The Instructional Leader's Use of Distributive Leadership and Best Practices

The ever-changing landscape of education and school accountability has given rise to a renewed focus on shared leadership. In the past, the principal was viewed as the primary decision maker within a school. However, Glickman (1989) points out that it is impossible for school principals to effectively complete all the necessary instructional and managerial tasks within schools. He contends that some teachers have more leadership abilities than the actual administrators and that “in successful schools, principals aren’t threatened by the wisdom of others, instead, they cherish it by distributing leadership” (Glickman, 1989, p. 8).

Throughout this book, Sergiovanni is attempting to reframe the role of leadership in a school from an old paradigm focused on management and control and the view that a school is a formal organization, to a new paradigm of empowerment through caring, acknowledging the expertise of teachers and students, and facilitating their active participation in the school.

Educational leadership involves implementing changes which can be difficult when those one leads are resistant. Overcoming that resistance to bring about change creates benefits for students and the entire school community; unfortunately, there is no universal way to avoid resistance to change from all involved (Marion & Gonzales, 2014, p. 197). Further research could be done within an individual school

The “Investigating the link to improved student learning Final report of research findings” reported that transformational leadership practiced on student achievement had a weaker effect as to the effect of collective leadership. It is more beneficial to students if leadership is widely spread in a school.

Hillard (2011) asserts that with the passing of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) bill, educational leaders face more challenging leadership responsibilities than ever in the history of education. The Interstate School Leaders Licensure Consortium (ISLLC) has set stringent standards that school principals must meet before they are deemed qualified to lead instruction. This includes completing formal Educational leadership programs, the passage of an examination demonstrating their skills and knowledge, and a certification process. However, school administrators are still concerned with not having enough time to provide instructional supports to teacher. In addition, it is nearly impossible for principals to be content experts in every subject, especially in high school settings.

Marzano, McNulty and Waters propose five steps for a plan of effective school leadership. The first step is developing a leadership team with purpose. The definition used for a purposeful community is one with the collective efficacy and capability to develop and use assets to accomplish goals that mater to all community members through agreed-upon process (Marzano, et. al, 2005). The second step is distributing some responsibilities throughout the leadership team. The third step is to select the right work. The fourth step is to identify the order of magnitude implied by the selected work. The last step is to match the management style to the order of magnitude of the change initiative. The last step incorporates whether this is first or second order change.

According to former Indiana state superintendent of schools Dr. Suellen Reed, “We know from our research that there’s no turnaround school without a turnaround principal” (as cited in Gammil, 2007, para. 2), further supporting the fact that “school leaders have an essential role in cultivating a positive school culture in public schools” (Peterson and Deal, 2002, p.30). However, it is imperative to improve our understanding as to how principal leadership impacts the school culture in high poverty schools to ensure that all children receive a quality education, regardless of zip code, in an environment conducive to learning. The six measured factors are as follows:

This influential work on “A Vivid Illustration of Leadership: Principals” Actions Propel Struggling Schools Turnaround work grew out of an urgent need to transform a high poverty high school. The author of this research discovered a framework between leadership, classroom teacher and learning. And so, this article discloses research that indicates the effectiveness of leadership and the kind of leadership needed to improve student achievement. Therefore, a leader must be a visionary and move with urgency to transform the learning environment. The purpose of this study was to explain the impact of effective leadership on school reform and to show how effective leadership methods are used to improve a high poverty high school. Because the leader

Achieving a school district’s mission and vision requires the commitment of its stakeholders. In order to involve them in the process, it is necessary for educational leaders to “motivate staff, parents, students, board and community members” (Educational Leadership Constituencies Council, 2002, p. 4). The transformational leadership theory emphasizes the importance of educational leaders acting as role-models in order to motivate and inspire the school community. This approach has the potential to involve all stakeholders, leading to increased student success (Bush, 2007). The Assistant Director of Special Education in Northwest ISD directly supervised the school district’s assessment staff. Her education, experience, and passion set an example for her subordinates, stimulating them to achieve more, leading to her promotion to Executive Director of Student Services.

Leadership is a sociocultural construct underpinned by the beliefs and values of a society (Waniganayake, Cheeseman, Fenech, Hadley, & Shepherd, 2012). Leadership in early childhood have shifted the focus from one designated leader into a more collective approach – distributed leadership, which is not about delegating. As Cheeseman (2012) states, in early childhood settings, attention is often directed at administrative and management leadership (Waniganayake et al., 2012); however it is important to have a designated leader in the areas of development and implementation of curriculum and pedagogy – being the educational leader as a requirement of the National Quality Framework – whilst at the same time see educational leadership as a

In terms of becoming a mediator and consensus builder the authors detailed the need for principals to possess relational leadership skills in order to be able to both facilitate groups and coach others on staff in the ability to facilitate their own groups, and stressed that the key to this is the ability to effectively participate in conflict resolution (Donaldson, Marnik, Mackenzie, & Ackerman, 2009). The authors suggested that conflict is part and parcel of school reform and that in addition to being able to deal effectively with conflict the successful principal needs to develop the ability for bringing about consensus within the group, noting that interpersonal and intrapersonal skills were as much or more important than knowledge (Donaldson, Marnik, Mackenzie, & Ackerman, 2009).

“Effective instructional leadership requires a complex set of relationships between principals and their beliefs and the surrounding environments of the school… all must be taken into account” (Hughes, Norris & Ubben, 2011, pg. 31). Before I can initiate the possibility of change, an evaluation of the scope of the need. I need to ask the stakeholders the following questions “Why is the change needed? What will it mean for us and our students when the change comes about? Is what we’re being asked to do possible? Can we see it in practice? How will we develop the skills necessary to enact the change” (Tomlinson, 2008, pg. 43)?

The work of Dinham, et al (2012) entitled "Breakthroughs in School Leadership Development in Australia" reports that school leadership has been "increasingly in the spotlight in Australia due to an array of changing contexts and shifts in our understanding of the roles of school leaders, teachers, and schooling. The quality of leadership and effectiveness of schools to deliver an appropriate education through quality teaching have been 'hot' topics within education and more widely for several decades." (p.139) The role of the school principal is characterized by continuous change, "complexity, diversity, and intensity." (Mulford, 2002, p.1025 cited in Dinham, et al, 2012, p.139) Five factors cited for school effectiveness in the work of Dinham, et al (2012) are the following: (1) strong educational leadership; (2) emphasis on basic skills acquisition; (3) an environment that is both orderly and secure; (4) high expectations for achievement of students; and (5) frequent assessment of the progress of students. (Scheerens, 2000, p.44 cited in Dinham, 2012, p.141) Distributed leadership theory is one that is becoming prominent in the context of education and is defined as being mainly concerned with "the co-performance of leadership practice and the nature of the interactions that contribute to that co-performance." (Harris, 2009, p.3 cited in Dinham, et al, 2012, p.142) Resources that are needed by a school to achieve

The concept and practice of teacher leadership have gained momentum in the past two decades. Teachers are assuming more leadership functions at both instructional and organizational levels of practice. Empirical literature reveals effects of teacher leadership practice, teacher leader characteristics, and conditions that promote and challenge teacher leadership.

Effective school leadership today must combine the traditional school leadership duties such as teacher evaluation, budgeting, scheduling, and facilities maintenance with a deep involvement with specific aspects of teaching and learning. Effective instructional leaders are intensely involved in curricular and instructional issues that directly affect student achievement (Cotton, 2003). The writer of this paper acknowledges that school principals should play the role of instructional leaders, not just a school manager. The reality is that are many demands on a principals time and management skills making it difficult for most of them to spend time in classrooms, when performing teacher evaluation. Principals often make sure that teachers