ClassroomManagement Resource Page – Shindler – School Climate – PLSI – Teaching- Workshopsby JVS
The Five Forms of TeacherPower
One mostly implicit element of the classroom reality is theway that power is manifested in any class. Feeling some degree of power is abasic human need. As we will discuss in more detail in chapter 9, if thestudents’ individual or collective need for power is not met, they willexercise it in one form or another. The teacher too has a basic need for poweras a human being, and they are no less inclined to react if they are notexperiencing healthy means to feeling control over their destiny.
However, due to the fact that the teacher is in the role ofthe manager of the class they require power in another form, the power toinfluence student behavior. This could be termed “teacher power.” Teacher poweris, in a sense, “the right to ask others to do something.” As teachers we needto ask students to do many things in a day, and we need to make our requestsout of some basis of power. Without it,we would have little efficacy. French and Raven (1959 & 1974), as theyexamined classroom interactions, identified five basic forms of teacher power.Each needs to operate to some degree, but some will be emphasized and utilizedmore than others for most of us. These 5types of power are Attractive/Referent, Expert, Reward, Coercive andPosition/Legitimate.
When the teacher relies on their personability, relationshipbuilding, or the fact that they share common interests with students, theycould be said to be using attractivepower. Attractive power can be developed through getting to know andemotionally investing in students. In a sense, when the teacher makes depositsin what Covey (1995) calls the “emotional bank account” of the students, theycan use their withdrawals as opportunities to influence behavior. Attractivepower can also come as a result of the teacher having a personality that isperceived by the students as pleasing, such as being likeable, funny orcharming. It is natural, as well as strongly encouraged by our media-drivenculture, for students to want to follow and respect those that have qualitiesthat are judged to be “cool.” We could imply that teachers to varying degreeshave the ability to cash in these qualities that could be termed “personalitycapital.”
The use of attractive power to influence student behaviorcan be both effective as well as healthy. It is difficult to be effectivewithout some degree of it. As the saying goes “students do not care how muchyou know, until the know how much you care.” Studentswork harder for teachers they like and perceive as caring. However, panderingfor student approval, and letting the need to be liked drive one’s teachingchoices, will lead to many problems. If the teacher confuses relationshipbuilding for an implicit bargain with the students that, “I will be nice toyou, if you are nice to me,” then this can be a slippery slop that leads togiving away one’s power and being taken advantage of.
When the teacher is perceived as being knowledgeablein the subject, well prepared, and intelligent, they posses what could becalled expert power. We haveall had teachers who did very little to invest in the affective quality of theclass, yet were well respected and able to manage the class to a great degreedue to the fact that students felt there was a great deal of value in whatthese teachers had to say. Expert power is driven by the students desire toknow. Some of this form of power comes from a natural human deference for thosewho are perceived as wise, or posses what could be called “intellectualcapital.”
The use of expert power to lead can be effective. It cantranslate into respect, if the teacher is not arrogant or entirely imperceptiveof the needs of his or her students. Humor can be a great asset for the teacherwho chooses to rely heavily on this form of power. But to exclusively trust expert power asbeing sufficient has been the downfall of a countless number of teachers. Manyteachers enter the profession with a passion for their subject, and leave oneyear later, when their passion is met by a disappointingly high degree ofdisinterest and disrespect.
Teachers have the ability to reward their students in manyforms. Those rewards are usually employed to influence student behavior. Thisform of influence could be termed rewardpower. In chapter 9, various forms of what could be considered “rewards”are discussed. They include grades, recognition, prizes, praise, privileges andanything else that could be assumed that students desire that could be given tothem externally by the teacher. Thenotion of rewarding student behavior is for the most part a good idea. But aswe will discuss in chapters 8 and 9, there are vastly different effects fromdifferent kinds of rewards. Moreover, the power of any form of reward will bedirectly related to how desirable it is to any particular student.
Earlier in the chapter we discussed the need for the teacherto maintain the social frame relationship between student success and thecorresponding teacher reward. This implicit relationship is important to assurethat students feel valued and competent. But over time it may be desirable forthe teacher to help foster intrinsic sources of motivation within the student,rather than developing an expectation that the only way that the student willknow if they are successful is if the teacher provides an extrinsic source ofreward. In its most healthy form, reward power is experienced as a deepaffirmation and a willingness on the part of the teacher to recognize studenteffort. In its least healthy form, it is a tangible or emotional token economy(see chapter 9 discussion related to extrinsic rewards and the use of praise).In this application student behavior is conditioned by a systematic use ofextrinsic rewards, and/or the giving of love. It does have the effect ofmodifying behavior, yet essentially creates reward and praise addicts whosework is primarily undertaken to obtain the reward rather than for the sake oflearning or growth.
The teacher has in their power the right to usedisincentives, say “No,” withhold privileges, and giveconsequences or punishments to students. When they do this we could say thatthey are exercising their coercive power.Coercive power implies that if a line is crossed something will happen thatwill be less desirable for the student than if they choose not to cross theline. No matter how much of the other forms of power a teacher possesses,without coercive power, some students will take advantage of their freedom to crosslines without concern for penalties.
Used constructively, this form of power is important to drawlines and boundaries. It helps promote a sense of security in the class forthose students who are not inclined to cross lines, and count on the teacher todiscipline those who are so inclined. Used zealously (and in its traditionalform) it can bring a hostile energy to the class. In chapter 6 related to the4-style manager, we will discuss the term pain-based logic. In essence,exercising a pain-based logic is intended to produce power by coercion. Shame, punishments, guilt, humiliation, personal attacks,withdrawal of affection are all forms of pain giving. As you examine the4-style or “dominator” management orientation, you will better understand whythe misuse of coercive has so much potential for damage on so many levels.
By virtue of the fact that the teacher is in the position of“the teacher,” they have power. The governance of the school places eachteacher in a position of responsibility for the management of the students inthe class. So, in one sense, it is not so much earned as, it just is. Likewisethe role of teacher assumes that they have power. There is no other person inthe 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 thistype of power. The teacher, in addition to their role as educator, is thesanctioned authority in the room.
One the one hand, unlike the other forms of teacher power, position power is not so much earned orcultivated, it exists by default. On the other hand, we can do a better orworse job of projecting that we deserve this role. This is especially true ofnew and substitute teachers. Those who expect to be given respect,usually are. Position power may come essentially from a contract, but it isalso projected in an air of legitimacy and confidence. Those who project anaffect characterized by illegitimacy or a doubt that they belong in the position,will suffer from a limited amount of position power, and the problems that comewith it.
Conclusion
To be effective one must incorporate at least some amount ofeach of these five types of power, however, eachteacher must thoughtfully consider the use of each of them within their goalsand personality. Each form will produce different effects on the sociallyconstructed classroom reality and lead to different sorts of results withstudents. For the most part, they are not mutually exclusive. One could utilizea higher or lower degree of any or all of them simultaneously. But as noted inour discussion of each form, it may be more the case that effectiveness will beless related to which forms or power are employed than the manner in which eachis employed.
