Melding Internal and External Support for School Improvement: How the District Role Changes When Working Closely With External Instructional Support Providers

Abstract

To support instruction, school districts must provide a wide array of assistance to schools. Broadly speaking, districts play the roles of authority in holding schools accountable for their activities and performance, support in assisting school faculties to build their capacity to better instruct students, and brokerage between schools and outside providers of service and materials. The roles of authority, support, and brokerage typically contend with each other, producing a set of perennial tensions for district leaders. This article examines the influence on these three roles of external support providers working in close partnership with districts on instructional improvement efforts. First, the article reviews the literature on district/provider partnerships for examples of role adjustment. Second, using a case study of a deep partnership between a district and an external provider, this article empirically examines the influence of a district/provider partnership on the balance of district roles. The findings illustrate how the traditional district roles of authority, support, and brokerage are adjusted by partnerships with external providers.

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