Mentoring in educational leadership and mentoring for educational leaders: Experiences, motivations, and impact of engagement from the perspectives of Irish post-primary principals

This mixed-methods study explores the following research questions: “What are the expectations, experiences, and motivations of educational leaders who serve as mentors and mentees in leadership development programmes, and how do different mentoring experiences and approaches influence their professional identities and leadership practices in Irish post-primary schools?” Situated within the context of increasing complexity in the role of school principals, and Ireland’s evolving national response through structured mentoring initiatives, the research focuses particularly on the mentoring programme delivered by Oide, the national support service for school leaders. An exploratory sequential mixed methods design was adopted. The qualitative phase involved semi-structured interviews with 14 post-primary principals who had participated in the Oide mentoring programme. Findings from this phase informed the development of a cross-sectional online survey, completed by 28 post-primary principals across a range of school types and contexts. An integrative analytical approach was used to synthesise findings across both phases of the study. The findings indicate that newly appointed principals who engaged in formal mentoring experienced a more supported and effective transition into leadership, particularly in managing the emotional and organisational complexities of the role. Mentoring relationships were described as safe, affirming spaces that helped mitigate the profound sense of isolation often reported by principals, while fostering emotional resilience and reflective practice. Participants emphasised the relational and affective dimensions of mentoring, which contributed to enhanced professional confidence, moral purpose, and leadership identity. However, widespread concerns were raised about the adequacy of leadership preparation and the informal nature of existing mentoring structures. Principals with prior leadership training tended to engage more meaningfully with mentoring, and many advocated for its formal inclusion beyond leadership induction. The theoretical framing draws on Kram’s (1983) phases of mentoring and Self-Determination Theory (Deci & Ryan, 2000) to analyse the processes through which mentoring contributes to leadership development. The study highlights the urgent need for more robust, inclusive, and sustainable mentoring frameworks that are sensitive to the emotional and contextual demands of school leadership. In doing so, it offers both a timely contribution to national policy discourse and a foundation for future research and practice in educational leadership development.

Publisher

University of Galway

Rights

CC BY-NC-ND

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University of Galway Theses (PhD Theses)