Teacher leaders do not fulfill their potential without the right kinds of support. Using the stories of two teacher leaders, Lattimer describes how school and district administrators succeed and fail at encouraging teachers to take on or withdraw from leadership roles. The two teachers profiled were more likely to assume leadership roles when…

Using a qualitative case study approach, the authors explore social justice implications of inservice principals' practices that affect attitudes and empower teachers. If a primary educational goal of progressive schooling is to create and sustain more democratic schools by enabling the growth of teachers as leaders who are responsible for their…

Since the introduction of the Coleman Report (1966), the focus on closing the achievement gap has been a critical component of educational policy for political leaders and field research by educators. The economic crisis which California and the nation at large currently face creates a challenging situation in attempting to narrow the gap.…

Teacher leadership is "hard." Many of the reasons are obvious: Teaching is a highly labor-intensive profession to begin with, leaving little downtime for work with other adults. School schedules are notoriously stingy with space for adult collaboration. Teachers are rarely paid to exercise leadership; when they are, they are never paid…

This three-year ethnographic study analyzes the ways in which "toxic" school culture was produced through interactions among staff members at Centerville High School, an under-resourced high school where I conducted fieldwork from 2004-2007. Using discourse analysis, I examine adults' competing beliefs about low-income and minority students, and I…

The premise of this article is to fashion a theoretical notion of teacher leadership that infuses a feminist ethic into the philosophical base of this timely and judicious movement. A feminist ethic is described in relationship to teacher leadership and a portrait of one teacher leader gleaned from an in-depth interview and observation exemplifies…

Increasingly, there is advocacy for parents to be included in partnership roles with schools. Indeed, the term "partnership" seems to have acquired the connotation of an ideal form of parent-school relationship. This paper argues that the notion of partnership, with its accompanying suggestion of equality as a framework for the…

This research is part of a comprehensive effort to pinpoint the key leadership factors that improve student achievement and increase the number of high school graduates who are ready for college and careers. In this study, SREB (Southern Regional Education Board) examined the role of the district office in providing principals with the working…

Purpose: This exploratory study examines conditions that lead elementary principals to support the work of school-based instructional teacher leaders. The study asks, How do principals' knowledge of teacher leadership and their interaction with teacher leaders contribute to principals' support for teacher leadership? And, How might district…

This phenomenological interview study identifies the insights and experiences of one early childhood teacher, Anna, through her recollection of becoming an early childhood teacher leader and an advocate for social justice. This study falls at the nexus of the literature in early childhood education (ECE), teacher leadership, and social justice as…

This study documents the perspectives of administrators in Washington about National Board certification and the leadership of Board-certified teachers (NBCTs) in their schools and districts. The study focuses on principals' and superintendents' perspectives on the following: (1) The National Board for Professional Teaching Standards and the…

As part of a comprehensive qualitative study of 6 schools noted for teacher leadership 28 respondents were interviewed. It was noted that teacher leadership often involved the mutual influence between teacher leaders and principals. These influences are discussed from the perspectives of each of the 6 schools and respondent status as teacher…

In this paper, Larkin and Gould's (1999) activity theory methodology for defining work-related roles and Burns' (1963) analysis of organismic organizational form are merged into a model that describes associate and leadership roles and relationships in virtual organizations. The effects of a lack of shared physical space and face-to-face social…

Teacher leadership plays a significant role in the professional culture of many schools across the country, according to principals who value it. This is the major conclusion from a survey and telephone interviews conducted by the Institute for Educational Leadership (IEL). While limited in scope, the study confirms the contributions of teacher…

This paper reports on an ethnographic study of 25 teacher leaders in five schools within a large midwestern city school district. Data was collected through unstructured interviews and observations of teachers. Three central themes appeared repeatedly, and explain the presence of and support for teachers as leaders, including: (1) specific school…