“Tearing Down the Wall”: Making Sense of Teacher Leaders as Instructional Coaches and Evaluators

Abstract

Some recent district-level teacher leadership programs have incorporated both instructional coaching and formal evaluations into teacher leaders’ (TLs) responsibilities, which research suggests could challenge the relational dynamics necessary for effective coaching. Using a sensemaking lens, we conducted a qualitative case study of one district’s effort to integrate coaching and formal evaluation in their teacher leadership policy. We conducted a total of 26 semistructured interviews with district administrators and school leaders, TLs, and teachers in two schools, and seven observations of teacher leadership activities. We coded interview transcripts and field notes deductively and inductively. We found that when granted autonomy, principals drew on varied sources for making sense of and enacting this policy, and the messages they conveyed through school leadership norms deeply influenced how teachers and TLs enacted and experienced the integration. The integrated district policy in and of itself did not hinder relationships between teachers and TLs; rather, what mattered most for teachers was the extent to which they perceived their TLs as part of a larger system of support or accountability. This study suggests that the school norms that school leaders put into place when enacting teacher leadership policies deeply influence teachers’ perceived relational dynamics with TLs. Teacher leaders have a unique role in implementation that is shaped by school-level norms and conceptions of effective leadership and coaching.

Investigating instructional influence in teachers' social networks

“…This is consistent with previous findings that teachers may be less likely to approach formal school leaders because they perceive them to be removed from the daily experiences of teaching (Elmore, 2000); instead, teachers go through a process of "social selection" to identify who they will interact with in their social networks (Penuel et al, 2010). On the other hand, school administrators may intentionally enact norms in their school to encourage teachers to seek assistance from one another, such that questions do not directly go to their principal (Comstock and Margolis, 2020).…”

Exchange quality in teacher leadership ties: examining relational quality using social network and leader-member exchange theories

“…Indeed, York- Barr and Duke (2004) argue that for TLs, relationships with colleagues are "a primary means of exerting influence" (272). Quality of relationships is an especially important consideration for formal teacher leadership initiatives, where the hierarchical role designation can stand in tension with the typically egalitarian dynamic among teachers in schools (Comstock and Margolis, 2020;Wenner and Campbell, 2017). Thus, in order to understand formal TLs' influence, we must attend to the nature and quality of relations between teachers and TLs.…”