Educational Leadership: The Key Lies in Supporting Those Who Run Our Schools

Agustín Porres took part in the XVII Latin American Education Forum, organized by Fundación Santillana and the Organization of Ibero-American States (OEI), with support from IIPE UNESCO Latin America and the Caribbean. Held in Buenos Aires, the forum brought together specialists, policymakers, and school leadership teams to examine one of the most pressing issues in education today: how to strengthen school leadership and management.

Porres joined the conversation alongside a distinguished group of educators and officials, including Luis Scasso, Director of OEI's Argentina Office; Ramiro Aranda, Minister of Education of Misiones; Horacio Ferreyra, Minister of Education of Córdoba; and José Weinstein, Director of the Leadership Program at the School of Education of Universidad Diego Portales in Chile — along with many other voices from across the region's education community.

Why School Leadership Matters Now

The forum's discussions centered on a shared concern: school principals and directors are increasingly asked to navigate complex organizations, support teaching staff, build consensus among stakeholders, and sustain long-term institutional projects — all in an environment of growing uncertainty. Too often, though, much of their time is consumed by administrative demands rather than the instructional leadership that most benefits students.

Leadership Can Be Learned — But It Needs the Right Conditions

The central message to emerge from the two days of panels and conversations was clear: leadership is a skill that can be developed, but developing it isn't enough on its own. School leaders also need the systemic conditions that allow them to actually exercise that leadership.

Four elements stood out as essential:

• Training — ongoing, high-quality professional development for those who lead schools

• Autonomy — the latitude to make meaningful decisions within their institutions

• Support — sustained accompaniment rather than isolated responsibility

• Networks — spaces for peer exchange and shared learning across schools and regions

When these conditions are in place, principals and directors are freed to focus on what matters most: improving teaching and learning outcomes for students.

A Shared Regional Challenge

The event reinforced a broader point echoed throughout the region's education policy conversations: improving schools requires more than reforming curricula or classroom practice. It also means investing in the professionalization of school leadership itself, and revisiting the institutional and systemic conditions that make strong, sustained leadership possible.

Learn more about the XVII Latin American Education Forum at IIPE UNESCO.