The Role of Subject Associations in Leadership

Abstract

There is little research regarding subject associations though they have existed and contributed to education since Victorian times. Many jurisdictions report having many subject associations that share characteristic activities of conferences, workshops, publishing, and curriculum supports. These often foster grassroots leadership development that can, but do not have to, interact with formal school board defined leadership hierarchies. This article considers how subject associations fit with different theories of leadership including hierarchal and instructional leadership, transformational leadership, and distributed leadership. Difficulties with existing models of leadership are clarified and suggest issues suited to systematic research.