Advancing Leadership

Abstract

Preparing students to become active citizens and contributors to a democratic society is premised on teaching democratic principles and modeling standards of democratic practice at all levels of education. The purpose of this integrative literature review is to establish a conceptual framework grounded in literature and a model for cultivating democratic professional practice in education (DPPE) to advance leadership for school improvement. This work is presented in three parts: (a) a review of historical references, reports, and legislation that culminated in increased accountability and standards in P-12 public education; (b) a discussion of social patterns in education generally associated with bureaucracy versus democracy; and (c) a new contribution to the literature, a model for cultivating DPPE is conceptualized to encourage leading and teaching professionals to reflect on beliefs and evaluate practices in advancing leadership for school improvement. Recommendations are included for further research.