Enacting and Extending a Developmentally Responsive Leadership Model

• In Event: Teaching and Leading in the Middle Grades: Exploring Elements of the Middle Grades Concept

Abstract

This research examined the practices of 43 school administrators in relation to Brown et al.’s (2002) conception of developmentally responsive middle level leadership (DRMLL). In addition to providing rich illustrations of the model’s three current dimensions of practice as enacted in 10 school settings in three districts in the Canadian province of Alberta, further analysis of survey and focus group interview data underscored the significant role that relationships play in middle school leadership. The study’s findings not only add to the DRMLL’s credibility as valuable lens though which to understand and shape middle level leadership, but also suggest that a relationship dimension would enhance the model so that it more fully reflects the realities of on the ground practice.

Authors

• Julia Rheaume, Red Deer Polytechnic

• Jim Brandon, University of Calgary