Collective efficacy: toward a new narrative of its development and role in achievement

The body of collective teacher efficacy (CTE) research has developed considerably since Goddard referred to the school-level factor as a “neglected construct” in the study of schools and achievement. The research base has identified quantitative effects, antecedents, and consequences, all of which support the claim that collective efficacy is important to schools and achievement while also supporting the claim by Goddard et al. that schools should be led in a direction that will develop collective efficacy, which will in turn spur continuous growth in CTE and student achievement. Even with all of this, a gap in the literature remains, and instead of considering the reciprocal relationship between collective efficacy and achievement, the excitement behind the positive outcomes of collective efficacy has led to wider exposure of the concept and, as argued, a misguided attempt to treat CTE as the main catalyst for enacting school improvement. Considering this latter point, general school improvement literature from the realms of leadership and collaboration is drawn upon and connected to CTE research in an endeavor to create a more holistic narrative of collective efficacy, its development, and its role in school improvement and student achievement.