Distributing Leadership, Creating Networks, Promoting Relational Trust

• In Event: Conceptualizing Educational Change Through the Lens of the Complex Adaptive System: An Exploration in Quantifying the Metaphor

Abstract

Objectives
This paper presents findings from a case study focused on the leadership of Bomani Taylor, principal at Community Charter School (CCS) and a participant in Leadership Academy (LA) . This study addresses the following questions:
• How did Taylor distribute leadership responsibilities and thereby increase teacher networking at CCS?
• What networks were created for faculty to engage with their collective work and what impact did these have on teacher practice?

Theoretical Framework
Complexity theory guides analysis for this paper, in particular, the analytic construct known as a “complex adaptive system” (CAS). As Lewin (1999) observed, such systems arise when a community of agents “interact [and mutually affect] one another, [and] in so doing generate novel, emergent, behavior for the system as a whole” (p. 198). Specifically, I conceptualize CCS as a decentralized network—an evolving system that “combines reasonably efficient communication [among both weak and strong ties] with a reasonably robust structure, enabling considerable flexibility and high adaptability” (Davis, Sumara, & D’Amour, 2012, p. 378). Finnigan and Daly (2010) spoke to the logic of this strategy: “External ties allow new ideas or approaches to enter organizations, while internal ties provide access to expertise within the organization” (p. 180).

Methods & Data Sources
Data for this study derive from interviews and observations. I interviewed participants using protocols tailored to their position which aimed to elicit their view of CCS efforts at enhanced networking. Additionally, to understand how new networks shaped teacher practice at CCS, I took observational notes during staff and team meetings. Data were analyzed using the CAS framework to address the aforementioned research questions, with a focus on distributed control and network interactions leading toward systemic transformation. In so doing, I assumed “complex systems exhibit networked rather than hierarchical structures. Rather than vertical lines of control, they have multiple branches extending in many directions” (Clarke & Collins, 2007, p. 163).

Results
Findings from this study emerged in two primary categories: enhanced networking as a means to distribute authority throughout the school and enriched relationship building that emanated from these networks. By decentralizing leadership, Taylor distributed authority previously centralized with him, resulting in more networks relevant to teachers’ day-to-day responsibilities and greater teacher ownership of their collective effort at generating a new student assessment system. As Coburn, Choi, and Mata (2010) found, “tie formation—the foundation of social networks—can be influenced in profound ways by existing organizational norms, structures, and practices” (p. 46). Moreover, the network developed at CCS enhanced communication and trust across staff who previously had little connection with one another, thereby enriching the overall experience. Axelrod and Cohen (2000) spoke to this matter: “[T]rust lubricates social life” (p. 66).

Significance
Analyzing Taylor’s LA experience and subsequent work at his school, I maintain that CCS generated a more decentralized network and enhanced teachers’ sense of collective responsibility by allowing teachers and staff to create a renewed assessment system in an environment of enriched relational trust (Bryk & Schneider, 2002).

Author

• Kavita Venkatesh, Boston College