Social justice leadership within the context of secondary schools’ leadership in Grenada : a critical textual analysis

Given current global trends such as the widening gap between rich and poor individuals, increased diversity among the populace and patterns of underperformance among certain groups and, in Grenada, the high drop-out rate among students who transition to high school, the government’s intent to provide universal access to secondary schooling, and the serious lack of research on social justice leadership, an explicit focus on social justice is necessary. Since discourse provides the boundaries within which educational leaders may act, this paper analyses the Strategic Plan for Educational Enhancement & Development (SPEED II) to examine the policy framework which influences the perceptions and practice of secondary school leaders in Grenada with a view to providing them with suggestions for how they can promote social justice within their institutions and in the wider society. The paper draws on critical discourse analysis and critical social justice to explore how good leaders/teachers and quality education is conceptualised and how the treatment of social justice in SPEED II compare/contrast with current literature. It concludes that although the expressions “social justice” and “social justice leadership” are not used in the document, others such as equity, diversity, relevance, respect and tolerance are used, pointing to some degree of recognition to these issues. The dominant discourse however, is one of neoliberalism, and education for global citizenship and economic development. Educational leaders in Grenada ought to provide a more supportive policy environment, which situates social justice as central to the process and outcome of education.Education, Faculty ofEducational Studies (EDST), Department ofUnreviewedGraduat