FRAMING CONTINUOUS PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT THROUGH THE LENSES OF LEADERSHIP FOR LEARNING: PERSPECTIVES FROM THREE CARIBBEAN ISLANDS By Gregory Julius A thesis submitted to the University of Birmingham for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY School of Education College of Social Sciences University of Birmingham October 2017 University of Birmingham Research Archive e-theses repository This unpublished thesis/dissertation is copyright of the author and/or third parties. The intellectual property rights of the author or third parties in respect of this work are as defined by The Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988 or as modified by any successor legislation. Any use made of information contained in this thesis/dissertation must be in accordance with that legislation and must be properly acknowledged. Further distribution or reproduction in any format is prohibited without the permission of the copyright holder. ABSTRACT The concepts of school leadership and continuing professional development have become the cornerstone of much educational debate and enquiry. This mixed-methods study investigates the perceptions of teachers, head teachers and ministry officials in relation to what they feel are the defining constituents of continuing professional development and school leadership in three Caribbean islands. Drawing on data from questionnaires, interviews and focus-group discussions, the researcher examined participants’ views about their existing circumstances as they relate to the main concepts. The findings highlight three key but interesting view-points. First, leadership was characterized by three major constructs which are directly interrelated but more importantly, captures the essence of leadership from the island narratives. Second, respondents’ accounts showed that improvement in organizational practices and personal development were considered as the main purpose of CPD in addition to, highlighting some concerns regarding the way in which it is planned and executed. Third, the context in which teachers and school leaders operate seem to play an important part in shaping the way in which they perceive both concepts. These contextual factors appear to guide the manner in which leadership and CPD are practiced across the islands in question. This in turn supports the discourses in the leadership literature that it is not a concept which is easily defined. Added to this, the evidence also suggests that sustained learning particularly as it relates to CPD would require the combined processes of these leadership constructs and a supporting atmosphere of structured dialogues between policy-makers and practitioners. ii DEDICATION This thesis is dedicated to my career as an educator over the past thirty (30) years as well as the development of education in Montserrat. It is hoped that this research would serve as a catalyst in promoting educational research in my home country and by extension the wider Caribbean region. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This research project was sponsored by the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission and I am extremely appreciative of the funding as well as the advice and the assistance provided by Vanessa Worthington and James Goldsmith both of whom served as my Programme Officers. My full gratitude is extended to my two gracious supervisors: Dr. Kay Fuller and Dr. Tom Bisschoff. It was indeed a delight and honour to have worked closely with such jovial and professional academics with specific reference to the moral support, technical advice and the valuable feedback given over the duration of the study. I wish to also express my generosity and appreciation to all of the schools, teachers and ministry officials from Montserrat, Antigua and Anguilla who have willingly participated in this research. I am also grateful to a number of professional colleagues and friends in UK as well as in my home country who provided much inspiration and encouragement along the way. Finally, my greatest acknowledgements go to my son (Jhdvik) but specially my wife (Yvonne) who has always remained supportive and committed despite the challenges throughout the research journey. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ............................................................................................................................. ii DEDICATION ........................................................................................................................ iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................................... iv TABLE OF CONTENTS ......................................................................................................... v LIST OF FIGURES ............................................................................................................... xv LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................................. xviii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ............................................................................................. xix CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION .................................................................................... 1 1.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................. 1 1.2 Significance of the Study ............................................................................................ 3 1.3 Background Information ............................................................................................. 4 1.4 Research Aims and Objectives .................................................................................... 6 1.5 Conceptual Framework of the Study ........................................................................... 8 1.6 Overview of the Research Design and Methods ....................................................... 10 1.7 Structure of the Thesis ............................................................................................... 11 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW ..................................................................... 13 2.1 Introduction ............................................................................................................. 13 2.2 The Nature of School Leadership .............................................................................. 15 2.3 Defining School Leadership ...................................................................................... 18 2.4 School Leadership in the Caribbean .......................................................................... 21 2.5 Contextualizing Leadership Development in the Caribbean ..................................... 23 2.6 Leadership Approaches in the Caribbean .................................................................. 25 2.7 Continuing Professional Development .................................................................. 28 2.7.1 Meanings and Purpose of CPD .......................................................................... 28 2.7.2 Characteristic Features and Models of CPD ...................................................... 31 2.7.3 Discourse versus Reality .................................................................................... 33 v 2.7.4 Motivation and Commitment ............................................................................. 34 2.7.5 Role of Leadership in CPD ................................................................................ 36 2.7.6 Evaluating the Impact of CPD ........................................................................... 39 2.7.7 Communities of Practice and Professional Learning Communities .................. 40 2.7.8 Empirical Findings on CPD: The England Context ........................................... 41 2.7.9 Teacher Professional Development in the Caribbean ........................................ 43 2.8 Leadership for Learning ......................................................................................... 46 2.8.1 Principle One: A Focus on Learning .................................................................. 48 2.8.2 Principle Two: An Environment for Learning ................................................... 51 2.8.3 Principle Three: A Dialogue for Learning ............................................................ 52 2.8.4 Principle Four: Shared Leadership ..................................................................... 54 2.8.5 Distributed Leadership ....................................................................................... 56 2.8.6 Teacher Leadership ............................................................................................ 58 2.8.7 Principle Five: Shared Accountability ............................................................... 61 2.9 Chapter Summary ................................................................................................... 63 CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH DESIGN ...................................................................... 64 3.1 Introduction ............................................................................................................... 64 3.2 Theoretical Foundations ............................................................................................ 64 3.3 Philosophical Position ............................................................................................... 66 3.4 The Broader Framework and Research Questions .................................................... 67 3.5 Research Methodology ..........................................................................................