J Educ Change(2006)7:59–76
DOI10.1007/s10833-006-0013-4
Teacher leadership and organizational structure
The implications of restructured leadership in an Edison school
Camille Rutherford
ÓSpringer Science+Business Media B.V.2006
Abstract Traditional models of school organization favor peaked hierarchies that con-centrate power and leadership responsibility on the office of the principal.As the models struggle to effectively meet the needs of education in the new millennium,leadership structures that distribute leadership influence and empower teachers to play a greater role in the leadership of the school,are slowly being implemented.This study examines the restructuring of school leadership at a school making the transition from a traditional elementary school to an Edison charter school and investigates the impact the new orga-nizational structure had on teacher leadership.Qualitative data were collected over a four-year period during annual visits to conduct over50interviews with district administrators, school ad
ministrators,teachers,and the school support staff.The rearchfindings indicate that the structure implemented at the Edison school differed greatly from traditional school leadership structures,as it successfully distributed leadership influence and enhanced the nature and scope of teacher leadership.
Introduction
Time and time again,rearchers have cited the importance of school leadership to the success of individual schools(Copland,2001;Fullan,1999;Fullan&Stiegelbauer,1991; Leithwood,Jantzi,&Steinbach,1999;Murphy,1991;Murphy&Datnow,2003;Short& Greer,1997).All too often this refers primarily to the role of the school principal and minimizes the prence of other leaders who may assist with the school improvement process.Adding to the administrative demands of leading a school to excellence,the role of the principal is continually expanding,making it difficult for many principals to suc-cessfully fulfill all of their obligations.In addition to administrating the daily operations of C.Rutherford(&)
Postdoctoral Fellow,Northwestern University,Evanston,IL,USA
e-mail:crutherford@northwestern.edu
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60J Educ Change(2006)7:59–76 a complex organization,principals must also rve as instructional leaders and community leaders,while being visionaries who inspire and motivate others(Kimball&Sirotnik, 2000).The demands may have created shoes too large for any one person tofill (Copland,2001;Elmore,1977,1990;Kimball&Sirotnik,2000).Thus,as the function of education becomes too complex for one individual to overe,it is time to begin looking for new leadership structures that can effectively meet the complex demands of education in the new millennium.
The designers of the Edison whole-school reform model have concluded that the tra-ditional organization of schools is ineffective and inefficient,thus they attempt to replace the traditional organization and management of schools with a leadership team that em-power a variety of stakeholders and include them in the decision-making process(Edison Schools,2003).The purpo of this article is to examine the restructuring of school leadership at a school making the transition from a traditional public school to an Edison charter school and to investigate the impact the Edison organizational structure had on teacher leadership.This study was guided by the following overarching rearch question: Can changes in the structure of school leadership affect teacher lead
ership?
While the nature of the relationship between organizational structure and teaching has yet to be clearly defined,inherent in this interaction is the notion that changes in orga-nizational structure will foster teacher professionalism and leadership(Smylie&Perry, 1998).An assumption that rves as the foundation of this inquiry is that organizational structure matters.Organizational structure contributes to organizational effectiveness by ensuring that roles are in place that will allow organizational goals to be met(Fidler,1997). Changes in organizational structure that alter the decision-making process can have a direct impact on the existence of teacher leadership within the school(Katzenmeyer&Moller, 2001;Ronholtz,1989;Smylie,1997).Restructuring efforts can readily impact teacher leadership by influencing the frequency and nature of teacher interactions(Day&Harris, 2003;Katzenmeyer&Moller,2001;Leithwood&Jantzi,1999;Ronholtz,1989;Smylie, 1997).Structural changes can also influence opportunities for professional development and ongoing learning(Berends,Kirby,Naftel,&McKelvey,2001;Bodilly,1998;Elmore, 1995;Fullan&Stiegelbauer,1991;Smylie&Perry,1998)that foster teacher leadership (Katzenmeyer&Moller,2001).
On the contrary,traditional models of school organization are built on peaked hierar-chies that concentrate power and authority in the hands of one or two administrators (Sallis,1996).In an attempt to overcome the inadequacies of traditional models of school organization,it has been suggested that the notion of leadership as an individual enterpri be replaced by a broader conception of leadership that focus on groups working together to lead(Murphy&Beck,1995).Decentralizing management and decision-making allows leadership to become distributed throughout an organization.Conquently,leadership can be exercid by individuals in formal positions of authority as well as by individuals outside of the positions(Smylie,Conley,&Marks,2002).A more resilient organization can be created when leadership is embedded throughout the entire institution,as improvements can be sustained regardless of personnel changes(Wang&Manning,2000). As models of distributed leadership shift the focus away from individual leadership and toward organizational leadership,leadership is then exercid by a wide range of orga-nizational participants(Smylie et al.,2002).Smylie et al.(2002)consider distributed leadership to be an inevitable replacement to traditional school leadership structures becau to put it simply‘‘the principal cannot do it all’’.
Distributed leadership and teacher leadership are concepts that are entangled in a co-dependent relationship.Leadership structures that distribute leadership function throughout 123
