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This chapter advances the understanding of leadership for social justice by proposing a conceptual framework rooted in Pierre Bourdieu’s conflict theory, focusing on the social functions of public schools. While previous leadership discourses have used Bourdieu’s sociology to explore schools as social fields and provide valuable insights into educational inequalities (Beattie, Int J Leadersh Educ 21:608–620, 2017), they quietly overlook the depth of his conflict theoretical perspective. This chapter builds a foundation that integrates distributional conflicts and power imbalances in education systems (Mackert, Social closure. In: Oxford bibliographies, 2024)), where public schools not only educate but also drive social selection and closure through explicit and implicit contests over credentials (Bourdieu and Passeron, Die Illusion der Chancengleichheit: Untersuchungen zur Soziologie des Bildungswesens am Beispiel Frankreichs. Klett, 1971; Kramer, 2001; Kramer, Habitus “kulturelle Passung.” In: Rieger-Ladich and Grabau (eds) Pierre Bourdieu: Pedagogical readings. Springer VS, pp 183–205, 2017). Therefore, in this chapter I ask: How can leadership for social justice be grounded in conflict theory, and what are its implications? The chapter uses Bourdieu’s concepts of capital, field, and habitus (Bourdieu, Die feinen Unterschiede: Kritik der gesellschaftlichen Urteilskraft. Suhrkamp, 1987) to challenge the fact that his sociology is often used merely as a toolbox. His focus on inequality through social closure is neglected. However, his theory offers both analytical tools and a critical perspective to uncover the roots of inequality. A conflict theory approach therefore challenges school leaders to recognize that their actions—whether implicit or explicit—are part of social closure. After critically reflecting on this fundamental problem, a more comprehensive leadership approach to social justice can be built upon to challenge systemic inequalities and promote transformative change in educational practices and structures.

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Searching for Solutions to the Problem of Educational Inequality: Bringing Conflict Theory into Educational Leadership

  • 动态工具书词条

  • 发表日期：

    2025年

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  • Robert Pham Xuan

摘要

This chapter advances the understanding of leadership for social justice by proposing a conceptual framework rooted in Pierre Bourdieu’s conflict theory, focusing on the social functions of public schools. While previous leadership discourses have used Bourdieu’s sociology to explore schools as social fields and provide valuable insights into educational inequalities (Beattie, Int J Leadersh Educ 21:608–620, 2017), they quietly overlook the depth of his conflict theoretical perspective. This chapter builds a foundation that integrates distributional conflicts and power imbalances in education systems (Mackert, Social closure. In: Oxford bibliographies, 2024)), where public schools not only educate but also drive social selection and closure through explicit and implicit contests over credentials (Bourdieu and Passeron, Die Illusion der Chancengleichheit: Untersuchungen zur Soziologie des Bildungswesens am Beispiel Frankreichs. Klett, 1971; Kramer, 2001; Kramer, Habitus “kulturelle Passung.” In: Rieger-Ladich and Grabau (eds) Pierre Bourdieu: Pedagogical readings. Springer VS, pp 183–205, 2017). Therefore, in this chapter I ask: How can leadership for social justice be grounded in conflict theory, and what are its implications? The chapter uses Bourdieu’s concepts of capital, field, and habitus (Bourdieu, Die feinen Unterschiede: Kritik der gesellschaftlichen Urteilskraft. Suhrkamp, 1987) to challenge the fact that his sociology is often used merely as a toolbox. His focus on inequality through social closure is neglected. However, his theory offers both analytical tools and a critical perspective to uncover the roots of inequality. A conflict theory approach therefore challenges school leaders to recognize that their actions—whether implicit or explicit—are part of social closure. After critically reflecting on this fundamental problem, a more comprehensive leadership approach to social justice can be built upon to challenge systemic inequalities and promote transformative change in educational practices and structures.