School Leadership During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Scoping Review

This article presents a review of leadership in schools during the COVID-19 crisis,
mapping the intensity of changes wrought by the pandemic, and the effects on school leadership
during this time. Data for this scoping review were gathered in two phases – first, from an online
panel discussion involving five international academics held at Monash University in April 2021
that considered educational leadership in the postpandemic era; and second, a review of research into the impact of COVID-19 on school leadership from the beginning of the pandemic
in January 2020 to November 2021. The review identified five themes – the role of school
leadership in managing an exacerbation of inequities; the impact of COVID-19 on
principal/headteacher retention; school leadership as a relational practice in times of crisis; the
emotional labour of educational leadership during the pandemic; and re-framing effective school
leadership during the pandemic. This review has added new knowledge to our understandings of
leadership in times of crisis, and the necessity for school leaders and other stakeholders to work
collaboratively to effectively navigate the significant impacts of crises such as that caused by the
pandemic.