Followership in the School Context

Abstract

This paper focused on investigating the leader-follower relationship to determine the influence that effective followers have in regards to the success or failure of their leader within the school context. Just as a teacher needs to be informed as to the needs and abilities of their students, a leader needs to possess similar knowledge in regards to their followers. Followers have traditionally been neglected in leadership research and seen as simply passive recipients of leadership. Leadership and followership represent two sides of one dynamic relationship; without followers, there can be no leaders. This means that followers’ behaviors are a vital component of the leadership process, and that leadership cannot be fully understood without an understanding of followership. This paper will examine these follower behaviors and the influence that they can have on school leadership.