Two-component relationship strategy

The aim of this strategy is to advance understanding of the relationship between two components of the reconceptualisation framework. Possible research questions are as follows:

RQ4. How are the functional, structural and cultural dimensions of school autonomy related to the various types of leadership?

RQ5. How do these three dimensions of autonomy affect school performance, particularly in terms of students’ learning and development of twenty-first century competencies?

RQ6. How does each school-leadership profile contribute to the enhancement of educational conditions, pedagogical effectiveness and students’ learning experiences?

RQ7. What are the effects of national accountability frameworks on the functional, structural and cultural use of school autonomy?

RQ8. In what ways do national accountability frameworks limit or facilitate the development of school leadership?

Studies based on the two-component relationship strategy are more effective than single-component investigations, because they provide more insights into ways of improving one component (e.g. performance) by changing another component (e.g. leadership or autonomy). However, one of the major limitations of the two-component approach is its inability to accommodate the intervention of a third component in the relationship between the two components under study.

Interaction strategy

This strategy is used to explore the complicated relationships and interactions between three or more components of the reconceptualisation framework. Possible research questions are as follows:

RQ9. How do the three categories of autonomy interact with leadership for structural initiatives to enhance pedagogical performance and student learning?

RQ10. In what ways does leadership for functional, structural and cultural initiatives maximise a school’s use of its autonomy to facilitate pedagogical change and development and thereby improve student learning?

RQ11. How do national accountability measures affect the contribution of functional autonomy to the improvement of educational conditions and the enhancement of pedagogical performance?

Compared with the single- and two-component strategies, the interaction strategy has the advantage of providing more sophisticated insights into the interplay between autonomy, leadership, performance and national frameworks, and more in-depth implications for scholarship, policy implementation and professional development. Of course, given the complexity of the interaction strategy, it also demands a much more detailed research design and methodology, as well as more time and resources.