Module Specifications
Academic Year 2026 - 2027
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Description This year-long module is designed to equip students with advanced knowledge and leadership skills to foster inclusive education. Focusing on leadership models, collaborative practices, and evidence-informed approaches, the module emphasises the role of leaders in creating and sustaining inclusive environments in education and beyond. Students will critically explore various leadership frameworks, including distributed leadership, transformative leadership, and inclusive leadership. Collaborative practices among educators, stakeholders, and community members will be examined, and participants will engage in evidence-based strategies to enhance inclusion for diverse learners. Through critical reflection and peer collaboration, students will develop practical leadership skills to guide inclusive practices in their professional settings. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Learning Outcomes 1. Critically evaluate leadership models and theories that support inclusive education across various contexts. 2. Demonstrate an advanced understanding of collaborative practices that foster inclusive education, including multi-disciplinary and cross-sector partnerships. 3. Apply evidence-informed collaborative practices in the design and implementation of inclusion strategies across a range of settings. 4. Critically analyse the role of leadership in addressing societal, institutional, and cultural barriers to inclusion. 5. Develop and apply leadership skills in fostering inclusive environments through participatory decision-making, shared leadership, and professional collaboration. 6. Design an evidence-informed action plan for improving inclusion within a specific educational or organisational setting. 7. Reflect critically on personal leadership practices and develop strategies for continuous professional development in leading inclusive education initiatives. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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All module information is indicative and subject to change. For further information,students are advised to refer to the University's Marks and Standards and Programme Specific Regulations at: http://www.dcu.ie/registry/examinations/index.shtml |
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Indicative Content and Learning Activities
Models of Leadership in Education: From Theory to Practice What is leadership? Leadership as an activity and practice is compared to Leadership as role and status. Leadership as a construct: Vision Values Influence. A typology of leadership: Instructional leadership, managerial leadership, transformational leadership, moral and authentic leadership, distributed leadership, teacher leadership, system leadership, contingent leadership. Leadership for Inclusion / Inclusive School Leadership This topic explores the relationship between leadership and inclusion by distinguishing between leadership for inclusion, an action-based, conceptual approach, and inclusive school leadership, a skills-based, practice-focused perspective. Drawing on the work of Precey, Ottesen, Jackson, and others, students will interrogate how inclusion itself is conceptualised and problematised, and examine the discourses that shape “who” is included (Mac Ruairc, 2013). The topic also engages with the tensions surrounding leadership in special schools and inclusive settings (Ekins, 2013; Merrigan, 2023) and considers how different leadership models can be woven together into a framework for inclusive school leadership, as proposed by the European Agency for Special Needs and Inclusive Education (EASNIE). Leadership for Collaboration This topic examines the central role of collaboration in inclusive leadership. Students will explore how collaborative cultures are developed through partnerships with families, communities, and external agencies. The roles of principals, special educational needs coordinators , and teacher leaders in inclusive school environments are considered as key enablers of collaboration. Attention is given to teamwork and professional learning communities, models of professional learning, and the Profile for Inclusive Teacher Professional Learning (EASNIE). The importance of collaborating with children and amplifying learner voices is also foregrounded, highlighting participatory approaches to leadership for inclusion. Evidence-Informed Supportive Practices and Inclusion This topic examines what it means to understand, implement, and sustain evidence-informed practices that foster inclusion. High-quality implementation depends on support at both individual and organisational levels; organisational context (culture, climate, and structures) strongly shapes implementation processes and outcomes. Leadership is central here: leaders can build readiness for change, secure resources, and create plans, structures, and professional learning that enable implementation; often described as “leadership for implementation” (Aarons & Sommerfeld, 2012). Drawing on Implementation Science, we consider frameworks such as the Active Implementation Frameworks (AIF), which identify competency, organisational, and leadership drivers. In this view, fidelity (implementing an evidence-based practice as intended) is most likely when all three drivers are in place, and leadership entails both technical responses to well-defined problems and adaptive work on complex, multi-stakeholder challenges. Recent synthesis also highlights leadership as a key determinant of success, with leadership engagement and formally appointed internal implementation leaders among the strongest influences on implementation (Schmitt et al., 2025). Here, “leadership” includes anyone with direct or indirect influence; appointed leaders, champions, and opinion leaders across system levels. The topic also surfaces practical tensions (fidelity vs flexibility) when adapting curricula, programmes, instruction, and levels of support for diverse learners, and invites critical reflection on how leaders calibrate provision in inclusive settings. Leadership and Policy Advocacy This topic explores the intersection of leadership, policy, and advocacy in advancing inclusive education. Students will engage with inclusive education policy at local, national, and international levels, considering how change is enacted and the roles of diverse policy actors. The role of advocacy in shaping policy and practice is examined, including both strategic and emotional dimensions of advocacy. The concept of system leadership is highlighted, focusing on how system leaders can drive and sustain change across organisational and structural levels. Building on this, attention is given to the challenges of developing and sustaining change in education systems. Students will critically reflect on their own roles as advocates and policy actors within their professional contexts. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Indicative Reading List Books:
Articles:
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Other Resources
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