The influence of professional learning communities on informal teacher leadership in a Chinese hierarchical school context

2021 ◽  
pp. 174114322098515
Author(s):  
Daphnee Hui Lin Lee ◽  
Noelle Kwok Kwan Ip
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
Instructional Leadership ◽  
Professional Learning Communities ◽  
Learning Communities ◽  
Student Learning ◽  
Teacher Leadership ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Positive Influence ◽  
Principal Instructional Leadership ◽  
Improving Student Learning

This paper examines the influence of professional learning communities (PLCs) on informal teacher leadership in Hong Kong schools to overcome issues reported in the literature on the challenges to teacher leadership posed by Chinese hierarchical school contexts. We test the relations among PLC, informal teacher leadership, teacher focus on improving student learning, principal instructional leadership, and middle leadership (e.g., subject heads) with structural equation modeling of survey responses from 638 teachers of primary and secondary schools in Hong Kong. The results show an overall positive influence among all factors in the study. PLCs have the highest positive influence among the factors considered in this study. PLCs are highly influential in promoting informal teacher leadership, which in turn has a high positive linkage to teachers’ focus on improving student learning. In addition, principal instructional leadership has a high positive influence on PLCs, while middle leadership has a moderate positive influence on PLCs. To further enhance teacher leadership capabilities that promote teachers’ focus on improving student learning, we provide recommendations to boost PLC and middle leadership capacities in schools.

scholarly journals Educational Leadership Training, the Construction of Learning Communities. A Systematic Review

2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (12) ◽  
pp. 267 ◽  
Author(s):  
Inmaculada García-Martínez ◽  
Miguel Díaz-Delgado ◽  
José Ubago-Jiménez
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Educational Leadership ◽  
Instructional Leadership ◽  
Professional Learning Communities ◽  
Learning Communities ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Training Model ◽  
Shared Responsibility ◽  
Education Systems ◽  
Head Teachers

Instructional leadership notions and practices allow educators to engage in relevant roles within schools. Instead of implementing these concepts in professional programs, Mexican and Spanish education systems still preserve a “technically oriented” training model that separates educational and professional aims. Diverse studies have identified the benefits of implementing instructional leadership orientations within “Educational cooperation”, “Cooperative education”, “Team teaching” and “Teacher leadership” at schools. This systematic review conducted using Web of Science—contributes by organizing the produced knowledge and identifies the main findings reported by the academic literature on this topic. It seeks to answer the following questions: (1) What are the contributions of this research to the education systems examined? (2) What kind of knowledge about educational leadership and professional learning communities can be inferred from them? Results from the majority of studies found that instructional leadership offers a useful tool to promote shared responsibility between teachers and head teachers and supports professional learning communities. A main conclusions of the present study is that it highlights the importance of bypassing existing bureaucratic practices within schools in order to replace the traditional “technical orientation” of training programs. Instructional leadership may facilitate some of the required transformations in the context of global educational reform.

scholarly journals Reimagining Music Teacher Collaboration: The Culture of Professional Learning Communities as Professional Development Within Schools and Districts

2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 15-23
Author(s):  
Sharyn L. Battersby
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Professional Learning Communities ◽  
Learning Communities ◽  
Student Learning ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Teacher Collaboration ◽  
Music Teachers ◽  
Music Educators ◽  
Music Teacher ◽  
Collaborative Community

Music educators are continually seeking new ways to better their practice and improve student learning. Professional learning communities are a type of collaborative community that when administered successfully provide a forum for music educators to become active participants in both their own learning and that of their students. While the notion of professional learning communities has been around since the 1990s, they have received renewed attention more recently due to the adaptation and implementation of Danielson’s popular Framework for Teaching, which has been implemented in many school districts across the country. Teachers facing the challenge of reshaping the culture of their music programs and seeing their initiative sustained will devise elements that will become embedded in that (school) culture. Supportive and shared leadership, shared values and vision, and collective learning are just some of the attributes that can contribute to student learning and the professional development of music teachers.

scholarly journals Professional Learning Communities, Leadership, and Student Learning

RMLE Online ◽  
2004 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sue C. Thompson ◽  
Larry Gregg ◽  
John M. Niska
Keyword(s):  
Professional Learning Communities ◽  
Learning Communities ◽  
Student Learning ◽  
Professional Learning

Principal leadership practices, professional learning communities, and teacher commitment in Hong Kong kindergartens: A multilevel SEM analysis

2021 ◽  
pp. 174114322110152
Author(s):  
Ken Hang To ◽  
Hongbiao Yin ◽  
Winnie Wing Yi Tam ◽  
Chrysa Pui Chi Keung
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
Professional Learning Communities ◽  
Learning Communities ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Principal Leadership ◽  
Leadership Practices ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Teacher Commitment ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
Principal Leadership Practices

In response to the needs for kindergarten principals to foster teachers’ capacities and commitment, this study examined the relationships between professional learning communities, principal leadership practices, and teacher commitment to kindergartens among 2106 teachers from 153 Hong Kong kindergartens, analyzing by using multilevel structural equation modeling. The result showed that principal leadership practices facilitated the development of professional learning communities at school and teacher levels, and exerted a direct effect on teacher commitment at the teacher level. However, the mediating effects of different professional-learning-community components were found distinctive. Implications for leading kindergartens in the reform time are discussed.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document