Directory UMM :Data Elmu:jurnal:I:International Journal of Educational Management:Vol11.Issue1.1997:
Teachers as leaders – an exploratory framework
Frank Crowther
Asso c iate Pro fe sso r at the Sc ho o l Le ade rship Institute , Unive rsity o f So uthe rn
Que e nsland, To o wo o mba, Australia
Peter Olsen
Le c ture r in Educ atio n at the Sc ho o l Le ade rship Institute , Unive rsity o f So uthe rn
Que e nsland, To o wo o mba, Australia
Based on a study of the leadership approaches of highly
successful teachers and
paraprofessionals who work
in socioeconomically disadvantaged school communities, presents a preliminary
framework for teacher leadership, in which aspects of
transformational and educative approaches to leadership
are evident with strategic
approaches less so. Concludes that the work of highly
successful teachers is not
sufficiently recognized in the
development of most theories
of educational leadership.
This may be particularly the
case with theories that originate in corporate and managerial systems, raising
serious doubts about the
potential of much existing
theory to meet the needs of
the education profession in
emerging educational contexts.
Introduction
E du ca tion a l lea der sh ip is a fa scin a tin g bu t
slipper y con cept. Hu n dr eds of defin ition s
h ave been offer ed sin ce r esea r ch in to lea der sh ip developed a s a ser iou s a ca dem ic u n der ta k in g in th e im m edia te post-w a r per iod.
However, two poin ts a r e gen er a lly a gr eed on .
F ir st, lea der sh ip is a gr ou p fu n ction r equ ir in g h u m a n in ter a ction . Secon d, lea der sh ip
involves in ten tion a l in fl u en ce on th e beh aviou r of oth er s.
Un til ver y r ecen tly, edu ca tion a l lea der sh ip
h a s ten ded to be con str u ed a s a ssocia ted w ith
a scr ibed a u th or ity a n d position – for exa m ple, sch ool a dm in istr a tion or system dir ector sh ip. Th e idea of edu ca tion a l lea der sh ip a s
involvin g pr a ctisin g tea ch er s a n d pa r a pr ofession a ls a s cen tr a l figu r es h a s been a ser iou sly
u n der developed topic, a lth ou gh ter m s lik e
su per ior -su bor din a te a n d lea der -follower,
wh ich wer e on ce sta n da r d u sa ge in edu ca tion a l a dm in istr a tion texts, a n d wh ich ten d
to ca st tea ch er s in position s of r ela tive depen den cy a n d power lessn ess, a r e n ow less com m on ly u sed.
Th is a r ticle pr esen ts fi n din gs fr om a
stu dy[1] of 15 h igh ly effective tea ch er s a n d
pa r a pr ofession a ls – in dividu a ls a ccla im ed
n ot on ly for th eir peda gogica l excellen ce, bu t
a lso for th eir in flu en ce in stim u la tin g ch a n ge
a n d cr ea tin g im pr ovem en t in th e sch ools a n d
socioecon om ica lly disa dva n ta ged com m u n ities in wh ich th ey wor k . Do th e decision s a n d
a ction s of pr a ctition er s su ch a s th ese im ply
pr ocesses a n d con cepts in edu ca tion a l lea der sh ip? If so, wh a t is th e r eleva n ce to th eir wor k
of lea der sh ip th eor ies th a t a r e pr om in en t in
edu ca tion a l m a n a gem en t? It is th ese qu estion s th a t gu ided th e stu dy a n d th a t pr ovide
th e focu s of th is a r ticle.
Research design and methodology
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 ,1 [ 1997] 6 –1 3
© MCB Unive rsity Pre ss
[ ISSN 0951-354X]
[6 ]
Th e stu dy or igin a ted th r ou gh m eetin gs a n d
in for m a l discu ssion s of edu ca tion a l a dm in istr a tor s wh o h a d been r espon sible for m on itor in g gover n m en t-fu n ded com pen sa tor y
edu ca tion pr ojects th a t wer e design ed to
a m elior a te th e effects of socioecon om ic disa dva n ta ge. Th e a dm in istr a tor s h a d obser ved
th a t som e m em ber s of th eir sta ff h a d
a ch ieved str ik in g su ccesses in wor k in g
tow a r ds th is en d. Th ey r ecogn ized th a t fi n a n cia l, tech n ica l a n d h u m a n su ppor t ser vices
m a de ava ila ble th r ou gh th e pr ojects h a d
u n dou btedly been a sign ifi ca n t fa ctor in th ese
a ch ievem en ts. However, th ey a lso believed
th a t pr a ctition er s wh o a ppea r ed to th em to be
h igh ly su ccessfu l exer ted a n in flu en ce th a t
tr a n scen ded th e r equ ir em en ts of fu n ded pr ojects.
In Septem ber 1995, r esea r ch er s in th e
Sch ool Lea der sh ip In stitu te a t th e Un iver sity
of Sou th er n Qu een sla n d wer e con tr a cted to
explor e th e follow in g r esea r ch pr oblem :
Wh a t ch a r a cter istics distin gu ish th e wor k
of a sa m ple of edu ca tor s wh o h ave a ch ieved
su ccess in wor k in g in socioecon om ica lly
disa dva n ta ged sch ools? Wh a t for m s of edu ca tion a l lea der sh ip a r e in h er en t in th ese
ch a r a cter istics?
Cr iter ia to fa cilita te th e iden tifica tion of
officia l pa r ticipa n ts in th e r esea r ch wer e
developed join tly by th e r esea r ch er s a n d
r epr esen ta tives of th e a dm in istr a tor gr ou p.
Fou r cr iter ia wer e en dor sed a s in dica tin g
eviden ce of su ccess in r espon din g to socioecon om ic disa dva n ta ge:
1 con cr ete eviden ce of a sign ifica n t con tr ibu tion to a n a spect of socia l ju stice in th e
sch ool or th e sch ool com m u n ity;
2 h igh ly esteem ed in th e com m u n ity, pa r ticu la r ly a m on g socioecon om ica lly disa dva n ta ged in dividu a ls a n d gr ou ps;
3 r ecogn ized by collea gu es a s ver y in flu en tia l in sch ool decision -m a k in g pr ocesses;
4 a ccor ded a h igh level of sch ool-ba sed
r espon sibility by collea gu es a n d th e sch ool
a dm in istr a tion .
Th ese cr iter ia wer e believed to ta k e in to
a ccou n t th e in ten ts of in dices of socioecon om ic disa dva n ta ge th a t a r e u sed to distr ibu te com pen sa tor y edu ca tion fu n ds in a
n u m ber of Au str a lia n sta tes. As descr ibed by
Ba tten [2], su ch in dices ten d to “r ela te to th e
k ey socioecon om ic fa ctor s of in com e, occu pa tion , u n em ploym en t a n d edu ca tion ”. In dices
of th is type wer e believed to h ave dir ect r eleva n ce in th e geogr a ph ic a r ea in qu estion ,
wh er e u n em ploym en t levels a ppr oa ch 20 per
cen t a n d a r e a m on g th e h igh est in Au str a lia .
Frank Cro wthe r and
Pe te r Olse n
Te ac he rs as le ade rs – an
e xplo rato ry frame wo rk
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 1 [1 9 9 7 ] 6 –1 3
Th e cr iter ia a lso a ppea r ed to be sen sitive to
th e “five fa ces of oppr ession ” fr a m ewor k
developed by You n g[3]. You n g’s con ten tion is
th a t ea ch “fa ce” – n a m ely m a r gin a liza tion ,
power lessn ess, exploita tion , cu ltu r a l dom in a tion a n d violen ce – ca n exist in depen den tly
bu t th a t m u ltiple in ter a ction s a r e com m on .
Som e sch ools in th e a r ea of th e r esea r ch h ave
a m a jor ity of a bor igin a l stu den ts a n d ver y
h igh levels of tr a n sien ce, in a ddition to pr oblem s a ssocia ted w ith sever e u n em ploym en t.
You n g’s fr a m ewor k th er efor e seem ed to pr ovide a h elpfu l th eor etica l ba ck gr ou n d for
explor in g m ea n in gs a scr ibed to disa dva n ta ge
in sch ools in th e a r ea .
F ifteen sch ool-ba sed pr a ctition er s wer e
iden tified by th e a dm in istr a tor s a s m eetin g
th e fou r cr iter ia . Th ir teen of th e pr a ctition er s wer e tea ch er s a n d two wer e pa r a pr ofession a ls. Ten wer e fem a le a n d five wer e m a le.
N in e wer e em ployed in pr im a r y sch ools
(yea r s on e to seven ) a n d fi ve in secon da r y
sch ools. All a gr eed to pa r ticipa te w ith th e
u n iver sity r esea r ch er s in a join t, six-week
in qu ir y of th eir wor k .
Da ta r eleva n t to th e r esea r ch pr oblem wer e
collected th r ou gh a r a n ge of pr ocedu r es.
F ir st, exten sive u se w a s m a de of a cr itica l
in ciden t str a te gy. E a ch of th e 15 pa r ticipa n ts
r ecor ded w r itten descr iption s of th eir per ception s of, a n d edu ca tion a l r espon ses to, specific situ a tion s in volvin g socioecon om ic
disa dva n ta ge a s th ese occu r r ed in th eir wor k pla ces a cr oss a fou r -week per iod (m id-October to m id-N ovem ber 1995). In tota l, 43 in ciden ts wer e descr ibed by th e 15 pa r ticipa n ts
a n d m a de ava ila ble to th e r esea r ch er s for
stu dy a n d follow -u p in qu ir y.
Secon d, on -site in ter view s of a ppr oxim a tely
on e h ou r wer e h eld w ith ea ch of th e 15 pa r ticipa n ts. In ter view s wer e str u ctu r ed to fa cilita te u n der sta n din g of pa r ticipa n ts’ decision s
a n d a ction s in r espon din g to disa dva n ta ge,
a n d to explor e pr ocesses a ssocia ted w ith th e
h igh levels of in flu en ce th a t th ey wer e per ceived to h ave in th eir sch ool com m u n ities.
In ter view s wer e a lso con du cted w ith two or
m or e a dm in istr a tor s a n d tea ch er s a t ea ch site
to explor e collea gu es’ per ception s of th ese
sa m e pr ocesses.
F in a lly, two th r ee-h ou r focu s gr ou p session s
wer e h eld w ith th e 15 pa r ticipa n ts, on e pr ior
to com m en cem en t of th e site-ba sed r ecor din g
of cr itica l in ciden ts, a n d th e oth er a t th e cu lm in a tion of site-ba sed a ctivities. Th ese session s en ga ged pa r ticipa n ts in r efl ection
a bou t th eir wor k a n d in dia logu e w ith ea ch
oth er r e ga r din g th e types of lea der sh ip th a t
a ppea r m ost a ble to stim u la te edu ca tion a l
a ch ievem en t in socioecon om ica lly disa dva n ta ged sch ools a n d com m u n ities.
A th r ee-sta ge a ppr oa ch w a s ta k en to th e
da ta a n a lysis. F ir st, a n h olistic pr ofile w a s
pr epa r ed for ea ch of th e 15 pa r ticipa n ts. Secon d, descr iptive da ta wer e qu a n tified a n d
ca te gor ized to gen er a te con ceptu a liza tion s of
disa dva n ta ge, edu ca tion a l str a te gies a n d
lea der sh ip. F in a lly, ten ta tive r esea r ch fi n din gs wer e tested w ith pr oject pa r ticipa n ts to
a scer ta in levels of per ceived cr edibility.
Adju stm en ts wer e m a de to sever a l sta tem en ts
of ou tcom es follow in g th ese con su lta tion s.
The conceptual framework
Th e possibility th a t lea der sh ip m igh t be a
fu n ction of th e wor k of tea ch er s h a s on ly
r ecen tly be gu n to be a ccor ded ser iou s con sider a tion . Attem pts to con ceptu a lize tea ch er
lea der sh ip a ppea r ed to m a k e som e h ea dw ay
in US edu ca tion r efor m s in th e 1980s, m ost
n ota bly a s a n ou tcom e of r esea r ch in to collegia l a ppr oa ch es to sch ool im pr ovem en t.
Ber r y a n d Gin sber g[4] iden tified th r ee com pon en ts of th e r ole of a n ew ca dr e of pr ofession a l edu ca tor s, wh om th ey ca lled “lea d
tea ch er s”:
1 m en tor in g a n d coa ch in g oth er tea ch er s;
2 pr ofession a l developm en t a n d r eview of
sch ool pr a ctice; a n d
3 sch ool-level decision m a k in g.
In a h elpfu l stu dy of su ccessfu l sch ool-ba sed
tea m s in wh ich pr in cipa ls played fa cilita tive,
su ppor tive r oles, Lieber m a n et a l.[5] iden tified 18 sk ills th a t wer e m a n ifested by tea ch er
lea der s. Th ese th ey cla ssified a s:
• bu ildin g tr u st a n d r a ppor t;
• or ga n iza tion a l dia gn osis;
• dea lin g w ith th e pr ocess;
• u sin g r esou r ces;
• m a n a gin g th e wor k ;
• bu ildin g sk ill a n d con fiden ce in oth er s.
Sm ylie a n d Den n y[6] a n d Sm ylie a n d
Br ow n lee-Con yer s[7] cite a r a n ge of “tea ch er
lea der sh ip oppor tu n ities” th a t h ave em er ged
a s a r esu lt of th e pr om otion of sh a r ed decision m a k in g between tea ch er s a n d a dm in istr a tor s, cr ea tion of sch ool-ba sed in str u ction a l
tea m s, a n d tea ch er s’ in volvem en t in sch ool
gover n a n ce. Th ese “oppor tu n ities” ten d to be
con sisten t in n a tu r e w ith th e r espon sibilities
delin ea ted by both Lieber m a n et a l.[5] a n d
Ber r y a n d Gin sber g[4]. In a ll ca ses, h owever,
it m igh t be obser ved th a t a ttem pts to con ceptu a lize tea ch er s’ lea der sh ip r oles pay lim ited
a tten tion to lea der sh ip a ppr oa ch es th a t h ave
em er ged in edu ca tion a l m a n a gem en t a cr oss
th e pa st deca de. Th e r eleva n ce to th e wor k of
tea ch er s of th eor ies of lea der sh ip th a t a r e
u sed in edu ca tion a l m a n a gem en t r em a in s
r ela tively u n explor ed.
[7 ]
Frank Cro wthe r and
Pe te r Olse n
Te ac he rs as le ade rs – an
e xplo rato ry frame wo rk
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 1 [1 9 9 7 ] 6 –1 3
In Au str a lia n edu ca tion , per h a ps th e fir st
sign ifica n t r ecogn ition of pr a ctisin g tea ch er s’
poten tia l lea der sh ip ca pa bilities occu r r ed in
th e la te 1980s th r ou gh th e veh icle of policy,
w ith th e cr ea tion in a ll sta tes a n d ter r itor ies
of Adva n ced Sk ills Tea ch er (AST) in du str ia l
aw a r ds. Resea r ch in to th e wor k pr a ctices of
ASTs h a s yet to con fir m , h owever, th a t th ey
h ave eith er th e oppor tu n ities or ca pa bilities
to en ga ge in a u th en tic lea der sh ip r oles.
Wh eth er difficu lties a ssocia ted w ith th e cla ssifica tion der ive fr om th e cu ltu r e of sch ools
a n d th e tea ch in g pr ofession , or wh eth er th ey
der ive fr om a bu ses of in du str ia l pr ocesses,
h a s been a topic of on goin g deba te. Som e
r esea r ch er s, in clu din g Ch a dbou r n e a n d In gva r son [8] a n d Cr ow th er a n d Ga ffn ey[9], h ave
su ggested th a t th e la tter a lter n a tive is m or e
pla u sible th a n th e for m er. Th e possibility
a lso exists, h owever, th a t cr iter ia for lea der sh ip th a t h ave been em ployed to exa m in e th e
wor k of pr a ctition er s in ca ses su ch a s th ese
a r e th em selves in a dequ a te or in a ppr opr ia te.
Cer ta in ly, con sider a tion of th e topic of
tea ch er lea der sh ip a ppea r s to h ave focu sed
m a in ly on tea ch er s’ ca pa city to a ssu m e h igh
levels of r espon sibility in m a n a ger ia l a spects
of sch ool or ga n iza tion . However, it sh ou ld n ot
be ta k en for gr a n ted th a t th is ca pa city n ecessa r ily con stitu tes “edu ca tion a l lea der sh ip”.
To illu m in a te th is essen tia l poin t, th r ee lea der sh ip a ppr oa ch es th a t h ave a cqu ir ed cr edibility in con tem por a r y edu ca tion a l m a n a gem en t th eor y a n d pr a ctice a r e discu ssed
br iefly. E a ch is u sed su bsequ en tly a s a r efer en ce poin t in th e a n a lysis of r esea r ch da ta
a n d discu ssion of r esea r ch fin din gs.
Strategic leadership
Th e view th a t lea der sh ip is pr im a r ily a fu n ction of “str a te gy” is cer ta in ly n ot n ew. It
r eflects th e ideology of logica l em pir icism
th a t sh a ped edu ca tion a l a dm in istr a tion a s a
disciplin e u n til th e 1980s[10] a n d bea r s con sider a ble r esem bla n ce to th e two-dim en sion a l (i.e. ta sk -r ela tion sh ips) con ceptu a liza tion s
of lea der sh ip th a t wer e developed in th e 1950s
a n d 1960s a n d th a t h ave dom in a ted lea der sh ip
r esea r ch u n til th e ver y r ecen t pa st. With th e
em er gen ce over th e pa st deca de of a w idespr ea d view of th e pr in cipa l or h ea d a s ch ief
execu tive a n d en tr epr en eu r ia l m a r k eter in a
self-m a n a gin g sch ool, th is pa r ticu la r con ception of lea der sh ip m ay be sa id to h ave ga in ed
n ew m om en tu m a n d sta tu s.
As th e ter m im plies, str a te gic lea der sh ip
em ph a sizes r a tion a lity in th e lea der ’s r ole.
Th u s, Hosm er, cited in Sh r iva stava a n d N a ch m a n [11], defi n es it a s th e cr ea tion of a n over a ll sen se of pu r pose a n d dir ection wh ich
gu ide in te gr a ted str a te gy for m u la tion a n d
im plem en ta tion in or ga n iza tion s.
[8 ]
Ha m br ick [12] su ggests th a t it in volves a lign in g th e or ga n iza tion w ith a n ticipa ted exter n a l for ces – tech n ologica l developm en ts,
m a r k et tr en ds, r e gu la tor y con str a in ts, com petitor s’ a ction s, a n d so on . In sim ila r vein to
Hosm er a n d Ha m br ick , Ca ldwell[13] a dvoca tes a lea der sh ip fu n ction th a t is dom in a n tly str a te gic a s th e m ost a ppr opr ia te a ppr oa ch
for pr in cipa ls in self-m a n a gin g sch ools:
…th e pr in cipa l m u st be a ble to develop a n d
im plem en t a cyclica l pr ocess of goa l-settin g,
n eed iden tifica tion , pr ior ity settin g, policy
m a k in g, pla n n in g, bu dgetin g, im plem en tin g
a n d eva lu a tin g in a m a n n er wh ich pr ovides
for th e a ppr opr ia te in volvem en t of sta ff a n d
com m u n ity, in clu din g pa r en ts a n d stu den ts
a s r eleva n t (p. 160).
Str a te gic pr ocesses su ch a s th ese m ay be
h igh ly r eleva n t in con ceptu a lizin g th e wor k
of su ccessfu l sch ool m a n a ger s of th e 1990s.
Bu t wh a t m ea n in gs, if a n y, do th ey h ave in th e
wor k of h igh ly su ccessfu l cla ssr oom pr a ctition er s a n d oth er n on -m a n a ger s? Th is qu estion r em a in s la r gely u n con sider ed in edu ca tion a l lea der sh ip liter a tu r e.
Transformational leadership
Tr a n sfor m a tion a l lea der sh ip em ph a sizes th e
sign ifica n ce of “th e per son ”, a n d per son a l
tr a its, in br in gin g a bou t socia l a n d cu ltu r a l
ch a n ge.
To Avolio a n d Ba ss[14], wh ose pion eer in g
r esea r ch h a s been in str u m en ta l in developin g
tr a n sfor m a tion a l a ppr oa ch es to lea der sh ip,
lea der s a r e in dividu a ls wh o “m otiva te follow er s to wor k for tr a n scen den ta l goa ls in stea d
of im m edia te self-in ter est a n d for a ch ievem en t a n d self-a ctu a liza tion in stea d of sa fety
a n d secu r ity”. Avolio a n d Ba ss fu r th er a sser t
th a t tr a n sfor m a tion a l lea der sh ip com pr ises
th r ee elem en ts:
1 Ch a r ism a . Th e lea der in stils pr ide, fa ith
a n d r espect, h a s a gift for seein g wh a t is
r ea lly im por ta n t, a n d h a s a sen se of vision
wh ich is effectively a r ticu la ted.
2 In d ivid u a liz ed con sid era tion . Th e lea der
dele ga tes pr ojects to stim u la te a n d cr ea te
lea r n in g exper ien ce, pays a tten tion to
follower s’ n eeds, especia lly th ose follower s
wh o seem n e glected, a n d tr ea ts ea ch follower w ith r espect a n d a s a n in dividu a l.
3 In tellectu a l stim u la tion . Th e lea der pr ovides idea s th a t r esu lt in a r eth in k in g of
old w ays, th a t is, th e lea der en a bles follow er s to look a t pr oblem s fr om m a n y a n gles
a n d to r esolve pr oblem s th a t wer e a t a
sta n dstill[14, p. 137].
Tr a n sfor m a tion a l lea der sh ip is gen er a lly
r e ga r ded a s h avin g or igin a ted in th e wor k of
Bu r n s[15]. It wou ld a ppea r to h ave r eleva n ce
to th e wor k of tea ch er s a s lea der s if for n o
Frank Cro wthe r and
Pe te r Olse n
Te ac he rs as le ade rs – an
e xplo rato ry frame wo rk
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 1 [1 9 9 7 ] 6 –1 3
oth er r ea son th a n th a t Bu r n s r e ga r ded “lea der sh ip a s edu ca tion ” a n d “edu ca tion a s lea der sh ip”. Th e essen ce of lea der sh ip, Bu r n s
a sser ted, is on e of r ela tion sh ip, or en ga gem en t, a n d of com m on eleva tion of m otives or
va lu es. It ga in s str en gth wh en plu r a listic
qu a lities in h er en t in gr ou ps a n d com m u n ities a r e r ecogn ized. Differ en ces ba sed on
gen der, eth n icity, r a ce a n d cu ltu r e a r e th er efor e im por ta n t. With r e ga r d to gen der, for
exa m ple, Bu r n s[15] cla im ed th a t:
Th e m a le bia s is r eflected in th e fa lse con ception of lea der sh ip a s m er e com m a n d or
con tr ol. As lea der sh ip com es pr oper ly to be
seen a s a pr ocess of lea der s en ga gin g a n d
m obilizin g th e h u m a n n eeds a n d a spir a tion s of follower s, wom en w ill be m or e r ea dily r ecogn ized a s lea der s a n d m en w ill
ch a n ge th eir ow n lea der sh ip styles (p. 50).
Tr a n sfor m a tion a l con cepts lik e “em power m en t”, “vision ” a n d “m ission ” h ave becom e a
fea tu r e of th e r h etor ic a ssocia ted w ith developm en ta l pr ocesses a t differ en t levels in edu ca tion system s th r ou gh ou t th e wor ld. Th ey
a r e to be fou n d, for exa m ple, in th e str a te gic
pla n s of depa r tm en ts of edu ca tion , in th e
a n n u a l pla n s of r e gion a l a u th or ities a n d in
sch ool-ba sed developm en t pla n s. Bu t is th er e
oppor tu n ity in m oder n , cor por a te edu ca tion
system s for pr a ctition er s w ith deep per son a l
con viction s to in spir e socia l ch a n ge a n d
im pr ovem en t, in dividu a lly or colla bor a tively.
Th e im plica tion s of r ecen t developm en ts in
tr a n sfor m a tion a l lea der sh ip for th e sch ool
a n d cla ssr oom levels of edu ca tion a r e th u s
extr em ely com plex.
Educative leadership
E du ca tive lea der sh ip is often viewed a s
lin k ed to socia l r econ str u ction ist ph ilosoph y.
For Ba tes[16], th e essen tia l poin t a bou t lea der sh ip in edu ca tion is th a t it “involves th e
m a k in g a n d a r ticu la tin g of ch oices, th e loca tion of on eself w ith in th e cu ltu r a l str u ggles of
th e tim es a s m u ch in th e cu ltu r a l ba ttles of
th e sch ool a s in th e w ider society” (p. 19). For
Foster [17], “lea der sh ip is a t its h ea r t a cr itica l
pr a ctice”, in volvin g edu ca tion a l lea der s in
th e n ecessa r y pr a ctice of r efl ective a n d cr itica l th in k in g a bou t th e cu ltu r e of th eir or ga n iza tion s (p. 52). Both Ba tes a n d Foster cou ld be
sa id to em ph a size edu ca tive a ppr oa ch es to
lea der sh ip.
Du ign a n a n d Ma cph er son [18] cite w r iter s
lik e Dea l a n d Ken n edy, P u r k ey a n d Sm ith ,
a n d Sta r r a tt in cr ea tin g a defin ition of edu ca tive lea der sh ip th a t in volves con tin u ou s cr itica l discou r se a n d socia l a ction a s a m ea n s of
a ddr essin g socia l in ju stice a n d disa dva n ta ge
in a n or ga n iza tion :
E du ca tive lea der sh ip a ppea r s to be a deliber a te a ttem pt a t cu ltu r a l ela bor a tion ... It
follow s th a t edu ca tive lea der sh ip m u st
closely r espon d to th e cu ltu r a l con text, be
cr itica lly aw a r e of th e lon g-ter m pr a ctices of
pa r ticipa n ts in edu ca tion a l pr ocesses, a n d
wh en a ction is pr oposed, ju stify en ds a n d
pr ocesses u sin g a n edu ca tive ph ilosoph y...
Hen ce, edu ca tive lea der sh ip im plies a
r espon sible in volvem en t in th e politics of
th e or ga n iza tion (pp. 3-4).
In sim ila r vein , Sm yth [19] ch a llen ges pr a ctition er s to “fr a m e pr oblem s, a n d to discu ss
a n d wor k in dividu a lly a n d collectively to
u n der sta n d a n d ch a n ge th e situ a tion s th a t
ca u se th ese pr oblem s”. As F r ied expr essed it,
em power m en t a s u sed in th is sen se m ea n s
h elpin g people to ta k e ch a r ge of th eir lives,
people wh o h ave been r estr a in ed, by socia l or
politica l for ces, fr om a ssu m in g su ch con tr ol.
Im plicit in Sm yth ’s ch a llen ge is th e view th a t,
if edu ca tion is to cr ea te em a n cipa tion or
liber a tion in th e h u m a n con dition , it w ill be
u n lik ely to do so th r ou gh th e sole in fl u en ce of
a dm in istr a tor s. In deed, Sm yth con ten ds th a t
th e n otion of edu ca tive lea der sh ip is itself a
m isn om er in th a t lea der sh ip a s tr a dition a lly
defin ed im plies h ier a r ch ica l division of
power a n d cor por a te dir ection settin g, wh ile
edu ca tiven ess im plies th e opposite, n a m ely
“a ssistin g people to u n der sta n d th em selves
a n d th eir wor ld... to over com e th e oppr essive
con dition s th a t ch a r a cter ize wor k pa tter n s
a n d socia l r ela tion sh ips” (p. 182).
Th e r eleva n ce of edu ca tive con cepts a n d
pr ocesses to th e wor k of sch ool a dm in istr a tor s h a s been r ecogn ized[20], bu t th eir r eleva n ce to th e wor k of tea ch er s a n d oth er pr a ctition er s r em a in s la r gely u n explor ed. Th e
pr esen t stu dy r epr esen ts a step in a ddr essin g
th is void.
Findings of the research
Conceptualizations of disadvantage
Th e explor a tion of tea ch er lea der sh ip th a t
w a s th e m a jor focu s of th e r esea r ch ca n n ot be
viewed in isola tion fr om th e m a jor con textu a l
va r ia ble, socioecon om ic disa dva n ta ge. Th u s,
befor e r esea r ch fi n din gs r ela tin g to tea ch er
lea der sh ip a r e r eviewed, it is a ppr opr ia te to
con sider th e m ea n in gs a scr ibed by pa r ticipa n ts in th e r esea r ch to disa dva n ta ge.
F r om a n a n a lysis of th e 43 cr itica l in ciden t
sta tem en ts pr ovided by pa r ticipa n ts, su ppor ted by in ter view da ta , it is possible to
iden tify fou r differ en t con ceptu a liza tion s of
disa dva n ta ge th a t wer e per ceived to im pose
on sch ools a n d stu den ts (Ta ble I). Th e fou r
con ceptu a liza tion s en com pa ss on e or a n oth er
for m of defi cit in socia l com peten ce, m a ter ia l
m ea n s, r ela tion sh ip w ith th e law a n d a ttitu de
tow a r ds sch ool. Of r eleva n ce is th a t m ost
[9 ]
Frank Cro wthe r and
Pe te r Olse n
Te ac he rs as le ade rs – an
e xplo rato ry frame wo rk
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 1 [1 9 9 7 ] 6 –1 3
Table I
Co nc e ptualizatio ns o f disadvantage
Conceptualizations
Inappropriate social competences
Reluctance to co-operate with authority
figures
Very aggressive approach to social
intercourse
Bullying of peers
Total
Lack of material means
No support for school attendance or
participation
No resources to meet basic needs
Total
At risk with the law
Demonstrated criminal background or
tendency
Abuse of welfare system
Ambiguous legal status
Total
Alienated from schooling
History of personal failure
History of family failure at school
Victim of poor teaching
Total
Specific examples
“ You c an’ t make me”
Hostile, threatening language
Gender-based harassment in play area
6
4
4
14
“ No one c ares if I don’ t c ome to sc hool”
Unable to purc hase sc hool uniform
6
3
9
Stealing, brandishing a weapon, drug abuse
Illegal c laim of welfare benefits
Vic tim in c ustody battle
4
3
2
9
“ I c an’ t do anything”
Parents’ sc hool experienc es were assoc iated
with fear
Negative influenc e of Teac her X
5
Total
descr iption s of disa dva n ta ge th a t wer e pr ovided by th e r esea r ch pa r ticipa n ts en com pa ssed two or m or e of th e fou r con ceptu a liza tion s. Also of in ter est is th a t th er e is n o in dica tion in th e descr iption s th a t a n y on e con ceptu a liza tion is m or e sign ifica n t in over a ll
im pa ct th a n th e oth er s.
Ba sed on th e two sou r ces of da ta th a t wer e
con sider ed, socioecon om ic disa dva n ta ge is
r e ga r ded by pr oject pa r ticipa n ts a s ch a r a cter ized by a n u m ber of com plex fa ctor s th a t
wou ld a ppea r to m a k e it ver y difficu lt to
r edr ess. F ir st, disa dva n ta ged stu den ts a r e
per ceived a s con fr on tin g a r a n ge of ba r r ier s
wh ich a r e beyon d th eir con tr ol. For exa m ple,
som e pa r ticipa n ts obser ved th a t disa dva n ta ged ch ildr en in th eir sch ools a r e pa r t of a
“cu ltu r e of u n em ploym en t” th a t spa n s fou r
gen er a tion s a n d th a t m a n ifests in pr a ctica lities lik e la ck of fu n ds to pa r ticipa te in en r ich m en t a ctivities a n d a ttitu des th a t a r e socia lly
u n a ccepta ble.
Secon d, som e pa r ticipa n ts in dica ted th a t
in dividu a ls a ffected by va r iou s for m s of disa dva n ta ge m ay be su bject to pr essu r es to
a ttem pt to obscu r e, den y or ch a n ge th eir
cir cu m sta n ces in or der th a t in stitu tion s,
in clu din g sch ools, m ay feel th a t th eir effor ts
[ 10 ]
N
(Critical incident
references)
3
3
11
43
in m eetin g societa lly pr escr ibed expecta tion s
h ave been su ccessfu l. Tea ch er s of disa dva n ta ged ch ildr en m ay th em selves be gin to feel
disa dva n ta ged if th ey a r e u n a ble to m eet
exter n a lly-defin ed cr iter ia for su ccess.
Th u s, pa r ticipa n ts’ per spectives on socioecon om ic disa dva n ta ge r ela ted closely to
th eir ever yday exper ien ces in disa dva n ta ged
sch ools. Th is poin t is a n im por ta n t con sider a tion in in ter pr etin g th e fr a m ewor k for
tea ch er lea der sh ip th a t em er ged fr om th e
r esea r ch .
Conceptualizations of leadership
At th e en d-of-r esea r ch focu s session , pa r ticipa n ts en ga ged in a pr ocess of in dividu a l
r efl ection , sm a ll gr ou p sh a r in g a n d tota l
gr ou p discu ssion of th e qu estion : Wh a t do
you r e ga r d a s th e essen tia l ch a r a cter istics of
lea der sh ip in a ddr essin g disa dva n ta ge in
sch ools? In pr epa r in g for th is a ctivity, pa r ticipa n ts h a d been pr ovided w ith deta iled
descr iption s of ten ta tive ou tcom es of th e
r esea r ch , a s well a s descr iption s of th eir ow n
pr elim in a r y pr ofiles. A su m m a r y en titled
“E ssen tia l ch a r a cter istics of lea der sh ip” w a s
th en pr epa r ed by th e pa r ticipa n ts. With
Frank Cro wthe r and
Pe te r Olse n
Te ac he rs as le ade rs – an
e xplo rato ry frame wo rk
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 1 [1 9 9 7 ] 6 –1 3
m in or editor ia l m odifica tion s, th is su m m a r y
is r epr odu ced in Ta ble II.
Th u s, th e fr a m ewor k for tea ch er lea der sh ip
th a t is pr oposed is ba sed on deta iled exter n a l
a n a lyses of tea ch er s’ wor k a s well a s
pr ocesses of in dividu a l a n d colle gia l selfr eflection . However, th e five gen er a lized ch a r a cter istics in th e fr a m ewor k sh ou ld n ot be
in ter pr eted a s a n expla n a tor y system th a t
ca ptu r es th e in dividu a l lea der sh ip a ppr oa ch es of pa r ticipa n ts in th e r esea r ch . To
th e con tr a r y, in dividu a l pr ofi les r efl ected
u n iqu en ess of per son a lity, belief a n d con text
a t lea st a s m u ch a s th ey did th e five gen er a lized ch a r a cter istics. On e pa r ticipa n t, for
exa m ple, dwelt h eavily on issu es a ssocia ted
w ith ch r on ic u n em ploym en t in a r ticu la tin g a
per son a l ph ilosoph y a n d in descr ibin g h er
r espon se in cr ea tin g a n d im plem en tin g on goin g wor k exper ien ce pr ojects in con ju n ction
w ith th e loca l bu sin ess com m u n ity. A secon d
pa r ticipa n t, a t th e sa m e sch ool, focu sed on
th e pr oblem s of stu den ts “a t r isk ” w ith th e
Table II
Te ac he rs as le ade rs: a sugge ste d frame wo rk
Artic ulates c lear views of a better world
Can artic ulate “ what ought to be” on important soc ial
issues
Values teac hing as an important profession in shaping
meaning systems
Personal views about soc ial justic e are a sourc e of
personal pride
Models trust and sinc erity
Has the respec t of the c ommunity
Demonstrates toleranc e and reasonableness in diffic ult
situations
Regarded by peers as totally trustworthy
Confronts struc tural barriers
Stands up for c hildren, espec ially marginalized or powerless groups
Engages c onfidently with authority figures
Influenc es the development and implementation of
soc ially just polic ies
Builds networks of support
Feels at ease with individuals and groups who assert
c ultural, soc ial and other differenc es
Communic ates with authority and persuasion ac ross
groups
Promotes c ollaboration in teac hing, planning, dec ision
making
Organizes tasks with relative ease
Nurtures a c ulture of suc c ess
Creates opportunities for individual suc c ess and rec ognition
Builds problem-solving skills
Adopts a “ no blame” attitude when things go wrong
Searc hes c ontinuously for new ideas
Conveys a sense of optimism to others
law. His wor k took h im , by in vita tion , in to
h om es, police sta tion s a n d, on occa sion , ou tof-con tr ol teen a ge pa r ties on Sa tu r day n igh ts.
A th ir d pa r ticipa n t h a d developed a n d im plem en ted a cr oss a per iod of yea r s a n in itia tive
to en a ble yea r -seven stu den ts in h is com m u n ity to live for a week in a n a bor igin a l com m u n ity in pr epa r a tion for cr oss-cu ltu r a l
secon da r y sch oolin g. Lon gsta n din g distr u st
a n d bitter n ess between th e two com m u n ities
h a d n ot been over com e by th is a ction , bu t th e
in itia tive en joyed th e su ppor t of both com m u n ities a n d a lso th e str on g en dor sem en t of
sta ff a t both sch ools. In ea ch of th ese in sta n ces, th e sa lien t poin t is th e u n iqu e w ay
th a t conviction , a ction a n d dia logu e led to n ew
for m s of u n der sta n din g in th e com m u n ity.
Ca u tion s r e ga r din g th e u se of Ta ble II
n otw ith sta n din g, th e wor k of ea ch of th e 15
pa r ticipa n ts in th e r esea r ch illu str a ted ea ch
of th e fi ve ch a r a cter istics. Th e r eleva n ce of
essen tia l pr in ciples of con tem por a r y lea der sh ip th eor ies to th e wor k of th e design a ted
tea ch er lea der s is th er efor e a ble to be con sider ed th r ou gh r efer en ce to th e fr a m ewor k .
F ir st, Ta ble II r eflects con cr ete eviden ce of
tr a n sfor m a tion a l, edu ca tive a n d str a te gic
a ppr oa ch es to lea der sh ip. Most r ea dily a ppa r en t is th e tr a n sfor m a tion a l fr a m ewor k .
Sch ool-ba sed edu ca tor s wh o wer e iden tified
a s h igh ly su ccessfu l in th eir wor k in socioecon om ica lly disa dva n ta ged sch ools ten ded to be
m otiva ted by tr a n scen den ta l goa ls th a t
der ived fr om a deep con cer n for m a r gin a lized
a n d power less gr ou ps a n d in dividu a ls. In
m ost, if n ot a ll in sta n ces, pa r ticipa n ts
espou sed a n u n com pr om isin g com m itm en t to
va lu es lik e fa ir go, cr oss-cu ltu r a l u n der sta n din g, in dividu a l r espon sibility a n d com m u n ity
pr ide. Wh ile it m u st be sa id th a t th ese va lu es
h a d som ewh a t differ en t m ea n in gs to differ en t
pa r ticipa n ts, a ll 15 h a d clea r view s a bou t
socia l issu es th a t th ey wer e ver y w illin g to
voice pu blicly. (Th u s, discu ssion s a t focu s
session s wer e in som e in sta n ces pa ssion a te,
a s in dividu a l con viction s su r fa ced a n d posed
ch a llen ges for oth er s, in clu din g th e
r esea r ch er s.) Rela tedly, a ll wer e ch a r a cter ized by con ta giou s en th u sia sm , a n a bility to
in spir e oth er s to r a ise th eir expecta tion s, a n d
a per va sive sen se of optim ism .
Tr a n sfor m a tion a l a spects of lea der sh ip
th a t wer e eviden t in pa r ticipa n ts’ wor k did,
h owever, sh ow on e im por ta n t va r ia tion fr om
gen er a l pr in ciples of tr a n sfor m a tion a l th eor y.
Th a t is, th e tea ch er lea der s wh o wer e stu died
did n ot view th em selves a s eith er ch a r ism a tic
or a s exer cisin g u n du e in flu en ce. In pa r ticu la r, th e lea der -follower m in dset th a t con tin u es to dom in a te in th e r h etor ic of m u ch tr a n sfor m a tion a l th eor y w a s n ot a t a ll eviden t in
th eir th in k in g or th eir a ction s, ba sed on th e
descr iption s of th eir wor k th a t wer e pr ovided.
[ 11 ]
Frank Cro wthe r and
Pe te r Olse n
Te ac he rs as le ade rs – an
e xplo rato ry frame wo rk
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 1 [1 9 9 7 ] 6 –1 3
[ 12 ]
Also pr esen t in th e da ta is a str on g edu ca tive a spect. In deed, in flu en ce in sh a pin g th e
cu ltu r e of sch ools a n d com m u n ities a ppea r s
to depen d on con sider a bly m or e th a n th e
existen ce of tr a n sfor m a tion a l qu a lities lik e
per son a l con viction a n d socia l vision .
Resea r ch pa r ticipa n ts saw th em selves, a n d
wer e seen by th eir collea gu es a n d a dm in istr a tor s, a s en ga ged con tin u ou sly in pr a ctica l
pr oblem solvin g on ter m s, a n d in su r r ou n din gs, deter m in ed by oth er s. Position a l
a u th or ity a n d r e gu la tion ten ded to be ca lled
on on ly wh en qu estion s of sa fety, h ea lth or
n a tu r a l ju stice a r ose. Sta ted a little differ en tly, th e 15 pa r ticipa n ts ten ded to view th em selves a s colla bor a tor s in em a n cipa tor y a n d
con sciou sn ess-r a isin g a ctivities, a n d qu ite
fr equ en tly a s a dvoca tes for m a r gin a lized or
power less in dividu a ls in ch a llen gin g a u th or ity str u ctu r es – bu t n ot a s a gen ts of exter n a l
a gen da s for socia l ch a n ge.
Th e for m s of edu ca tive lea der sh ip th a t wer e
eviden t in th e r esea r ch da ta devia te fr om th e
pr in ciples of m ost edu ca tive th eor ies in on e
im por ta n t r espect. Th a t is, edu ca tive th eor ies
ten d to view th e cu ltu r a l con text of tea ch er s’
wor k a s focu sin g on th e sch ool a s a n or ga n iza tion . In th is sen se, th ey wou ld seem to be
too r estr ictive to expla in sa tisfa ctor ily th e
com m u n ity-w ide sph er e of a ction a n d in flu en ce of th ose edu ca tor s wh o pa r ticipa ted in
th e r esea r ch .
Of less dir ect sign ifica n ce, bu t im por ta n t
n ever th eless, is str a te gic lea der sh ip. Wh ile
m ost, per h a ps a ll, of th e 15 pa r ticipa n ts wer e
r e ga r ded a s sou n d or ga n izer s, a dept a t tea m
bu ildin g a n d h igh ly in flu en tia l in sch ool
decision m a k in g, th ese ca pa bilities ten ded to
be con str u ed by both pa r ticipa n ts a n d th eir
peer s a s m ea n s to a n en d r a th er th a n a s
im por ta n t pr ocesses in th eir ow n r igh t. Ta ble
II in dica tes th a t th e n otion of “str a te gy”, a s a
r a tion a l pr ocess of goa l settin g, n eeds iden tifi ca tion a n d policy m a k in g did n ot fi gu r e
pr om in en tly in th e th in k in g of r esea r ch pa r ticipa n ts. N ever th eless, pa r ticipa n ts ten ded
to a ck n ow ledge th e im petu s pr ovided by
specia l pr oject fu n din g. Th ey a lso in sisted
th a t th e a ssista n ce of sch ool a dm in istr a tor s
in esta blish in g socia lly-ju st or ga n iza tion a l
goa ls w a s vita lly im por ta n t to th em . Most
a lso a gr eed th a t Depa r tm en t of E du ca tion
equ ity policies wer e of h elp, a sser tin g th a t
th eir wor k wou ld r eta in its focu s if su ch policies did n ot exist, bu t wou ld u n dou btedly be
m or e difficu lt to ca r r y ou t.
A secon d im plica tion of th e r esea r ch is th a t
lea der sh ip in th e wor k of su ccessfu l pr a ctition er s a ppea r s to in cor por a te a qu a lity
wh ich is n ot fou n d in lea der sh ip th eor ies th a t
h ave th eir or igin s in bu sin ess m a n a gem en t
or, for th e m ost pa r t, in edu ca tion a l m a n a gem en t. Th a t is, pr ocesses of tea ch in g,
con sciou sn ess r a isin g, com m u n ity bu ildin g
a n d per son a l lea r n in g wer e in sepa r a ble in
descr iption s of th eir wor k th a t wer e offer ed
by pa r ticipa n ts in th e r esea r ch . Wh en h olistic
pr ofi les wer e a n a lysed to iden tify gen er a l
ch a r a cter istics of lea der sh ip, it pr oved to be
ver y difficu lt to differ en tia te th e in str u ction a l r oles of pa r ticipa n ts fr om th eir r oles a s
in fl u en tia l figu r es in th eir sch ools a n d com m u n ities. An im por ta n t ir on y is eviden t h er e
in th a t th e h istor ica l fa ilu r e of edu ca tion a l
th eor ists to r ecogn ize lea der sh ip dim en sion s
in tea ch er s’ wor k m ay be pa r tly a ttr ibu ta ble
to th e in sisten ce of h igh ly su ccessfu l tea ch er s, su ch a s th e pa r ticipa n ts in th is r esea r ch ,
th a t th eir pr im a r y con cer n is “to tea ch ”.
Of possible im por ta n ce, a lso, is th a t th e
la n gu a ge of pa r ticipa n ts in th e r esea r ch
in clu ded ver y few r efer en ces to th e ter m in ology th a t is often a ssocia ted w ith lea der sh ip,
r a isin g fu r th er dou bt a s to wh eth er tea ch er
lea der s wor k in th e sa m e pa r a digm of lea der sh ip th a t h a s evolved ou t of th e stu dy of edu ca tion a l m a n a gem en t. Ter m s su ch a s “tr a n sfor m a tion a l”, “ta sk -or ien ted”, “str a te gy
for m u la tion ”, “ch a r ism a tic”, “bia s-for a ction ”, “tea m bu ildin g” a n d “ch a n ge a gen t”,
wh ich fi gu r e pr om in en tly in descr iption s of
lea der sh ip r oles of sch ool a dm in istr a tor s, a r e
con spicu ou sly a bsen t fr om th e descr iption s
th a t wer e pr ovided by r esea r ch pa r ticipa n ts
or oth er s wh o descr ibed th eir wor k . Ra th er,
ter m s lik e “w ildly en th u sia stic”, “lives a n d
br ea th es wor th y ca u ses”, “va lu es fr ien ds”,
“a dm its fa ilu r es” a n d “a lw ays on th e lookou t
for n ew idea s” ten ded to ch a r a cter ize th e
dia logu e.
F in a lly, it seem s possible on th e ba sis of th is
r esea r ch to pr opose a defi n ition of tea ch er
lea der sh ip. Tea ch er lea der sh ip is essen tia lly
a n eth ica l sta n ce th a t is ba sed on view s of
both a better wor ld a n d th e power of tea ch in g
to sh a pe m ea n in g system s. It m a n ifests in
a ction s th a t in volve th e w ider com m u n ity
a n d lea ds to th e cr ea tion of n ew for m s of
u n der sta n din g th a t w ill en h a n ce th e qu a lity
of life of th e com m u n ity in th e lon g ter m . It
r ea ch es its poten tia l in con texts wh er e
system a n d sch ool str u ctu r es a r e fa cilita tive
a n d a ppr ecia tive.
Suggestions for further inquiry
Th u s, it seem s th a t th e wor k of som e tea ch er s
r efl ects clea r eviden ce of both a u th or ita tive
lea der sh ip th eor ies a n d for m s of in flu en ce
th a t a r e n ot en com pa ssed by th eor ies th a t
or igin a te in edu ca tion a l or cor por a te m a n a gem en t.
F u r th er r esea r ch is essen tia l in a n u m ber
of a r ea s. F ir st, it is u n clea r to wh a t exten t th e
pa r ticu la r socioecon om ic con text of th e pr esen t r esea r ch in flu en ced ou tcom es. Th a t is,
wh eth er a fr a m ewor k lik e th a t in Ta ble II
Frank Cro wthe r and
Pe te r Olse n
Te ac he rs as le ade rs – an
e xplo rato ry frame wo rk
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 1 [1 9 9 7 ] 6 –1 3
wou ld h ave em er ged fr om sim ila r r esea r ch in
oth er socia l, cu ltu r a l or edu ca tion a l settin gs
is deser vin g of in vestiga tion . Secon d, th er e
a r e su ggestion s in th is r esea r ch th a t som e
a u th or ita tive lea der sh ip a ppr oa ch es m ay be
a t lea st a s r eleva n t to th e wor k of tea ch er s a s
th ey a r e to th e wor k of sch ool m a n a ger s.
Adm in istr a tor s in th e r esea r ch th em selves
su ggested th a t politica l a n d m a n a ger ia l
a spects of th eir wor k m ilita te str on gly
a ga in st th eir bein g a ble to a ssu m e tr a n sfor m a tion a l a n d edu ca tive lea der sh ip fu n ction s
th a t som e tea ch er s in th eir sch ools wer e a ble
to r ea lize. With th e pr ospect of in cr ea sin g
m a n a ger ia lism a n d cor por a tism in sch ool
a dm in istr a tion , th e poten tia l of th ese th eor etica l a ppr oa ch es in th e wor k of m a n a ger s on
th e on e h a n d, a n d tea ch er s on th e oth er, wou ld
seem to w a r r a n t on goin g th ou gh t a n d in qu ir y.
Th ir d, th e str a te gic/ tr a n sfor m a tion a l/
edu ca tive a ppr oa ch es to lea der sh ip th a t pr ovided th e con ceptu a l u m br ella for th is
r esea r ch a r e pr esen ted a s illu str a tion s of
con tem por a r y th eor y, r a th er th a n a s com pr eh en sive pr escr iption s. Oth er lea der sh ip
a ppr oa ch es m igh t a lso be r evea led in tea ch er s’ wor k if th ey wer e explor ed. Fou r th ,
a ssu m in g th a t a n a u th or ita tive pa r a digm of
tea ch er lea der sh ip ca n in fa ct be illu m in a ted
fu r th er, th e qu estion of h ow it m igh t be n u r tu r ed a n d r efi n ed in th e tea ch in g pr ofession
wou ld seem to pose a ch a llen ge of im m en se
im por ta n ce. F in a lly, on e m u st a sk Wh y? Th a t
is, wh y h a s lea der sh ip th eor y in edu ca tion
pr esu m ed th a t position a l a u th or ity is so cr itica l? Wh a t effects h a s th is pr esu m ption h a d on
th e im a ge a n d cu ltu r e of th e tea ch in g pr ofession ? An d h ow ca n we be gin to m a k e a m en ds
for th e obviou s lim ita tion s of ou r ow n pa st
u n der sta n din gs a s edu ca tion a l th eor ists,
sch ola r s a n d pr a ctition er s?
Note and references
1 Th is a r ticle is ba sed on th e r esea r ch r epor t,
Cr ow th er, F. a n d Olsen , P., “Tea ch er s a s lea der s: a n explor a tion of su ccess stor ies in socioecon om ica lly disa dva n ta ged com m u n ities”,
Sch ool Lea der sh ip In stitu te, Un iver sity of
Sou th er n Qu een sla n d, Toowoom ba , QLD, 1996.
Th e a u th or s a ck n ow ledge th e su ppor t of th e
Qu een sla n d Depa r tm en t of E du ca tion in fu n din g th e r esea r ch , a n d ta k e fu ll r espon sibility
for th e con ten ts of th e r epor t a n d of th is a r ticle. Copies of th e fu ll r epor t a r e ava ila ble fr om
th e Sch ool Lea der sh ip In stitu te, Un iver sity of
Sou th er n Qu een sla n d a t a cost of A$10.00.
2 Ba tten , M., “E du ca tion a l pr ovision for socioecon om ica lly disa dva n ta ged sch ool stu den ts”,
in Ain ley, J ., Gr a etz, B., Lon g, M. a n d Ba tten ,
M. (E ds), S ocioecon om ic S ta tu s a n d S ch ool
Ed u ca tion : A Project Fu n d ed b y th e Com m on w ea lth Depa r tm en t of Em ploym en t, Ed u ca tion
a n d T ra in in g, Au str a lia n Gover n m en t P r in tin g Ser vice, Ca n ber r a , 1995.
3 You n g, I.M., J u stice a n d th e Politics of Differ en ce, P r in ceton Un iver sity P r ess, P r in ceton ,
N J , 1990.
4 Ber r y, B. a n d Gin sbu r g, R., “Cr ea tin g lea d
tea ch er s: fr om policy to im plem en ta tion ”, Ph i
Delta Ka ppa n , Apr il 1990, pp. 616-21.
5 Lieber m a n , A., Sa xl, E . a n d Miles, M. (E ds),
B u ild in g a Profession a l Cu ltu re in S ch ools,
Tea ch er s’ Colle ge P r ess, N ew Yor k , N Y, 1988.
6 Sm ylie, M. a n d Den n y, J ., “Tea ch er lea der sh ip:
ten sion s a n d a m bigu ities in or ga n isa tion a l
per spective”, Ed u ca tion a l A d m in istra tion
Qu a r terly, Vol. 26 N o. 3, 1990, pp. 235-9.
7 Sm ylie, M. a n d Br ow n lee-Con yer s, J ., “Tea ch er
lea der s a n d th eir pr in cipa ls: explor in g th e
developm en t of n ew wor k in g r ela tion sh ips”,
Ed u ca tion a l A d m in istra tion Qu a r terly, Vol. 28
N o. 2, 1992, pp. 150-84.
8 Ch a dbou r n e, R. a n d In gva r son , L., “Adva n ced
Sk ills Tea ch er 1: lost oppor tu n ity or pr ofession a l br ea k th r ou gh ?”, IA RT V S em in a r S er ies
N o. 9, IARTV, Melbou r n e, 1991.
9 Cr ow th er, F. a n d Ga ffn ey, M., A dva n ced S k ills
T ea ch in g: A Dem on stra tion of Profession a lism
or Oppor tu n ity L ost?, ACE A Mon ogr a ph Ser ies
14, Au str a lia n Cou n cil for E du ca tion a l Adm in istr a tion , Haw th or n , 1993.
10 E ver s, C. a n d La kom sk i, G., Kn ow in g Ed u ca tion a l A d m in istra tion , Per ga m on P r ess,
Oxfor d, 1991.
11 Sh r iva stava , P. a n d N a ch m a n , S., “Str a te gic
lea der sh ip pa tter n s”, J ou r n a l of S tra tegic
M a n a gem en t, specia l issu e, Su m m er 1989,
pp. 57-66.
12 Ha m br ick , D.C., “Gu est editor ’s in tr odu ction :
pu ttin g top m a n a ger s ba ck in th e str a te gy
pr ocess”, J ou r n a l of S tra tegic M a n a gem en t,
specia l issu e, Su m m er 1989, pp. 5-15.
13 Ca ldwell, B., “Th e pr in cipa l a s lea der of th e
self-m a n a gin g sch ool in Au str a lia ”, J ou r n a l of
Ed u ca tion a l A d m in istra tion , Vol. 20 N o. 3, 1992,
pp. 6-19.
14 Avolio, B.J . a n d Ba ss, B.M., “Tr a n sfor m a tion a l
lea der sh ip, ch a r ism a a n d beyon d”, in Hu n t,
J .G., Ba liga , B.R., Da ch ler, H.P. a n d
Sch r eish eim , C.A. (E ds), Em ergin g L ea d ersh ip
V ista s, Lexin gton Book s, Lexin gton , MA, 1988.
15 Bu r n s, J .M., L ea d ersh ip, Ha r per & Row, N ew
Yor k , N Y, 1978.
16 Ba tes, R., “Lea der sh ip a n d sch ool cu ltu r e”,
pa per pr esen ted a t th e Un iver sity of Seville,
Dea k in Un iver sity, Geelon g, 1992.
17 Foster, W., “Tow a r ds a cr itica l pr a ctice of
lea der sh ip”, in Sm yth , J . (E d.), Cr itica l Per spectiv es on Ed u ca tion a l L ea d ersh ip, Th e
F a lm er P r ess, Lon don , 1989.
18 Du ign a n , P.A. a n d Ma cph er son , R.J .S. (E ds),
Ed u ca tiv e L ea d ersh ip: A Pra ctica l T h eor y for
N ew A d m in istra tors a n d M a n a gers, Th e
F a lm er P r ess, Lon don , 1992.
19 Sm yth , J . (E d.), Cr itica l Perspectiv es on Ed u ca tion a l L ea d ersh ip, Th e F a lm er P r ess, Lon don ,
1989.
20 Rizvi, F., “E du ca tive lea der sh ip in a m u lticu ltu r a l society”, in Du ign a n , P.A. a n d Ma cph er son , R.J .S. (E ds), Ed u ca tiv e L ea d ersh ip: A
Pra ctica l T h eor y for N ew A d m in istra tors a n d
M a n a gers, Th e F a lm er P r ess, Lon don , 1992.
[ 13 ]
Frank Crowther
Asso c iate Pro fe sso r at the Sc ho o l Le ade rship Institute , Unive rsity o f So uthe rn
Que e nsland, To o wo o mba, Australia
Peter Olsen
Le c ture r in Educ atio n at the Sc ho o l Le ade rship Institute , Unive rsity o f So uthe rn
Que e nsland, To o wo o mba, Australia
Based on a study of the leadership approaches of highly
successful teachers and
paraprofessionals who work
in socioeconomically disadvantaged school communities, presents a preliminary
framework for teacher leadership, in which aspects of
transformational and educative approaches to leadership
are evident with strategic
approaches less so. Concludes that the work of highly
successful teachers is not
sufficiently recognized in the
development of most theories
of educational leadership.
This may be particularly the
case with theories that originate in corporate and managerial systems, raising
serious doubts about the
potential of much existing
theory to meet the needs of
the education profession in
emerging educational contexts.
Introduction
E du ca tion a l lea der sh ip is a fa scin a tin g bu t
slipper y con cept. Hu n dr eds of defin ition s
h ave been offer ed sin ce r esea r ch in to lea der sh ip developed a s a ser iou s a ca dem ic u n der ta k in g in th e im m edia te post-w a r per iod.
However, two poin ts a r e gen er a lly a gr eed on .
F ir st, lea der sh ip is a gr ou p fu n ction r equ ir in g h u m a n in ter a ction . Secon d, lea der sh ip
involves in ten tion a l in fl u en ce on th e beh aviou r of oth er s.
Un til ver y r ecen tly, edu ca tion a l lea der sh ip
h a s ten ded to be con str u ed a s a ssocia ted w ith
a scr ibed a u th or ity a n d position – for exa m ple, sch ool a dm in istr a tion or system dir ector sh ip. Th e idea of edu ca tion a l lea der sh ip a s
involvin g pr a ctisin g tea ch er s a n d pa r a pr ofession a ls a s cen tr a l figu r es h a s been a ser iou sly
u n der developed topic, a lth ou gh ter m s lik e
su per ior -su bor din a te a n d lea der -follower,
wh ich wer e on ce sta n da r d u sa ge in edu ca tion a l a dm in istr a tion texts, a n d wh ich ten d
to ca st tea ch er s in position s of r ela tive depen den cy a n d power lessn ess, a r e n ow less com m on ly u sed.
Th is a r ticle pr esen ts fi n din gs fr om a
stu dy[1] of 15 h igh ly effective tea ch er s a n d
pa r a pr ofession a ls – in dividu a ls a ccla im ed
n ot on ly for th eir peda gogica l excellen ce, bu t
a lso for th eir in flu en ce in stim u la tin g ch a n ge
a n d cr ea tin g im pr ovem en t in th e sch ools a n d
socioecon om ica lly disa dva n ta ged com m u n ities in wh ich th ey wor k . Do th e decision s a n d
a ction s of pr a ctition er s su ch a s th ese im ply
pr ocesses a n d con cepts in edu ca tion a l lea der sh ip? If so, wh a t is th e r eleva n ce to th eir wor k
of lea der sh ip th eor ies th a t a r e pr om in en t in
edu ca tion a l m a n a gem en t? It is th ese qu estion s th a t gu ided th e stu dy a n d th a t pr ovide
th e focu s of th is a r ticle.
Research design and methodology
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 ,1 [ 1997] 6 –1 3
© MCB Unive rsity Pre ss
[ ISSN 0951-354X]
[6 ]
Th e stu dy or igin a ted th r ou gh m eetin gs a n d
in for m a l discu ssion s of edu ca tion a l a dm in istr a tor s wh o h a d been r espon sible for m on itor in g gover n m en t-fu n ded com pen sa tor y
edu ca tion pr ojects th a t wer e design ed to
a m elior a te th e effects of socioecon om ic disa dva n ta ge. Th e a dm in istr a tor s h a d obser ved
th a t som e m em ber s of th eir sta ff h a d
a ch ieved str ik in g su ccesses in wor k in g
tow a r ds th is en d. Th ey r ecogn ized th a t fi n a n cia l, tech n ica l a n d h u m a n su ppor t ser vices
m a de ava ila ble th r ou gh th e pr ojects h a d
u n dou btedly been a sign ifi ca n t fa ctor in th ese
a ch ievem en ts. However, th ey a lso believed
th a t pr a ctition er s wh o a ppea r ed to th em to be
h igh ly su ccessfu l exer ted a n in flu en ce th a t
tr a n scen ded th e r equ ir em en ts of fu n ded pr ojects.
In Septem ber 1995, r esea r ch er s in th e
Sch ool Lea der sh ip In stitu te a t th e Un iver sity
of Sou th er n Qu een sla n d wer e con tr a cted to
explor e th e follow in g r esea r ch pr oblem :
Wh a t ch a r a cter istics distin gu ish th e wor k
of a sa m ple of edu ca tor s wh o h ave a ch ieved
su ccess in wor k in g in socioecon om ica lly
disa dva n ta ged sch ools? Wh a t for m s of edu ca tion a l lea der sh ip a r e in h er en t in th ese
ch a r a cter istics?
Cr iter ia to fa cilita te th e iden tifica tion of
officia l pa r ticipa n ts in th e r esea r ch wer e
developed join tly by th e r esea r ch er s a n d
r epr esen ta tives of th e a dm in istr a tor gr ou p.
Fou r cr iter ia wer e en dor sed a s in dica tin g
eviden ce of su ccess in r espon din g to socioecon om ic disa dva n ta ge:
1 con cr ete eviden ce of a sign ifica n t con tr ibu tion to a n a spect of socia l ju stice in th e
sch ool or th e sch ool com m u n ity;
2 h igh ly esteem ed in th e com m u n ity, pa r ticu la r ly a m on g socioecon om ica lly disa dva n ta ged in dividu a ls a n d gr ou ps;
3 r ecogn ized by collea gu es a s ver y in flu en tia l in sch ool decision -m a k in g pr ocesses;
4 a ccor ded a h igh level of sch ool-ba sed
r espon sibility by collea gu es a n d th e sch ool
a dm in istr a tion .
Th ese cr iter ia wer e believed to ta k e in to
a ccou n t th e in ten ts of in dices of socioecon om ic disa dva n ta ge th a t a r e u sed to distr ibu te com pen sa tor y edu ca tion fu n ds in a
n u m ber of Au str a lia n sta tes. As descr ibed by
Ba tten [2], su ch in dices ten d to “r ela te to th e
k ey socioecon om ic fa ctor s of in com e, occu pa tion , u n em ploym en t a n d edu ca tion ”. In dices
of th is type wer e believed to h ave dir ect r eleva n ce in th e geogr a ph ic a r ea in qu estion ,
wh er e u n em ploym en t levels a ppr oa ch 20 per
cen t a n d a r e a m on g th e h igh est in Au str a lia .
Frank Cro wthe r and
Pe te r Olse n
Te ac he rs as le ade rs – an
e xplo rato ry frame wo rk
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 1 [1 9 9 7 ] 6 –1 3
Th e cr iter ia a lso a ppea r ed to be sen sitive to
th e “five fa ces of oppr ession ” fr a m ewor k
developed by You n g[3]. You n g’s con ten tion is
th a t ea ch “fa ce” – n a m ely m a r gin a liza tion ,
power lessn ess, exploita tion , cu ltu r a l dom in a tion a n d violen ce – ca n exist in depen den tly
bu t th a t m u ltiple in ter a ction s a r e com m on .
Som e sch ools in th e a r ea of th e r esea r ch h ave
a m a jor ity of a bor igin a l stu den ts a n d ver y
h igh levels of tr a n sien ce, in a ddition to pr oblem s a ssocia ted w ith sever e u n em ploym en t.
You n g’s fr a m ewor k th er efor e seem ed to pr ovide a h elpfu l th eor etica l ba ck gr ou n d for
explor in g m ea n in gs a scr ibed to disa dva n ta ge
in sch ools in th e a r ea .
F ifteen sch ool-ba sed pr a ctition er s wer e
iden tified by th e a dm in istr a tor s a s m eetin g
th e fou r cr iter ia . Th ir teen of th e pr a ctition er s wer e tea ch er s a n d two wer e pa r a pr ofession a ls. Ten wer e fem a le a n d five wer e m a le.
N in e wer e em ployed in pr im a r y sch ools
(yea r s on e to seven ) a n d fi ve in secon da r y
sch ools. All a gr eed to pa r ticipa te w ith th e
u n iver sity r esea r ch er s in a join t, six-week
in qu ir y of th eir wor k .
Da ta r eleva n t to th e r esea r ch pr oblem wer e
collected th r ou gh a r a n ge of pr ocedu r es.
F ir st, exten sive u se w a s m a de of a cr itica l
in ciden t str a te gy. E a ch of th e 15 pa r ticipa n ts
r ecor ded w r itten descr iption s of th eir per ception s of, a n d edu ca tion a l r espon ses to, specific situ a tion s in volvin g socioecon om ic
disa dva n ta ge a s th ese occu r r ed in th eir wor k pla ces a cr oss a fou r -week per iod (m id-October to m id-N ovem ber 1995). In tota l, 43 in ciden ts wer e descr ibed by th e 15 pa r ticipa n ts
a n d m a de ava ila ble to th e r esea r ch er s for
stu dy a n d follow -u p in qu ir y.
Secon d, on -site in ter view s of a ppr oxim a tely
on e h ou r wer e h eld w ith ea ch of th e 15 pa r ticipa n ts. In ter view s wer e str u ctu r ed to fa cilita te u n der sta n din g of pa r ticipa n ts’ decision s
a n d a ction s in r espon din g to disa dva n ta ge,
a n d to explor e pr ocesses a ssocia ted w ith th e
h igh levels of in flu en ce th a t th ey wer e per ceived to h ave in th eir sch ool com m u n ities.
In ter view s wer e a lso con du cted w ith two or
m or e a dm in istr a tor s a n d tea ch er s a t ea ch site
to explor e collea gu es’ per ception s of th ese
sa m e pr ocesses.
F in a lly, two th r ee-h ou r focu s gr ou p session s
wer e h eld w ith th e 15 pa r ticipa n ts, on e pr ior
to com m en cem en t of th e site-ba sed r ecor din g
of cr itica l in ciden ts, a n d th e oth er a t th e cu lm in a tion of site-ba sed a ctivities. Th ese session s en ga ged pa r ticipa n ts in r efl ection
a bou t th eir wor k a n d in dia logu e w ith ea ch
oth er r e ga r din g th e types of lea der sh ip th a t
a ppea r m ost a ble to stim u la te edu ca tion a l
a ch ievem en t in socioecon om ica lly disa dva n ta ged sch ools a n d com m u n ities.
A th r ee-sta ge a ppr oa ch w a s ta k en to th e
da ta a n a lysis. F ir st, a n h olistic pr ofile w a s
pr epa r ed for ea ch of th e 15 pa r ticipa n ts. Secon d, descr iptive da ta wer e qu a n tified a n d
ca te gor ized to gen er a te con ceptu a liza tion s of
disa dva n ta ge, edu ca tion a l str a te gies a n d
lea der sh ip. F in a lly, ten ta tive r esea r ch fi n din gs wer e tested w ith pr oject pa r ticipa n ts to
a scer ta in levels of per ceived cr edibility.
Adju stm en ts wer e m a de to sever a l sta tem en ts
of ou tcom es follow in g th ese con su lta tion s.
The conceptual framework
Th e possibility th a t lea der sh ip m igh t be a
fu n ction of th e wor k of tea ch er s h a s on ly
r ecen tly be gu n to be a ccor ded ser iou s con sider a tion . Attem pts to con ceptu a lize tea ch er
lea der sh ip a ppea r ed to m a k e som e h ea dw ay
in US edu ca tion r efor m s in th e 1980s, m ost
n ota bly a s a n ou tcom e of r esea r ch in to collegia l a ppr oa ch es to sch ool im pr ovem en t.
Ber r y a n d Gin sber g[4] iden tified th r ee com pon en ts of th e r ole of a n ew ca dr e of pr ofession a l edu ca tor s, wh om th ey ca lled “lea d
tea ch er s”:
1 m en tor in g a n d coa ch in g oth er tea ch er s;
2 pr ofession a l developm en t a n d r eview of
sch ool pr a ctice; a n d
3 sch ool-level decision m a k in g.
In a h elpfu l stu dy of su ccessfu l sch ool-ba sed
tea m s in wh ich pr in cipa ls played fa cilita tive,
su ppor tive r oles, Lieber m a n et a l.[5] iden tified 18 sk ills th a t wer e m a n ifested by tea ch er
lea der s. Th ese th ey cla ssified a s:
• bu ildin g tr u st a n d r a ppor t;
• or ga n iza tion a l dia gn osis;
• dea lin g w ith th e pr ocess;
• u sin g r esou r ces;
• m a n a gin g th e wor k ;
• bu ildin g sk ill a n d con fiden ce in oth er s.
Sm ylie a n d Den n y[6] a n d Sm ylie a n d
Br ow n lee-Con yer s[7] cite a r a n ge of “tea ch er
lea der sh ip oppor tu n ities” th a t h ave em er ged
a s a r esu lt of th e pr om otion of sh a r ed decision m a k in g between tea ch er s a n d a dm in istr a tor s, cr ea tion of sch ool-ba sed in str u ction a l
tea m s, a n d tea ch er s’ in volvem en t in sch ool
gover n a n ce. Th ese “oppor tu n ities” ten d to be
con sisten t in n a tu r e w ith th e r espon sibilities
delin ea ted by both Lieber m a n et a l.[5] a n d
Ber r y a n d Gin sber g[4]. In a ll ca ses, h owever,
it m igh t be obser ved th a t a ttem pts to con ceptu a lize tea ch er s’ lea der sh ip r oles pay lim ited
a tten tion to lea der sh ip a ppr oa ch es th a t h ave
em er ged in edu ca tion a l m a n a gem en t a cr oss
th e pa st deca de. Th e r eleva n ce to th e wor k of
tea ch er s of th eor ies of lea der sh ip th a t a r e
u sed in edu ca tion a l m a n a gem en t r em a in s
r ela tively u n explor ed.
[7 ]
Frank Cro wthe r and
Pe te r Olse n
Te ac he rs as le ade rs – an
e xplo rato ry frame wo rk
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 1 [1 9 9 7 ] 6 –1 3
In Au str a lia n edu ca tion , per h a ps th e fir st
sign ifica n t r ecogn ition of pr a ctisin g tea ch er s’
poten tia l lea der sh ip ca pa bilities occu r r ed in
th e la te 1980s th r ou gh th e veh icle of policy,
w ith th e cr ea tion in a ll sta tes a n d ter r itor ies
of Adva n ced Sk ills Tea ch er (AST) in du str ia l
aw a r ds. Resea r ch in to th e wor k pr a ctices of
ASTs h a s yet to con fir m , h owever, th a t th ey
h ave eith er th e oppor tu n ities or ca pa bilities
to en ga ge in a u th en tic lea der sh ip r oles.
Wh eth er difficu lties a ssocia ted w ith th e cla ssifica tion der ive fr om th e cu ltu r e of sch ools
a n d th e tea ch in g pr ofession , or wh eth er th ey
der ive fr om a bu ses of in du str ia l pr ocesses,
h a s been a topic of on goin g deba te. Som e
r esea r ch er s, in clu din g Ch a dbou r n e a n d In gva r son [8] a n d Cr ow th er a n d Ga ffn ey[9], h ave
su ggested th a t th e la tter a lter n a tive is m or e
pla u sible th a n th e for m er. Th e possibility
a lso exists, h owever, th a t cr iter ia for lea der sh ip th a t h ave been em ployed to exa m in e th e
wor k of pr a ctition er s in ca ses su ch a s th ese
a r e th em selves in a dequ a te or in a ppr opr ia te.
Cer ta in ly, con sider a tion of th e topic of
tea ch er lea der sh ip a ppea r s to h ave focu sed
m a in ly on tea ch er s’ ca pa city to a ssu m e h igh
levels of r espon sibility in m a n a ger ia l a spects
of sch ool or ga n iza tion . However, it sh ou ld n ot
be ta k en for gr a n ted th a t th is ca pa city n ecessa r ily con stitu tes “edu ca tion a l lea der sh ip”.
To illu m in a te th is essen tia l poin t, th r ee lea der sh ip a ppr oa ch es th a t h ave a cqu ir ed cr edibility in con tem por a r y edu ca tion a l m a n a gem en t th eor y a n d pr a ctice a r e discu ssed
br iefly. E a ch is u sed su bsequ en tly a s a r efer en ce poin t in th e a n a lysis of r esea r ch da ta
a n d discu ssion of r esea r ch fin din gs.
Strategic leadership
Th e view th a t lea der sh ip is pr im a r ily a fu n ction of “str a te gy” is cer ta in ly n ot n ew. It
r eflects th e ideology of logica l em pir icism
th a t sh a ped edu ca tion a l a dm in istr a tion a s a
disciplin e u n til th e 1980s[10] a n d bea r s con sider a ble r esem bla n ce to th e two-dim en sion a l (i.e. ta sk -r ela tion sh ips) con ceptu a liza tion s
of lea der sh ip th a t wer e developed in th e 1950s
a n d 1960s a n d th a t h ave dom in a ted lea der sh ip
r esea r ch u n til th e ver y r ecen t pa st. With th e
em er gen ce over th e pa st deca de of a w idespr ea d view of th e pr in cipa l or h ea d a s ch ief
execu tive a n d en tr epr en eu r ia l m a r k eter in a
self-m a n a gin g sch ool, th is pa r ticu la r con ception of lea der sh ip m ay be sa id to h ave ga in ed
n ew m om en tu m a n d sta tu s.
As th e ter m im plies, str a te gic lea der sh ip
em ph a sizes r a tion a lity in th e lea der ’s r ole.
Th u s, Hosm er, cited in Sh r iva stava a n d N a ch m a n [11], defi n es it a s th e cr ea tion of a n over a ll sen se of pu r pose a n d dir ection wh ich
gu ide in te gr a ted str a te gy for m u la tion a n d
im plem en ta tion in or ga n iza tion s.
[8 ]
Ha m br ick [12] su ggests th a t it in volves a lign in g th e or ga n iza tion w ith a n ticipa ted exter n a l for ces – tech n ologica l developm en ts,
m a r k et tr en ds, r e gu la tor y con str a in ts, com petitor s’ a ction s, a n d so on . In sim ila r vein to
Hosm er a n d Ha m br ick , Ca ldwell[13] a dvoca tes a lea der sh ip fu n ction th a t is dom in a n tly str a te gic a s th e m ost a ppr opr ia te a ppr oa ch
for pr in cipa ls in self-m a n a gin g sch ools:
…th e pr in cipa l m u st be a ble to develop a n d
im plem en t a cyclica l pr ocess of goa l-settin g,
n eed iden tifica tion , pr ior ity settin g, policy
m a k in g, pla n n in g, bu dgetin g, im plem en tin g
a n d eva lu a tin g in a m a n n er wh ich pr ovides
for th e a ppr opr ia te in volvem en t of sta ff a n d
com m u n ity, in clu din g pa r en ts a n d stu den ts
a s r eleva n t (p. 160).
Str a te gic pr ocesses su ch a s th ese m ay be
h igh ly r eleva n t in con ceptu a lizin g th e wor k
of su ccessfu l sch ool m a n a ger s of th e 1990s.
Bu t wh a t m ea n in gs, if a n y, do th ey h ave in th e
wor k of h igh ly su ccessfu l cla ssr oom pr a ctition er s a n d oth er n on -m a n a ger s? Th is qu estion r em a in s la r gely u n con sider ed in edu ca tion a l lea der sh ip liter a tu r e.
Transformational leadership
Tr a n sfor m a tion a l lea der sh ip em ph a sizes th e
sign ifica n ce of “th e per son ”, a n d per son a l
tr a its, in br in gin g a bou t socia l a n d cu ltu r a l
ch a n ge.
To Avolio a n d Ba ss[14], wh ose pion eer in g
r esea r ch h a s been in str u m en ta l in developin g
tr a n sfor m a tion a l a ppr oa ch es to lea der sh ip,
lea der s a r e in dividu a ls wh o “m otiva te follow er s to wor k for tr a n scen den ta l goa ls in stea d
of im m edia te self-in ter est a n d for a ch ievem en t a n d self-a ctu a liza tion in stea d of sa fety
a n d secu r ity”. Avolio a n d Ba ss fu r th er a sser t
th a t tr a n sfor m a tion a l lea der sh ip com pr ises
th r ee elem en ts:
1 Ch a r ism a . Th e lea der in stils pr ide, fa ith
a n d r espect, h a s a gift for seein g wh a t is
r ea lly im por ta n t, a n d h a s a sen se of vision
wh ich is effectively a r ticu la ted.
2 In d ivid u a liz ed con sid era tion . Th e lea der
dele ga tes pr ojects to stim u la te a n d cr ea te
lea r n in g exper ien ce, pays a tten tion to
follower s’ n eeds, especia lly th ose follower s
wh o seem n e glected, a n d tr ea ts ea ch follower w ith r espect a n d a s a n in dividu a l.
3 In tellectu a l stim u la tion . Th e lea der pr ovides idea s th a t r esu lt in a r eth in k in g of
old w ays, th a t is, th e lea der en a bles follow er s to look a t pr oblem s fr om m a n y a n gles
a n d to r esolve pr oblem s th a t wer e a t a
sta n dstill[14, p. 137].
Tr a n sfor m a tion a l lea der sh ip is gen er a lly
r e ga r ded a s h avin g or igin a ted in th e wor k of
Bu r n s[15]. It wou ld a ppea r to h ave r eleva n ce
to th e wor k of tea ch er s a s lea der s if for n o
Frank Cro wthe r and
Pe te r Olse n
Te ac he rs as le ade rs – an
e xplo rato ry frame wo rk
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oth er r ea son th a n th a t Bu r n s r e ga r ded “lea der sh ip a s edu ca tion ” a n d “edu ca tion a s lea der sh ip”. Th e essen ce of lea der sh ip, Bu r n s
a sser ted, is on e of r ela tion sh ip, or en ga gem en t, a n d of com m on eleva tion of m otives or
va lu es. It ga in s str en gth wh en plu r a listic
qu a lities in h er en t in gr ou ps a n d com m u n ities a r e r ecogn ized. Differ en ces ba sed on
gen der, eth n icity, r a ce a n d cu ltu r e a r e th er efor e im por ta n t. With r e ga r d to gen der, for
exa m ple, Bu r n s[15] cla im ed th a t:
Th e m a le bia s is r eflected in th e fa lse con ception of lea der sh ip a s m er e com m a n d or
con tr ol. As lea der sh ip com es pr oper ly to be
seen a s a pr ocess of lea der s en ga gin g a n d
m obilizin g th e h u m a n n eeds a n d a spir a tion s of follower s, wom en w ill be m or e r ea dily r ecogn ized a s lea der s a n d m en w ill
ch a n ge th eir ow n lea der sh ip styles (p. 50).
Tr a n sfor m a tion a l con cepts lik e “em power m en t”, “vision ” a n d “m ission ” h ave becom e a
fea tu r e of th e r h etor ic a ssocia ted w ith developm en ta l pr ocesses a t differ en t levels in edu ca tion system s th r ou gh ou t th e wor ld. Th ey
a r e to be fou n d, for exa m ple, in th e str a te gic
pla n s of depa r tm en ts of edu ca tion , in th e
a n n u a l pla n s of r e gion a l a u th or ities a n d in
sch ool-ba sed developm en t pla n s. Bu t is th er e
oppor tu n ity in m oder n , cor por a te edu ca tion
system s for pr a ctition er s w ith deep per son a l
con viction s to in spir e socia l ch a n ge a n d
im pr ovem en t, in dividu a lly or colla bor a tively.
Th e im plica tion s of r ecen t developm en ts in
tr a n sfor m a tion a l lea der sh ip for th e sch ool
a n d cla ssr oom levels of edu ca tion a r e th u s
extr em ely com plex.
Educative leadership
E du ca tive lea der sh ip is often viewed a s
lin k ed to socia l r econ str u ction ist ph ilosoph y.
For Ba tes[16], th e essen tia l poin t a bou t lea der sh ip in edu ca tion is th a t it “involves th e
m a k in g a n d a r ticu la tin g of ch oices, th e loca tion of on eself w ith in th e cu ltu r a l str u ggles of
th e tim es a s m u ch in th e cu ltu r a l ba ttles of
th e sch ool a s in th e w ider society” (p. 19). For
Foster [17], “lea der sh ip is a t its h ea r t a cr itica l
pr a ctice”, in volvin g edu ca tion a l lea der s in
th e n ecessa r y pr a ctice of r efl ective a n d cr itica l th in k in g a bou t th e cu ltu r e of th eir or ga n iza tion s (p. 52). Both Ba tes a n d Foster cou ld be
sa id to em ph a size edu ca tive a ppr oa ch es to
lea der sh ip.
Du ign a n a n d Ma cph er son [18] cite w r iter s
lik e Dea l a n d Ken n edy, P u r k ey a n d Sm ith ,
a n d Sta r r a tt in cr ea tin g a defin ition of edu ca tive lea der sh ip th a t in volves con tin u ou s cr itica l discou r se a n d socia l a ction a s a m ea n s of
a ddr essin g socia l in ju stice a n d disa dva n ta ge
in a n or ga n iza tion :
E du ca tive lea der sh ip a ppea r s to be a deliber a te a ttem pt a t cu ltu r a l ela bor a tion ... It
follow s th a t edu ca tive lea der sh ip m u st
closely r espon d to th e cu ltu r a l con text, be
cr itica lly aw a r e of th e lon g-ter m pr a ctices of
pa r ticipa n ts in edu ca tion a l pr ocesses, a n d
wh en a ction is pr oposed, ju stify en ds a n d
pr ocesses u sin g a n edu ca tive ph ilosoph y...
Hen ce, edu ca tive lea der sh ip im plies a
r espon sible in volvem en t in th e politics of
th e or ga n iza tion (pp. 3-4).
In sim ila r vein , Sm yth [19] ch a llen ges pr a ctition er s to “fr a m e pr oblem s, a n d to discu ss
a n d wor k in dividu a lly a n d collectively to
u n der sta n d a n d ch a n ge th e situ a tion s th a t
ca u se th ese pr oblem s”. As F r ied expr essed it,
em power m en t a s u sed in th is sen se m ea n s
h elpin g people to ta k e ch a r ge of th eir lives,
people wh o h ave been r estr a in ed, by socia l or
politica l for ces, fr om a ssu m in g su ch con tr ol.
Im plicit in Sm yth ’s ch a llen ge is th e view th a t,
if edu ca tion is to cr ea te em a n cipa tion or
liber a tion in th e h u m a n con dition , it w ill be
u n lik ely to do so th r ou gh th e sole in fl u en ce of
a dm in istr a tor s. In deed, Sm yth con ten ds th a t
th e n otion of edu ca tive lea der sh ip is itself a
m isn om er in th a t lea der sh ip a s tr a dition a lly
defin ed im plies h ier a r ch ica l division of
power a n d cor por a te dir ection settin g, wh ile
edu ca tiven ess im plies th e opposite, n a m ely
“a ssistin g people to u n der sta n d th em selves
a n d th eir wor ld... to over com e th e oppr essive
con dition s th a t ch a r a cter ize wor k pa tter n s
a n d socia l r ela tion sh ips” (p. 182).
Th e r eleva n ce of edu ca tive con cepts a n d
pr ocesses to th e wor k of sch ool a dm in istr a tor s h a s been r ecogn ized[20], bu t th eir r eleva n ce to th e wor k of tea ch er s a n d oth er pr a ctition er s r em a in s la r gely u n explor ed. Th e
pr esen t stu dy r epr esen ts a step in a ddr essin g
th is void.
Findings of the research
Conceptualizations of disadvantage
Th e explor a tion of tea ch er lea der sh ip th a t
w a s th e m a jor focu s of th e r esea r ch ca n n ot be
viewed in isola tion fr om th e m a jor con textu a l
va r ia ble, socioecon om ic disa dva n ta ge. Th u s,
befor e r esea r ch fi n din gs r ela tin g to tea ch er
lea der sh ip a r e r eviewed, it is a ppr opr ia te to
con sider th e m ea n in gs a scr ibed by pa r ticipa n ts in th e r esea r ch to disa dva n ta ge.
F r om a n a n a lysis of th e 43 cr itica l in ciden t
sta tem en ts pr ovided by pa r ticipa n ts, su ppor ted by in ter view da ta , it is possible to
iden tify fou r differ en t con ceptu a liza tion s of
disa dva n ta ge th a t wer e per ceived to im pose
on sch ools a n d stu den ts (Ta ble I). Th e fou r
con ceptu a liza tion s en com pa ss on e or a n oth er
for m of defi cit in socia l com peten ce, m a ter ia l
m ea n s, r ela tion sh ip w ith th e law a n d a ttitu de
tow a r ds sch ool. Of r eleva n ce is th a t m ost
[9 ]
Frank Cro wthe r and
Pe te r Olse n
Te ac he rs as le ade rs – an
e xplo rato ry frame wo rk
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 1 [1 9 9 7 ] 6 –1 3
Table I
Co nc e ptualizatio ns o f disadvantage
Conceptualizations
Inappropriate social competences
Reluctance to co-operate with authority
figures
Very aggressive approach to social
intercourse
Bullying of peers
Total
Lack of material means
No support for school attendance or
participation
No resources to meet basic needs
Total
At risk with the law
Demonstrated criminal background or
tendency
Abuse of welfare system
Ambiguous legal status
Total
Alienated from schooling
History of personal failure
History of family failure at school
Victim of poor teaching
Total
Specific examples
“ You c an’ t make me”
Hostile, threatening language
Gender-based harassment in play area
6
4
4
14
“ No one c ares if I don’ t c ome to sc hool”
Unable to purc hase sc hool uniform
6
3
9
Stealing, brandishing a weapon, drug abuse
Illegal c laim of welfare benefits
Vic tim in c ustody battle
4
3
2
9
“ I c an’ t do anything”
Parents’ sc hool experienc es were assoc iated
with fear
Negative influenc e of Teac her X
5
Total
descr iption s of disa dva n ta ge th a t wer e pr ovided by th e r esea r ch pa r ticipa n ts en com pa ssed two or m or e of th e fou r con ceptu a liza tion s. Also of in ter est is th a t th er e is n o in dica tion in th e descr iption s th a t a n y on e con ceptu a liza tion is m or e sign ifica n t in over a ll
im pa ct th a n th e oth er s.
Ba sed on th e two sou r ces of da ta th a t wer e
con sider ed, socioecon om ic disa dva n ta ge is
r e ga r ded by pr oject pa r ticipa n ts a s ch a r a cter ized by a n u m ber of com plex fa ctor s th a t
wou ld a ppea r to m a k e it ver y difficu lt to
r edr ess. F ir st, disa dva n ta ged stu den ts a r e
per ceived a s con fr on tin g a r a n ge of ba r r ier s
wh ich a r e beyon d th eir con tr ol. For exa m ple,
som e pa r ticipa n ts obser ved th a t disa dva n ta ged ch ildr en in th eir sch ools a r e pa r t of a
“cu ltu r e of u n em ploym en t” th a t spa n s fou r
gen er a tion s a n d th a t m a n ifests in pr a ctica lities lik e la ck of fu n ds to pa r ticipa te in en r ich m en t a ctivities a n d a ttitu des th a t a r e socia lly
u n a ccepta ble.
Secon d, som e pa r ticipa n ts in dica ted th a t
in dividu a ls a ffected by va r iou s for m s of disa dva n ta ge m ay be su bject to pr essu r es to
a ttem pt to obscu r e, den y or ch a n ge th eir
cir cu m sta n ces in or der th a t in stitu tion s,
in clu din g sch ools, m ay feel th a t th eir effor ts
[ 10 ]
N
(Critical incident
references)
3
3
11
43
in m eetin g societa lly pr escr ibed expecta tion s
h ave been su ccessfu l. Tea ch er s of disa dva n ta ged ch ildr en m ay th em selves be gin to feel
disa dva n ta ged if th ey a r e u n a ble to m eet
exter n a lly-defin ed cr iter ia for su ccess.
Th u s, pa r ticipa n ts’ per spectives on socioecon om ic disa dva n ta ge r ela ted closely to
th eir ever yday exper ien ces in disa dva n ta ged
sch ools. Th is poin t is a n im por ta n t con sider a tion in in ter pr etin g th e fr a m ewor k for
tea ch er lea der sh ip th a t em er ged fr om th e
r esea r ch .
Conceptualizations of leadership
At th e en d-of-r esea r ch focu s session , pa r ticipa n ts en ga ged in a pr ocess of in dividu a l
r efl ection , sm a ll gr ou p sh a r in g a n d tota l
gr ou p discu ssion of th e qu estion : Wh a t do
you r e ga r d a s th e essen tia l ch a r a cter istics of
lea der sh ip in a ddr essin g disa dva n ta ge in
sch ools? In pr epa r in g for th is a ctivity, pa r ticipa n ts h a d been pr ovided w ith deta iled
descr iption s of ten ta tive ou tcom es of th e
r esea r ch , a s well a s descr iption s of th eir ow n
pr elim in a r y pr ofiles. A su m m a r y en titled
“E ssen tia l ch a r a cter istics of lea der sh ip” w a s
th en pr epa r ed by th e pa r ticipa n ts. With
Frank Cro wthe r and
Pe te r Olse n
Te ac he rs as le ade rs – an
e xplo rato ry frame wo rk
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
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1 1 / 1 [1 9 9 7 ] 6 –1 3
m in or editor ia l m odifica tion s, th is su m m a r y
is r epr odu ced in Ta ble II.
Th u s, th e fr a m ewor k for tea ch er lea der sh ip
th a t is pr oposed is ba sed on deta iled exter n a l
a n a lyses of tea ch er s’ wor k a s well a s
pr ocesses of in dividu a l a n d colle gia l selfr eflection . However, th e five gen er a lized ch a r a cter istics in th e fr a m ewor k sh ou ld n ot be
in ter pr eted a s a n expla n a tor y system th a t
ca ptu r es th e in dividu a l lea der sh ip a ppr oa ch es of pa r ticipa n ts in th e r esea r ch . To
th e con tr a r y, in dividu a l pr ofi les r efl ected
u n iqu en ess of per son a lity, belief a n d con text
a t lea st a s m u ch a s th ey did th e five gen er a lized ch a r a cter istics. On e pa r ticipa n t, for
exa m ple, dwelt h eavily on issu es a ssocia ted
w ith ch r on ic u n em ploym en t in a r ticu la tin g a
per son a l ph ilosoph y a n d in descr ibin g h er
r espon se in cr ea tin g a n d im plem en tin g on goin g wor k exper ien ce pr ojects in con ju n ction
w ith th e loca l bu sin ess com m u n ity. A secon d
pa r ticipa n t, a t th e sa m e sch ool, focu sed on
th e pr oblem s of stu den ts “a t r isk ” w ith th e
Table II
Te ac he rs as le ade rs: a sugge ste d frame wo rk
Artic ulates c lear views of a better world
Can artic ulate “ what ought to be” on important soc ial
issues
Values teac hing as an important profession in shaping
meaning systems
Personal views about soc ial justic e are a sourc e of
personal pride
Models trust and sinc erity
Has the respec t of the c ommunity
Demonstrates toleranc e and reasonableness in diffic ult
situations
Regarded by peers as totally trustworthy
Confronts struc tural barriers
Stands up for c hildren, espec ially marginalized or powerless groups
Engages c onfidently with authority figures
Influenc es the development and implementation of
soc ially just polic ies
Builds networks of support
Feels at ease with individuals and groups who assert
c ultural, soc ial and other differenc es
Communic ates with authority and persuasion ac ross
groups
Promotes c ollaboration in teac hing, planning, dec ision
making
Organizes tasks with relative ease
Nurtures a c ulture of suc c ess
Creates opportunities for individual suc c ess and rec ognition
Builds problem-solving skills
Adopts a “ no blame” attitude when things go wrong
Searc hes c ontinuously for new ideas
Conveys a sense of optimism to others
law. His wor k took h im , by in vita tion , in to
h om es, police sta tion s a n d, on occa sion , ou tof-con tr ol teen a ge pa r ties on Sa tu r day n igh ts.
A th ir d pa r ticipa n t h a d developed a n d im plem en ted a cr oss a per iod of yea r s a n in itia tive
to en a ble yea r -seven stu den ts in h is com m u n ity to live for a week in a n a bor igin a l com m u n ity in pr epa r a tion for cr oss-cu ltu r a l
secon da r y sch oolin g. Lon gsta n din g distr u st
a n d bitter n ess between th e two com m u n ities
h a d n ot been over com e by th is a ction , bu t th e
in itia tive en joyed th e su ppor t of both com m u n ities a n d a lso th e str on g en dor sem en t of
sta ff a t both sch ools. In ea ch of th ese in sta n ces, th e sa lien t poin t is th e u n iqu e w ay
th a t conviction , a ction a n d dia logu e led to n ew
for m s of u n der sta n din g in th e com m u n ity.
Ca u tion s r e ga r din g th e u se of Ta ble II
n otw ith sta n din g, th e wor k of ea ch of th e 15
pa r ticipa n ts in th e r esea r ch illu str a ted ea ch
of th e fi ve ch a r a cter istics. Th e r eleva n ce of
essen tia l pr in ciples of con tem por a r y lea der sh ip th eor ies to th e wor k of th e design a ted
tea ch er lea der s is th er efor e a ble to be con sider ed th r ou gh r efer en ce to th e fr a m ewor k .
F ir st, Ta ble II r eflects con cr ete eviden ce of
tr a n sfor m a tion a l, edu ca tive a n d str a te gic
a ppr oa ch es to lea der sh ip. Most r ea dily a ppa r en t is th e tr a n sfor m a tion a l fr a m ewor k .
Sch ool-ba sed edu ca tor s wh o wer e iden tified
a s h igh ly su ccessfu l in th eir wor k in socioecon om ica lly disa dva n ta ged sch ools ten ded to be
m otiva ted by tr a n scen den ta l goa ls th a t
der ived fr om a deep con cer n for m a r gin a lized
a n d power less gr ou ps a n d in dividu a ls. In
m ost, if n ot a ll in sta n ces, pa r ticipa n ts
espou sed a n u n com pr om isin g com m itm en t to
va lu es lik e fa ir go, cr oss-cu ltu r a l u n der sta n din g, in dividu a l r espon sibility a n d com m u n ity
pr ide. Wh ile it m u st be sa id th a t th ese va lu es
h a d som ewh a t differ en t m ea n in gs to differ en t
pa r ticipa n ts, a ll 15 h a d clea r view s a bou t
socia l issu es th a t th ey wer e ver y w illin g to
voice pu blicly. (Th u s, discu ssion s a t focu s
session s wer e in som e in sta n ces pa ssion a te,
a s in dividu a l con viction s su r fa ced a n d posed
ch a llen ges for oth er s, in clu din g th e
r esea r ch er s.) Rela tedly, a ll wer e ch a r a cter ized by con ta giou s en th u sia sm , a n a bility to
in spir e oth er s to r a ise th eir expecta tion s, a n d
a per va sive sen se of optim ism .
Tr a n sfor m a tion a l a spects of lea der sh ip
th a t wer e eviden t in pa r ticipa n ts’ wor k did,
h owever, sh ow on e im por ta n t va r ia tion fr om
gen er a l pr in ciples of tr a n sfor m a tion a l th eor y.
Th a t is, th e tea ch er lea der s wh o wer e stu died
did n ot view th em selves a s eith er ch a r ism a tic
or a s exer cisin g u n du e in flu en ce. In pa r ticu la r, th e lea der -follower m in dset th a t con tin u es to dom in a te in th e r h etor ic of m u ch tr a n sfor m a tion a l th eor y w a s n ot a t a ll eviden t in
th eir th in k in g or th eir a ction s, ba sed on th e
descr iption s of th eir wor k th a t wer e pr ovided.
[ 11 ]
Frank Cro wthe r and
Pe te r Olse n
Te ac he rs as le ade rs – an
e xplo rato ry frame wo rk
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 1 [1 9 9 7 ] 6 –1 3
[ 12 ]
Also pr esen t in th e da ta is a str on g edu ca tive a spect. In deed, in flu en ce in sh a pin g th e
cu ltu r e of sch ools a n d com m u n ities a ppea r s
to depen d on con sider a bly m or e th a n th e
existen ce of tr a n sfor m a tion a l qu a lities lik e
per son a l con viction a n d socia l vision .
Resea r ch pa r ticipa n ts saw th em selves, a n d
wer e seen by th eir collea gu es a n d a dm in istr a tor s, a s en ga ged con tin u ou sly in pr a ctica l
pr oblem solvin g on ter m s, a n d in su r r ou n din gs, deter m in ed by oth er s. Position a l
a u th or ity a n d r e gu la tion ten ded to be ca lled
on on ly wh en qu estion s of sa fety, h ea lth or
n a tu r a l ju stice a r ose. Sta ted a little differ en tly, th e 15 pa r ticipa n ts ten ded to view th em selves a s colla bor a tor s in em a n cipa tor y a n d
con sciou sn ess-r a isin g a ctivities, a n d qu ite
fr equ en tly a s a dvoca tes for m a r gin a lized or
power less in dividu a ls in ch a llen gin g a u th or ity str u ctu r es – bu t n ot a s a gen ts of exter n a l
a gen da s for socia l ch a n ge.
Th e for m s of edu ca tive lea der sh ip th a t wer e
eviden t in th e r esea r ch da ta devia te fr om th e
pr in ciples of m ost edu ca tive th eor ies in on e
im por ta n t r espect. Th a t is, edu ca tive th eor ies
ten d to view th e cu ltu r a l con text of tea ch er s’
wor k a s focu sin g on th e sch ool a s a n or ga n iza tion . In th is sen se, th ey wou ld seem to be
too r estr ictive to expla in sa tisfa ctor ily th e
com m u n ity-w ide sph er e of a ction a n d in flu en ce of th ose edu ca tor s wh o pa r ticipa ted in
th e r esea r ch .
Of less dir ect sign ifica n ce, bu t im por ta n t
n ever th eless, is str a te gic lea der sh ip. Wh ile
m ost, per h a ps a ll, of th e 15 pa r ticipa n ts wer e
r e ga r ded a s sou n d or ga n izer s, a dept a t tea m
bu ildin g a n d h igh ly in flu en tia l in sch ool
decision m a k in g, th ese ca pa bilities ten ded to
be con str u ed by both pa r ticipa n ts a n d th eir
peer s a s m ea n s to a n en d r a th er th a n a s
im por ta n t pr ocesses in th eir ow n r igh t. Ta ble
II in dica tes th a t th e n otion of “str a te gy”, a s a
r a tion a l pr ocess of goa l settin g, n eeds iden tifi ca tion a n d policy m a k in g did n ot fi gu r e
pr om in en tly in th e th in k in g of r esea r ch pa r ticipa n ts. N ever th eless, pa r ticipa n ts ten ded
to a ck n ow ledge th e im petu s pr ovided by
specia l pr oject fu n din g. Th ey a lso in sisted
th a t th e a ssista n ce of sch ool a dm in istr a tor s
in esta blish in g socia lly-ju st or ga n iza tion a l
goa ls w a s vita lly im por ta n t to th em . Most
a lso a gr eed th a t Depa r tm en t of E du ca tion
equ ity policies wer e of h elp, a sser tin g th a t
th eir wor k wou ld r eta in its focu s if su ch policies did n ot exist, bu t wou ld u n dou btedly be
m or e difficu lt to ca r r y ou t.
A secon d im plica tion of th e r esea r ch is th a t
lea der sh ip in th e wor k of su ccessfu l pr a ctition er s a ppea r s to in cor por a te a qu a lity
wh ich is n ot fou n d in lea der sh ip th eor ies th a t
h ave th eir or igin s in bu sin ess m a n a gem en t
or, for th e m ost pa r t, in edu ca tion a l m a n a gem en t. Th a t is, pr ocesses of tea ch in g,
con sciou sn ess r a isin g, com m u n ity bu ildin g
a n d per son a l lea r n in g wer e in sepa r a ble in
descr iption s of th eir wor k th a t wer e offer ed
by pa r ticipa n ts in th e r esea r ch . Wh en h olistic
pr ofi les wer e a n a lysed to iden tify gen er a l
ch a r a cter istics of lea der sh ip, it pr oved to be
ver y difficu lt to differ en tia te th e in str u ction a l r oles of pa r ticipa n ts fr om th eir r oles a s
in fl u en tia l figu r es in th eir sch ools a n d com m u n ities. An im por ta n t ir on y is eviden t h er e
in th a t th e h istor ica l fa ilu r e of edu ca tion a l
th eor ists to r ecogn ize lea der sh ip dim en sion s
in tea ch er s’ wor k m ay be pa r tly a ttr ibu ta ble
to th e in sisten ce of h igh ly su ccessfu l tea ch er s, su ch a s th e pa r ticipa n ts in th is r esea r ch ,
th a t th eir pr im a r y con cer n is “to tea ch ”.
Of possible im por ta n ce, a lso, is th a t th e
la n gu a ge of pa r ticipa n ts in th e r esea r ch
in clu ded ver y few r efer en ces to th e ter m in ology th a t is often a ssocia ted w ith lea der sh ip,
r a isin g fu r th er dou bt a s to wh eth er tea ch er
lea der s wor k in th e sa m e pa r a digm of lea der sh ip th a t h a s evolved ou t of th e stu dy of edu ca tion a l m a n a gem en t. Ter m s su ch a s “tr a n sfor m a tion a l”, “ta sk -or ien ted”, “str a te gy
for m u la tion ”, “ch a r ism a tic”, “bia s-for a ction ”, “tea m bu ildin g” a n d “ch a n ge a gen t”,
wh ich fi gu r e pr om in en tly in descr iption s of
lea der sh ip r oles of sch ool a dm in istr a tor s, a r e
con spicu ou sly a bsen t fr om th e descr iption s
th a t wer e pr ovided by r esea r ch pa r ticipa n ts
or oth er s wh o descr ibed th eir wor k . Ra th er,
ter m s lik e “w ildly en th u sia stic”, “lives a n d
br ea th es wor th y ca u ses”, “va lu es fr ien ds”,
“a dm its fa ilu r es” a n d “a lw ays on th e lookou t
for n ew idea s” ten ded to ch a r a cter ize th e
dia logu e.
F in a lly, it seem s possible on th e ba sis of th is
r esea r ch to pr opose a defi n ition of tea ch er
lea der sh ip. Tea ch er lea der sh ip is essen tia lly
a n eth ica l sta n ce th a t is ba sed on view s of
both a better wor ld a n d th e power of tea ch in g
to sh a pe m ea n in g system s. It m a n ifests in
a ction s th a t in volve th e w ider com m u n ity
a n d lea ds to th e cr ea tion of n ew for m s of
u n der sta n din g th a t w ill en h a n ce th e qu a lity
of life of th e com m u n ity in th e lon g ter m . It
r ea ch es its poten tia l in con texts wh er e
system a n d sch ool str u ctu r es a r e fa cilita tive
a n d a ppr ecia tive.
Suggestions for further inquiry
Th u s, it seem s th a t th e wor k of som e tea ch er s
r efl ects clea r eviden ce of both a u th or ita tive
lea der sh ip th eor ies a n d for m s of in flu en ce
th a t a r e n ot en com pa ssed by th eor ies th a t
or igin a te in edu ca tion a l or cor por a te m a n a gem en t.
F u r th er r esea r ch is essen tia l in a n u m ber
of a r ea s. F ir st, it is u n clea r to wh a t exten t th e
pa r ticu la r socioecon om ic con text of th e pr esen t r esea r ch in flu en ced ou tcom es. Th a t is,
wh eth er a fr a m ewor k lik e th a t in Ta ble II
Frank Cro wthe r and
Pe te r Olse n
Te ac he rs as le ade rs – an
e xplo rato ry frame wo rk
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 1 [1 9 9 7 ] 6 –1 3
wou ld h ave em er ged fr om sim ila r r esea r ch in
oth er socia l, cu ltu r a l or edu ca tion a l settin gs
is deser vin g of in vestiga tion . Secon d, th er e
a r e su ggestion s in th is r esea r ch th a t som e
a u th or ita tive lea der sh ip a ppr oa ch es m ay be
a t lea st a s r eleva n t to th e wor k of tea ch er s a s
th ey a r e to th e wor k of sch ool m a n a ger s.
Adm in istr a tor s in th e r esea r ch th em selves
su ggested th a t politica l a n d m a n a ger ia l
a spects of th eir wor k m ilita te str on gly
a ga in st th eir bein g a ble to a ssu m e tr a n sfor m a tion a l a n d edu ca tive lea der sh ip fu n ction s
th a t som e tea ch er s in th eir sch ools wer e a ble
to r ea lize. With th e pr ospect of in cr ea sin g
m a n a ger ia lism a n d cor por a tism in sch ool
a dm in istr a tion , th e poten tia l of th ese th eor etica l a ppr oa ch es in th e wor k of m a n a ger s on
th e on e h a n d, a n d tea ch er s on th e oth er, wou ld
seem to w a r r a n t on goin g th ou gh t a n d in qu ir y.
Th ir d, th e str a te gic/ tr a n sfor m a tion a l/
edu ca tive a ppr oa ch es to lea der sh ip th a t pr ovided th e con ceptu a l u m br ella for th is
r esea r ch a r e pr esen ted a s illu str a tion s of
con tem por a r y th eor y, r a th er th a n a s com pr eh en sive pr escr iption s. Oth er lea der sh ip
a ppr oa ch es m igh t a lso be r evea led in tea ch er s’ wor k if th ey wer e explor ed. Fou r th ,
a ssu m in g th a t a n a u th or ita tive pa r a digm of
tea ch er lea der sh ip ca n in fa ct be illu m in a ted
fu r th er, th e qu estion of h ow it m igh t be n u r tu r ed a n d r efi n ed in th e tea ch in g pr ofession
wou ld seem to pose a ch a llen ge of im m en se
im por ta n ce. F in a lly, on e m u st a sk Wh y? Th a t
is, wh y h a s lea der sh ip th eor y in edu ca tion
pr esu m ed th a t position a l a u th or ity is so cr itica l? Wh a t effects h a s th is pr esu m ption h a d on
th e im a ge a n d cu ltu r e of th e tea ch in g pr ofession ? An d h ow ca n we be gin to m a k e a m en ds
for th e obviou s lim ita tion s of ou r ow n pa st
u n der sta n din gs a s edu ca tion a l th eor ists,
sch ola r s a n d pr a ctition er s?
Note and references
1 Th is a r ticle is ba sed on th e r esea r ch r epor t,
Cr ow th er, F. a n d Olsen , P., “Tea ch er s a s lea der s: a n explor a tion of su ccess stor ies in socioecon om ica lly disa dva n ta ged com m u n ities”,
Sch ool Lea der sh ip In stitu te, Un iver sity of
Sou th er n Qu een sla n d, Toowoom ba , QLD, 1996.
Th e a u th or s a ck n ow ledge th e su ppor t of th e
Qu een sla n d Depa r tm en t of E du ca tion in fu n din g th e r esea r ch , a n d ta k e fu ll r espon sibility
for th e con ten ts of th e r epor t a n d of th is a r ticle. Copies of th e fu ll r epor t a r e ava ila ble fr om
th e Sch ool Lea der sh ip In stitu te, Un iver sity of
Sou th er n Qu een sla n d a t a cost of A$10.00.
2 Ba tten , M., “E du ca tion a l pr ovision for socioecon om ica lly disa dva n ta ged sch ool stu den ts”,
in Ain ley, J ., Gr a etz, B., Lon g, M. a n d Ba tten ,
M. (E ds), S ocioecon om ic S ta tu s a n d S ch ool
Ed u ca tion : A Project Fu n d ed b y th e Com m on w ea lth Depa r tm en t of Em ploym en t, Ed u ca tion
a n d T ra in in g, Au str a lia n Gover n m en t P r in tin g Ser vice, Ca n ber r a , 1995.
3 You n g, I.M., J u stice a n d th e Politics of Differ en ce, P r in ceton Un iver sity P r ess, P r in ceton ,
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4 Ber r y, B. a n d Gin sbu r g, R., “Cr ea tin g lea d
tea ch er s: fr om policy to im plem en ta tion ”, Ph i
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5 Lieber m a n , A., Sa xl, E . a n d Miles, M. (E ds),
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8 Ch a dbou r n e, R. a n d In gva r son , L., “Adva n ced
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11 Sh r iva stava , P. a n d N a ch m a n , S., “Str a te gic
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17 Foster, W., “Tow a r ds a cr itica l pr a ctice of
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[ 13 ]