As demands on school-based administrators continue to increase, so do their responsibilities. Historically the roles and responsibilities of school principals have been clearly delineated in both the legislation governing in-school administrators and also in principals' job descriptions. Principals typically know the expectations of their leadership roles, however, the same cannot be said for all vice-principals (VPs). The pattern that emerges is one that shows the VP as being a jack-of-all-trades. Typically, Saskatchewan rural VPs do not have clearly delineated expectations formally or informally in either legislation or job description. Most often VPs positions are advertised as containing a teaching component and "other duties as assigned." The 2001 Saskatchewan Teachers' Federation (STF) recommendations for improving in-school administration positions have led to little change (p. 3). The conceptual framework focused on the relationship between geographical location (distance), gender and rural Saskatchewan VP perceptions of employee-made and employer-made workplace obligations. VPs are a critical yet often overlooked component of school effectiveness. This emphasized the need for advancing our understanding of VPs' employment relationship and connecting this to the "VP role restructured" blueprint found in the literature. The purpose of this study was to investigate, explore and describe the pattern of the psychological contract among Saskatchewan rural VP's and facilitate better utilization of their skills and leadership. Quantitative and qualitative methods were used in this study. The quantitative data was derived from Rousseau's (2000) Psychological Contract Inventory (PCI) survey questionnaire. This survey was used to determine the extent of employee-made and employer-made workplace obligations from the VP perception. The sample consisted of 42 VPs employed in rural Saskatchewan schools. The qualitative data were generated from participant responses to the open-ended questions attached to the end of the PCI. The responses to the survey and the open-ended questions were analyzed according to the research questions, emerging themes and recurring themes. After the data were analyzed, relationships were revealed between geographical location, gender, and rural VPs' perceptions of workplace obligations. The findings in this study revealed VPs were generally in agreement that relationships between distance, gender and perceptions of workplace obligations were slight at best. It was also revealed that VPs' perceptions of employee-made and employer-made workplace obligations were characterized as well-being items representative of loyalty and security features of a relational psychological contract. VPs indicated a willingness to commit to the organization regardless of distance or gender. Participants almost unanimously expressed their aspirations for the inclusion of professional growth, skill enhancement and increased leadership responsibilities in their assigned, expected and assumed role behaviors. Participant responses were generally consistent with the literature. Derived from participants' qualitative responses, VPs lead busy work lives. As revealed in the findings, VPs indicated they had aspirations for enhanced leadership opportunities. This study generated many implications for practice, policy and research.

As demands on school-based administrators continue to increase, so do their responsibilities. Historically the roles and responsibilities of school principals have been clearly delineated in both the legislation governing in-school administrators and also in principals' job descriptions. Principals typically know the expectations of their leadership roles, however, the same cannot be said for all vice-principals (VPs). The pattern that emerges is one that shows the VP as being a jack-of-all-trades. Typically, Saskatchewan rural VPs do not have clearly delineated expectations formally or informally in either legislation or job description. Most often VPs positions are advertised as containing a teaching component and "other duties as assigned." The 2001 Saskatchewan Teachers' Federation (STF) recommendations for improving in-school administration positions have led to little change (p. 3). The conceptual framework focused on the relationship between geographical location (distance), gender and rural Saskatchewan VP perceptions of employee-made and employer-made workplace obligations. VPs are a critical yet often overlooked component of school effectiveness. This emphasized the need for advancing our understanding of VPs' employment relationship and connecting this to the "VP role restructured" blueprint found in the literature. The purpose of this study was to investigate, explore and describe the pattern of the psychological contract among Saskatchewan rural VP's and facilitate better utilization of their skills and leadership. Quantitative and qualitative methods were used in this study. The quantitative data was derived from Rousseau's (2000) Psychological Contract Inventory (PCI) survey questionnaire. This survey was used to determine the extent of employee-made and employer-made workplace obligations from the VP perception. The sample consisted of 42 VPs employed in rural Saskatchewan schools. The qualitative data were generated from participant responses to the open-ended questions attached to the end of the PCI. The responses to the survey and the open-ended questions were analyzed according to the research questions, emerging themes and recurring themes. After the data were analyzed, relationships were revealed between geographical location, gender, and rural VPs' perceptions of workplace obligations. The findings in this study revealed VPs were generally in agreement that relationships between distance, gender and perceptions of workplace obligations were slight at best. It was also revealed that VPs' perceptions of employee-made and employer-made workplace obligations were characterized as well-being items representative of loyalty and security features of a relational psychological contract. VPs indicated a willingness to commit to the organization regardless of distance or gender. Participants almost unanimously expressed their aspirations for the inclusion of professional growth, skill enhancement and increased leadership responsibilities in their assigned, expected and assumed role behaviors. Participant responses were generally consistent with the literature. Derived from participants' qualitative responses, VPs lead busy work lives. As revealed in the findings, VPs indicated they had aspirations for enhanced leadership opportunities. This study generated many implications for practice, policy and research.

The purpose of this research was to learn about how coaching serves as a form of professional learning for newly-appointed vice-principals. This study is intended to add to our understanding of the ways in which coaching supports the professional learning of vice-principals in a context where their role is ill-defined and determined by their principal. A qualitative research approach was used which included personal interviews with fourteen first-time elementary vice-principals in five Ontario school districts. The study was based on the following research question: How does the coaching experience support the professional learning of first-time school administrators? The participants reported positive feelings about their coaching experiences. Specifically, they described that they appreciated the confidential and non-evaluative nature of the coaching relationship, that the focus was on their individual learning needs, and that the coaching provided opportunities to engage in reflective thinking. In terms of their learning, the participants reported that through coaching they built confidence, gained knowledge about both the managerial and leadership aspects of school leader roles, and that they learned about themselves and their own well-being in the process. Several challenges were reported. These included a desire for increased frequency of scheduled coaching sessions while maintaining a focus on learning during the sessions, and financial constraints for those who needed to be released from teaching responsibilities in order to participate in coaching. Based on their experiences, the participants described the vice-principal role as being determined by the principal, offering limited opportunity to exercise their own leadership, expecting them to follow decisions made by the principal, and serving to prepare them for the principalship. The thesis concludes that coaching for newly-appointed elementary vice-principals is a valuable experience because it serves as personalized professional learning that engages participants in reflective thought. The lack of clarity about the vice-principal role creates a situation where vice-principals understand their role principally through their experiences of it, not through research, policy, or training. As a result, each vice-principal has unique learning needs based on their experience of the role thus they benefit when their learning is personalized.

The purpose of this research was to learn about how coaching serves as a form of professional learning for newly-appointed vice-principals. This study is intended to add to our understanding of the ways in which coaching supports the professional learning of vice-principals in a context where their role is ill-defined and determined by their principal. A qualitative research approach was used which included personal interviews with fourteen first-time elementary vice-principals in five Ontario school districts. The study was based on the following research question: How does the coaching experience support the professional learning of first-time school administrators? The participants reported positive feelings about their coaching experiences. Specifically, they described that they appreciated the confidential and non-evaluative nature of the coaching relationship, that the focus was on their individual learning needs, and that the coaching provided opportunities to engage in reflective thinking. In terms of their learning, the participants reported that through coaching they built confidence, gained knowledge about both the managerial and leadership aspects of school leader roles, and that they learned about themselves and their own well-being in the process. Several challenges were reported. These included a desire for increased frequency of scheduled coaching sessions while maintaining a focus on learning during the sessions, and financial constraints for those who needed to be released from teaching responsibilities in order to participate in coaching. Based on their experiences, the participants described the vice-principal role as being determined by the principal, offering limited opportunity to exercise their own leadership, expecting them to follow decisions made by the principal, and serving to prepare them for the principalship. The thesis concludes that coaching for newly-appointed elementary vice-principals is a valuable experience because it serves as personalized professional learning that engages participants in reflective thought. The lack of clarity about the vice-principal role creates a situation where vice-principals understand their role principally through their experiences of it, not through research, policy, or training. As a result, each vice-principal has unique learning needs based on their experience of the role thus they benefit when their learning is personalized.

Cette recherche vise à augmenter les connaissances sur le processus d’insertion professionnelle des nouveaux directeurs et directeurs adjoints du primaire et du secondaire au Québec lors de la première année en fonction. Pour mieux connaître cette étape de la vie professionnelle, quatre dimensions du processus d’insertion professionnelle ont été étudiées : la nature de la tâche, le contexte d’exercice, le soutien et l’accompagnement et les caractéristiques motivationnelles. Le sentiment d’empowerment des nouveaux gestionnaires a été étudié simultanément afin d’examiner leur motivation à exercer la nouvelle fonction. La question générale de la recherche était de savoir si la mesure du sentiment d’empowerment utilisé pour traiter de la motivation pouvait apporter de l’information sur la façon dont se vit le processus d’insertion professionnelle des nouveaux directeurs et directeurs adjoints d’établissement d’enseignement. Les données ont été recueillies auprès de dix nouveaux directeurs et directeurs adjoints d’établissement. Une conception de l’insertion professionnelle en tant que processus ayant été retenue, chaque participant a été rencontré à trois moments au cours de l’année scolaire, soit quelques semaines après l’entrée en fonction, au milieu de l’année et à la fin de celle-ci. Lors de chaque rencontre, les participants ont été interrogés à l’aide d’une grille d’entrevue semi-dirigée sur les quatre dimensions du processus d’insertion professionnelle mentionnées précédemment. Ils complétaient par la suite un questionnaire pour mesurer le sentiment d’empowerment. Ce questionnaire est une adaptation validée par Boudreault (1990) d’un outil développé par Tymon (1988). La recherche tend à confirmer l’utilité du sentiment d’empowerment comme source d’information sur le déroulement du processus d’insertion professionnelle. Ainsi, des relations semblent possibles entre le sentiment d’empowerment et certains aspects étudiés. Il s’agit de relations qu’il faudra cependant analyser avec de plus grands échantillons pour les valider. Tout d’abord, concernant la nature de la tâche, les constats indiquent que les directeurs adjoints affichant les meilleurs sentiments d’empowerment géraient moins de dossiers différents et que la plupart des dossiers dont ils étaient responsables faisaient appel à des habiletés développées antérieurement lors d’affectation intérimaire ou lors de leur participation à des comités à titre d’enseignants. De plus, ces participants avaient moins de gestion de personnel à effectuer, et particulièrement au regard du personnel de soutien. Ensuite, une tendance marquée a ensuite été constatée en ce qui concerne le soutien et l’accompagnement. Il est apparu que les participants (directeurs et directeurs adjoints) avec les meilleurs sentiments d’empowerment étaient ceux qui bénéficiaient du meilleur soutien et accompagnement de leur supérieur immédiat. Puis, en ce qui a trait aux caractéristiques motivationnelles, les participants exprimant les meilleurs sentiments d’empowerment se sentaient plus capables d’accomplir leur tâche et remettaient moins en question l’exercice de leur fonction. La recherche a indiqué d’autres relations possibles entre le sentiment d’empowerment et certains aspects des dimensions de l’insertion professionnelle, qui bien que moins marquées dans l’échantillon, mériteraient d’être approfondies dans des travaux futurs. Il s’agit de la relation entre le sentiment d’empowerment et le climat organisationnel de l’établissement, de la marge de manœuvre consentie dans l’exercice de la fonction et de la motivation des directeurs adjoints à postuler à un poste de directeur. Finalement, la recherche a mis en lumière la conviction des nouveaux directeurs de vivre une nouvelle phase d’insertion professionnelle et la différence entre les tâches des directeurs adjoints du primaire et ceux du secondaire. / This research contributes to the discussion regarding the induction process of new Québec elementary and high school principals and vice-principals during the year following their appointment. To understand better this stage in one’s career, we analyzed four of its main components: the nature of newly assigned professional responsibilities, working conditions and context, the degree of support provided by direct supervisors and the school board, and new vice-principals and principals’ motivational characteristics. Simultaneously, this research evaluated individuals’ feeling of empowerment, in order to measure their motivation to carry on their new positions. The main goal was to determine whether the degree of principals and vice-principals’ perceived empowerment could provide information about how they are experiencing their professional induction. Ten incoming Québec elementary and high school principals and vice-principals were met through a process of semi-structured interviews. Seeing the notion of “professional induction” as a process, rather than a discrete moment in one’s career, each participant was interviewed on three occasions over the course of the school year: a few weeks after the participant took office, halfway through the school year, and at the end of the school year. During each interview, participants answered questions relating to the four components of the professional induction process that were previously mentioned. They were then asked to fill in a written questionnaire designed to measure their own perceived level of empowerment. The questionnaire used was an adaptation by Boudreault (1990) of a tool initially developed by Tymon (1988). This research seems to confirm the usefulness of the feeling of empowerment as an indicator of how professional induction is unfolding. More precisely, the findings suggest that there exist correlations between the degree of perceived empowerment and certain aspects of the four components of the professional induction process under study. Further studies with larger samples will nevertheless be necessary in order to validate these findings. Firstly, vice-principals with the highest levels of perceived empowerment were those with less variety in files to manage and who were mainly responsible for files that required skills they had already developed during previously-held interim positions or during their participation in committees as teachers. These vice-principals also had fewer responsibilities relating to human resources management, and particularly few responsibilities regarding support staff. Secondly, results regarding the quality of support available to the participants showed a marked tendency. Indeed, participants (both principals and vice-principals) with the highest levels of perceived empowerment were those who reported having received satisfactory support from their direct supervisor. Thirdly, participants with the highest levels of perceived empowerment were those who felt more able to satisfy their professional responsibilities and who questioned less whether they ought to remain in their current positions. The findings also suggest links between individuals’ perceived empowerment and other aspects of their professional induction process that, while less clear from the present research, deserve further investigation. These other aspects include the school’s organizational climate, the level of discretion given to new vice-principals and principals, and whether vice-principals plan to apply for positions as principals. Finally, the research has highlighted new principals’ belief that they are experiencing a unique induction process in their career and the differences between the tasks of elementary and high school vice-principals.

This study compares an effective school and ineffective school, in terms of how internal leadership and management of each school contribute its effectiveness. As a result, the study explores why one of two schools located within the same socio-economic environment, funded uniformly and controlled by the government at same levels of commitments is effective, while the other seems ineffective. Therefore, this thesis raises questions to know how internal school stakeholders’ leadership and management practices contribute to school effectiveness in each of the schools. A comparison was undertaken by firstly exploring how school leadership and management practices of School Leadership and Management Teams (SLMT) and secondly, understanding how teachers’ classroom leadership and management contribute to school effectiveness respectively. Therefore, in an attempt to answer the main research question: How do leadership and management dynamics contribute to school effectiveness? Other identified sub-questions were raised. Furthermore, a review of relevant literature uncovered what makes good and quality school leadership, management and; classroom leadership and management in ensuring school effectiveness. Data was collected from identified key role players within the two sampled schools. They include a school principal, vice-principal, Head of Departments (HOD), a teacher and classroom student leader (class captain) each, making-up a total of ten participants in the study - (five participants from each school). The researcher utilised one-on-one semi-structured interview, observations and document analysis or review in order to obtain rich qualitative data. By adopting the a-priori approach of data analysis, codes were generated manually from the interviews, observations and documents analysis/reviewed and measured against identified school leadership and management and; classroom leadership and management sub-themes/criteria in the literature reviewed in this study. From the data obtained, analysed and discussed, it was found that School A was exceptional in terms of leadership and management practises compared to School B. Although School A and B showed similar, but negligible characteristics in school planning, organising, management of change and; coordination of school teaching and learning, School A’s strength in terms of management of the school, lies in its availability of school policy on teaching, decision-making, delegating, control, motivating, communicating, management of interpersonal relationships, school climate, culture, change, management of conflict and school school-community relationships. In addition, even though School A and B teacher exhibited similar elements like, teaching methods ability, planning of their teaching and they both lack written classroom policy in their classroom leadership and management practices, differences like classroom leadership, motivation, communication, classroom climate and control exhibited by School A teacher during teaching and learning makes him far better, in comparison to School B teacher. Conclusively, the exceptional leadership and management practices by the School Leadership and Management (SLMT) of School A and its teacher in comparison to School B brought about multiplicity of other findings in this study. In the overall, it is believed that the interrelatedness of the exceptional leadership and management behaviour and practices of school A SLMT and teacher, is a consequence of the culture of the school, which has been built and maintained over the years and thus, influenced its climate in contributing to school effectiveness. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Education Management and Policy Studies / unrestricted

To identify how high school assistant principals in large suburban schools serve as instructional leaders and how they develop these skills, this research utilized a multiple-case study design, followed by a cross-case analysis of the data. This research explores the instructional leadership of three female comprehensive high school assistant principals who are employed in the same Northern California school district. Each case was developed with the use of interviews, observation and document analysis. Included in each case is a description of the assistant principal's instructional job responsibilities, how they develop their instructional leadership and obtain opportunities to function in instructional leadership roles. This research found several main themes. They include that the theoretical model for Hallinger's Principals Instructional Management Rating Scale did not work in regards to assistant principals, they were found to serve not in the role of leader, but more in the role of facilitator and relationship builders, the role of the assistant principal has not evolved over the past century, they are constrained by the political dynamics of their school structure which leaves them as marginalized leaders, they lack opportunities to grow as instructional leaders due to opportunities for professional development and the ambiguity of their role, and female assistant principals may not take the opportunity to serve as a leader since this may not be perceived natural due to their gender association.