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Perceptions of Teacher Leadership: The Influence of Organizational Structure on the Professional Identity of Urban STEM Teacher Leaders

Hutchinson, Anna E.
http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1957-1108
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1581333163812174

Abstract Details

2020, EdD, University of Cincinnati, Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services: Curriculum and Instruction.
The professional identity of an educator frames one’s decision making as they navigate within K-12 systems. A teacher’s ability to contribute to the profession of teaching and learning creates teacher leaders who experience a renewal of skill development, increased engagement, and the transfer of knowledge in building a culture of collaboration, commitment, and shared leadership. When opportunities for teacher leadership are lacking, teachers become isolated within K-12 systems, disenchanted with teaching, and disengaged from the teaching profession. The problem will persist if conditions for educator development are incremental and isolated (Fullan, Galluzzo, Morris, & Watson, 1998). Using professional identity as a conceptual framework for teacher leadership, the purpose of this qualitative case study is to investigate how the development of professional identity of 17 STEM teacher leaders form within embedded organizational structures of leadership activities. A case study was conducted to accomplish the purpose of understanding how experienced STEM teacher leaders perceived teacher leadership and how their professional identity was influenced as a teacher leader by their interactions within organizational structures of teacher leadership support. Qualitative research methods including semistructured interviews, online surveys, and program and district documents, were used to obtain narratives of the professional identity of seventeen participants. Data were analyzed using the analytical framework of York-Barr and Duke’s (2004) dimensions of practice to understand the influences organizational factors of beliefs, contexts, and activities have on the development of STEM teacher professional identity. The study yielded evidence that (a) perceptions of teacher leadership are dependent upon self-efficacy, agency, skills, dispositions, and content knowledge within K-12 systems; (b) interactions within K-12 systems develop skills and dispositions for operating as effective teacher leaders; and (c) effective professional development is a result of being aligned to personal and professional growth goals that increase awareness of professional identity. This research identified connections between organizational structures and professional identity of experienced teachers. Findings may facilitate an understanding of the factors that mitigate teacher professional identity. Findings may also assist in implementing systematic professional development for experienced teachers and provide an alternate view for teacher educator programs to utilize knowledge from veteran STEM educators to strengthen pre-service teacher education.
Helen Meyer, Ph.D. (Committee Chair)
Marshella (Shelly) Harkness, Ph.D. (Committee Member)
Kathleen Koenig, Ph.D. (Committee Member)
Education
teacher leadership; professional identity; teacher leader; organizational behavior; STEM teacher identity

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Hutchinson, A. E. (2020). Perceptions of Teacher Leadership: The Influence of Organizational Structure on the Professional Identity of Urban STEM Teacher Leaders [Doctoral dissertation, University of Cincinnati]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1581333163812174

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Hutchinson, Anna. Perceptions of Teacher Leadership: The Influence of Organizational Structure on the Professional Identity of Urban STEM Teacher Leaders. 2020. University of Cincinnati, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1581333163812174.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Hutchinson, Anna. "Perceptions of Teacher Leadership: The Influence of Organizational Structure on the Professional Identity of Urban STEM Teacher Leaders." Doctoral dissertation, University of Cincinnati, 2020. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1581333163812174

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

ucin1581333163812174
432
© 2020, some rights reserved.Creative Commons License Perceptions of Teacher Leadership: The Influence of Organizational Structure on the Professional Identity of Urban STEM Teacher Leaders by Anna E. Hutchinson is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. Based on a work at etd.ohiolink.edu.
This open access ETD is published by University of Cincinnati and OhioLINK.