By analysing the application of previous research, this article aims to establish the groundwork
to develop a new distributed leadership research agenda that can bring together scholars from
diverse education sectors. As such, this article critiques the relevance and significance of
school-based distributed leadership within early childhood contexts, including an analysis of
implementation challenges that flow on from applying theory into practice. This discussion draws
on relevant research undertaken in a range of countries, especially Canada, the UK and USA,
involving the work of key scholars such as Keith Leithwood, Alma Harris and James Spillane,
respectively. Specific papers by these scholars and others, selected for analysis are presented in
Table 1. This analysis is important because a discussion incorporating early childhood and school
education leadership literature has not been published previously. By stimulating discussions
between scholars interested in exploring distributed leadership across different education sectors,
it will be possible to assess the veracity of applying distributed leadership in similar but different
educational organizations.