Educational Leadership Commons^™

The Effect Of School Tasks On Principals' And Assistant Principals’ Leadership Self-Efficacy, Torri Jackson, Juliann Sergi Mcbrayer, Summer Pannell, Richard E. Cleveland, Suzanne B. Miller, Katherine Fallon

School Leadership Review

The pressure to lead schools effectively while fulfilling instructional leadership and school management tasks could impact school administrators’ perceptions of their leadership capabilities. The purpose of this quantitative, cross-sectional study was to identify the relationship between the varied tasks of school administrators as related to their leadership self-efficacy. Data were collected from 73 school administrators to ascertain leadership self-efficacy of principals and assistant principals based upon the completion of instructional leadership tasks and school management tasks. The major findings of the study indicated a positive, linear relationship between leadership self-efficacy and the instructional leadership tasks and school management tasks of …

Slowing The Burn: Principal Leadership Supports To Reduce Attrition, Forrest J. Kaiser, Ray Thompson

School Leadership Review

Growing student populations, accountability policies, and isolation due to remote learning are impacting teacher retention. The present study used narrative inquiry to explore the beliefs, contexts, and experiences that shape principals’ perceptions of their role in buffering teacher stress, burnout, and attrition. The researcher worked with school leaders to co-develop individual narratives that described their personal experiences in supporting teacher efficacy and retention in an urban district with high rates of attrition. Principals shared common stress factors including workload, discipline, and accountability. Collegial relationships, autonomy, and mentorship were noted as common supports. Principals felt they made an impact by building …

A Comparative Analysis Of The Impact Of University Field Supervision On Administrative Mindsets: Considerations For Redesign, Neil Faulk, Thomas Harvey, Brett Welch, Gary E. Martin

School Leadership Review

The purpose of this study was to evaluate perceptions of principal preparation program candidates regarding the impact professional coaching and field supervision had on the development of their administrative mindsets. A secondary purpose was to determine if there was a significant difference in perceptions regarding the impact that professional coaching and field supervision had on administrative mindsets when comparing students who received face-to-face field supervision and coaching activities to those involved in online field supervision and coaching activities. Forty percent of the 150 principal candidates contacted in this study responded to a survey regarding their practicum field experiences. Candidates noted …

University-Based Principal Preparation Programs In Texas In 2019: Where Is Special Education?, Ann Hoa Lê, Julie Peterson Combs

School Leadership Review

Most principal training programs in the United States focus very little on preparing aspiring instructional leaders to lead programs for students with disabilities. An examination of principal preparation programs and their SPED components is necessary at a time when standards have been revised and new certification exams have been constructed in Texas. To explore the presence of SPED topics in principal certification courses, we used a classical content analysis with a group of university-based principal preparation programs. Almost half of the universities in our study required 18 semester hours or fewer for principal certification, and none of these had course …

Building School Leader Capacity For Impact, Catherine L. Meyer-Looze, Rick Vandermolen

School Leadership Review

Effective school leaders focus on identifying the changes needed to improve student learning. However, school improvement is often reduced to a checklist of compliance activities, and, consequently, achievement gaps continue to stay the status quo, or even widen. This paper reports on a qualitative case study analyzing how professional learning was implemented by 17 school leaders within a northern Michigan intermediate school district. From 2016-2020, the authors conducted semi-structured interviews, administered a participant needs survey, and analyzed artifacts from a professional learning series for principals. The series, Building Leadership Capacity, was framed using Bandura’s Social Learning Theory, as well as …

Content Analysis Of Dissertations On Women Superintendents From 2017-2020, Pauline M. Sampson, Te'yana Ridyolph

School Leadership Review

No abstract provided.

Trauma-Informed Supports For Rebuilding School Communities, Nancy S. Stockall, William H. Blackwell

Journal of Human Services: Training, Research, and Practice

This manuscript describes four principles of trauma-informed supports that can guide school leaders in rebuilding school communities that have been fractured by the COVID-19 pandemic. Based on the work of Hobfoll et al. (2007), these principles are: a) promoting a sense of safety, b) addressing safety within behavior support practices, c) building relationships, and d) promoting self-efficacy and instilling hope. As schools slowly reopen, there is a risk that the re-opening will signify that the crisis has ended and schools can return to their previous policies and systems of support. However, the lingering and long-term effects of the isolation and …

Emotionally Agile Leadership Amid Covid-19, Adrianne Wilson

School Leadership Review

The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically changed the job requirements of school leaders and has negatively impacted the academic outcomes for students (Kuhfeld et al., 2020). As a result of the ongoing demands and stress caused by this pandemic, school leaders are at an increased risk for physical and mental health problems (Boyatzis & McKee, 2005; Brackett et al., 2018; Murphy, 2011; Sorenson, 2007) and, as a result, are less likely to continue in their profession long-term (Brackett et al., 2018; Farrace, 2020).

In an effort to subvert the negative impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic as well as future crises, this …

New Texas Elementary Teachers' Perspective Of Needed Supports For Career Retention: A Qualitative Study, Patrick Guy

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The study specifically investigated new elementary teachers' perceptions of the support they need during the first five years of their teaching experiences to influence their decision to remain both at their current teaching assignment and in the profession. The literature detailed specific elements of leadership within the realm of support that lends to teacher retention. A qualitative methodology was employed for to collect in-depth interview data from three Texas elementary entry teachers. The original intent was for five participants, however due to the COVID-19 pandemic, only three participants took part in this study. The researcher identified themes that emerged from …

Microaggressions In Academia: One Black Woman’S Story, Victoria Carter Jones

Journal of Multicultural Affairs

Abstract

As a Black instructor in higher education, I know all about the challenges that marginalized people face on a regular basis. After all, racism is deeply rooted in the foundation of our American culture and society. So, I guess I should not have been surprised when two senior professors made assumptions about who I am as a Black American woman and my intelligence in academia. This paper gives a subtle and brief look into my experiences of microaggressions as a new Black woman instructor at a predominantly White institution.

Get Ready For Future Education: A Phenomenological Study On Artificial Intelligence, Son T. H. Pham

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Artificial intelligence (A.I.) brings new opportunities for social construction. This phenomenological research attempted to analyze the phenomenon of artificial intelligence in education, grounding in American philosophy, with a review of the history of A.I. in education, its promise, and possible futures. The primary purpose of the study was to share voices and lived experiences of educators, philosophers, industrialists and politicians toward the coming high-tech society. Fundamental to this philosophical inquiry was Heideggerian interpretive phenomenology. The findings from eight intellectuals participating in this study elucidated five themes of the investigated phenomenon. Together these empirical indicators, and an outline of philosophy of …

K-12 Economically Disadvantaged Students, Poverty, And Education: Ecological Narratives Of Successful Raised-In-Poverty, Texas Educators, Rebecca N. Morris

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research study aimed to understand how successful Texas educators who grew up in poverty understood and improved the educational experience of economically disadvantaged students. This study utilized a structural ecological theory and three theories of social relationships (Social Identity, Standpoint, and Cultural Capital). This phenomenological and qualitative study used a cross-sectional, descriptive, online case study design rooted in narrative nonfiction. Virtual interviews with six successful Texas educators that grew up in poverty were conducted. A narrative method of analysis was utilized to generate codes then organize them into themes, and to construct and compare the narrative findings. The results …

Learning From Hsi Success Stories - Opportunities For Implementation At Sfa, Sarah Straub, Wilma Cordova

Diversity Conference

Participants in this session will first be presented with exemplar initiatives at public universities across Texas that are currently recognized as HSIs. These initiatives will focus on curricular updates, recruitment efforts, and campus physical culture. From these success stories, participants will have conversations about clearly defining purpose, pathways for implementation, how to address potential roadblocks, etc.

Ecologies Of Hope: Understanding Educational Success Among Black Males In An Urban Midwestern City, Willie C. Harmon, Marlon C. James, Rasheedah Farooq

Journal of Multicultural Affairs

The American Psychological Association's Task Force on Resilience and Strength in Black Children and Adolescents (2008) called for resilience frameworks particularly designed to understand African American development. Thus, the present study explores the lives of seven academically successful Black males in an urban midwestern city. Using a Critical Race Theory framework, the researchers center the counterstories of men of color who matriculated through college from a "failing" high school in a challenging urban community. Using constant comparative analysis, two critical themes emerged: extended family and extended kinship support networks. A synthesis of these themes resulted in an emergent framework entitled …

Implementing Strategic Support For Sexual Minority Youth And Exploring The Effects Of Social Connectedness, Dawn Whidden, Kelly Brown, J. Vince Nix

School Leadership Review

ABSTRACT

IMPLEMENTING STRATEGIC SUPPORT FOR SEXUAL MINORITY YOUTH AND EXPLORING THE EFFECTS OF SOCIAL CONNECTEDNESS

Youth spend the majority of their time in schools which is considered one of the most influential environments (Roeser, Eccles, & Samroff, 2000). Students connected to their learning environments are healthier, happier and achieve higher academic success (Juvonen, 2006). Sexual minority youth (SMY), students who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (LGBT+), encounter daily challenges (Craig & McInroy, 2013). The purpose of this research was to study the impact of social connectedness and its effects on sexual minority youth (SMY) and overall campus culture. …

Instructional Leadership Practices And School Leaders' Self-Efficacy, Juliann Sergi Mcbrayer 4785659, Carter Akins, Antonio Gutierrez De Blume, Richard Cleveland, Summer Pannell

School Leadership Review

The purpose of this quantitative study was to investigate instructional leadership practices and the degree to which these practices predict the leadership self-efficacy of school leaders while controlling for years of experience as a school leader. With educational reform focused on school accountability, principals must attend to tasks that lead to school improvement. Identifying such tasks as instructional leadership practices and gaining a more comprehensive understanding of instructional leadership practices through leadership self-efficacy may contribute to school improvement. The methodology utilized a survey and the participants were 100 principals and assistant principals of public schools in the southeastern United States, …

Redesign And Development Of The Superintendent Licensure Preparation Program For The 21st Century, Robert Thiede

School Leadership Review

The Ashland University's superintendent licensure program had not been revised and updated for the last several years. With all the educational reforms in the first part of this new millennium, there was a pressing need to redefine and develop the overall program and courses. An action plan was set up to carry out steps to redesign the program format, syllabi, assessments, course delivery modes, and overall course schedule. Through the collection and analyses of stakeholders' feedback, review of comparative universities' preparation programs, alignment of state and national standards with course content, and the investigation of current research of program development, …

The Professional Development Of Rural School Principals: The Elements, Contexts, And Topics Desired By Principals In A Rural School District, Thomas Cothern

School Leadership Review

Abstract

Effective professional development for school principals is crucial to the successful administration of schools. This data from a mixed methods study to determine the elements, contexts, and topics found in the principals’ professional development in a rural school district in Louisiana. Educational leadership literature and studies have indicated professional development for principals should be ongoing and occur during all phases of the principals’ career. The participants in the study included the principals of the schools in the rural district.

The data collected through the survey used and the interview provided a glimpse of the professional development found in the …

Implementing Discipline Reform: One District’S Experience With Pbis, Catherine Robert Ed.D.

School Leadership Review

This study examines the case of one large urban school district’s implementation of Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) to review competing needs and challenges encountered over a four-year period. There are encouraging results supporting the finding of a successful PBIS implementation and plans for continued implementation of Tier I practices and expand Tier II supports. Reducing the continuing disparity between the percentages of African American and White students receiving disciplinary consequences remains a challenge for Middleton ISD. In addition, work remains to reduce the disproportionate number of students receiving special education services who receive higher levels of disciplinary consequences.

The Implementation Of A Regional Education Network Through The Application Of The Developmental Evaluation Process: A Case Study, Amy Jane Griffiths, John Brady

School Leadership Review

Abstract: One in three young adults with autism or developmental disability have never been employed within eight years of their leaving high school (Newman et al., 2011). These students graduate from schools and may then work with multiple services providers across agencies. Collaboration between these agencies is critical. This case study describes the successful efforts of a group of educational leaders, parents, individuals with disabilities, and service providers who came together to improve the transition outcomes of young adults with disabilities. The success of this large and complex effort was facilitated by the application of a developmental evaluation process which …

Graduate Student Perceptions Of Cohort Delivery And Problem-Based Learning In Online Principal Certification Courses, Pam Winn Ed. D., James Gentry Ed. D., An Nguyen Ed. D.

School Leadership Review

This qualitative study examined graduate/post-graduate student perceptions regarding the use of a cohort model and Project-Based Learning (PBL) in a completely online principal certification preparation classes. As part of a TEA funded grant, two districts (a cohort of 17 students) completed 24-semester hours of principal certification courses. All classes were online and emphasized PBL to engage the students in higher-level thinking skills. Participants responded to an open-ended survey regarding their perceptions of cohort and PBL experiences. Findings indicate graduate/post-graduate student perceptions were positive concerning both the cohort model and the PBL learning experiences. However, participants provided valuable feedback for improvements …

Teacher Retention In A Rural East Texas School District, Gary J. Miller

School Leadership Review

This qualitative study investigated what factors kept teachers committed to teaching in one rural east Texas school district despite the perceived educational inequalities of rural districts compared to suburban and urban districts. When it comes to teacher retention, rural school leaders cite school environment and community lifestyle compatibility as the primary reasons for staying. Despite the considerable number of rural school districts throughout the United States, research continues to largely ignore the unique relationships found in rural locales. Rural school districts offer many advantages over their suburban and urban counterparts; it is a matter of identifying what is important to …

Educational Leaders Can Lead The Way For Increased Academic Achievement For Students On The Autism Spectrum, Stephanie C. Holmes, Jennifer Butcher

School Leadership Review

The problem that drove this study was the increasing number of students with autism entering the school system, and the barriers often encountered for both academic and social inclusion for students on the autism spectrum. Autism Spectrum Disorder, as defined by diagnostic criteria, includes deficits in social-relational communication; social-communication deficits can lead to educational impacts and limit opportunities upon transitioning from the public-school system. The purpose of this study was to examine the barriers to inclusion, from the perspectives of key stakeholders to include Local Education Agency (LEA) representatives, general and special education teachers, school counselors, school psychologists, speech-language pathologists …

Lessons From Principals Of High-Performing Ethnically Diverse High-Poverty Schools, Elizabeth T. Murakami, W Sean Kearney

School Leadership Review

This study examines practices of principals working in high-performing, high-poverty schools with a high representation of students of color in south central Texas. This study explores how leaders build individual and organizational capacity in high-needs schools. Using a criterion sample, and a conceptual framework focused on leadership for learning, three principals were included in this study. Their schools each had 85% representation of students of color, 85% or more of students qualifying for free/reduced lunch, and at least 85% of students demonstrating mastery on state assessments. Principals demonstrated that while it is paramount to set organizational structures and policies conducive …

Talk Or Walk: School Principals And Shared Instructional Leadership, Sheila Baker, John Decman, Jana M. Willis

School Leadership Review

Beginning in March of 2020, public school educators at all levels were thrown into a situation in which they were required to drastically alter pedagogical approaches to teaching and learning. The move from classroom-based instruction to a virtual platform, whether synchronous or not, was too often done on-the-fly and with mixed results. With the realization and acceptance, albeit grudgingly, that web-based, internet-based, and/or virtual platforms need to be greatly expanded to the population and may become the norm for public education, there clearly exists a need for an expanded definition of instructional leadership.

The purpose of this study is to …

Creating Stem Momentum: Culturally Relevant Leadership And Hispanic Girls In High School T- Stem Programs In The Southwest Border Region, Antoinette Howard, Pamela Gray, Kristin Kew

School Leadership Review

This qualitative multi-case research study identified culturally relevant leadership practices that influence the outreach, recruitment, and retention of Hispanic girls in Texas Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (T-STEM) programs in a School District in the Southwest Border region. Educators have a social justice responsibility to challenge the inequitable social, cultural, and political constructs in their schools and districts and address the unique needs of students who represent underserved racial, ethnic, and cultural groups. Administrators in this study acknowledged the hegemonic structures and barriers they and their students faced and shared some of their strategies and ideologies for school improvement and …

Latina Superintendents In New Mexico And Their Glass Ceilings, Leanne Salazar Montoya, Kristin Kew

School Leadership Review

This paper looks at the stories shared by Latina school leaders regarding their ascendance to the superintendency in New Mexico. The social, political, and cultural supports and challenges that they experienced along the way to their top positions in school leadership are discussed including the impact of gender barriers, power differentials, the value of their trusted networks and mentors, and maintaining a sense of mission and direction for themselves and their districts. Authors employed a qualitative portraiture design to ensure authenticity of voice and critical race and feminist frameworks to commit to a vision of liberation in learning and leadership.

Pandemic Policy Preparedness: Unintentional Student Discrimination In The Wake Of Covid-19, Jerry Burkett, Danielle Reynolds

School Leadership Review

Educational leadership requires a set of skills and practices that are shaped by professional ethics. Professional ethics are the dynamics of both personal and professional ethics and requires educational leaders to understand how these ethical codes drive interactions and decisions especially in difficult situations (Shapiro & Stefkovich, 2016). Anderson (2014) argues that educational leaders may not have the deeper understanding of social justice necessary to “better scholarship, but also to better practice” (pp. x) due to the current expectations of leaders including increasing test scores and accountability ratings and addressing social and emotional learning.

Adding to the current expectations of …

Training And Development Of Instructor-Leadership: An Instructional Systems Design Approach, Paul T. Balwant

Journal of Human Services: Training, Research, and Practice

A body of research on instructors’ use of leadership behaviors in higher education teaching, often called instructor-leadership, is gaining momentum. Despite the field’s growth, the practical recommendations emerging from empirical investigations of instructor-leadership remain largely underdeveloped. In particular, the most popular practical implication – training and development of instructor-leadership – is given fleeting attention. In light of this, the present paper aims to provide detailed guidelines on the training and development of instructor-leadership by drawing from both the instructor-leadership and training and development bodies of literature. In so doing, this paper utilizes the instructional systems design approach to provide guidelines …

Effects Of Hands-On Experiences On Student Achievement, Interest, And Attitude In Chemistry, Donna Gretchenn Adkins

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the effect of hands-on experiences on student achievement, interest, and attitude in chemistry. The researcher gathered data from 82 students enrolled in an East Texas high school chemistry course for the 2019-2020 school year. Historical data from five-unit tests were used to assess differences in mean achievement scores between test items aligned with hands-on laboratory experiences and test items aligned with computer-simulated experiences. An independent t-test and a paired t-test were used to statistically evaluate the data. The independent t-test showed no statistically significant difference. However, the paired t-test did indicate a statistically significant difference. To assess …