Chapter 3: New Zealand School Leaders' Experiences With Improving Low-Performing Rural Primary Schools Through Statutory Intervention

Leading a school is often a complex and challenging role. When a school is experiencing multiple issues resulting in under-performance and low student achievement, the complexity of the school leaders' role and the challenges they experience, intensifies. Each year, the New Zealand Ministry of Education considers a small number of schools to be “underperforming” and thus in need of external leadership assistance. This support is implemented through a statutory intervention mechanism aimed to address underpinning issues such as governance and leadership matters, low student academic achievement, issues of finance, and student and staff well-being (Ministry of Education, 2017).

This chapter examines the experiences of two New Zealand state primary (elementary) school leaders and their experiences of improving low-performing rural schools. The school leaders worked to address complex and challenging circumstances within their schools and community. Working with a statutory appointee presented unique challenges and opportunities for each school leader. The professional implications of leading school recovery are discussed, as are the personal challenges experienced by the school leaders.