Educational Leadership Commons^™

Through The Eyes Of Teachers: Relationships Between Principal Communication Style And School Climate, Ryan Lee Lang

All Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this quantitative study was to see if a statistically significant relationship existed between principal communication style and school climate as perceived by elementary teachers in high achieving Title 1 elementary schools in a Midwest state. Teacher perceptions of principal communication style were assessed using the Communication Style Inventory (CSI). The six communication styles assessed were Expressiveness, Preciseness, Verbal Aggressiveness, Questioningness, Emotionality, and Impression Manipulativeness. Teacher perceptions of school climate were assessed using the Organization Climate Description Questionnaire – Revised Elementary (OCDQ-RE). School climate scores were calculated regarding a degree of principal openness and a degree of teacher …

A Systematic Narrative Review Of Literature On Catholic Schools In Australia To Better Understand The Role Of School Leadership Deploying And Integrating Information And Communication Technology (Ict) In This Environment, Steven Francis Vella, Oliver Kisalay Burmeister, Arnela Ceric, Andrew Barnden

eJournal of Catholic Education in Australasia

Research literature within school education present school leaders with a range of roles deploying and integrating Information and Communication Technology (ICT). Roles range from being critically important for success, being needed but to a lesser extent, through to not being needed at all. Australian Catholic schools operate in the same political and social context as schools from other sectors but assimilate the Catholic mission in what they do. To determine if the role of school leadership deploying and integrating ICT in Australian Catholic schools reflected literature from the broader education environment, this study carried out a systematic narrative literature review …

The Challenge Of Leading Change: How Sources Of Authority And Change Management Models Intersect To Promote School Improvement, Samantha Joyce Lam

Dissertations

A gap in research exists that demonstrates how principals use their authority to make decisions and how that intersects with change management models. The purpose of the study is to examine how one elementary school principal has led change and how teachers perceive the effectiveness of the change. The study seeks to explore principal's and teachers' perceptions of the impact of the change on the school.

Through a bounded, qualitative case study design, the researcher used several techniques to gather data: teacher survey, principal interview, teacher interview, and document analysis. Multiple sources of data were used to adequately shed light …

Maintaining And Improving Academic Achievement In The Midst Of Significant Demographic Change: A Case Study Analysis, Aaron Raatjes

Dissertations

The research of Mei Jiun Wu (2013) indicates that demographic change greater than 1% has significant impact on the achievement performance of school districts. This study analyzes a single district that experienced an average of 1.25% demographic change per year consisting of an increase of non-White students from 2002 to 2015. Despite this compounding change, the district was able to maintain and improve academic achievement. This study utilizes Marzano and Waters' (2009) framework for school leadership as well as Lindsey, Nuri-Robins, and Terrell's (2009) Framework for cultural proficiency to better understand how the district was able to maintain and improve …

The Superintendent’S Feed: An Analysis Of Superintendents’ Engagement In Political Discourse On Twitter, Todd M. Hurst

Theses and Dissertations--Education Sciences

The modern school superintendent fulfills a unique role in the American public education system. He or she is structurally empowered as the de facto head of the local educational system, thereby granted with a certain amount of trust and authority regarding educational issues. At the same time, the superintendent is, in most cases, an employee of a politically appointed school board. This construction creates a dynamic wherein the superintendent is both the leader of a highly structured, bureaucratic system, while at the same time an employee of a largely lay, often elected, group of citizens.

The position of the superintendent …

Neither Here Nor There: Transformational Leadership And Cultural Intelligence In Presidents Of U.S. Accredited Universities Located In Foreign Countries, Jeff Bourgeois

Dissertations

The role of a university president combines the symbolism of an institutional ambassador with the leadership responsibilities of a private-sector executive. When considering the cultural context of the university and the culture of the surrounding community, the demands of the presidential position become far more complex. The Council for Higher Education Accreditation currently lists 42 colleges and universities with institutional-level accreditation located beyond the borders of the Unite States, and two more listed as candidates for future accreditation consideration. Presidents of the 44 internationally located universities bearing U.S. accreditation must negotiate the potential for tension between the many cultures at …

Making Use Of Teacher Mentors: Understanding The Impact Of Teacher-Student Relationships On Student Academic Achievement, Sara Haas

Dissertations

The University of Chicago Consortium on Chicago School Research (CCSR) has determined that if a high school student completes freshman year with the necessary course credits to be promoted to tenth grade and has no more than one F for one semester/course in a core content area then they are considered on track to graduate high school within four years and ultimately be college and career ready (Allensworth & Easton, 2005). The CCSR did further research and published a report examining the factors that indicated what a middle grades student would need to be on track as high school freshman …

Back To Africa In The 21st Century: The Cultural Reconnection Experiences Of African American Women, Marcia Tate Arunga

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The purpose of this study is to examine the lived experiences of 18 African American women who went to Kenya, East Africa as part of a Cultural Reconnection delegation. A qualitative narrative inquiry method was used for data collection. This was an optimal approach to honoring the authentic voices of African American women. Eighteen African American women shared their stories, revelations, feelings and thoughts on reconnecting in their ancestral homeland of Africa. The literature discussed includes diasporic returns as a subject of study, barriers to the return including the causes of historic trauma, and how Black women as culture bearers …

Boundary Spanning, Networking, And Sensemaking/Sensegiving: How Career Services Directors Enact Mid-Level Leadership, Linda Kent Davis

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

This study seeks to understand higher education leadership overall by exploring how mid-level leadership is enacted by career services directors. Given that higher education institutions are facing a wide range of challenges that require an equally wide range of skills to address them, colleges and universities may need to become more inclusive regarding who contributes to institutional leadership. Mid-level leadership is defined in this study as a process of social interaction that originates with a middle manager and that cuts across functional areas and/or hierarchical levels to impact institutional goals. Three research questions frame the study: 1) How do career …

The Role Of The Secondary Principal As A Transformational Leader In High Performing, Project Based Learning Schools In California, Daniel P. Ching

Dissertations

ABSTRACT

The Role of the Secondary Principal as a Transformational Leader in High Performing, Project Based Learning Schools in California

by Daniel Ching

Purpose: California (CA) schools are facing increased pressure to implement new content standards and perform well on the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP). The new standards focus on higher level thinking skills, technology, and skills that cross multiple content areas. These expectations are aligned with project based learning (PBL) as an instructional model. However, there are very few models for PBL schools that are considered high performing. To implement PBL in high schools requires …

Doctoral Scholarship Examined: A Study Of Strategy Research In Education Settings Conducted By Students Seeking Degrees From Doctoral Programs In Education In The United States, Joseph M. Hearl Jr

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to explore and describe strategy-related dissertations in education doctoral programs in the United States. Using content analysis, dissertations published from 2005 to 2014 were classified into two time periods. Time-period 1 ranged from 2005 through 2009. During this period, the EdD degree was differentiated from the PhD degree in doctoral programs in the field of education. Time-period 2 included the years from 2010 through 2014 and was marked by the awarding in 2014 of a grant to the Carnegie Project for Education Doctorate (CPED) Initiative to document the success of a four-year effort …

Pastoral Leadership Experiences And Organizational Outcomes In Contemporary Catholic Communities: The Clerical Perspective, Justin Mathias Udomah

Theses & Dissertations

This interpretive qualitative study explored pastoral leadership experiences of 8 Catholic priests serving in the Central Texas area of the United States. The purpose was to understand what their pastoral experiences meant for them as religious leaders and how their various perspectives would portray pastoral leadership in the 21st century Church. Participants were Catholic priests with 5 to 25 years’ experience in the ministry serving as fulltime pastors in parishes. Data collection was through open-ended interviews conducted in conducive locations. One general question was asked that enabled participants to tell their stories about their pastoral experiences since ordination. These were …

How The Transformational Leadership Style Of Superintendents Is Associated With Employees’ Organizational Commitment Via The Mediating Effect Of Extrinsic Motivation Within Nursing Homes For Disabled People In Taiwan, Ling Hui Yang

Theses & Dissertations

In 2013, about 4.8% of Taiwanese people qualified as having a disability; a disability is classified as having mild, moderate or severe, and in some cases, extremely severe intellectual disabilities or having multiple disabilities (Ministry of the Interior, Department of Statistics, 2013; Tseng, 2013). In 2013, there were 254 nursing homes for people with disabilities that were registered with the Social and Family Administration at the Ministry of Health and Welfare in Taiwan (Lee et al., 2013; Tseng, 2013). The current problems in Taiwan’s nursing homes for the disabled include overworked employees, employees with a poor work-life balance and excessive …

Transformative Leadership: A Case Study Of Schools In A Network Designed To Improve Turnaround Schools, Ivan James Duran

Educational Leadership and Policy Studies: Doctoral Research Projects

This summary presents the findings of professional research conducted over one year by a doctoral student working in an urban school district. The purpose of this research was to examine the perceptions of school leaders and teachers in two turnaround school networks that used different approaches to improving student learning outcomes. The goal was to compare one network's approach with the other network's approach to assess what factors leaders and teachers perceived to make a difference in improving student achievement in turnaround schools. One network focused on addressing the turnaround challenge through transformative leadership theory, which includes the following tenets: …

Principal Trust: Factors That Influence Faculty Trust In The Principal, A. Tyler Howe

Theses and Dissertations

Principals are held accountable for student achievement even though they only have an indirect influence on that achievement. Accountability raises the question about what should be the priority for the principal's attention. The literature supports the existence of a positive correlation between faculty trust in the principal and increased student achievement. Our study considered the appropriateness of representing trust as a two-factor model broken down into components related to how teachers view the skill and the will of the principal. Additionally, our study examined which demographic factors of the school and of the principal affect faculty trust in the principal.This …

From The Voices Of California Female Superintendents: Examining Barriers And Support Systems In A New Era Of Educational Reform Through The Lens Of Activity Theory, Jennifer L. Martin

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study is to examine the barriers and support systems female California public school superintendents experienced while attaining and serving in their current position in a new era of educational reform in Riverside and San Bernardino Counties.

Methodology: This qualitative study examined 12 female California public school superintendents’ experienced barriers and support systems. Convenience sampling was applied to identify participants of specific criteria. The researcher collected and coded data from in depth interviews; interview protocol directly correlated with the research questions of this study. A variety of related artifacts were additionally gathered and analyzed …

Readiness To Lead: Novice School Principals' Perceptions Of The Internship Experience On Their Preparedness To Assume School Leadership Roles, John Christopher Bacon

Theses and Dissertations

The effectiveness of the school leader has been identified as one of the key factors contributing to the overall success of attaining high levels of student achievement and growth. This dissertation examines the specific aspects of the principal preparation process that contribute to overall improvement in knowledge and skill level in each of the ELCC standards. Data was obtained on the perceptions of novice school leaders in the state of Arkansas regarding their own experiences in formal preparation activities to determine perceived value in improving knowledge and skill level in the components of school leadership encompassed by the ELCC standards. …

Two Models Of Health Sciences Center Leadership During Turbulent Times, Howard F. Stein, Seth Allcorn

International Journal of Leadership and Change

Leadership and change in health sciences centers are explored through contrasting two models of leadership: commonly practiced leadership and what has been referred to as “good enough leadership” (GEL). Several common cases or scenarios are presented through the lens of each model, with the conclusion that good enough leadership is more functional, creative, and healing than more widespread conventional models.

Crisis Leadership During The Great Recession Of 2008, Steven M. Walker, Matthew P. Earnhardt, Jason M. Newcomer, James W. Marion, Jr., Jon C. Tomlinson

International Journal of Leadership and Change

Understanding leadership characteristics, frameworks, components, and contexts that are beneficial to the guidance of organizational policy is useful for understanding the way in which leaders should act during a crisis. Recessions are common throughout economies; yet, many see recessions as crises. Due to the chaotic nature of economic recessions, leaders must work in conditions of uncertainty, complexity, and volatility. Therefore, using a qualitative phenomenological approach, an examination was conducted on leaders’ lived experiences of the Great Recession of 2008 to further understand the concept of crisis leadership. A discussion is included on the way in which leaders internalize and analyze …

Presidents' Perceptions Of Entrepreneurial Strategies In Community Colleges: A Disruptive Innovation, James Tyler Hart

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

The community college, like all of higher education, has been significantly impacted by a shifting business model and changes in funding. The purpose of this mixed methods, sequential study was to examine community college presidents’ perceptions of entrepreneurial strategies in the higher education industry. The shifting business model requires presidents to look for alternative ways to innovate and adapt as community college funding models change. Community college leaders have also been proactively seeking out alternative revenue streams in order to help offset decreased state funding. Findings of this study show that community college presidents perceive that they must be entrepreneurial …

Leadership Perspectives Of Chief Student Affairs Officers, Jeff Beavers

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Leadership in student affairs continues to be a challenging enterprise for universities. Colleges are expected to help students succeed while providing for abundant needs through graduation. Chief student affairs officers have increasing demands of students and faculty amid decreased funds. This exploratory study took an in-depth look at the leadership perspectives of 19 chief student affairs officers at 4-year, public universities across the Midwest. The researcher sought responses on common leadership perspectives, challenges faced, and opportunities encountered. The three emerging themes were elements that inform leadership, knowledge and skills, and mindful leadership outlook. These emergent themes formed the basis for …

Nalb: No Administrator Left Behind: A Qualitative Study Regarding Administrators’ Perceptions Of Technology Integration, Scott Thomas Curcio

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

The purpose of this study was to explore the perceptions of K-12 principals regarding technology integration in their schools. Qualitative interview research was conducted to gather data regarding principals’ perceptions, attitudes, visions, and beliefs as they relate to this topic. This study was premised on the conceptual framework of Dr. John Collins’ (2009) Technology Leadership, Management and Policy Pyramid. The three sides of this pyramid are organizational integration activities, maintenance activities, and planning activities. According to Collins (2009), all three sides of this pyramid need to be effectuated simultaneously with committed leadership in order to support this model and achieve …

Ireach Blended Learning Model And Reading Lexile Growth Of Freshmen In Maryville City Schools, Whitney Ann Schmidt

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Maryville City School system has implemented the first year of the iReach blended learning model for which all students in the school district have access to either a laptop or an iPad to support their learning every day. The availability of research on the impact of iReach is limited because the blended learning instructional model is relatively new and has not yet been subjected to numerous research studies. The purpose of this ex post facto quasi-experimental quantitative study was to compare student reading Lexile growth data collected through the use of the Reading Comprehension Assessment before and after iReach …

Latino And Latina Urban Elementary Principals’ Entry Into Educational Administration, José Montaño

LMU Theses and Dissertations

As school enrollments across the United States include increasing numbers of students of color, the number of administrators of color remains disproportionate. In California school districts, where a large percentage of students are Latino and Latina, Latino and Latina principals remain rare. While studies have suggested why Latinos and Latinas do not enter educational leadership, fewer have examined why they do elect to enter the field. This ethnographic exploratory study examines factors that led Latino and Latina educators to enter administrative leadership preparation programs with the goal of becoming school principals. The sample includes interviews with seven Latino and Latina …

Teachers’ And Administrators' Perceptions Of The Characteristics Of Effective Leadership For K-12 International Schools, Travis S. Smith

All NMU Master's Theses

The purpose of this mixed-methods study was to investigate teachers’ and administrators’ perceptions of the characteristics of effective leadership for K-12 international schools. The data produced three themes; these include emotional intelligence, the ability to establish school culture, and administrative mindset. The literature review focused on the survey data points of humor, cultural intelligence, and vision embedded within these themes. The research findings are intended to advance the knowledge of leadership for K-12 international schools.

Navigating The Waters Of Accreditation: Best Practices, Challenges, And Lessons Learned From One Institution, Tracey Covington Hasbun, Amanda M. Rudolph

Faculty Publications

In higher education, as many as 50% of educator preparation programs (EPPs) look to a national accreditation agency as one way to provide evidence of the rigor and quality of their programs. Although a large number of EPPs find value in the self-study and external review that come with the national accreditation process, the process itself can be daunting and time-consuming. Many look to the literature or to the accreditation experiences provided by other institutions as a means to assist their own accreditation journey. The purpose of this article is to discuss one regional, comprehensive EPP’s experiences with national accreditation, …

Benchmarking, Brokering, And Branding: Resources For Success Across Sectors, Maureen Scully, Lisa Deangelis, Katie Bates

Emerging Leaders Program Team Projects

The fellows in the Center for Collaborative Leadership's Emerging Leaders Program practice collaborative leadership skills by working together in peer-led teams on projects that involve multiple stakeholders and have a civic impact. The theme that emerged for the 2016 projects was Benchmarking, Brokering, and Branding: Resources for Success Across Sectors - recognizing that the fellows' social capital and ability to step back and take a wide comparative view provided new resources for their partners.

Australian Catholic Schools Today: School Identity And Leadership Formation, Helga Neidhart Phd, Janeen T. Lamb Phd

Journal of Catholic Education

This article focuses on the challenge of faith leadership in Catholic schools. In particular, it reviews Australian research that aims to understand how principals conceptualize and enact their role as faith leaders. Consistent with American research, Australian research finds that principals see themselves as playing a leadership role in the evangelizing mission of the church by strengthening Catholic school identity and culture. At the same time, they are mindful of their limits in respect to their faith leadership capabilities. Moreover, the principals worried that the next generation of school leaders may lack the knowledge, skills, and attitudes to engage faith …

The Impact Of Louisiana's Compass Teacher Evaluation System On Principals In One School District: A Case Study, David P. Schexnaydre Jr

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

As teacher evaluation practices become increasingly high-stakes, principal observation has been made an important source of data in the evaluation process. Driven by the federal Race to the Top initiative, implementation of teacher evaluation systems has been rapid and questions remain about the preparedness of principals to successfully implement the new evaluation processes. The researcher conducted a qualitative case study that focuses on the implementation of the Louisiana Department of Education's COMPASS teacher evaluation system and its impacts on principals in one school district. Interviews were conducted with six principals, a focus group was held with the four members of …

Evaluating The Effectiveness Of Traditional And Alternative Principal Preparation Programs, Summer Pannell Ph.D., Bernnell M. Peltier-Glaze Ed.D., Ingrid Haynes Ph.D., Delilah Davis Ph.D., Carrie Skelton Ph.D.

Journal of Organizational & Educational Leadership

This study sought to determine the effectiveness on increasing student achievement of principals trained in a traditional principal preparation program and those trained in an alternate route principal preparation program within the same Mississippi university. Sixty-six Mississippi principals and assistant principals participated in the study. Of the 66 participants, 41 competed a traditional principal preparation program, and 25 completed an alternate route principal preparation program at the same university. The data included the type of principal preparation the participant received, the number of consecutive years served as a principal or assistant principal, and student achievement data for their assigned schools. …