Evolving Collaboration Routines and Innovative Climate Among Educational Leaders: A Social Network Perspective

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Friday 3:20 pm Four Seasons Ballroom 4
  In Roundtable Session: Rethinking and Transforming: New Insights Into Organizing Schools, Districts, and Systems for Improvement (Table 4)

Abstract

Educational leaders face increasing pressure to implement reforms. This study examines the collaboration routines of center and site leaders and their perceptions of innovative climate during a district-wide curriculum reform. The study aims to understand how those two elements are related and evolve.
A longitudinal study (2014-2022) was conducted in a school district in California (US). Data were collected through annual social network and climate surveys among central office and site leaders. The study employed social network analysis and stochastic actor-oriented models.
Results reveal a consistent relationship in terms of collaboration routines leading to innovative perception and vice versa. The findings underscore the importance of fostering an innovative climate to enhance collaborative behaviors among educational leaders.

Authors

• Andrea Wullschleger, University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland

• Yi-Hwa Liou, National Taipei University of Education

• András Vörös, University of Birmingham

• Alan J. Daly, University of California - San Diego

• Katharina Maag Merki, University of Zurich