Transcript Distributed Leadership for Learning David Quinn University of Florida West Virginia Institute for 21st Century Leadership November 2008

Distributed Leadership
for Learning
David Quinn
University of Florida
West Virginia Institute for 21st Century Leadership
November 2008
How would you define…
• At your tables come up with a definition for
distributed leadership
• Record your definition at:

tinyurl.com/wvdistributed
No Googling 
“Organizations tend to maintain
themselves. It’s only through
leadership do they change.”
West Virginia’s Framework for 21st
Century Schools
Leading for Learning:
Five Areas of Action
1. Establishing a focus on learning
2. Building professional communities that value
learning
3. Engaging external environments that matter for
learning
4. Acting strategically and sharing leadership
5. Creating coherence
Knapp, M. S., Copland, M. A., Ford, B., Markholt, A., McLaughlin, M. W.,
Milliken, M., & Talberg, J. E. (2003)
Distributed Leadership defined…
• Distributed leadership does not mean that no one is
responsible for the overall performance of the
organization. It means, rather, that the job of
administrative leaders is primarily about enhancing the
skills and knowledge of people in the organization,
creating a common culture of expectations around the
use of those skills and knowledge, holding the various
pieces of the organization together in a productive
relationship with each other, and holding individuals
accountable for their contributions to the collective
result
(Elmore, 2000, p. 15).
Distributed leadership is about creating
leadership density, building and
sustaining leadership capacity
throughout the organization. People in
many different roles can lead and affect
the performance of their schools in
different ways.
Moving away from Traditional
Organizational Structures
• Distributing leadership, in a practical sense, means a
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shift away from the traditional, hierarchical, “topdown” model of leadership to a form of leadership
that is collaborative and shared.
It means a departure from the view that leadership
resides in one person to a more complex notion of
leadership where developing broad based leadership
capacity is central to organizational change and
development.
Promoting Distributed Leadership:
Six Key Functions (Murphy, 2005)
1. Crafting a vision, delineating expectations for
teacher leadership in the school
2. Identifying and selecting teacher leaders,
linking them to leadership opportunities
3.
4.
5.
6.
Legitimizing the work of teacher leaders
Providing direct support
Developing leadership skill sets
Managing the teacher leadership process
Distributing Leadership within the School
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Building Leadership Team, School Improvement Team
Data Analysis Team
Response to Intervention Team
Goal Teams (to assist with implementing each building goal)
Grade Level Lead Teachers, Middle Level Team Leaders,
Department Heads
• Professional Development Team
• Peer coaching
• Mentors for novice teachers, instructional coaches
Distributed leadership includes not only teachers but also
other professional staff, support staff, parents,
stakeholders, and students.
Second Order Change (Jerry Valentine)
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Significant departure from the norm
Deep change affecting values, beliefs, and assumptions
Slow, evolving process over time
Addresses complex problems requiring new, thoughtful,
and often creative comprehensive solutions
• Double-loop learning (organizational) where new
strategies are needed and created to solve the problem
• Becomes institutionalized in the culture of the
organization
Distributed Leadership:
An Example
An impromptu meeting was convened by a group of
teachers who were not comfortable with playground
supervision. This self-directed group sketched out a
plan and shared it with their colleagues. They
agreed to implement the plan and monitor it for a
period of time by examining both student discipline
data and teacher input. The plan eventually was
deemed successful and the ad hoc committee
disbanded.
Distributing Leadership:
A Developmental Process (MacBeath, 2005)
• Phase I: Treading cautiously
Principal strategically identifies leadership needs of school,
identifies people who have the requisite capacities, and assigns
responsibilities to them.
• Phase II: Widening the scope of leadership
Creation of a culture that offers teachers an opportunity to learn
from one another’s practice. Principal works to create an
enabling environment, encourages shared leadership and a
shared vision among staff as to where the school is going.
Innovative ideas are encouraged from all members of the school.
• Phase III: Standing back
Maintaining the dynamic by supporting others; culture is
characterized by mutual trust and self-confidence.
Where are you in distributing
leadership?
• Click one of the options on:

tinyurl.com/wvdistributedpoll
Distributed Leadership in your
School
• Develop a list of activities/functions/roles in
which leadership currently is being distributed
within your building.
• Using MacBeath’s three developmental
phases, identify your building’s current phase
(I, II, III).
Barriers to Distributed Leadership
• Identify barriers that exist within your building
and district that currently may restrict your
effectiveness in developing a school culture
that embraces distributed leadership.
• In small groups, discuss your lists. Are these
barriers consistent or different across schools,
based upon your unique organizational
contexts? How can these barriers be
eliminated?
Potential Barriers…
• Community (and possibly the district office’s) expectation that the
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•
•
•
•
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principal is in charge of every leadership activity.
Changing a school’s culture, when teachers are accustomed to being
followers.
Time for developing leadership skills, releasing teachers to engage in
leadership activities.
Union resistance to teachers performing duties perceived to be
administrative (such as involvement in teacher supervision or
evaluation).
Principals’ unwillingness to “let go” when we ultimately are
accountable.
Can create “winners” and “losers;” teachers who traditionally have
been in leadership roles may perceive a loss of power.
Teachers with leadership skills may be pulled from the classroom by
district administrators to train others throughout the district. They may
be recruited by other schools/districts for employment opportunities.
Implementing Distributed
Leadership
Working in groups:
• Identify additional activities in which you can
involve your faculty and staff members in
leadership activities in your school. For each
activity, identify one or two staff members who
has the knowledge, skills, and capacity to lead the
initiative.
References
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Firestone, W. A., & Martinez, M. C. (2007). Districts, teacher leaders, and distributed leadership: Changing instructional practice. Leadership and Policy in
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