Abstract
Policies to address Indigenous disadvantage in Australia have long advocated for more equal partnerships between home and school characterised by collaborative relationships built on mutual trust, respect, and shared responsibility. This chapter describes a model of distributed leadership that embraces social-democratic notions of leadership in order to promote teachers as leaders and empower parents and community members. It reports on a community literacy program established in a remote Indigenous community in far north Queensland that engages families in their young children’s literacy learning. We argue that the model of distributed leadership presented is not limited in its applicability to an early childhood setting. Instead we suggest it has the potential to provide a useful model for implementing a distributed leadership approach in a broader school setting. The implications are far reaching and imply a fundamental redistribution of power and influence within the school as an organisation.
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Appendix
Appendix
Response Patterns to the Scale of Parent Engagement and Leadership
Item | Strongly disagree | Disagree | Uncertain | Agree | Strongly agree | Mean | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | I make the time to read books or play games with my child | PaL | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 8 | 4.73 |
Non PaL | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 4.13 | ||
2 | I have a right to say what is best for my child and expect others to listen | PaL | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 9 | 4.82 |
Non PaL | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 3.75 | ||
3 | I know how I can help my child learn | PaL | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 9 | 4.82 |
Non PaL | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 3.75 | ||
4 | I know what to do when I am concerned about my child | PaL | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 9 | 4.82 |
Non PaL | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3.88 | ||
5 | I am comfortable/confident in trying new things | PaL | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 4.64 |
Non PaL | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 3.00 | ||
6 | I am good at getting people to support me to get things done | PaL | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 4.55 |
Non PaL | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2.75 | ||
7 | I try to learn new ways to help my child | PaL | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 9 | 4.82 |
Non PaL | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 4.00 | ||
8 | I am interested in issues that affect my community | PaL | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 8 | 4.73 |
Non PaL | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 3.25 | ||
9 | I am patient and take time with my child | PaL | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 4.64 |
Non PaL | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 4.25 | ||
10 | I know what to do when my child has a problem at school | PaL | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 8 | 4.73 |
Non PaL | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 3.25 | ||
11 | I get involved in community issues I am concerned about | PaL | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 4 | 4.36 |
Non PaL | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2.63 | ||
12 | I am confident my child will do well at school | PaL | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 8 | 4.73 |
Non PaL | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3.88 | ||
13 | I need to voice my opinions more | PaL | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 4 | 4.73 |
Non PaL | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 4.13 | ||
14 | I let the teachers know what I want for my child | PaL | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 4.80 |
Non PaL | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3.43 | ||
15 | I will be able to help my child when they go to school | PaL | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 4.64 |
Non PaL | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 3.43 | ||
16 | I like to help parents/community members to help their children | PaL | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 4.45 |
Non PaL | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3.14 |
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Flückiger, B., Klieve, H. (2016). Conceptions of Learning Leadership in Remote Indigenous Communities: A Distributed Approach. In: Johnson, G., Dempster, N. (eds) Leadership in Diverse Learning Contexts. Studies in Educational Leadership, vol 22. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28302-9_18
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