Instructional supervision is intertwined with the debate on how humans learn and on what knowledge is of greatest import. Those who believe that knowledge is acquired as an individual chooses to follow his or her own inclinations tend to favor nondirective supervision. Those who believe that learning is the result of reciprocity and experimentation advocate collaborative supervision. Those who believe that learning is acquired through compliance with a set of standards advocate directive supervision. Because all methods can be successful when applied in the proper circumstances, it is important for a supervisor to be aware of his or her own beliefs on supervision. To help create such an awareness, the author includes a self-assessment questionnaire for supervisors to use in determining their beliefs. The questionnaire is followed by a discussion on which of ten behaviors on the supervisory behavior continuum (listening, clarifying, encouraging, presenting, problem-solving, negotiating, demonstrating, directing, standardizing, and reinforcing) are associated with the orientation. A paradigm of four teacher categories (dropouts, unfocused workers, analytical observers, and professionals) based on teacher commitment and level of abstract thinking is developed to help supervisors determine which supervisory orientation is appropriate for a specific teacher's developmental stage. (Author/IRT)