LEADERSHIP ATTRIBUTES OF FEMALE SECONDARY CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION TEACHERS IN GEORGIA by TEDRA HAYNES WHITE (Under the Direction of Bettye P. Smith) ABSTRACT Transformational leadership recognizes that those not in formal administrative positions have authority and influence. Distributed leadership is transformational leadership in education and is defined by the influence that is exhibited by individuals at all levels rather than just the people at the top (Leithwood et al, 2007). This type of leadership suggests that every person in any position can demonstrate leadership in some way (Coleman, 2005). With this understanding of distributive leadership, it is likely that more teachers will find themselves with leadership responsibilities. Teacher leadership is exhibited through a variety of formal and informal roles and positions (Gronn, 2000; Leithwood et al., 2007). Women are expected to be less effective leaders and face stereotyping as a significant barrier to the quest for advanced leadership roles (Sanchez-Hucles and Davis, 2010). As with women in leadership in other industries, women are an underutilized resource for leadership in CTE and therefore the purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between leadership attributes, and professional characteristics and leadership attributes and personal characteristics of secondary female teachers in career and technical education programs in Georgia. Leadership attributes, professional and personal characteristics were investigated because insight into these attributes and characteristics may influence the emergence of teacher leadership for female secondary CTE teachers. The sample for this study was 179 female secondary CTE teachers in Georgia. Over 30% (32%) of the desired sample participated in the study. Study findings revealed that the female secondary CTE teachers rated 12, or 32.43%, of the attributes as very descriptive of themselves and rated 25, or 67.57%, of the attributes as being somewhat descriptive to descriptive of them. This study found that 35.2% of female secondary CTE teachers in Georgia surveyed have a desire to take on leadership roles. These teachers identified 21 leadership positions that they desire to have. This signifies that the teachers believe that they possess the leadership attributes that predisposes them to successful leadership performance. Details revealing the statistical significance of the relationships between the variables are shared, as well as, recommendations for practice and further research. INDEX WORDS: Teacher Leadership; Leadership Attributes; Personal Characteristics; Professional Characteristics; Female Secondary Teachers; Career and Technical Education; Distributed Education LEADERSHIP ATTRIBUTES OF FEMALE SECONDARY CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION TEACHERS IN GEORGIA by TEDRA HAYNES WHITE B.S.F.C.S., University of Georgia, 1995 M.P.A., University of West Georgia, 1998 A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of The University of Georgia in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree DOCTOR OF EDUCATION ATHENS, GEORGIA 2011 © 2011 Tedra Haynes White All Rights Reserved LEADERSHIP ATTRIBUTES OF FEMALE SECONDARY CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION TEACHERS IN GEORGIA by TEDRA HAYNES WHITE Major Professor: Bettye P. Smith Committee: Robert Wicklein Myra N. Womble Electronic Version Approved: Maureen Grasso Dean of the Graduate School The University of Georgia December 2011 DEDICATION This dissertation is dedicated to the most supportive mother in the world, Lorene L. Haynes and to the memory of my father and superhero, Troy Lee Haynes. I love you both and I miss you Daddy! I really wish that you were here to see this! iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Thank you JESUS!!! Without you Lord I would have been unable to start let alone finish this process. Your will for my life is clearly evident and it is you that I want to hear say “well done.” Thank you for your goodness, your grace, and your mercy. Thank you to the best husband, son, and daughter in the world – Nicholas, Miles, and Marley White for your loving support, encouragement, and cooperation. I love you! Thank you to my mother, Lorene L. Haynes. I can‟t even begin to express what you mean to me and what it has meant to have your love, support, encouragement. Thank you for all that you have done, especially for all of the babysitting! Mere words do not describe my appreciation for you and all you have done for me. Thank you to my committee members, Dr. Bettye P. Smith, Dr. Robert Wicklein, and Dr. Myra N. Womble. Dr. Smith, thank you for serving as my committee chair and providing your assistance and guidance throughout this process. Dr. Womble and Dr. Wicklein, thank you for the commitment of your invaluable time and insight. Finally, I would like to thank my brothers, Bernard and Brian, and my wonderful friends for your encouragement and support throughout my educational pursuits. I love you all. v TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .............................................................................................................v LIST OF TABLES ....................................................................................................................... viii CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................1 Statement of Purpose ..............................................................................................8 Theoretical Framework ...........................................................................................9 Significance of the Study ......................................................................................11 2 REVIEW OF LITERATURE .....................................................................................14 Leadership Theories and Models ..........................................................................14 Leadership in Education .......................................................................................25 Teacher Leadership ...............................................................................................26 Leadership and Career and Technical Education (CTE) .....................................29 Women in Leadership ...........................................................................................32 Leadership Attributes, Professional and Personal Characteristics ........................36 3 METHOD ...................................................................................................................47 Purpose and Research Questions ..........................................................................47 Research Design....................................................................................................48 Participants ............................................................................................................49 Instrumentation .....................................................................................................54 vi Pilot Study .............................................................................................................59 Procedure ..............................................................................................................60 Data Analysis ........................................................................................................62 4 FINDINGS ..................................................................................................................66 Analyses of Research Questions ............................................................................67 5 SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS ............................92 Summary of the Study ...............................................................................................92 Summary of Findings .................................................................................................97 Conclusions ..............................................................................................................101 Recommendations ....................................................................................................105 Summary ..................................................................................................................106 REFERENCES ............................................................................................................................108 APPENDICES A LEADER ATTRIBUTES INVENTORY ................................................................118 B LEADERSHIP ATTRIBUTES – FIVE FACTORS ................................................124 C CRONBACH‟S ALPHA ..........................................................................................126 D INSTITUTIONAL REVIEW BOARD (IRB) APPROVAL ...................................128 E LETTER REQUESTING PERMISSION TO USE THE INSTRUMENT ..............130 F LETTER GRANTING PERMISSION TO USE THE INSTRUMENT ..................132 G FIRST EMAIL CORRESPONDENCE TO PARTICIPANTS ................................134 H FOLLOW-UP EMAIL TO PARTICIPANTS .........................................................136 I FINAL FOLLOW-UP EMAIL TO PARTICIPANTS .............................................138 J PARTICIPANTS OPEN ENDED FEEDBACK AND COMMENTS .....................140 vii LIST OF TABLES Page Table 1: Data Analysis for Research Questions ...........................................................................65 Table 2: Frequencies and Percentages for the 37 Leadership Attributes