Factors influencing Jordanian and Saudi Arabian teacher decisions to pursue the principalship: a comparative study

The research on educational leadership and management in the Arab world since the 1990s: A systematic review

“…A comparative study that explored how 400 teachers from Jordan and Saudi Arabia (200 from each country) view principalship (Al‐Omari & Wuzynani, , p. 481) found that the highest motivators for applying for principalship were ‘personal and professional challenges’ and ‘desire to be a leader and self‐actualization’, followed by ‘strategic influence on education’ and ‘desire to broaden career options’. Salary was found to be only the fifth highest reported deterring factor in this study.…”

How Novice Principals Face the Challenges of Principalship in the Arab Education System in Israel

“…The female principal Nasrin noted, “I think that you either have or don’t have leadership abilities.” However, as Suheir observed, it seems that personal capability and social commitment are insufficient qualities, if the candidate does not belong to an influential social group or important hamulla (Arar et al, 2013). Much weight is given to the power of the candidate’s social connections and standing in local politics similar expectations found in different Arab societies (Al-Omari & Wuzynani, 2013; Arar & Oplatka, 2014). Indeed, some of the principals attributed the fact that the appointments are not transparent to the desire to conceal the power of hamulla or political affiliations in these decisions.…”

“…Thus, the family circle provides an important umbrella for the NPs during their induction (Arar et al, 2013). Both professional and family support helped them to cope with the initial challenges that the job produced (Al-Omari & Wuzynani, 2013).…”

“…The NPs indicated that they formed a comfortable collegial relationship with their staff and this facilitated their induction, and their coping with the difficulties of the new role (Al-Omari & Wuzynani, 2013) as explained by Afnan: “If the principle listens to the teachers, this makes it easier to enlist them to attain the goals that the principal sets.”…”

“…However, there has been no consideration of the effect of context on these stages including organizational and cultural variables, for example, specific challenges faced by principals in Arab states (Thorne, 2011). In these states, principals report managerial challenges stemming from the conflict in values between the ministries of education that demand accountability and local Arab societal values that require adherence to collectivist values and consequently influence decision-making in managerial careers and the linear transition between career stages (Al-Omari & Wuzynani, 2013; Ellili-Cherif et al, 2012; Thorne, 2011).…”