Teacher Leadership

Teacher leadership is a recent innovative notion in the sphere of education, especially for Kazakhstan which has been transforming the system of education in a significant way. Many initiatives are implemented by the government of Kazakhstan, among which are professional development courses, salary increment, and Master's and PhD programs to increase teacher qualifications. Among other key initiatives is a network of Nazarbayev Intellectual Schools (NIS) around the country that has become a platform for implementing innovative learning and teaching technologies in collaboration with the international staff. Many researchers discuss the importance of non-positional leadership, especially in educational sphere. The research is focused on developing leadership skills of the teachers beyond their classrooms as teachers' expertise can be a cornerstone of decision making and policy development. Although leadership is considered to be a prerogative of school principals and administration in our school culture, the shift towards teacher leadership should be promoted and manifested by all school educators. Modern attitude towards the role of teachers and teaching itself has shifted, and teaching profession is not considered as not prestigious or socially vulnerable in Kazakhstan. Nevertheless, it is regrettable, that majority of Kazakhstani teachers feel anxious and reluctant about the educational innovations preferring to improve classroom management only and not taking part in decision making. Many of Kazakhstani teachers are not aware of non-positional leadership and do not consider that they have expertise to make a difference voicing their initiatives or ideas on school improvement. The research focuses on the main challenges that teachers face while exercising leadership skill at the school site and what steps should be taken in order to promote teacher leadership. There is an urgent need for carrying out such a research as the phenomenon of teacher leadership has not been investigated yet in the Kazakhstani context. The findings of the qualitative research will contribute to the study in the field of teacher leadership, especially in Central Asia region, and will be beneficial for teachers, school administration, and policy makers.