Chapter 9 Leadership Responsibilities and Dispositions of Principals in Successful Schools in Mexico

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between effective leadership practices, leadership dispositions and child upbringing in six Mexican successful elementary school principals who improved the achievement, work climate, and resources in their schools. In this study, culture; order; discipline; resources; curriculum, instruction, and assessment were the most salient leadership responsibilities. The present study confirmed that trust is one of main leadership dispositions that may be related to child upbringing. The most frequent behavior displayed in the families of these principals was generating a sense of trust. Likewise the findings shed some light on the importance of secure attachment, setting limitations, and establishing rules to foster dispositions for good leadership. These exploratory findings suggest that resilience is another important leadership disposition. Results are discussed.