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by JVS
Appendix
G
Teacher
Authority as Power
Due to the fact that the teacher is in the
role of the manager of the class, they require power in another form, the
authority to influence student behavior. This could be termed “teacher
authority.” Teacher authority is, in a sense, “the right to ask others to do
something.” As teachers we need to ask students to do many things in a day, and
we need to make our requests out of some basis of authority. Without it, we would have little efficacy.
French and Raven (1974), as they examined classroom interactions, identified five
basic forms of teacher authority. Each needs to operate to some degree, but
some will be emphasized and utilized more than others for most of us. These five types of authority are
Attractive/Referent, Expert, Reward, Coercive and Position/Legitimate.
When the teacher relies on their
personability, relationship building, or the fact that they share common
interests with students, they could be said to be using attractive authority.
Attractive authority can be developed through getting to know and emotionally
investing in students. In a sense, when the teacher makes deposits in what
Covey (1995) calls the “emotional bank account” of the students, they can use
their withdrawals as opportunities to influence behavior. Attractive authority
can also come as a result of the teacher having a personality that is perceived
by the students as pleasing, such as being likeable, funny or charming. It is
natural, as well as strongly encouraged by our media-driven culture, for
students to want to follow and respect those that have qualities that are
judged to be “cool.” We could imply that teachers to varying degrees have the
ability to cash in these qualities that could be termed “personality capital.”
The use of attractive authority to influence
student behavior can be both effective as well as healthy. It is difficult to
be effective without some degree of it. As the saying goes “students do not
care how much you know, until they know how much you care.” Students work
harder for teachers they like and perceive as caring (Murray & Pianta,
2007) . However, pandering for student approval, and letting the need to be
liked drive one’s teaching choices, will lead to many problems. If the teacher
confuses relationship building for an implicit bargain with the students that,
“I will be nice to you, if you are nice to me,” then this can be a slippery
slope that leads to giving away one’s power and being taken advantage of.
When the teacher is perceived as being
knowledgeable in the subject, well prepared, or intelligent, they posses what
could be called expert authority. We have all had teachers who did very
little to invest in the affective quality of the class, yet were well respected
and able to manage the class to a great degree due to the fact that students
felt there was a great deal of value in what these teachers had to say. Expert
authority is driven by the students’ desire to know. Some of this form of power
comes from a natural human deference for those who are perceived as wise, or
posses what could be called “intellectual capital.”
The use of expert authority to lead can be
effective. It can translate into respect, if the teacher is not arrogant or
entirely imperceptive of the needs of his or her students. Humor can be a great
asset for the teacher who chooses to rely heavily on this form of authority. But to exclusively trust expert authority as
being sufficient has been the downfall of a countless number of teachers (Valli,
1992). Many teachers enter the profession with a passion for their subject, and
leave one year later, when their passion is met by a disappointingly high
degree of disinterest and disrespect.
Teachers have the ability to reward their students
in many forms. Those rewards are usually employed to influence student
behavior. This form of influence could be termed reward authority. In Chapter 7,
various forms of what could be considered “rewards” are discussed. They include
grades, recognition, prizes, praise, privileges and anything else that could be
assumed that students desire that could be given to them externally by the
teacher. The notion of rewarding student
behavior can be potentially effective. But as we will explore, there are vastly
different effects from different kinds of rewards.
Earlier in the chapter we discussed the need
for the teacher to maintain the social frame relationship between student
success and the corresponding teacher reward. This implicit relationship is important
to assure that students feel valued and competent. But over time it may be
desirable for the teacher to help foster intrinsic sources of motivation within
the student, rather than developing an expectation that the only way that the
student will know if they are successful is if the teacher provides an
extrinsic source of reward. In its most healthy form, reward authority is
experienced as a deep affirmation and a willingness on the part of the teacher
to recognize student effort. In its least healthy form, it is a tangible or
emotional token economy (see Chapter 7 discussion related to extrinsic rewards
and the use of praise). In this application, student behavior is conditioned by
a systematic use of extrinsic rewards and/or the giving of love. It does have
the effect of modifying behavior yet essentially creates “addicts” of reward
and praise whose work is primarily undertaken to obtain the reward rather than
learning or growth.
The teacher has in their power the right to
use disincentives, to say “No,” withhold privileges, and give consequences or
punishments to students. When they do this we could say that they are
exercising their coercive authority. Coercive authority implies that if
a line is crossed something will happen that will be less desirable for the
student. No matter how much of the other forms of authority a teacher
possesses, without some amount of coercive authority, it is likely that some
students will take advantage of their freedom to cross lines without concern
for boundaries.
Used constructively, this form of authority
is important to draw lines and boundaries. It helps promote a sense of security
in the class for those students who are not inclined to cross lines, and count
on the teacher to take action with those who are so inclined. Used zealously
(and in its traditional form) it can bring a hostile energy to the class. In
Chapter 18, related to the 4-Style manager, we will discuss how relying on
coercive authority can undermine the level of motivation in the class. Shame,
punishments, guilt, humiliation, personal attacks, withdrawal of affection are
all forms of ineffective coercive authority.
By virtue of the fact that the teacher is in
the position of “the teacher,” they have authority. The governance of the
school places each teacher in a position of responsibility for the management
of the students in the class. So, in one sense, it is not so much earned as it
just exists. Likewise in the role of teacher is the assumption of have authority.
There is no other person in the classroom that can fulfill the duties of the
teacher. We could use the term “in loco parentis” (i.e., in the role of
the parent) to describe this type of power. The teacher, in addition to the
role as educator, is the sanctioned authority in the room.
Unlike the other forms of teacher authority, position authority is not so much earned or
cultivated, it exists by default. Nevertheless we can do a better or worse job
of projecting our meriting this role. This is especially true of new and of
substitute teachers. Those who expect to be given respect usually are. While
position authority may come essentially from a contract, it is also projected
in an air of legitimacy and confidence. Those who project an affect
characterized by illegitimacy or a doubt that they belong in the position will
suffer from a limited amount of position authority and the problems that come
with it.
To be effective one must incorporate at least
some amount of each of these five types of authority. However, each teacher
must thoughtfully consider the use of each of them within their goals and
personality. Each form will produce different effects on the socially
constructed classroom reality and lead to different sorts of results with students.
For the most part, they are not mutually exclusive. One could utilize a higher
or lower degree of any or all of them simultaneously. But as noted in our
discussion of each form, it may be more the case that effectiveness will be
less related to which forms of power are employed than the manner in which each
is employed.