Search results

This study aims to explore the challenges reported by Israeli school vice-principals regarding their relationships with principals and teachers. The study examines two questions: (1) How do vice-principals perceive the challenges involved in their relationships with principals and teachers? and (2) How do they respond to these challenges?

The study employed a qualitative approach to explore the challenges encountered by Israeli school vice-principals in their relationships with principals and teachers. Semi-structured, face-to-face interviews were conducted with 17 vice-principals, allowing for an in-depth understanding of their perspectives and experiences.

The findings of the study highlight three challenges mentioned by the research participants: bridging between principals and teachers, maintaining complete loyalty to both sides and middle-ground responsibility for the school.

This study enriches the existing literature on vice-principals by investigating their distinct position as intermediaries bridging teachers and principals. It offers valuable insights into the challenges they encounter in their interactions with both parties, as well as their strategies to tackle these issues. Through the application of role theory, the research deepens comprehension of the intricate nature of the vice-principals' role, providing pragmatic suggestions for improvement.

The study investigated the correlation between school communication and teachers' perceptions of the school's innovative climate in the Israeli education system during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) crisis. Furthermore, this study examined the role of affective commitment and the role of sector (Arab or Jewish) in these correlations.

First, Arab and Jewish teachers studying toward their MA degree were randomly selected from 2 higher education institutes in Israel, and then other teachers were selected using the snowball method through teacher groups on the Facebook social network and WhatsApp groups (N = 383).

The findings revealed major differences between Arab and Jewish teachers. Among Arab teachers, the correlation between school communications and an innovative climate was found to be mediated through affective commitment, whereas among Jewish teachers, a direct correlation was found between the first two variables. The correlation between school communications and affective commitment was found to be stronger among Arab teachers than among Jewish teachers.

The study results confirmed that school communication and affective commitment hold a significant predictive value in school innovation and highlight the importance of affective commitment in supporting innovation. The study adds to the body of research directed at identifying antecedents to innovative climate as well as studies examining the effects of school communications on affective commitment and innovative climate in a multicultural society, both in regular and emergency situations. The findings can also provide valuable insights for culturally sensitive and relevant education policy design and management in the post-COVID-19 period.

The purpose of this study was to explore school principals' and vice-principals' perceptions of their strategies of coping with loneliness at work. The study posed two questions: (1) how do educational leaders perceive their strategies of coping with loneliness at work? (2) What are the differences in the style of coping with loneliness between school principals and vice-principals, as they perceive it?

Based on 41 semi-structured interviews with 22 school principals and 19 vice-principals three main coping strategies were found.

This study differentiated between three strategies for coping with a sense of loneliness in the workplace: (1) receiving support from within and outside of the school, (2) action-oriented coping strategy, and (3) perspective-focused coping strategy. Some of these strategies characterized school principals while others characterized vice-principals.

Educational leaders' familiarity with a variety of coping strategies with a sense of loneliness, appropriate to their specific difficulty should be expanded.

The issue of coping with loneliness has barely been explored in the context of leaders and managers. This issue is of particular importance, given the negative effects of loneliness on leaders' mental well-being and their functioning at work.

This study explored the different manifestations that school principals attribute to their sense of loneliness, with reference to their career seniority. The study posed two questions: (1) what are the various interpretations that school principals attribute to their sense of loneliness, in regard to the way in which it is manifested in various contexts? and (2) what do school principals note as the reasons for their feelings of loneliness?

Based on 22 semi-structured interviews with Israeli school principals, two distinctive themes of loneliness expressions were found.

Two distinctive themes of loneliness expressions were found: (1) episodic loneliness, which includes three categories: a sense of alienation, loneliness resulting from conflicts and lack of support from superiors, and (2) persistent experiences of loneliness, which included three categories: loneliness associated with an exclusive sense of responsibility for what happens at school, a feeling that the principals' experience cannot be understood and being alone in a sense of commitment to tasks.

Despite the importance of studying loneliness in the workplace, this issue has received little research attention in the context of employees in educational systems in general and school principals in particular. Studying loneliness among school principals is of great importance due to the contention that schools' organizational structure may encourage the experience of loneliness.

This paper explores the subjective interpretations of school principals' experiences of loneliness in the workplace and the implications of those experiences. The study poses two questions: (1) How do school principals perceive that their experience of loneliness affects their emotional well-being? (2) How do school principals perceive that the experience of loneliness influences their performance at work?

Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 22 elementary and secondary school principals in Israel. A qualitative research methodology was employed to collect and analyze the data.

Data analysis resulted in four overarching themes, which captured the subjective consequences of principals' experiences of loneliness at work: a negative effect on work performance, emotional distress, physical health consequences and a positive perspective on loneliness.

Expanding upon the current knowledge regarding principals' perceived outcomes of loneliness may help to deepen our understanding of principals' emotional experiences and functioning at work. This examination is of great value as previous research has demonstrated the central role of principals on school success.

Similar to education systems all over the world, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Israeli education system shut its doors and moved to an online format. The present study aims to examine the relationship between Israeli teachers’ technological competence and their success in online teaching during the COVID-19 crisis.

The study is based on 383 teachers’ who responded to a questionnaire about a month and a half after the transition to online teaching due to the COVID-19 crisis.

The study revealed a significant, positive relationship between technological competence and success in online teaching. Further, the study found that resistance to change among teachers played a key role in teaching success, such that it moderated the association between technological competency and online teaching success. Theoretical and practical implications are suggested.

The present study contributes to both theory and practice with regard to the matter of successful online teaching among teachers. The study introduces vital factors – specifically, resistance to change and technological competence – which may predict successful online teaching in schools during times of crisis.