Sami perspectives in school leadership? Conspicuous by their absence!

Sami perspectives in school leadership? Conspicuous by their absence!

Authors

Mari-Ana Jones, Sandra Lund, Susanne Sahlin

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9_EITN_2025_01_Jones.pdf

Abstract

“Why is it so difficult to get the Sami teachers to come to staff meetings?” asked one school leader in Norway. Imbued with frustration and suspicion, this question highlights the difficulties with ongoing reconciliation work with Sami peoples in schools in Norway and Sweden, confirmed by our experiences as educators of school leaders and by an exploration of existing policy and literature. There is a lack of understanding of the needs and interests of school communities situated in Sami districts. Dominant knowledge about school leadership in Norway and Sweden takes no account of Sami perspectives and school leaders are not afforded opportunities to develop the necessary culturally sensitive understandings. We propose that researchers should focus more on the vital work of school leaders, seeking to create knowledge and practices which support, rather than hinder, reconciliation.

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Keywords

school leadership, leadership preparation, Indigenous perspectives, Sami peoples

DOI

https://doi.org/10.26203/m21b-a695

Published in Volume 32(1) Weaving worlds and grounding knowledge: the collective conception of research paradigms in community collaborations,

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