This study examined the demographic shifts in a medium-sized school district in West Michigan and the responses developed as a result of these changes during the last two decades. Findings indicated that the district's school demographics changed from being European American to minority dominant. As a result of these changes in student…

School principals are confronted with a variety of issues as they provide leadership and organization to their schools. Evidence is growing that successful school leaders influence achievement through the support and development of effective teachers and the implementation of effective organizational practice (Davis, Darling-Hammond, LaPointe,…

The research reported in this article follows-up on a study conducted by Anast-May, Buckner, and Geer (2010). The 47 interviewed principals identified three types of experiences school leadership interns needed in order to prepare them to lead school improvement efforts. This study explores interns' perspectives on the efficacy of their…

This descriptive study assessed teachers' attitudes about their formative supervision and the observational ability of principals through the constructs of teacher tenure status and gender. In sum, 255 teachers responded to an online survey indicating teachers' desired feedback focused on classroom climate, student engagement, and…

Online simulations offer opportunities for trial and error decision-making. What better tool for a principal than to make decisions when the consequences will not have real-world ramifications. In this study, two groups of graduate students in a principal preparation program taking the same course in the same semester use online simulations…

The purpose of these three parallel mixed method studies was to measure the effectiveness of an urban school district's 2011 Preparing New Principals Program (PNPP). Results supported the premise that preparing principals for school leadership in 2013 must develop them as instructional leaders who can improve teacher performance and student…

This paper explores the challenges and opportunities of the English Language Learner (ELL) components of Illinois' new principal preparation legislation [Illinois Public Act 96-0903]. In 2011, Illinois passed Illinois Public Act 96-0903 creating new rules for principal preparation programs requiring institutions or organizations certifying…

Research conducted by Larsen and Hunter (2013, February) identified a clear pattern in secondary school principals' decision-making related to mandated change: more than half of participants' decisions were based on core values and beliefs, requiring value judgments. Analysis of themes revealed that more than half of administrative…

This study investigates the frequency of research-based leadership strategies utilized by newly hired school principals in the workplace. Public school superintendents in Indiana were asked to respond to two open-ended research questions. Through the use of content analysis, their comments were coded for the occurrence of effective leadership…

This study assessed the degree to which school leader preparation programs have adopted reforms in program admissions standards and practices that have been recommended in the literature since 2000, including seeking district nominations for applicants, increasing collaborative efforts, involving district personnel in instruction and intern…

Since the fall of 2012, Illinois principal preparation programs have been operating under new state requirements intended to produce highly qualified and effective school principals capable of leading Illinois schools to higher levels of student academic performance. The rules guiding new program development are applied with a broad stroke,…

Principals have tremendous influence on the schools they lead (Bamburg & Andrews, 1990; Marzano et al., 2005). Certain leadership behaviors impact school level factors (Cotton, 2003; Hallinger & Heck, 2010; Leithwood, Begley, & Cousins, 1990; Marzano et al., 2005; Orr, 2003). To affect high levels of student achievement, school…

This article is for practicing or aspiring school administrators. The demand for excellence in public education has lead to an emphasis on standardized test scores. This article explores the development of a professional enhancement program designed to prepare teachers to teach higher order thinking skills. Higher order thinking is the primary…

Principals have a clear impact on the transition of teachers into their initial work setting (Allensworth, Ponisciak, Mazzeo, 2009; S. T. Bickmore & D. L. Bickmore, 2010; Scherff, 2008). School administrators' influence on teacher induction is both organizational and relational as they develop structures and practices that support…

The purpose of this systematic review was to (1) conduct the systematic search of the literature to identify the studies on partnerships in school leader preparation; and to (2) systematically review the findings of these studies and synthesize them into major themes reflecting the state of the art in collaborative leadership preparation in the…