Proposing a Primary School Principalship Model through Positive and Negative Metaphoric Perspective

Primary school ages are very important for the students. It is the time for most students start their formal education period. The aim of the current research is to explore the perceptions of the teachers, 4 year initial teacher training students from education faculties, parents, vice principals and primary school principals as the key stakeholders (TSPVPPSPs) in two groups, to identify positive and negative metaphors of primary school principals and propose a primary school principalship model. Qualitative research paradigm under interpretive methodology was used in the current study. Group 1 consisted of 60 focus group members (FGMs) and Group 2 involved 60 in-dept-interviewers (IDInts). Data were collected through metaphoric perspective. The key stakeholders were asked to write in full sentences on if they would define the school principal, what positive and negative metaphor/s they would use and they were also asked to give their justifications. Interpretive approach for data collection was used and data were analyzed using content analysis method. Identified positive metaphors describe primary school principals as talented supervisors, as leaders, as the one who carries the Olympic-flame, as a negotiator and as a sensitive teddy whereas identified negative metaphors describe primary school principals as pollution, as mis-user of the rights and as a mechanical machine.


Introduction
Findings of a research project on exploring the perceptions of the key stakeholders (teachers, 4 th year initial teacher training students, parents, vice principals and primary-school-principals-TSPVPPSPs) on primary school principals through a metaphoric perspective are presented in the current paper. Perceptions of key stakeholders from ten primary schools (six of them are state primary schools and four of them are private primary schools for both groups) in North Cyprus (NC) were inquired. The research reported on the censorious effect of key stakeholders on primary school principals by identifying the positive and negative metaphors and proposed a primary school principalship model using a metaphoric perspective. Therefore, this study aims at identifying the positive and negative perceptions of the key stakeholders on primary school principals and proposing a model on primary school principalship through positive and negative metaphors.
Quality of school leaders and school success has a positive relationship; quality of school leadership has crucial significance while deciding on the success of the school [13]. Proposing a leadership model is a key element in reflecting and informing about differences in school leadership practice [2]. Additionally, candidate teachers during their training can alter their beliefs on teaching and learning process when they are "confronted with, and challenged about, their held beliefs through powerful and meaningful experiences that cause them to recognise and value the change process and its consequences for themselves and their learners" [48]. Definition of leadership is "the ability of an individual to influence, motivate and enable others to contribute toward the effectiveness and success of the organizations of which they are members" [22]. Hallinger and Snidvongs [20] believe that school leadership and the climate of the school as well as outcomes of the schooling affect each other. Similarly, sustaining quality in the leadership has significant relationship with principal of the school and the principalship [13]. Similarly, leadership practices and student achievement has positive relationship [51].
A research study aiming at finding out the perceived level of mentor principals on the system of mentoring, finalized with 5 themes, which are "exposure and mirroring, modeling, giving, empowering and supporting". The study concluded that process on mentoring may facilitate developing the mentoring system itself as well as programming practical based in-service trainings for preparing principals to the mentoring system [46]. Another study, regarding the dimensions of instructional leadership of Singapore 72 Proposing a Primary School Principalship Model through Positive and Negative Metaphoric Perspective principals, concluded that Singaporean principals have strong effect on promoting positive and/or negative climate of school and school vision. However, middle managers have strong effect on implementation of curriculum and interaction in the classroom rather than principals [38]. Leadership models show tendency to change in time [2], but leadership of the principal has been developed through social justice, realising influential organizational realities, precedence of policy pointing the extent school leaders adjust their dedication to the socially fair differences [30]. Similarly, school leadership involve claims such as school leadership have effect on schools, students and students' learning; as school leaders carry basic leadership patterns; as they apply these leadership patterns where they work; as they arrange every best possible influences to feed motivation, commitment and work conditions of the staff [29]. Therefore, we can conclude that principals need to display leadership and establish leadership teams at schools. Leadership teams are featured by internal consistency and harmony, commitment to professional teaching standards, developed mutual communication skills with inside and outside key stakeholders and devotedness to distributed leadership skills [3].
A former study confirms that the role of a principal is to provide resources and maintain the positive school [10]. However, a school principal is the administrator of the school and at the same time, is the instructional leader. Similarly, they support "school-based curriculum and staff development" [10]. Effective school management has a positive relationship between the relationship of vice-principals and principals. Vice-principals' and principals' status, roles and management tasks show combinations of various relationships among them [52]. A school principal requires establishing the network among the school, school environment and is responsible for ensuring the effective continuity of the established network. The school principal constantly has interaction with students, teachers and parents in order to supply all kinds of managing activities. Through the interaction, students, teachers and parents have perceptions on their minds regarding the school principal because they are the indispensable parts of a four-leg table. The quality of perceptions determines the direction and quality of the interaction between students, teachers, as well as parents and between school principals. Direction and quality of the interaction among them directly affects the quality of the teaching and learning process. Similarly, when school principals are aware what is thought about them, this case may ensure the continuation of the positive perceptions and/or fading the negative perceptions. On the other hand, principals attending to a project initially mentioned the difficulties they face in relation to "managerial tasks and bureaucracy". Then, all of the participative principals revealed that they feel pleasure on their roles on principality [50].

Metaphors and the school principals
Metaphors are forms of organization of points of views of people, where people arrange the actions, teaching and work with the learners [33]. They have strong effect on perceiving and building the world we live in and way of explaining the beliefs and attitudes we may find difficult to indicate. In fact, metaphors are found to be impressive path for altering beliefs, manners and actions of people [12]. Metaphors in teaching and teacher training are described as constructs where both prospective teachers and practicing teachers can reflect what their justifications on teaching, learning and school life [44]. Metaphor usage can be defined from two sources which are "the contextual stability of the utterance's interpretation and the presence or absence of a conceptual source-target mapping" and three types which are "introspective evidence about metaphor-in-language, from a survey-based study of metaphoricity, from a computational model of metaphoricity and from a meta-study of the examples used in published metaphor research" [8]. A metaphor includes "a multi-dimensional qualitative shift away from the encoded meaning of the metaphor vehicle" [42]. Importance of the metaphor usage in the teaching and learning process has a close relationship to put a border to notions on concepts. Metaphors related to teaching are beneficial in framing conceptualizations and orientations regarding classroom atmosphere, approaches influencing teachers, curriculum and teachers dealing with students in the classroom [32]. Exploring on metaphors in initial teacher training has possibility to be a gate to facilitate candidate teachers' actual beliefs regarding teaching as well as learning. Such kind of facilitation provides reflection and examination on candidate teachers' beliefs as well as effect on their teaching and effect on students' learning [48]. Metaphors, configuring the operation as one of the most powerful mental tools, are defined as the occurrence of the incidence, occurrence of beliefs and thoughts of people [45]. Metaphors are interpreted more cognitive rather than behaviourist. Students are active when teacher-student relationships are considered and the focus is to transform and/or enlighten the student learning as the learning product. Similarly what teachers, institutions and policy-makers expect does not match each other. Mismatch of expectations may get contribution from the ambiguity of the metaphors [12].

Methodology
Interpretive methodology under qualitative research paradigm was adopted as an epistemological position [11]. Phenomenology was used as the research design within interpretivism. Interviews were carried out within 2 different groups. Group 1 was interviewed using focus group interviews (FGIs) with 60 focus group members (FGMs). Group 2 was interviewed face-to-face using in-depth-interviews (IDIs) with 60-in-depth-interviewers (IDInts). FGMs were TSPVPPSPs from five primary schools (three state-schools and two private-schools). IDInts were TSPVPPSPs from five primary schools (three state-school and two-private school). I-DIs were conducted with 60 different key stakeholders to make sure that identified positive and negative metaphors were common. Semi-structured interview form-1 for FGMs were produced and implemented to identify the perceptions of key stakeholders (Group 1) regarding positive and negative metaphors on school principals. After identification of positive and negative metaphors on school principals, unstructured interview form-1 for different key stakeholders (Group 2) were produced and implemented to make sure that identified positive and negative metaphors were common.
Throughout the process, data analysis results of FGIs and I-DIs were compared and then common points were regarded as common metaphors. Data was collected qualitatively within the format of using metaphors. The participants were asked to write their perceptions about the primary school principal by using the positive and negative metaphors. They were asked to respond to the questions, ''If you would define your school principal, what positive metaphor/s would you use''; and ''If you would define your primary school principal, what negative metaphor/s would you use?''. The participants were also asked to give their justifications specifically why they would use the metaphor/s they have provided. Key stakeholders in-group 1 were given codes such as T1 for teacher 1 and/or VP 4 for vice-principal 4. Key stakeholders in-group 2 were not given any codes since they were used for finding out the common metaphors identified by the key-stakeholders in-group 1.
Interpretive approach was used for qualitative data collection. Semi-structured-interviews and I-DIs were applied as part of data collection methods. Data collected through interpretive approach were analyzed using content analysis method.
The experts in the field of educational sciences reviewed research instruments and data each time. Enhancing content validity, the ambiguous and uncertain questions were redesigned, complex/unclear items were re-worded and ineffective and non-functioning questions were either removed or re-shaped based on the reviewers' comments. Also, these experts face validated the questions. Results' dependability, which was obtained from the data using the open-ended-interview form and semi-structured-interview form, were maintained by using the techniques named investigator's position, triangulation and audit trial [31]. For the current study, the-status-of-the-researcher (as an instructor, researcher's social position increased the possibility of reaching the most appropriate participants) and the-choice-of-informants (the researcher described the participants clearly; therefore, any independent researcher who might desire to replicate the study, could do it very easily) and the-social-situations-and-conditions (the study was conducted in academic environments and situation. Therefore, the social situation and condition was fairly constant and uniform to the participants); the-analytic-constructs-and-premises (main terms, constructs, definitions, units of analysis and premises were delineated and their underlying assumptions were elaborated explicitly) and the-methods-of-data-collection-and-analysis (data were collected using semi-structured and unstructured interview forms. Methods and thematic interpretations were explored clearly) were applied for managing the external reliability) [54]. Also, the current study's internal reliability has been presented by using low inference descriptors. This makes any independent researchers/observer any time to be able to observe and replicate these factors rather easily. Also, internal reliability of the present study has been elaborated by using mechanically recorded data, which allows the researcher/s to record and preserve the interviews. This facilitates the independent researcher to be able to implement the reanalysis or replication of the data) [40].

Positive and negative metaphors: Key themes
The study presented the positive and negative metaphors on primary school principals. Key findings will be discussed under 2 related themes: (1) positive metaphors and (2) negative metaphors. Theme on positive metaphors has been affected by sub-themes called (i) talented supervisor, (ii) centre of leading, (iii) Olympic flame carrier, (iv) negotiator and (v) sensitive teddy bear. Similarly, theme on negative metaphors has been affected by sub-themes called (i) pollution, (ii) mis-user of rights and (iii) mechanical machine.

Theme 1: A positive primary school principal
A primary school principal as a talented supervisor is the brain of the organization and the staff as the vision and mission holder, democratic leader who shows the participative leadership. Similarly, a primary school principal as a talented supervisor is the shining star as the light on a lighthouse, a shaft of inspiration, sunlight and a lamb for blind wells who is the deeper searcher, supporter and applier of logical recent approaches, methods and techniques. Similarly, a primary school principal as a talented supervisor is skillful on leading as the traffic officer as well as a ship and football captain who gives direction, leads and fixes complexity. Also, a primary school principal as a talented supervisor is a life coach as the creator of increasing awareness on sensitivity and as the radar who is a conscious and an awakened philosopher. Having clear vision and mission is a fundamental vehicle for school principals for developing teaching and learning at school [19]. Constructing vision and removing unsatisfactory teaching lead to raise standards in a school [4]. On the other hand, primary school principals need teachers to practice on "creative problem-solving and inquiry learning" to lead life-long learning [14]. Critical reflection is part of positive side of the primary school principal facilitating teachers accept and apply a learner-centred pedagogy confidently [34]. Once the principals were managers, but through time their role has been altered to consider principals as instructional leaders [35]. As instructional leaders, principals are at the central position making sure on the "coherence between curriculum and academic content in teaching and learning" [15]. On the other hand, Kitchen, Gray and Jeurissen [24] give value to "distributed leadership" which is vital in participative leadership since both commonly involve active and just participation and distribution of the principals.
As part of being at the centre of leading, a primary school principal as the king of the jungles is an acquirer of survival strategies and survivor among burnout people who finds out the very best way at all circumstances whereas a primary school principal as a centre of leading is a democrat as an indispensable lovebird and as shown by fingers at the working network who provides justice. Similarly, a primary school principal as the centre of leading is the head of household as the complementary part of medallion, as supporter the lifelong learning of the staff and as roots of a plane tree who has sense of trust whereas a primary school principal as the centre of leading is a champion as a galloper and a speedy-Gonzalez who behaves like a productive and an unknown ghost of the working network.
The primary school principal I work with come into my mind when you ask me to complete the phrase… A primary school principal is …. Well, he is the king of the jungles, like Tarzan. He very well knows the survival strategies, I mean he is a real survivor. Whenever there is trouble, and/or problem, he solves them immediately. This is very important because when troubles and/or problems become like a spiral, the principal with the staff cannot even take a further step. He finds every best way out. He also helps the teachers to develop themselves. He believes that lifelong learning of the teachers is very important (T10).
A primary school principal has a mission of dealing with very small kids. So, he or she should be a lovebird. This is inescapable. Also, he or she is required to be a just person, otherwise people have a feeling of unjust and their feel of justice is damaged (PSP4). … he or she should be like a speedy Gonzalez, like the mouse in the fairy tales… (S8).
O'Toole [41] believes that the principals should have leading skills "one foot on the brake" which means they need to see every detail of issues while going ahead. Hallinger [18] thinks that governments should have effort to alter school principals from being "agents of stability into leaders of change." On the other hand, Leithwood [28] promotes, "well-functioning departments are powerful centers for improving". Similarly, principals are found to have a vital role in the development of professional community of teachers [19]. In this sense, it is essential that primary school principals maintain the discipline that the organization they work can be a center for developing the teachers' lifelong learning. The main dimensions of discipline to be maintained by the primary school principals may cover motivation, volunteerism, initiative, encouraging staff, remove and/or minimize hurdles and make it accepted as part of the organization's culture.
Primary school principal as an Olympic flame carrier is an Olympic runner as a qualified athlete targeting to win, a busy bee working in harmony with other bees who is seen as a dynamic and example world leader throughout the organization they work for whereas a primary school teacher as an Olympic flame carrier is the power of the garden as the raiser of rare roses of the garden and the continuous supporter of raising rare roses who behaves as an approver and encourager farmer/gardener. Primary school principals require to establish a democratic-participative while making decisions, supply a closely relationship among the staff and the schools around and provide motivation to create a particular identity of their school [6]. Similarly, students require "acquiring excellent innovative and creative competencies" which are products of educational systems, school and school leaders [37]. Brundrett [1] believes "creativity in primary schools" has importance in improving the success of the students and the school. On the other hand, Trust is the vital quality every leader should have since they play a significant role while establishing the effective school leadership [25]. However, trust in leadership can be easily damaged. Therefore, it is vital to acquire the importance of trust in and among the school and staff because school leaders "model and mediate the pervasive trust-related processes in schools" [25]. A primary school leader as an Olympic flame carrier is an inspirer. They can show their inspiration while they support the creativity of the students; while they maintain trust among the staff and/or while they work in harmony in and outside the school.

I have always been dreaming a primary school
Also, primary school teacher as a negotiator is the planner as a person with backup plans who can successfully foresee the next steps whereas a primary school principal as a negotiator is a designer as a fight solver between children without hurting their hearts and without offending them, as a judge establishing justice and motivator to students having higher exam anxiety who is the finder of the best way. Additionally, a primary school principal as a negotiator is a doer as a common sense parent, injectors of win-win policy and entrepreneurs of raising awareness who has a strong effect like series of growing waves. The most important quality of a principal while negotiating includes "interpersonal relationship based on mutual need" [21]. It is noted that staff can plan their negotiations with the primary school principal when they are aware of the "interpersonal dynamics and formal rule structure in the work unit" [36]. It is sometimes impossible and highly undesirable to negotiate the issues in the work unit. However, a primary school principal requires negotiating the issues strategically and ethically. This is because in a work unit there may be staff who is a rationalist, who is viable, who represents a group, who obeys every rule one-by-one without questioning and/or who is seen as popular. Being aware the variety among staff, the primary school principal requires acquiring the negotiating skills.
Similarly, a primary school principal as a sensitive teddy bear is a gentle and tolerant amazing teddy who is empathetic whereas a primary school principal as a sensitive teddy is an open channelled teddy as a non-threatening, open communicator and planner of next steps who smells dangers in advance.

… He is a teddy bear. My son is at primary 3. My son says, he would like to be taught by that lovely teddy bear.
I also see him like a lovely teddy bear. He is very sensitive to the students, issue arising. I observe that he is very careful and conscious. He never leaves issues to anyone. He is empathetic and never threats children and teachers. My son and his friends generally tell that the principal has never been rude to the people working at the school (P9).

…. He deals with the issues immediately and plans the arising issue immediately. He is so wise that I think he is a philosopher. I believe a philosopher can respond everything immediately at the required distance and required amount (VP7).
A principal whose personal traits cover openness and honesty, who has strong communication skills, who has innate goodness, who proves the sense that each student can learn and be successful, who is flexible, who has commitment, passion, who supports equity among the staff and supplies social justice and who can show empathy and who can make a difference in the school he or she works for include the characteristics and qualities of a principal [16]. Identified characteristics and qualities of a principal can facilitate increasing qualifications of staff in school. Elmeski [9] believes that principals, who emotionally and spiritually devote themselves, improve the school and lives of students.

Theme 2: A negative primary school principal
A primary school principal as a pollution is water pollution as an unclean water cube who allows gossips and 76 Proposing a Primary School Principalship Model through Positive and Negative Metaphoric Perspective rumours inside and outside the organization whereas a primary school principal as a pollution is environmental pollution as sharp vinegar, an angry bull and a swamp who generally sees everything from the wrong side of the medallion. Additionally, a primary school principal as a pollution is noise pollution as creaking doors, radio programmer and broken record, who generally looses due to the waste of words uttered like an empty chatter. Similarly, a primary school principal as a pollution is visual pollution as a frame with damaged point, a woman falling into paint-cube, a pond becoming mouldy and lizard walking on the wall that is a disgusting visual.
… a primary school principal… is like water, air, environment, noise pollution… Also, like a visual pollution. When the primary school principal gossips, he or she pollutes the water; when he or she shouts at people around like an angry bull or sharp vinegar, the he or she is an environmental pollution…. If he or she is telling something, but nobody listens or applies what he or she says, like a broken record or like a creaking door, then he or she is a noise pollution (P1).
If the primary school principal does not have a smiling face,… whenever he or she has in trouble or when a problem appears, if he or she starts gossiping and circulating rumours around then he or she is a water pollution. …whenever he or she has a face like falling into a paint cube, or whenever he or she sees a pond, if he or she does not produce an effort to walk down the pond, but starts throwing stones to the pond, then the primary school principal is the visual pollution (T9).
A study confirms that teachers from four of the six case-study primary schools see primary school principals as deeming to direct [27]. However, leadership styles require policy-makers and schools management to reconsider the "effectiveness of school-based approaches to curriculum development in enhancing teacher learning and development" [26].
Similarly, a primary school principal as a mis-user of rights is a dictator as tuneless chorus, fake player, broken umbrella, unable to plan and invest future, who condones labour exploitation. Also, a primary school principal as a mis-user of rights is a bank manager as a beggar and money machine who is a money coiner.
A primary school principal should not misuse the rights. If misuse the rights, she or he seems like a dictator. What does a dictator look like or what does a dictator mean? A dictator is like a tuneless chorus, a fake player in an authentic football team, is like a broken umbrella, is the one who cannot plan or invest to the future of the children (S15).
Some primary school principals see the children as the money giver. They think that parents should not ask why they are giving extra money, but should give money every time they are asked to. I see such kind of school principals like a beggar. I think they need a money machine to produce money and coins of money all the time because they love the smell of money. Children at the primary school age should study without paying money. This is what the regulations say (P3).
Risk-taking occurs when the decisions as well as the regulatory framework and the primary governance system for schools are not in complement each other. Unless taking risks, primary school principals cannot have effect on the structure of the governance and cannot have influence on decision-making processes in school [49]. When the primary school principal takes the appropriate risks at the correct time, then staff in the school respects the principal. Thus, Güngör, Aydın, Memduhoğlu and Oğuz [17] define respect as "consideration of actions and requests of others and confirmation of values of others". They find that respect among the school staff has strong effect especially in understanding professional respect. Primary school principals who misuse the rights of the staff cannot take risks and cannot step into risky cases. As they withdraw themselves in taking risks, then no one respects the primary school principal. Unless feeling respect, no one will feel the part of the organization they work for.
Also, a primary school principal as a mechanical machine is unable to programme as an unproductive wheat field, bee-hive not making honey, never setting sun, dark side of the moon, uncaring technique director, never producing factory and a sleepy koala who is an un-programmed robot whereas a primary school principal as a mechanical machine is oppressive and harsh as an increasing number of unsolved problems, cruelty on job descriptions and suppression of issues who creates occupational injustice among staff. A creative principal has dual thinking processes, which one is on generation of ideas and on refinement, evaluation and selection processes [47]. Similarly, creativity has been enhanced through operating states of positive mood [39]. When not generating an idea and not refining, evaluating and selecting which process to lead, a primary school principal cannot take further steps for the school he or she works for and cannot be productive enough. In addition to this, a primary school principal requires showing empathy while generating ideas and deciding which path to go. A principal without showing empathy, communicating effectively, praising, giving feedback, motivating have ineffective inquiry coaching skills [53].

Conclusion and Recommendations
As a conclusion, a principalship model is proposed to identify a system describing and explaining the positive and negative principalship of primary school principals. The proposed model in the current study is central to the knowledge-building process, which presents the primary school principalship mentally as a whole. The proposed principalship model with positive metaphors: The model on positive principalship proposes dimensions on (i) leadership (ii) supervision, (iii) inspiring, (iv) negotiation and (v) affectivity. The model has been proposing that the primary school principal builds the vision and sets goals and objectives clearly with the mission statement. Similarly, the primary school principal inspirers, understands and develops people in the teaching and learning atmosphere. Whenever it is a need, the primary school principal re/designs the school environment and climate as it is required to be and the primary school principal leads the teaching and learning process and programme. Also, the primary school principal supports life-long development of the teachers and the staff. Similarly, a primary school principal supplies empathy clearly and behaves each staff individually.
The proposed principalship model with negative metaphors: The model on negative principalship proposes dimensions on (i) ineffectiveness, (ii) un-riskiness and (iii) un-productiveness and non-creativeness. The model has been proposing that the primary school principal does not set objectives and goals, does not apply to basic leadership practices, does not support lifelong learning of the staff in the teaching and learning process, rumours and gossips walk around in and out the organization, does not have strong effect and influence on the student and teacher learning, hardly ever is respected and hardly ever gives motivation signals around, hardly ever motivates the staff, hardly ever shows commitment to work-place, staff and teaching and learning programme and teaching and learning process. Additionally, there is not any sign of distributive leadership patterns, democracy patterns and even effective leadership patterns among the managing skills of the principal.
A model explaining the relationship between who the school leaders are, what they do and the way they attempt to the setting the function [7]. Another model proposes that an effective principal has 4 characteristics as "documented characteristics (having a track record and being a good manager), instructional skills (instructional leadership and data leadership), interpersonal skills (team player and community leader) and perceptual characteristics (being a perfect fit for school and passionate leader)" [43]. The model proposed in the current article is on primary school principalship through positive and negative metaphors. Similarly, identified images of school principalship are "principal as the lead teacher, principal as an agent of a harmonious learning community and principal as a teacher-maker" [5].
Principals' are restricted by "lack of confidence in administrative skills for sustainable schools, limited willingness to challenge the status quo, limited engagement in actions" which lead to develop teachers' lifelong learning at the areas such as "empowering staff, encouraging critique of current approaches and exploring alternative possibilities for curriculum, pedagogy and policy" [23].
A metaphoric perspective locates the primary school principal as the person who has the positive and negative skills. The model proposes the primary school principalship in both perspectives, as positive metaphors and as negative perspectives. Primary school principalship model reflects the predominant values, norms, expectations and interests placed on the primary school principals of NC. In this sense, the proposed primary school principalship model has contributed to the research field by linking theory with practice. The model has been recommended to guide research through simplified representation of the theory