SCHOOL LEADERSHIP

School Leadership



School Leadership

Introduction

There is wide recognition that school leaders exert a powerful, if indirect, influence on teaching quality and student learning. In a review of literature for the Educational Research Association, (Achilles, Price, 2005) conclude that school leadership has significant effects on student learning, second only to the effects of the quality of curriculum and teachers' instruction.

Case studies of exceptional schools indicate that school leaders influence learning primarily by galvanizing effort around ambitious goals and by establishing conditions that support teachers and that help students succeed (Deal, 2006). Successful leaders have learned to view their organizations' environment in a holistic way. This wide-angle view is what the concept of school culture offers principals and other leaders. It gives them a broader framework for understanding difficult problems and complex relationships within the school. By deepening their understanding of school culture, these leaders will be better equipped to shape the values, beliefs, and attitudes necessary to promote a stable and nurturing learning environment (Anthes, 2002).

Explanation

(Cuban, 2008) finds that large-scale quantitative studies of schooling conclude that the effects of leadership on student learning are small but educationally significant. Although leadership explains only about 3 to 5 percent of the variation in student learning across schools, this effect is nearly one-quarter of the total effect of all school factors (Anthes, 2002). In these studies, as in case studies, the effects of leadership appear to be mostly indirect: leaders influence student learning by helping to promote a vision and goals, and by ensuring that resources and processes are in place to enable teachers to teach well (Archer, 2004).

Indeed, research has repeatedly shown that principals play key roles in instructional change in their schools. Their level of involvement often dictates whether attempts to change instruction succeed (Crow, Joseph, 2008). For example, studies have shown that school leaders, especially within low-performing schools, are typically ineffective in providing support and mentoring to improve instruction, and providing direction and resources for teacher learning and professional development within and outside the school (Archer, 2002). This pattern continues despite a great deal of research that identifies the importance of the principal's role as instructional leader. Although its effects are difficult to measure precisely, leadership is clearly important (Cheng, 2006). But what, exactly, is leadership and how does it apply to the school environment?

In their landmark study of visionary companies, (Achilles, Price, 2005) define leaders as individuals who “displayed high levels of persistence, overcame significant obstacles, attracted dedicated people, influenced groups of people toward the achievement of goals, and played key roles in guiding their companies through crucial episodes in their history.”

This definition matches closely the definitions currently used for school leaders, although this definition has undergone some change in recent years. Until recently, most research assumed that leadership must come from the school principal (Archer, 2004). The realization that improving instruction requires shifts in the behavior of school leaders has spurred new theories of school leadership and attempts at restructuring school ...