Socially Distributed Leadership – Teacher and Staff Leadership Practice in Denmark and the United State: A Comparative International Mixed Methods Study

The purpose of this comparative international research project is to examine the nature of socially distributed leadership in public schools in Denmark and the United States. The research design of this study applies mixed methods across several areas of inquiry: specifically using the Danish and US versions of the Comprehensive Assessment of Leadership for Learning (CALL) survey instrument, along with qualitative data from interviews, observations, and document analysis to conduct comparative international practice-based research informed by external policy processes.
This study will examine the following over-arching research questions: (1) What is the nature of socially distributed leadership in the US and Denmark? (2) How do school leaders in Denmark and the US interpret and respond to changing reform policy? and (3) How do Danish school leaders currently use external partnerships to advance some aspect of their school’s environment? Through this study, in collaboration with my colleagues in Wisconsin and Denmark, I will conduct a mixed methods study that examines teacher and staff leadership practice as it relates to the nature of professional learning in Danish and US schools.

Formålet med projektet er at undersøge, hvordan skoleledelse fordeles socialt, det vil sige imellem ledere og medarbejdere, i skoler i Danmark og USA. Projektet bygger på resultater fra CALL-projektet på det tidligere UCC, men er baseret på kvalitative interviews på skoler i begge lande.