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Abstract
This essay presents distributed leadership within the context of supervisory practice. Leadership

as an entitlement attempts to close the ability-authority gap by providing teachers the support and

giving them the responsibility to effectively carry out leadership roles of their choice. Based on

the knowledge, skills, and dispositions of the teacher, different approaches to supervisory

practice range from directive to non-directive. Specifically considering Mexican teachers, the

Downey walk-through (2004) holds the most promise due to its non-directive approach based on

frequent supervisor-teacher reflective dialogs.

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Interpersonal distributed leadership behaviors: A Mexican perspective

As an American teaching in Mexico, evaluating how to put different leadership styles and

supervision approaches into practice has proven to be an interesting and worthwhile endeavor.

Although current literature covers a variety of concepts related to supervision and leadership

within the context of an American school system, the purpose here is to provide a perhaps varied

perspective on how teaching and learning are currently being addressed in Mexico. Because this

is a Mexican perspective and not the Mexican perspective, no presumption is made that the facts

presented are to be generalized across all teaching contexts throughout the country. Thus, the

purpose is to provide insight on current literature given a teaching and learning context as a

means for reflecting on past practices and acting on future practice in an effort to improve

student achievement.

The title of this essay, Interpersonal distributed leadership behaviors: A Mexican

perspective, addresses how the interaction between administrators, teachers, and students

influence the distributed leadership process. Leadership that is distributed provides opportunities

for all administrators, teachers, and students to take on leadership roles based on their ability and

will. Sergiovanni (2005) uses the term “leadership as entitlement” when discussing leadership in

terms of authority and ability: “[Leadership as] entitlement seeks to place those who have the

ability to act in the forefront of decision making” (p. 43). Giving teachers, for example, the

authority and ability means that tenured and non-tenured teachers have the same opportunity to

lead if they choose to. Similarly, seniority has little influence on whether teachers are given the

support and encouragement they need to lead others. In Mexico, teacher leaders are not given

the “social capital” (Sergiovanni, 2005) needed to assume leadership responsibilities. The notion
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of leadership is still primarily seen as based on position, which is usually driven by prescribed

“profiles” that specify certain educational and professional requirements. As a result, many

teachers have the ability to lead but lack the authority.

. But what is leadership and how does it relate to supervision? Many terms are used to

describe leadership in education such as instructional leadership (Gupton 2003; McEwan, 2003;

Blase and Blase, 2004), dispersed leadership (DuFour, DuFour, and Eaker, 2008), and distributed

leadership (Sergiovanni, 2005) to name a few. A definition to begin with comes from Acheson

and Smith (1986) with one slight addition: “Instructional leadership is leadership that is directly

[and indirectly] related to the processes of instruction where teachers, learners, and the

curriculum interact” (as cited in McEwan, 2003, p. 6). Because leadership can also be indirectly

related to instruction, the term distributed leadership takes this definition one step further.

Instead of leadership coming strictly from the top down, distributed leadership adds a bottom-up

approach to leadership. As discussed earlier, teacher leaders are given the support, authority, and

responsibility to assume leadership roles at their discretion. This process is backed by what

Elmore (2006) refers to as “reciprocal accountability – for every increment of performance I

demand of you, I have an equal responsibility to provide you with the capacity to meet that

expectation” (as cited in DeFour, DeFour, and Eaker, 2008, p. 312). This dual responsibility

between relationships provides the basis of what productive supervision is all about.

Borrowed from the business field, the term supervision frequently conjures up feelings of

pressure and anxiety driven from rank-and-file directives that are implemented in a top-down

fashion. In fact, it is bestal to completely avoid the word when working in Mexico due to the

negative connotation. Regardless, Glickman, Gordon, and Ross-Gordon (2007) define

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supervisory behavior in terms of interpersonal skills using a continuum that begins with

maximum teacher responsibility and minimum supervisor responsibility on the left to minimum

teacher responsibility and maximum supervisor responsibility on the right. Moving from left to

right, they categorize these behaviors as non-directive, collaborative, directive informational, and

directive control (pp. 118-119) (see Appendix). In Mexico, a directive approach to supervision

tends to be more common than a collaborative and non-directive approach. A non-directive

approach in particular is sometimes seen as a supervisor not fulfilling proper job responsibilities.

At times, the expectation is that the supervisor should always provide the correct answer or the

most pertinent advice in all teaching circumstances. Additionally, supervisors may tend to

overuse a directive position with teachers who really need collaborative or non-directive

supervision due to power struggle issues, ulterior motives, and the like. To put these different

types of supervisor-teacher relationships in a more applicable context, Downey, Steffy, English,

Frase, and Poston (2004) provide an alternative that will serve well teaching and learning in

Mexico.

Downey et al. focus on the types of supervisor-teacher relationship first in determining

what type of dialog is best suitable for each teacher. They link Covey's stages of dependency

(i.e., interdependent, independent, and dependent) with Berne's transactional analysis (i.e., adult-

adult, adult-adolescent, and adult-child) in establishing the type of dialog or interaction (i.e.,

collaborative, indirect, and direct) ( Downey, Steffy, English, Frase, and Poston, 2004, p. 11).

This approach to supervisory practice directs teachers from dependent to interdependent status

by conducting frequent and brief observations that lead to a series of reflective questions that

foster reflection on current teaching practices. Supervisors are seen as collegial counterparts and
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not as a boss-subordinate relationship, and observations are not part of the evaluation process;

that is, they are strictly formative in nature. The Downey walk-through assumes that changed

behavior can only come from individual awareness on the part of each teacher. Individual

awareness of the need to change can be facilitated through proper reflective questioning in a

trusting and non-threatening dialog with supervisors and other teachers.

The Downey walk-through has some advantages over Glickman, Gordon, and Ross-

Gordon's approach to supervisory practice in that the former stresses a more indirect,

collaborative approach that stems directly from the practice of teaching itself. In Mexico, an

indirect approach to feedback is more productive due to the concentration on trust building and

collegiality that are seen as a building block to the reflection and sharing process. Unless a

marginal teacher, a directive approach will unlikely produce the desired results.

In summary, teachers who are given the support and authority to lead should be

encouraged to take on leadership roles at their discretion. Leadership as entitlement and

distributed leadership are two aspects of supervision that encourage both a top-down and bottom-

up approach to the collaborative teaching practice. Supervisory practice that is more formative

and less summative creates a more trusting environment for trying new things in the classroom.

Supervisors, as instructional leaders, should provide the avenues for teachers to experiment,

reflect on their past practices, and then given the opportunity to modify future practices all in an

effort to improve academic achievement. Although teachers in Mexico may not be used to a

non-directive approach, the Downey approach to supervisory practice provides a more effective

way to address the supervisory-teacher relationship. The frequent contact between the

supervisor and teacher along with the ongoing opportunities to reflect on the teaching practice
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align instruction, assessment, and the curriculum to a shared vision.

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References

Blase, J. and Blase, J. (2004). Handbook of instructional leadership: How successful principals
promote teaching and learning. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Downey, C., Steffy, B., English, F., Frase, L., and Poston, W. (2004). The three-minute
classroom walk-through: Changing school supervisory practice one teacher at a time.
Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Glickman, C., Gordon, S., and Ross-Gordon, J. (2007). Supervision and instructional
leadership: A developmental approach. Boston, MA: Pearson.

Gupton, S. (2003). The instructional leadership toolbox: A handbook for improving practice.
Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

McEwan, E. (2003). 7 Steps to effective instructional leadership. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin
Press.

Sergiovanni, T. (2005). Strengthening the heartbeat: Leading and learning together in schools.
San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
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Appendix

Steps Non-directive Collaborative Directive Directive Control

Informational
1 Wait until the teacher's initial Identifying the Identifying the Identifying the
statement is made problem as seen goal problem
by the teacher
2 Verbalize your understanding Understanding Asking the Asking teacher
of the initial problem the teacher's teacher for input for input into the
perception into the goal problem
3 Probe for the underlying Verifying the Understanding Understanding
problem and/or additional teacher's the teacher's point the teacher's point
information perception of view of view
4 Show willingness to listen Providing the Mentally Mentally
further as the teacher begins supervisor's point determining determining the
to identify the real problems of view possible actions best solution
5 Constantly paraphrase Seeking the Telling Telling
understanding of the teacher's teacher's alternatives for expectations to
message understanding of teachers to the teacher
the supervisor's consider
perception of the
problem
6 Ask the teacher to think of Exchanging Asking the Asking the
possible actions suggestions of teacher for input teacher for input
options into alternatives into the
expectations
7 Ask the teacher to consider Accepting Framing the final Detailing and
consequences of various conflict choices modifying
actions expectations
8 Ask the teacher for a Finding an Asking the Repeating and
commitment to a decision acceptable teacher to choose following up on
solution expectations
9 Ask the teacher to set time Agreeing on Detailing the
and criteria for action details of plan actions to be
taken
10 Restate the teacher's plan Summarizing the Repeating and
final plan following up on
the plan