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Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal – Vol. 8, No. 12
Publication Date: December 25, 2021
DOI:10.14738/assrj.812.11421. McDowell, W., & Martin, B. N. (2021). Retaining Teachers: Intentional Invitational Action and Social Justice Leadership as Driving
Forces. Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal, 8(12). 187-211.
Services for Science and Education – United Kingdom
Retaining Teachers: Intentional Invitational Action and Social
Justice Leadership as Driving Forces
William McDowell
PBIS Coach, Olathe Public Schools, Olathe, Kansas, United States
Barbara N. Martin
School of Professional and Educational Leadership
University of Central Missouri, United States
ABSTRACT
Social justice challenges and teacher retention challenges create crises in urban
school districts across the United States. Moreover, despite literature linking
principal leadership with school ethos known is little as to how the use of an
invitational leadership style with a social justice orientation has a connection to the
retention of teachers in urban settings. This study used a qualitative case study
survey design conducted at two urban school district settings, one in the Western
United States and the other in the Midwest. The analysis found a connection
between the principal using an invitational leadership style, and the presence of a
strong social orientation that helped to retain teachers. These findings present
implications for scholars and practitioners.
Keywords: Invitational Leadership; Social Justice; Retention of Teachers.
INTRODUCTION
In 2015, two reports emerged regarding the supply and demand of educators entering and
staying in the teaching profession noting dismal outcomes for these answers of teacher
retention [1]. While their research added to a heavily researched topic searching for these
answers of teacher shortage, recruitment and retention [2], these studies offered a one-stop,
cumulative, extensive resource. Podolsky et al., [3] argued attrition was most significant in high
poverty schools due to lower salaries and impoverished working conditions. Additionally,
Sutcher et al. (p. 51) [4] argued, “A comprehensive research review of attrition in high-poverty
schools finds that the most significant workplace conditions associated with teacher attrition
are teachers’ perceptions of their principal, collegial, and school culture.” Buckingham and
Goodall [5] echo this, when they found that teachers would come for the mission of a school,
but stay for the team with whom they worked. They went on to note when teams share vision
and values, they engage and accomplish at higher rates.
Unfortunately, the rate of principal turnover in high-poverty, high-minority, and high-need
urban high schools is also significant [6]. In fact, by 2020 the demand for k-12 principals has
increased by six percent nationwide due to population increases [7] and principal attrition.
This inquiry examined the connection of a leader’s commitment at a high-poverty, high
minority urban school to following the tenets of invitational leadership. Furthermore, this
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examination attempted to reveal how that connection leads to a commitment from teachers,
parents, outside stakeholders, and the principal to continue to engage in the development of
students beyond the two-year tenure of many high needs schools [8]. There have been inquiries
regarding the benefits of invitational leadership within high needs urban high schools [8], and
examinations of what principals can do to attract and retain excellent educators in high needs
urban schools [3]. Little has been studied on the connection between the retention of teachers
in high poverty settings due to the tenets of invitational leadership, integrating the actions of a
social justice leader being present through the principal’s leadership. Specifically, the purpose
of this paper is to discuss the connection between adherence of the school leader to the
principles of invitational leadership theory, while integrating social justice in high poverty
urban high schools and that demonstration of leadership behaviors to the connection to
retention of teachers. Research questions that guided this investigation are: What tenets of
invitational leadership and social justice orientation are evident within the leadership style of
the principal? And, how do the tenets of the invitational leadership style with a social justice
orientation of the principal impact the retention of teachers within a high poverty school
setting?
CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORKS
Intending to realize fully and provide the framework needed to understand the significance of
this study, presented are two separate frameworks: social justice leadership [9] and
invitational leadership [10]. Martin and Miller [8] recognized the connection between the two
when one of the emerging themes in their work included, “Addressing Social Justice Inequities
through the Six P’s.” The six P’s is a reference to the six P’s of invitational education [10].
Following their line of inquiry, this research will have a greater focus on the connection of
sustained engagement through invitational leadership practices employed by the school
principal. This focus on two high poverty, high minority, high needs urban high schools also
invited the exploration into the principal’s engagement in socially just leadership practices.
Presented below are the two frameworks.
Social Justice Leadership
In much of the high poverty, high minority, urban high schools, the proportion of White females
teaching Black, Latino, and Native American students has increased while Black and Latino
students were primarily attending schools with only Black and Latino students has risen [11].
Therefore, teachers in these schools need leaders grounded in social justice, as defined by
Theoharis [7]. The latter, “make issues of race, class, gender, disability, sexual orientation, and
other historically and currently marginalizing conditions in the United States central to their
advocacy, leadership, practice, and vision” (p. 223). Accordingly, the social justice theory will
be an overarching theory further explored. Theorharis’s [12] definition of social justice
leadership “...is to mean that these principals advocate, lead, and keep at the center of their
practice and vision issues of race, class, gender, disability, sexual orientation, and other
historically and currently marginalized conditions in the United States” (p. 5)[12].
The conditions in highly segregated, high poverty schools led to teachers leaving the profession
early or at least not staying multiple years [3]. With so much focus on this turnover of teachers,
few had noticed that the principal turnover rate surpassing the teacher turnover rate [13].
Consequently, the turnover with a principal exacerbated the rate at which teachers left, creating
a level of adult professional unrest that unsurprisingly coincided with student test scores falling
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McDowell, W., & Martin, B. N. (2021). Retaining Teachers: Intentional Invitational Action and Social Justice Leadership as Driving Forces. Advances
in Social Sciences Research Journal, 8(12). 187-211.
URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.14738/assrj.812.11421
in a school [13]. Compile this with high poverty schools [3] it becomes vital that the school finds
a leader who is willing to build a team where teachers will come for the mission while staying
for the team [5].
Compared to other leadership theories, the social justice theory in educational leadership
literature was comparatively new [14]. Bogatch [14] sought the creation of a comprehensive
view of different perspectives, such as what social justice leadership should entail. He argued
that the ongoing struggle for social justice in education has gone on for decades. He saw that in
educational leadership, “an individually-minded principal is often called a maverick; an
individually-minded teacher leader is called a trouble-maker. Neither are included under the
banner of loyalty to the system” (p.6) [14]. He challenged educational leaders to create social
and political space for social justice advocacy by arguing four parameters in the name of
educational leadership. These parameters are:
1. There can be no fixed or predictable meanings of social justice before actually engaging
in social and academic discourses;
2. The center or unity of any educational reform is so dynamic that it cannot hold together
for long;
3. The result of our work (just and unjust) are always fragile and fleeting; and, therefore,
4. All social justice/educational reform efforts must be deliberately and continuously
reinvented and critiqued – repeatedly. (p. 10) [14]
For Bogotch [14], one could not be challenged to be a real educational leader without
advocating for social justice. “And at every step, articulate how our actions connect to social
justice inside and outside of schools” (p.10).
Subsequently, Theoharis [11] conveyed the following leadership traits were evident in
principals following the ethos of social justice leadership:
1. Arrogant humility: Leaders hold a headstrong belief that they are the right person to
lead the team toward the vision of social justice for the students and families they serve
while paradoxically being filled with self-doubt. They are humble enough to know after
self-reflection when they need to admit when they are wrong. They wonder if they
indeed are the right person for the role of principal.
2. Passionate visionary leadership: These social justice principals stand as
transformational leaders who are driven by such deep care, commitment, and
enthusiasm toward championing a strong vision. These components are realized by such
a passion that there is a tightly interwoven connection between the principal position
and the person doing that job.
3. Tenacious commitment to justice: The leader maintains a fierce and sustaining
commitment to equity and justice not only for their staff but also for themselves. (p. 17)
These sentiments were further echoed when argued during a 2011 ruling by Supreme Court
Justice Sonia Sotomayor when she stated, “Inequality in education is the most pressing issue in
diversity in the United States” contributes to, “...make educational equity and diversity
mainstream issues for practitioners, scholars, and policymakers to consider” (p. 247). Social
justice leadership is an inclusive leadership that engages relationships not only in dialogical,
collaborative, reciprocal, and horizontal ways; they also promote equity and justice through
caring fluid relationships among various leaders [15].
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Any principal in a high-poverty, high-minority, high-needs, and urban high school is taking on
a role where persistent inequalities concerning distinguished groups, including among others
race, sexual orientation, ethnicity, social class, and language of origin continue to exist [16]. Yet,
the promising literature on social justice leadership lacked in specific skill sets employed by
these leaders [17]. Therefore, within this inquiry, it was contented the social justice leader
would be recognized as a maverick, while also needing many troublemakers as denoted by
Bogatch [14]. Therefore, he or she must have taken an invitational posture to gain the vision,
buy-in, and clear structure needed to retain teachers within the high-poverty, high-minority,
high needs urban high school [18].
Invitational Leadership
Considering the desire for accessible actions, invitational leadership [10] became the primary
theory used for this study. Invitational leadership affords a school leader an immediate
structure to work through an inviting stance after which the actions taken affect the people,
place, policies, programs, processes, and politics of the school building lead to an inviting
environment [8]. If the schools are going to find success, teachers in high need, high poverty
communities, must stay for at least five years.
The solutions offered to retain teachers in high needs schools include culture, structures for
leadership opportunities, collegial support, and the chance to shape and influence within the
school [20]. This, coupled with working conditions cited by Podolsky et al. [3], included school
leadership, professional collaboration, and shared decision-making, accountability systems,
and resources for teaching and learning [3]. Addressing all these variables was the framework
of invitational leadership [10].
Being an invitational leader encompasses all aspects of one’s life as the leader calls forth all
around them to pursue a life of purpose when they “invite their colleagues, family, friends, loved
ones, and community to do the same” [10]. A school’s climate contributes to psychological well- being, student achievement, positive youth development, and how stakeholders perceive the
school [2]. An inviting educational environment will carry themes of passionate partnership,
motivational inspiration, and organic nous of affinity [21]. The high school principal can have
the most significant effect of any individual on the school to create such an environment [20].
The principal can influence a productive school climate by following the tenets of invitational
education theory. [10]
Novak and Purkey [18] referenced, “...being an invitational educational leader is like being on
a tennis court with another” (p. 70). The leader controls what can be controlled then delivers
the idea or concept to the other. The goal is to make solid contact, then in a dialogical fashion,
allow the other to receive it. The leader bases this in an inviting stance [18]. Novak and Purkey
[18] defined the principles of invitational leadership to be:
Care - Possessing full receptivity to the other through de-centering oneself and listening
for interests and meaning expressed by the other.
Respect - Give the other person time to own their part of the relationship.
Trust – Recognize the interdependence of people. Possessing confidence and
predictability of others’ abilities and integrity.
Optimism - Understanding that human potential is untapped, and there is a better chance
of good things happening if there are a positive mindset and belief of others.