Learning-Centered Leadership

Learning-centered leadership is associated with higher motivation and engagement in collaboration and professional learning through its positive effects on trust and teacher agency, new study finds.

As defined by the authors of a recent study on the subject, “learning-centered leadership” is “a process whereby school leaders motivate, guide, and support teacher learning and school improvement.”
More precisely, the researchers operationalized the concept by asking teachers in 98 primary and middle schools in Thailand and China the extent to which their principals displayed the following behaviors: 

Building a Learning Vision, e.g., 

•     Laying out a clear vision for teacher learning 
•     Encouraging teachers to develop individual professional goals 

Providing Learning Support, e.g., 

•     Providing resources (time, money, and training opportunities) to support professional learning
•     Creating an open and supportive environment  for staff to communicate
•     Facilitating opportunities for staff to learn from each other
•     Rewarding teachers who engage in and contribute to ongoing teacher professional learning

    
Managing the Learning Program, e.g., 

•     Designing a systematic evaluation system to assess the impact of teacher professional learning
•     Diversifying and differentiating professional development

Modelling, e.g., 

•     Displaying enthusiasm for learning
•     Participating in professional learning initiatives

Learning-centered leadership was found to have a very strong impact (effect size of 0.8) on teacher professional learning, which the psychologists measured with a scale assessing agreement with statements related to: 

Collaboration, e.g., 

•     "I work together with colleagues to plan educational activities"
•     "I work together with colleagues to share teaching experiences and improve instruction"

    
Reflection, e.g., 

•     "I reflect on my own teaching practice"
•     "I reflect after observing colleagues’ lessons to improve my teaching"

Experimentation, e.g., 

•     "I experiment with new teaching ideas, including ICT"
•     "I test alternative teaching materials in class to stimulate students’ interest"

Reaching out to the Knowledge Base, e.g., 

•     "I collect learning feedback from students"
•     "I observe other teachers’ lessons to learn"
•     "I search online for ideas and resources to help develop my teaching"

Interestingly, the effect was mediated by two factors: the impact of learning-centered leadership on trust (in both leaders and colleagues) and agency.

Trust - Learning-centered leadership appeared to create an environment in which teachers feel safe to be vulnerable, take a critical look at their own practices, challenge themselves, and reach out to their peers and supervisors.

Teacher Agency - Learning-centered leadership positively affected both its individual and collective dimensions. Individually, teachers display agency when they have a strong sense of self-efficacy, enabling them to take initiative and be open to innovation and risks. Collectively, this translates into a social norm and identity motivating teachers to do their best and continuously enrich their skill base and rely on each other to do so.

Reference: Hallinger, Liu and Piyaman, “Does principal leadership make a difference in teacher professional learning? A comparative study in China and Thailand”, Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education, Volume 49, Issue 3, 2019.