Chapter 3: New Approaches to Complex Challenges: Leadership That Matters

The challenges of engaging in leadership practices that promote equity and empower students who have traditionally been underserved in schooling continue throughout educational contexts. Complex challenges like this require complex solutions because they have multiple causes and interdependencies. This requires leaders focus on systemic and sustainable change for improvement rather than taking a “fixing parts” approach. This chapter focusses on promising approaches to leadership which can support capability in responding to such complex challenges. The chapter addresses four key areas for focus: (1). being comfortable with uncertainty, (2). understanding the role of emotion in leadership and change, (3). knowing how to interrupt problematic narratives, and (4). successfully engaging the views of young people. Implications for reimagining leadership include how to engage with diverse perspectives in decision-making, ways to support people struggling with the uncertainty of change, and how to lead sustainable responses to complex challenges.