Professional identity under construction: a study on educational leadership in Ecuadorian technical schools

Recently, educational leadership has become of increasing interest to policy makers and researchers in non-Western and developing countries, particularly in the Latin American region. Often Western-inspired leadership models are applied in these contexts without consideration for the specific realities of each country. This paper focuses on the study of educational leadership in Ecuadorian technical schools, a context characterized by numerous educational reforms and a shift from administrative to pedagogical leadership models. Grounded in leadership identity theory, this article explores the perceptions of school principals and vice-principals regarding their evolving roles as educational leaders. Data were collected through in-depth semi-structured interviews with six school authorities. Results highlight that principals’ identity development is marked by dualities between being a leader and a teacher, as well as between administrative and pedagogical leadership. Moreover, the findings illustrate how these ambiguities must be interpreted in the context of Ecuadorian educational policies, the unique challenges faced by technical schools, and the career trajectories of educational leaders. The results of this study contribute to the establishment of a knowledge base for contextualized educational leadership research in Ecuador. The implications for the professional development of Ecuadorian school authorities, educational research, and policy are thoroughly discussed.