The Mountain Academy: The Story of a Mandated Partnership and the Need to Examine Power, Teacher Leadership, and Teacher Identity

The North Carolina legislature has mandated establishing school/university partnership lab schools. Partnership schools may help to drive school improvement efforts; however, educators have been forced to adopt multiple initiatives aimed at the improvement of K-12 education and teacher preparation....

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:School-university partnerships 2021-10, Vol.14 (2), p.120-135
Main Author: Thornton, Holly
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Collaboration
College School Cooperation
Colleges & universities
Educational Change
Educational leadership
Educational partnerships
Learning
Professional Development Schools
Professional identity
Teaching
Teaching Methods
Urban Schools
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Summary:The North Carolina legislature has mandated establishing school/university partnership lab schools. Partnership schools may help to drive school improvement efforts; however, educators have been forced to adopt multiple initiatives aimed at the improvement of K-12 education and teacher preparation. The likelihood of teachers and professors yet again accepting a top-down non-educator initiative, is questionable. Further, universities still tend to drive partnership direction and activity, with little shift in power and control towards schools. The challenge of developing and sustaining a true partnership may be difficult enough when mutual ownership and voice has grown organically. Addressing this challenge as mandated is far more problematic. A lack of attention to cultural power and boundaries, teacher leadership, and teacher role and identity may limit the impact of such initiatives. The story of a mandated lab school allows us to further understand such issues through the lenses of its participants, beginning with the teachers.
ISSN:1935-7125