Teachers as reform leaders in Chinese schools

This paper analyzes the influence of teacher leadership on the enactment of educational reforms at three schools in southeast China. It considers how the work of middle and teacher leaders in schools is structured to support reform enactment at the school level. And, it illuminates teacher leadership in a Chinese context other than the scrutinized Shanghai school system.
The research was conducted in three case study sites in one school district in southeast China. Low, moderate and high academic achieving schools which had engaged teacher leaders in instructional reforms were selected. A combined total of 34 senior, middle and teacher leaders participated in semi-structured interviews which were analyzed through a comparative coding process.
Across the three schools, teacher leaders without positional authority strongly influenced the instructional reforms. Their influence was bolstered by formal recognition systems, opportunities to lead projects that were directly related to the reform efforts and to mentor novice students. Mechanisms and structures embedded in schools thus supported the efficacy of teachers without formal authority.
This research yields insight on teacher leaders' influence of reform. It considers how the work of teacher leaders can be structured in a manner that impacts on reform enactment at the school level. And, it illuminates teacher leadership in a Chinese context other than the scrutinized Shanghai school system. Copyright © 2018 The Education University of Hong Kong.