While there is considerable evidence about the impact of instructional leadership on student outcomes, there is far less known about the leadership capabilities that are required to confidently engage in the practices involved. This article uses the limited available evidence, combined with relevant theoretical analyses, to propose a tentative…

This study used Hierarchical Multivariate Linear models to investigate relationships between principals' behaviors and district principal evaluation purpose, focus, and assessed leadership activities in 13 school districts in Michigan. The study found that principals were more likely to engage in learning-centered leadership behaviors when the…

This article considers change over education's history as being a series of successive waves from when education was delivered locally to individuals to the present when we "think globally and act locally." It argues that to achieve universal student success we need to have another wave of both thinking and acting locally and globally. This shift…

This inquiry, by means of the case study method, explored how principals' conceptions about their role as school leader contribute to a better understanding of their leadership behavior and how this is related to school climate. The results indicated that differences of how principals conceive their leadership role are related, indirectly through…

Principals (N = 76) in a large western U.S. school district were randomly assigned to be evaluated using either a new standards-based system or to continue with the old system. It was hypothesized that principals evaluated with the new system would report clearer performance expectations, better feedback, greater fairness and system satisfaction,…

There is a growing public awareness of the national drop-out crisis, but it does not, in the author's view, tell the whole story. It does not call attention to the fact that the most glaring need for new teachers and principals is in high-poverty areas where teaching conditions are the most challenging and where official public support has often…

Purpose: This article reports on a study designed to uncover the factors aspiring secondary school principals consider important when deciding whether to apply for a specific post. The aspiring principals involved in the study had all confirmed their desire to be a principal; about half were already vice-principals. Methods: Evidence for the study…

This research investigated levels of moral judgment among public elementary school principals as measured by the Defining Issues Test Version 2 for occupationally relevant and other moral dilemmas. The participants scored lower (38.7) than the predicted average P score (postconventional thinking) for individuals who have attained graduate level…

High teacher turnover rates result in: (1) a deficit of quality teachers and instruction; (2) loss of continuity and commitment; and (3) devotion of time, attention, and funds to recruitment rather than support. The purpose of this empirical inquiry of teacher retention issues is to better understand the leadership styles of principals who lead…

We as a field believe that school principals can acquire new expertise by participating in principal preparation and professional development programs; however, we have few methodologies to measure leadership expertise, especially expertise that links leadership to improved student learning. In this article, we present the results of a study that…

An analysis of survey data is used to examine the practices used to hire teachers, the level of principal autonomy within the process, the attributes sought in teachers, and to compare each based upon the characteristics of schools and of principals. Findings indicate that urban and low-performing schools (and the principals of these schools) are…

The National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, founded in 1987, serves as a clearinghouse for National Board Teacher Certification whereby individuals must demonstrate competence and professional teaching excellence through a two-part process. Accordingly, this particular advanced level of teacher certification has perpetuated the…

Can a capacity building policy encourage school leaders to engage in professional development that will increase their focus on student achievement and understanding of instructional leadership? To explore this issue, school administrators were interviewed and a content analysis of plans for professional development generated during the first year…

Although teacher learning and collaboration are repeatedly linked to school improvement, surprisingly little is known about the facet of collaboration involving the dissemination or sharing of teacher knowledge; that is, what teachers share, why and with whom they share it, or how and when they share what they have learned. This article describes…

Demands continue for the reform of educational administration preparation programs. Attention typically focuses on the knowledge base, its foundation and relationship with the field. This article raises the pivotal issue of faculty learning through conversation and its role in the development of core purpose to frame the reconsideration of…