Formal Teacher Leadership and the Education Management Hierarchy

Abstract

Teacher Leadership has become a significant area of interest for building capacity within schools. This qualitative study centres on the constraints imposed on teacher leaders in their relationships with teachers and administration. The impact hierarchical relationships have on the effectiveness of the teacher leadership role is of particular interest. Micro-political analysis of teacher relationships in schools research on collegial teacher interactions are fundamental to this study. A lack of formal policy recognition may contribute to the way teacher leaders engage in their roles, their role ambiguity, and their lack of authority. The results show that teacher leaders navigate their roles by engaging in “invisible leadership” or “leading from the center” as teachers, mentors, guides, confidantes, and leaders in their “teachership” within their school communities. Many of the teacher leaders use their emotional intelligence and micro-political strategies to navigate collegial relations in their roles with other teachers and the education management hierarchy. The data demonstrated that some teacher leaders are identified and mentored very early in their teaching careers, while others bring skills from other industries and university training to support them in their work. The teacher leadership role is complex and has become a topic of interest in sustaining reform efforts and catalyzing change. This research provides further insights into the micro-political and collegial relations of teacher leaders within the education management hierarchy and the supports leading to their effectiveness.