the place where they were born, close to their families and neighbours, and a decent productive job, the availability of basic services and a broader range of leisure opportunities, among other aspects. It is essential to acknowledge the socio-economic importance of women’s work, to identify invisible burdens and their risks and to adopt measures that facilitate the reconciliation of work and family life.

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Since the promulgation of the present constitution in 1978, there have been seven important reforms and a plethora of Royal Decrees, Orders, and Regulations, which have meant that changes and modifications are a constant. In Spain, the legal measures adopted unilaterally by the major political parties, conservative and progressive, have lacked the desired consensus, thus impeding their implementation and leading to inconsistent lurches in direction. Following an eminently pragmatic neoliberal ideological perspective, the recent Organic Law on Quality in Education aims to unify the curriculum and give greater autonomy to private centres, with an eye to the labour market. With this reform the democratic participation of the various sectors that make up the educational community is severely curtailed and, in the interests of a higher quality of education, the decision-making powers of the highest participatory body in schools, the School Council, have been reduced to a minimum.

Resumen En España, la Educación para la Salud se encuentra integrada en el currículo de Educación Infantil, pero los docentes no llegan a desarrollarla de manera efectiva. Pretendemos constatar la opinión del alumnado del Grado de Educación Infantil de las universidades de Andalucía sobre su formación e importancia de esta materia. La investigación se ha realizado sobre una población de 2178 estudiantes, utilizando como instrumento principal el cuestionario. Para su validación medimos su consistencia interna con el coeficiente alfa de Cronbach y el análisis factorial exploratorio. El alumnado estima muy necesaria la formación en Educación para la Salud infantil (87,8%), calificando como deficitaria la recibida en los planes de estudio oficiales. Las materias ofertadas se enfocan en su mayoría a la promoción de hábitos de vida saludables (61,5%) y al ámbito de la prevención (38,5%). En cambio, estiman de gran importancia una formación en primeros auxilios. Proponemos se implante con carácter obligatorio una completa y adecuada Educación para la Salud en la formación del profesorado.