Social Justice Leadership Capabilities for Pre-Service Teachers in Contemporary Times: An Education Policy Perspective

Abstract

In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, social justice leadership (SJL) has become more imperative for pre-service teachers in higher education institutions (HEIs). Significantly, HEIs face a serious need for change that encourages the advancement of SJL with the aim to develop knowledge, equitability, accessibility, and connectivity. The problem is that pre-service teachers still find it challenging to assert themselves without rejection, fear, or prejudice, whilst they are uncertain of how to enact SJL during their studies in HEIs. As such, this conceptual paper aims to explore social justice leadership (SJL) capabilities for pre-service teachers in contemporary times from an education policy perspective. An emphasis on SJL capabilities can be directive in terms of pre-service teachers’ capacity regarding a leadership style that encourages engagement in school leadership practices. Having employed social justice leadership theory and a conceptual research design, stipulations in the Revised Policy on Minimum Requirements for Teacher Education Qualifications (MRTEQ) were analyzed by means of interpretive policy analysis. The significance of policy analysis of this kind is that it can contribute to the empowerment of pre-service teachers on how to enact SJL in HEIs. The findings showed that SJL is vital because it can assist pre-service teachers in constantly questioning if social justice is actively applied in teaching and learning environments. Also, a socially just environment in HEIs can contribute to an awakening of pre-service teachers’ SJL abilities, and an application of transformation reflection can assist pre-service teachers to enact SJL. This paper offers a social justice leadership capabilities framework (SJLCF) that recommends that HEIs should advance their understanding of policy options, create dialogue spaces and promote transformative activism so that pre-service teachers can be in a position to enhance social justice practices.