抄録
This article aims to clarify a significance and possibility of a theory of school improvement focusing on a reciprocal "practice" by teachers. The examines the theoretical study on "distributed leadership(DL hereafter)" by J. Spillane, it is worked out that teacher leadership is critical in a "practice" to improve both organization and management at the entire school level and educational activity at the classroom level. DL study resolves the problem of how "human" actors should be related with "institutions" or situations. This theory connects actors and situations in a frame, and focuses on the interaction between actors and situations in practice. Distributed cognition and activity theory are the conceptual underpinnings of DL study. The core idea of DL study is the definition of "practice" constituted by the interaction of leaders, followers and their situations. Focusing on its interaction, DL study aims to develop a frame to study the mechanism of how school is improved by leadership practice. DL study derives the significance of teacher leadership to improve school. Teachers are not always followers but potential leaders who are usually near kids in the classroom. Teacher leadership gives three points of significance, which are 1) building internal school improvement against political reform policy, 2) linking to improve academic performance in school, and 3) giving the view that educational government can also improve its capacity including teacher leadership. Besides, the new possibility DL study shows us is the definition of "practice" can involve not only teachers but any other stakeholders like parents. Studying empirically, DL study may expand the existing frame of the study on school improvement and school leadership.
