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Thank you for your request to our REL Reference Desk regarding educator autonomy. The information below represents the most rigorous research available. Researchers consider the type of methodology used and give priority to research reports that employ well described and thorough methods. The resources are also selected based on the date of the publication with a preference for research from the last ten years. Additional criteria for inclusion include the source and funder of the resource. Question: What research is there on educator autonomy? (“Educator” includes teachers, principals, superintendents). How do we make educator autonomy meaningful and sustainable in the current educational environment?

1. The Relationship between Teacher Autonomy and Stress, Work Satisfaction, Empowerment, and Professionalism. 2005; Pearson, L.C. & Moomaw, W.; Educational Research Quarterly, v29 n1 p38-54 2005. 16 pages; ERIC Document# 718115. Source: ERIC http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ718115.pdf According to the abstract: “The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between teacher autonomy and on-the-job stress, work satisfaction, empowerment, and professionalism. Using a reliable and valid measure of curriculum autonomy and general teaching autonomy (TAS), it was found that as curriculum autonomy increased on-the-job stress decreased, but there was little association between curriculum autonomy and job satisfaction. It was also demonstrated that as general teacher autonomy increased so did empowerment and professionalism. Also, as job satisfaction, perceived empowerment, and professionalism increased, on-the-job stress decreased, and greater job satisfaction was associated with a high degree of professionalism and empowerment. The results of this study also indicate that autonomy does not differ across teaching level (elementary, middle, high school).”

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2. Enhancing Democracy for Teachers. 2010; Nichols, S., & Parsons, J.; Online Submission; 13 pages; ERIC Document# 514290.

Source: ERIC http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED514290.pdf

According to the abstract: “In the face of the century-old call for democracy in education by John Dewey, this paper explores how and why teachers have been systemically removed from efficacy within the educational system in which they live and work. The paper examines historical trends that work to limit teachers' institutional power and become obstacles to teacher voice. These include (1) accountability, (2) the intensification of teacher responsibilities, (3) a shift towards a technical approach to teaching, and (4) the negative public image of teachers. Finally, the paper explores the potential that teacher autonomy might be successfully reinstituted into educational curriculum and policy.”

3. Politics, Policy and Professional Identity. 2012; Bodman, S., Taylor, S., Morris, H.;

English Teaching: Practice and Critique; Vol. 11, No. 3; 12 pages; ERIC Document# 999728.

Source: ERIC http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ999728.pdf

According to the abstract: “Standards-based reform of education is a dominant political discourse in many nations. In this paper we argue that the type of standards-based reform that is enacted has important implications for teacher agency and teacher professional development. Teacher professional development and identity is explored through theories of the teacher's role in the context of standards based reform of curriculum. The examples drawn upon in the paper feature a range of teacher roles and provide the basis for exploration of the interaction between professional learning and professional decision-making. In the paper we advocate the pivotal role of teacher autonomy and point to how successful approaches to professional learning may offer opportunities to offset the negative impact of policy decisions that can disempower teachers and teacher educators. We argue for conceptual rather than linear models of professional learning characterized by the teacher's role as one of ‘alchemist’, enabling student learning experiences through creative and flexible decision-making.”

4. Enhancing Teacher Performance: The Role of Professional Autonomy. 2010;

Hyslop-Margison, E., & Sears, A.M.; Interchange; Vol. 41, Issue 1; 15 pages. This article is available for purchase from SpringerLink: http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10780-010-9106-3

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From the abstract: “Current teacher accountability initiatives such as those included in the "No Child Left Behind" legislation in the United States create particular difficulties that impact deleteriously on the performance of professional educators. The quality of public education is undermined when teachers are held accountable to an external authority rather than to themselves, their colleagues, and their professional associations. In this article, and in response to this concern, we argue that for teachers to strengthen their classroom performance, policy renewal is required on two separate fronts: first, we must restructure teachers' working conditions to support autonomous professional activity related to education; and second, teachers, both individually and collectively, must accept the concomitant responsibility to pursue personal professional development to improve their pedagogical work.”

5. Contextualizing Teacher Autonomy in Time and Space: A Model for Comparing

Various Forms of Governing the Teaching Profession. 2014; Wermke, W. & Höstfält, G.; Journal of Curriculum Studies; Vol. 46, Issue 1; 23 pages.

This article is available for purchase from Taylor and Francis: http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/00220272.2013.812681 (Note: You may have to copy and paste this URL into your browser to load the page.) According to the abstract: “This study aims to develop a model for comparing different forms of teacher autonomy in various national contexts and at different times. Understanding and explaining local differences and global similarities in the teaching profession in a globalized world require conceptions that contribute to further theorization of comparative and international education. Drawing on a governance perspective and building on considerations of curriculum evaluation, the study argues that teacher autonomy is a crucial factor that has to be conceptualized in its national and historical contexts. It presents an examination of the teaching profession from both an institutional and service perspective. In both perspectives, teacher autonomy, framed by curriculum evaluation, can be regarded as both extended and restricted, but not necessarily at the same time. This point of view enables us to discuss different forms of autonomy in relation to each other. To support this idea, the study discusses cases of teachers in various contexts of time and space.”

6. Professional Development and the Beginning Teacher: Issues of Teacher Autonomy and Institutional Conformity in the Performance Review Process. 2006; Dymoke, S., & Harrison, J.; Journal of Education for Teaching: International Research and Pedagogy; Vol. 32, No. 1; 22 pages. This article is available for purchase from Taylor and Francis: http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/02607470500511009 (Note: You may have to copy and paste this URL into your browser to load the page.)

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According to the abstract: “This paper presents an analysis of some interview data from a small qualitative study of beginning teachers in their second year of teaching and selected mentors. It explores the extent of the opportunities for their further professional development and considers how the key "actors" in these schools perceive, and experience, their school systems for performance management, appraisal and the associated mentoring, in relation to beginning teachers' professional needs and development. Rippon and Martin [(2003) "Supporting induction: relationships count", "Mentoring and Tutoring", 11(2), 211-226] highlight a need for the mentor to help in the development of a professional identity for teaching in the first year of teaching. For our sample of second year teachers, our analysis indicates that the support systems in school do not encourage the new teachers to become self-monitoring or critically reflective practitioners. Their professional development seems to be largely rooted in performance-led school managerial systems that may leave them unsupported in relation to their career aspirations and personal and professional targets.”

Search Process:

Key words and search strings used in the search: Educator OR teacher AND autonomy OR professional development OR teacher role OR professional identity OR decision making AND educational policy OR professional autonomy

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Disclaimer: This Ask A REL response was developed by REL-NEI under Contract ED-IES-12-C-0009 from the U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences. The content does not necessarily reflect the views or policies of IES or the U.S. Department of Education, nor does mention of trade names, commercial products, or organizations imply endorsement by the U.S. government.