Informal Teacher Leadership in Chinese Rural Primary Schools: Antecedents and Consequences
No Thumbnail Available
Date
Authors
Tang Chaozhen
Lei Mee Thien
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Abstract
Description
Informal teacher leadership plays a pivotal role in fostering teacher development in under-resourced rural schools. This study investigates the antecedents and consequences of informal teacher leadership in Chinese rural primary schools, drawing on distributed leadership and social exchange theories. Using partial least squares structural equation modeling, data from 1,000 rural teachers were analyzed. Findings indicate that principal support, principal cognitive trust, and cultural barriers significantly influence informal teacher leadership, while school resource inadequacy does not. Informal teacher leadership, in turn, enhances teacher professional learning and commitment to teaching, and serves as a significant mediator between leadership variables and teacher outcomes. Despite lacking formal roles, rural teachers engage in peer mentoring, collaborative planning, and instructional improvement. These results highlight the importance of trust-based, informal leadership pathways in strengthening teacher development and improving teaching quality in rural education contexts.