Drivers for Change: A Study of Distributed Leadership and Performance Adaptation During Policy Innovation Implementation

Abstract

Scaling up innovation in the instructional core remains a vexing proposition. Such disruptive innovations require teachers to engage in performance adaptation. Schools vary in their capacity to support changes in teachers' daytoday work. By comparing distributed instructional leadership practices of "odds-beating" schools with those at "typically performing schools," this study identified four qualities of distributed instructional leadership that drive teacher performance adaptation: collective goal setting, instructional feedback, collective guided learning, and trusting relationships. These findings reiterate the need for policy to go beyond standards and accountability mandates to focus on the right drivers of change: capacity building, and opportunities for collaboration in tandem with pedagogical improvement.

Sustained Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports Implementation: School Leaders Discuss Their Processes and Practices

“…The shared leadership model served several purposes, including establishing the schoolwide leadership team that would introduce and promote the success of the SWPBIS framework. Shared or distributed leadership has been found to facilitate instructional innovation and serve as a mechanism for school improvement, as leadership tasks and roles are shared across the school (Zuckerman et al, 2018). Teacher leaders are uniquely positioned to support the work of school administrators while guiding their colleagues toward collaborative practices (Salleh & Goh, 2018).…”

“…However, school leadership does not rest solely with school management, as it also requires focus on instructional factors that facilitate the implementation of school-wide interventions, such as schoolwide positive behavioral interventions and supports (SW PBIS), that promote student success (Pinkelman et al, 2015). Thus, school leadership is not the sole responsibility of school administrators; instead, successful school leadership is often viewed as a collaborative act between administrators and teacher leaders who work to promote student success (Zuckerman et al, 2018). As noted by Fixsen and colleagues (2013), leadership is not about a single individual but rather multiple individuals who are engaged in different types of leadership behaviors which depend on the circumstances and which may alter as situations change.…”

Principals’ Schema: Leadership Philosophies and Instructional Leadership

“…To advance this knowledge, this study was guided by a modified model of social cognitive theories of leadership ( Figure 1) developed by McCormick and Martinko (2004). We selected this framework due to overlaps with important aspects of school leadership, such as direction setting, selfefficacy, and the role principals play in getting the conditions right for teaching and learning (Zuckerman et al, 2017;Leithwood et al, 2008;McBrayer et al, 2018).…”

“…Relationships support organizational learning and the improvement of student learning (Louis et al, 2010(Louis et al, , 2016. Teacher trust of principals positively correlates with student achievement, and reciprocal trust facilitates the implementation of innovation, lubricates instructional feedback, and contributes to a shared sense of responsibility for collective goals (Zuckerman et al, 2017;Lawson et al, 2017;Tschannen-Moran & Gareis, 2015). Beyond trust, affective relationships between principals and teachers support teacher job satisfaction and positive school climate (Price, 2012(Price, , 2015.…”

“…Such a conception of servant leadership fits with attempts in educational leadership to move beyond a single heroic leader and to create shared leadership in schools by enhancing the willingness of others to engage in leadership activities. This suggests servant leadership as a mechanism to support the distribution of instructional leadership roles, routines, and relationships that support school change efforts (Zuckerman et al, 2017;Lacroix & Verdorfer, 2017). Other research on servant leadership has tried to draw a statistical relationships between principals' behavior and outcomes such as school climate, student achievement, and teacher job satisfaction, with mixed results (Black, 2010;Cunningham, 2008;Shaw & Newton, 2014).…”