Spatial engagement: The navigation of a novice teaching principal in a small rural community

This article proceeds from the contention that rural spaces presentparticular challenges for teaching principals of small schools. Thesechallenges are compounded for the novice principal in the first fewmonths of appointment (and perhaps even more so for females) whenit can often appear that “extraordinary spaces are emerging in ordinaryplaces” (Buchanan, 1997). We employ narrative accounts written inthe voice of a novice teaching principal to chronicle ways in which the(female) incumbent deals with and makes sense of the spatialinfluences on her work. We also examine how the incumbent’sconstruction of her professional identity is affected by her experiencesin the first few months of performing the role. The work concludeswith a discussion of the implications for the preparation anddevelopment of teaching principals who might encounter suchchallenging spaces.