Date of Award

2021

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education (EdD)

Department

Education

First Advisor

Shannon Collins

Second Advisor

Andrew Courtner

Third Advisor

Josh Tipton

Abstract

Because of the increase of the rigor of state standards and of accountability, the Lincoln County School District sought to become a part of the state Teacher Leader Network during the 2016-2017 school year as a way to provide teachers best practices for improving the culture and climate of their schools, participating in collaborative professional learning, and helping students be more successful on high-stakes end-of-course assessments. As a result of their efforts, the Lincoln County Learning Leader program was born, which led to implementing the professional learning community process in each school as the vehicle to accomplish the program’s objectives. As the researcher, I interviewed 34 of the 48 Learning Leaders in order to collect qualitative data concerning their perceptions regarding their involvement and their effectiveness in a district-wide teacher leader program. The research concluded that Learning Leaders perceived that the program was valuable in improving the culture and climate of their schools, as they worked collaboratively through the PLC process to solve complex problems to help all students learn at a high level.

Keywords

Teacher leadership, Professional learning community, Qualitative research, Southeastern U.S., Teacher Leadership Network

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