The concept and practice of teacher leadership have gained momentum in the past two decades. Teachers are assuming more leadership functions at both instructional and organizational levels of practice. Empirical literature reveals numerous small-scale, qualitative studies that describe dimensions of teacher leadership practice, teacher leader characteristics, and conditions that promote and challenge teacher leadership. Less is known about how teacher leadership develops and about its effects. In addition, the construct of teacher leadership is not well defined, conceptually or operationally. Future research focused on the differentiated paths by which teachers influence organizational capacity, professionalism, instructional improvement, and student learning has the potential to advance the practice of teacher leadership. A conceptual framework is offered to guide such inquiry.

https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdfplus/3516026.pdf

What Do We Know About Teacher Leadership? Findings From Two Decades of Scholarship

This article reports on findings from a longitudinal study of leadership in the context of a region-wide school renewal effort entitled the Bay Area School Reform Collaborative (BASRC). BASRC's the...

Leadership of Inquiry: Building and Sustaining Capacity for School Improvement:

This article focuses on the issue of teacher leadership and explores various interpretations and definitions within the literature. It examines the relationship between teacher leadership and distributed leadership, focusing particularly upon the idea of activity theory. The article suggests that there are some important connections and overlaps between distributed leadership and teacher leadership. The article also discusses the possible sources of resistance to the idea of teachers as leaders in schools and explores how distributing leadership to teachers may contribute to building professional learning communities within and between schools.

Teacher leadership as distributed leadership: heresy, fantasy or possibility?

As the limitations of the `charismatic head' theories of leadership in schools have become ever more apparent, there has been a move towards teacher leadership, characterized by a form of collective leadership in which teachers develop expertise by working collaboratively. In this article, the possible benefits of teacher leadership are explored, as well as the possible barriers to and opportunities for making teacher leadership work in practice. It is concluded that teacher leadership could have beneficial effects on school improvement, school and teacher effectiveness and teacher motivation and retention, but that the right conditions need to be in place in order for teacher leadership to flourish. The lack of research on teacher leadership in the UK is noted.

Teacher Leadership: improvement through empowerment? An overview of research.

Purpose: The purpose of this article is to uncover what scholars know and do not know about instructional leadership, paying particular attention to what they have learned about how this work is done and where knowledge falls short. The author takes a first step at integrating three distinct literatures: (a) the traditional instructional leadership literature (centered primarily on the principal), (b) the teacher instructional leadership literature, and (c) the coach instructional leadership literature. Research Design: The author utilizes a distributed lens to examine the principal, teacher leader, and coach instructional leadership literatures. This lens illuminates what scholars know about instructional leaders in interaction with one another, their followers, and particular contexts as they work toward the improvement of teaching and learning. The author proposes that analyzing these three literatures together may allow scholars to apply findings from one research area to another, as well as to genera...

Rethinking Instructional Leadership, a Review: What Do We Know About Principal, Teacher, and Coach Instructional Leadership, and Where Should We Go From Here?

Preface Acknowledgments About the Authors 1. Understanding Teacher Leadership Teacher Leadership Emerges Definition of Teacher Leadership Three Potential Teacher Leaders Readiness for Teacher Leadership Who Is Responsible? Conclusion Application Challenges 2. Promoting Teacher Leadership Rationale for Teacher Leadership Benefits of Teacher Leadership Teacher Leadership Assumptions Conclusion Application Challenges 3. Developing Teacher Leaders Professional Development for Teacher Leaders Leadership Development for Teachers A Development Model for Teacher Leadership Conclusion Application Challenges 4. Understanding Myself and Others as Teachers and Leaders Professional Teaching Skills Teacher Uniqueness Reluctant Learners and Leaders Acknowledging Diversity Conclusion Application Challenges 5. Building a Culture That Supports Teacher Leadership Dimensions of School Culture Relationships Between Adults in the School Organizational Structure Actions of the Principal Conclusion Application Challenges 6. Influencing Others Through Teacher Leadership Influence With Instructional Competence How Teachers Influence Influencing Skills Teacher Leader Action in Schools Conclusion Application Challenges 7. Emerging Teacher Leadership and Its Challenges Evolution of Teacher Leadership Many Faces of Teacher Leadership Challenges for Teacher Leaders Conclusion Application Challenges 8. Building a Future for Teacher Leadership Teacher Leadership in the Future Teacher Leader Concerns Teacher Leaders as Advocates for Change Conclusion Resource A. A Resource for Teacher Leadership: Philosophy of Education Inventory(c) (PEI(c)) Resource B. Teacher Leader School Survey (TLSS) Resource C. Time for Teacher Leadership Resource D. Teacher Leadership Books, Instruments, and Organizations References Index

Awakening the Sleeping Giant: Helping Teachers Develop as Leaders

In view of the increasing recognition that school reform cannot progress significantly until teachers begin to lead the way, this book focuses on how teachers can develop leadership skills. As leadership is not part of existing teacher training programmes, the authors go beyond the usual descriptions of leadership roles that teachers can play by presenting specific plans to help teachers gain influence in leadership roles.

Gayle V. Moller

Papers

Awakening the Sleeping Giant: Helping Teachers Develop as Leaders

Awakening the Sleeping Giant: Leadership Development for Teachers