Chapter 7: Leadership in Early Childhood Centers

The purpose of this article is to outline a framework for understanding various aspects of the leadership role related to Management for Learning Project. Leadership in early childhood education and care (ECEC) is underrepresented in academic literature, both internationally and in Norway (Borg, Kristiansen, & Backe-Hansen 2006; Busch, 2013, Strehmel, 2016). A search for studies on leadership in the European Early Childhood Education Research Journal also shows that the topic is primarily perceived as an internal function in ECCs. However, as Heikka and Waniganayake (2016, p. 223) state, during the past few decades, researchers have made significant progress in developing our understanding and conceptualization of leadership in early childhood education (ECC centers). However, it is still a challenge to find relevant theories of leadership that can be applied to the ECEC sector (Ødegård, 2011). It is also difficult to distinguish leadership in these organizations as something completely different from leadership in other organizations, although any organization’s leadership is concerned with goals, decisions and communication.