Combining Institutional and Distributed Frameworks in Studies of School Leadership

ABSTRACT

The premise of this article is that studies of distributed leadership could benefit from further incorporation of institutional approaches to better understand complex reform demands facing school leaders working for instructional improvement. We begin by articulating the core components of a distributed perspective on leadership and of an institutional perspective on organizational change. We next describe our methods for reviewing a purposeful sample of 28 highly cited empirical articles on distributed school leadership in K-12 settings. We argue that studies that fully integrate institutional and distributed perspectives can contribute important insights on how school leaders manage the pressures of complex policy environments and the role of collective structuration in defining and legitimating distributed leadership practice.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Patricia Burch

Patricia Burch is Professor at the Rossier School of Education at the University of Southern California and Co-Director of the Center on Education, Policy, Equity and Governance. Her work examines privatizing trends in public education and their implications for equity, access, and quality.

Andrea J. Bingham

Andrea J. Bingham is an Assistant Professor of Leadership, Research, and Foundations at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs. Her research explores teacher innovation and school change.

Neha Miglani

Neha Miglani is a Ph.D. candidate at Rossier School of Education, University of Southern California. She builds on sociocultural perspectives to explore issues of educational well-being, equity, and theory.