The interdisciplinary School of Education and Trinity Business School research team (Amy Fahy, Dr. Colette Murphy, Dr. Na Fu and Tam Nguyen) will discuss the findings of this study in conjunction with Dr. Ann Devitt, Director of Research at the School of Education, Trinity College Dublin.

Both Schools are launching a report titled ‘Leadership in Irish Primary Schools during COVID-19: Principals’ Study 2020'.

Date | Thursday 15th October

Time | 3.00pm via webinar on the online platform Zoom.

This report was based on a major national study - ‘Irish Primary School Leadership During COVID-19'. The study is being led and conducted by a team of researchers at Trinity College Dublin and was formed in response to concerns from teaching management professionals.

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, school closures were implemented by the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET). Accordingly, given the changing demands and shift in the new way of working (including teaching remotely, communicating with staff via online platforms & planning for a safe return to school), many school principals have experienced a significant level of stress. This report identifies ways that principals navigated the initial stage of the pandemic and how leading during the pandemic has affected their personal wellbeing.

The purpose of this study was to explore leadership experiences in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. It seeks to provide information which will inform supports that school management teams may benefit from. This report outlines a set of key themes that principals have expressed as being of importance regarding their role and demands, in addition to resources which principals feel might be of benefit to management teams going forward.