Talking and Walking Leadership

This chapter explores the lived experiences of leaders: teachers leading classrooms and leaders leading schools. The term ‘leadership’ is used broadly to include senior leadership of one or more schools, subject leadership, leadership of students and leadership of the learning that takes place within classrooms. Thematic analysis is used as a tool to support ongoing reflections of cross-cultural leadership narratives, including how linguistic choices impact classroom dynamics, teacher and leader expectations, and miscommunications. The chapter identifies how a focus on leadership language can directly influence issues like criticality and inclusion. The narratives shared through the chapter put a spotlight on how leaders can deploy a range of linguistic approaches and provide valuable insights into the cultural variety of talking about and doing leadership. The reader is invited throughout the chapter to engage in language challenges and critical reflections on their role and identity as a multilingual leader.