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A Thesis Submitted for the Degree of PhD at the University of Warwick Permanent WRAP URL: http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/138040 Copyright and reuse: This thesis is made available online and is protected by original copyright. Please scroll down to view the document itself. Please refer to the repository record for this item for information to help you to cite it. Our policy information is available from the repository home page. For more information, please contact the WRAP Team at: [email protected] warwick.ac.uk/lib-publications Teacher Leadership in Government Schools in Qatar: Opportunities and challenges. By Rania Sawalhi A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Education University of Warwick Centre for Education Studies Nov 2019 CONTENTS List of Tables ............................................................................................................. VIII List of Figures ............................................................................................................... XI List of Abbreviations ................................................................................................... XII Acknowledgments ...................................................................................................... XIV Declaration ................................................................................................................. XVI Abstract ..................................................................................................................... XVII 1. INTRODUCTION ................................................................................ 1 Educational Reform ........................................................................................................ 2 Statement of the Problem ................................................................................................ 6 Research Questions......................................................................................................... 7 Scope of the Study ........................................................................................................... 8 Personal Experience........................................................................................................ 9 Organisation of the Study .............................................................................................. 10 Summary ........................................................................................................................ 11 2. BACKGROUND: THE CONTEXT OF QATAR ........................... 12 Qatar .............................................................................................................................. 12 Education for a New Era ............................................................................................... 13 Back to the MoE (After the Reform) ............................................................................. 26 II Summary ....................................................................................................................... 29 3. LITERATURE REVIEW .................................................................. 30 Defining leadership ........................................................................................................ 31 Defining leaders ............................................................................................................ 33 What Is Teacher Leadership? ....................................................................................... 34 Defining teacher leadership ............................................................................................................ 36 Defining teacher leaders .................................................................................................................. 38 Teacher Leadership Roles and Responsibilities ............................................................................ 40 Formal vs informal teacher leadership ......................................................................................... 42 The Importance of Teacher Leadership ....................................................................... 52 Factors Influencing Teacher Leadership ...................................................................... 53 Theoretical Basis of Teacher Leadership ...................................................................... 59 Conceptual Framework ................................................................................................. 65 Teacher Leadership in Arab Countries ......................................................................... 67 Summary ....................................................................................................................... 69 4. METHODOLOGY AND METHODS.............................................. 71 Paradigms ...................................................................................................................... 71 Research Design ........................................................................................................... 76 Research Questions....................................................................................................... 78 III Research Instruments ................................................................................................... 79 Questionnaires .................................................................................................................................. 79 Interviews ........................................................................................................................................... 83 Translation .................................................................................................................... 85 Reliability, Validity and Triangulation .......................................................................... 86 Pilot Studies .................................................................................................................. 88 Quantitative phase ............................................................................................................................. 88 Qualitative phase ............................................................................................................................... 90 Ethical Procedures ......................................................................................................... 91 Population and Sampling .............................................................................................. 92 Summary ....................................................................................................................... 96 5. FINDINGS .......................................................................................... 98 Quantitative Phase ........................................................................................................ 98 TLI analysis ........................................................................................................................................ 102 Qualitative Phase ......................................................................................................... 112 1. What do teachers and school leaders in Qatari government schools understand by the term ‘teacher leadership’? ...................................................................................................... 117 2. What is the nature of teacher leadership in Qatari schools? ...................................... 119 3. To what extent, if at all, do these teachers consider themselves teacher leaders? ..... 120 IV 4. What are the main characteristics of teacher leaders? ..................................................... 122 5. In which aspects could teachers practise leadership roles? ............................................ 124 6. Teacher leadership importance ........................................................................................... 126 7. What factors affect teacher leadership? ............................................................................. 130 8. What kind of support do teacher leaders suggest would benefit them? ...................... 133 9. Challenges/barriers to teacher leadership ....................................................................... 138 Summary ...................................................................................................................... 143 6. DISCUSSION ................................................................................... 145 1. Teachers’ awareness of teacher leadership in Qatar .................................................... 146 2. The nature of teacher leadership in Qatari schools ...................................................... 147 3. Importance of teacher leadership ...................................................................................... 149 4. Teacher leaders’ characteristics ........................................................................................ 150 5. Teacher leadership’s aspects/domains ............................................................................ 153 6. Variables affecting teacher leadership ............................................................................ 158 7. Conditions that support or inhibit teacher leadership in Qatari schools according to teachers’ perspectives ....................................................................................................................