The purpose of this study was to explore the perceptions of principals from around the world regarding the perceived skill set necessary for success before, during, and after the coronavirus pandemic. While many school facilities closed during the public health crisis, the learning continued. During the pandemic, educational leaders were tasked with creating environments that allowed students to thrive academically, behaviorally, and emotionally from beyond the classroom walls. By identifying the perceived skill set required to lead an effective school building before and then during the pandemic, a greater understanding of the future of education can be ascertained. The study involved interviewing fourteen school leaders from around the world (seven from the United States and seven internationally). The interview questions probed the perceived necessary skills for the functioning of successful school buildings prior to, during, and then after the coronavirus pandemic. The outcome of the study provides opportunities for school leaders and human resource personnel to identify characteristics essential for success in a world changed by the global pandemic. By analyzing the perceptions of necessary skills to lead successful schools during the coronavirus crisis through a comparative approach, a dedication of resources for improving the quality of the leadership within school buildings moving forward can be adapted. / Doctor of Education / The global coronavirus health crisis greatly impacted schools, learning, and leadership. Through a comparative approach, we have an opportunity to learn from each other and make crucial changes moving forward to garner more success. The influence of comparative education on school leadership preparation was identified in the review of literature. American and international school leaders who were impacted by the coronavirus was the specific area the researcher focused on for this study. This qualitative study focused on the perceptions of school leaders on the skills necessary for success before, during, and then after the health crisis. Data was collected through the interviews of fourteen school leaders (seven from the United States and seven from around the world). Through this study, the researcher identified seven findings and four implications. One limitation for this study was the small sample size. A suggestion for future research would be to investigate how important the vision of a school building is to the overall leadership attributes by interviewing the leadership teams and then the teachers they serve to discover if there is alignment by triangulating student assessment data, staff climate surveys, and student climate surveys.

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between the attitude toward mathematics, including related mathematics anxiety, and the frequency of classroom observations of mathematics lessons by elementary school administrators. This study considered Approach-Avoidance Motivation as part of the conceptual framework guiding the research. Approach-avoidance motivation refers to a person's approach of tasks that are pleasant or enjoyable and avoidance of tasks that are disliked or not enjoyable. This research sought to answer the questions: 1. What is the academic background in mathematics of elementary school administrators? 2. What is the attitude toward mathematics of elementary school administrators? 3. What is the frequency of classroom observations of mathematics lessons by elementary school administrators? 4. What, if any, is the relationship between the attitude toward mathematics, including related mathematics anxiety, and the frequency of classroom observations of mathematics lessons by elementary school administrators? The participants in this study included elementary school principals and assistant principals in one school division in Virginia. Data were collected to investigate the mathematics background, attitude toward mathematics, and frequency of classroom observations of mathematics lessons by elementary school administrators. This study also examined the possible relationship between the attitude toward mathematics, including related mathematics anxiety, and the frequency of classroom observations of mathematics lessons. The attitude toward mathematics, including related mathematics anxiety, was found to have no relationship with the frequency of both formal and informal classroom observations of mathematics lessons conducted. The sample population data indicated positive attitudes toward mathematics and low levels of mathematics anxiety, which conflicts with some previous research (Dorward and Hadley, 2011; Hembree, 1990). The mathematics background of participants was found to be limited in the number of mathematics courses completed and teaching licensure endorsements specific to mathematics instruction. The findings provide educational leaders with relevant research related to attitude toward mathematics and the instructional leadership practice of observing mathematics classrooms. Central office and school leaders could benefit from explicit expectations relating to the observation of mathematics lessons in schools. / Ed. D.

The intent of this non-experimental correlational and comparative study was to determine the extent to which self-efficacy predicts student achievement as well as the differences between the self-efficacy beliefs of principals in turnaround and fully accredited schools at the elementary, middle, and high school levels in one urban Virginia school division. Principal leaders should be selected based on expertise related to their assigned school needs and challenges (Murphy, 2010a). Turnaround schools in the process of improvement present a distinct challenge and require individualized applications of effective leadership practices (Leithwood, Harris and Strauss, 2010). Principal self-efficacy is defined as, "...a judgment of his or her own capabilities to structure a particular course of action in order to produce desired outcomes in the school he or she leads" (Tschannen-Moran and Gareis, 2004, p. 573). Overall principal self-efficacy as well as efficacy for management, instructional leadership, and moral leadership were measured using the Principal Sense of Efficacy Scale (PSES) (Tschannen-Moran and Gareis, 2004). The Virginia Standards of Learning (SOL) assessment results for reading and mathematics, specifically the overall school pass rates by subject, were used as indicators of student achievement. The researcher sought to examine the usefulness of measuring self-efficacy as a potential method for identifying and assigning principals to specific school contexts based on any relationships and differences revealed by the data. A hierarchical multiple regression analysis was used to predict student achievement in reading and mathematics from overall principal self-efficacy and the three principal efficacy subscales while controlling for poverty. An independent samples t-test was conducted to compare the self-efficacy of principals at turnaround and fully accredited schools. Analysis of the predictive relationship between principal self-efficacy and student achievement in reading and mathematics failed to reveal significant findings. Comparative analysis of the mean self-efficacy for turnaround and fully accredited school principals further failed to reveal statistically significant differences. Calculated effect size of the differences between the groups indicated a medium effect. Implications for practice and recommendations for future research were developed from the findings. / Ed. D.

Researchers have documented that high expectations do not always result in higher achievement, but the reason for varying results has not been clearly understood. This correlational study was done to find out if the degree of presence of principal leadership characteristics can predict when high expectations are effective and when they are not. Expectancy and transformational leadership theories provided the framework for identifying 9 principal leadership characteristics that might influence student scores on Colorado statewide testing. Existing student testing data were considered the dependent variable, while survey data on the leadership behaviors of Colorado middle school principals were used for the independent variables. Data were tested using a correlational regression analysis. The transformational leadership independent variables of beneficial modeling, inspirational motivation, systems thinking, individualized consideration, and empowerment were each found to be significantly related to statewide test scores at the .05 level. The high expectations variable was not found to be significantly related to test scores by itself but was found to be significant (p = .016) when transformational leadership characteristics were also high. Principals who were perceived to provide teachers with the environment they needed to facilitate student achievement were correlated with higher test scores. Implications for social change include public policy makers' support for transformational educational leadership as a part of providing teachers with what they need in order to meet high expectations.

Closing the achievement gap is a key concern for educational leaders. Research has indicated that principals’ actions directly and indirectly influence student learning. The purpose of this case study was to explore cultural leadership in an urban Mississippi high school from an African American’s racialized perspective. The cultural competency/proficiency theory provided the conceptual framework for this study. Successful leadership practices of this African American principal were examined through the principal and through the perceptions of teachers and the assistant administrator. A researcher-developed questionnaire was content validated and given to a purposeful sample of 17 individuals: the principal, assistant principal, and the 15 full time teachers at the study site. Nine individuals––the school’s principal, assistant principal, and 7 teachers––returned the questionnaire. Using Stake’s framework for data analysis, data were organized, coded, and categorized to develop themes regarding the principal’s cultural leadership practices. Results showed that the principal used 6 practices to help a diverse student body succeed: double-dosing of subject-area test courses, pull-out tutorials, after-school tutorials, differentiated instruction, scaffolded learning, and coteaching. Based on the study findings, a professional development program was created to provide cultural leadership training for all district leaders. The findings can positively affect social change by improving principals’ cultural awareness and equipping educators with proven practices to meet the needs of a diverse student body, thus increasing students’ opportunities for academic success.

The number of studies related to school reform and principal leadership styles confirms both the interest in how the two might be related and the enigma that schools and principals present as research topics. The art and science of school reform is hard to figure. While many studies attempt to make sense of an overlapping and competing set of variables that are found in good schools, nearly all studies have confirmed some support for principals as a key ingredient to school improvement. This study seeks to add to the increasing amount of research related to principal leadership styles in an era of increasing levels of accountability. The focus for this study was on four high school principals who were identified as "successful" by their central office superintendents. Each of the principals was a veteran administrator in three of the six largest school districts in Florida. This study's initial focus was on site-based management and the amount and degree of control afforded the principal, teachers and parents in secondary schools. The literature review found that site-based management by itself could not be confirmed as a reliable, research-supported school reform protocol. In each case where site-based management or distributed leadership was found to be successful, the principal was the key antecedent to the school improvement. This study sought to add to the research on principal leadership styles by providing a qualitative view on the lives and efforts of the principals in these four schools. The study employed a phenomenological approach and used a technique called portraiture to paint the narratives of the four participants. The interviews and site visits provided a great deal of data and produced four key themes or tendencies found in all four principals: They tended to be I-focused, We-focused, Servant-focused, and Learning-focused. These four styles of leadership were found to be both overlapping and paradoxical. Though each of the participants had slightly different leanings, all of them shared aspects of the four tendencies. The study adds to the growing research on school reform and principal leadership styles and provides a deeper understanding of each through its use of phenomenological methods.

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The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 and the accountability movement that has engulfed education in the last 20 years have put leadership at the heart of school improvement. Student achievement is affected by multiple factors that must be addressed with unique leadership skills and specialized knowledge. No one person can be responsible for orchestrating the success of each student within a school building. When members of a school community share responsibility for the many activities that contribute to student learning, the work of educational leaders becomes a manageable task. The purpose of this study was to create an operational definition of shared leadership by identifying key descriptors that define the characteristics and behaviors of shared leadership and the aspects of school cultures in which it can be effective. The procedure used to construct a rich description of shared leadership was a three-round Delphi study. A panel of experts was assembled from writers or researchers in the field of leadership and superintendents, principals, and teachers who have practiced shared leadership in the school environment. The first-round Delphi instrument consisted of four open-end questions that asked for key words or phrases that describe the characteristics and behaviors of shared leadership, key words or phrases that describe aspects of school cultures in which shared leadership can be effective, and key words or phrases that describe barriers to shared leadership. In the second round, panelists were asked to rate the compiled responses from round one on a four-point scale. In the third round, panelists received statistical information based on second-round responses. They were allowed to revise opinions once more using a four-point scale. Using the Delphi technique, the panel of experts reached consensus on 84 critical elements of effective shared leadership. An inventory that can be used by schools as a guide for planning, implementing, and evaluating shared leadership in school settings was created from the data. / Ed. D.

As the responsibilities of principals become more complex and as accountability becomes more evident in K-12 cultures, it becomes increasingly important that high school principals be trained to empower teachers. This paper examined the research concerning the conditions of the empowerment of teachers. More specifically, it measured high school teachers' perspectives concerning their levels of empowerment by their principals based on the four domains of empowerment: meaning, competence, self-determination, and impact. This quantitative study was designed to answer three questions. First, how do high school teachers perceive their level of empowerment by their principals based on the four school conditions of empowerment: principal training, principal leadership, teacher leadership, and school culture? Second, what are high school teachers' perceptions of the degree to which they are empowered based on their understanding of the domains of empowerment: meaning, competence, self-determination, and impact? Third, how do the conditions of empowerment relate to the domains of empowerment? The study modified an existing survey developed for measuring the level of empowerment of workers in corporations. The survey was used in this study as the basis for determining the perceived level of empowerment of high school teachers in three schools in a Mid-Atlantic suburban/rural school division. Analysis of the responses revealed that school culture was rated significantly higher than the other three empowerment conditions. High school teachers rated themselves significantly higher in the meaning and competence domains of empowerment. None of the four domains of empowerment related significantly to the meaning domain. The principal training condition was the only domain significantly related to the competence domain, and the condition of school culture was significantly related to self-determination. Additionally, the teacher leadership condition was significantly related to the impact domain only. / Ph. D.

Teacher retention is a growing issue that plagues schools across America (Grissom, 2011). Consequently, urban high poverty, high minority schools face even greater challenges as they expect to lose approximately 50% of their teachers within their first five years on the job. According to Grissom (2011), school working conditions explain both teacher turnover and teacher satisfaction, and principal effectiveness has a significant positive impact on teacher retention, especially in disadvantaged schools. The purpose of this study was to examine leadership practices teachers and principals perceive to influence teacher retention in urban, high- poverty, high- minority schools. A basic qualitative research design was employed to gain an in-depth understanding of teachers' and principals' perceptions of how school climate and culture, instructional leadership, school mission and vision, and teacher development impact teacher retention in urban, hard- to- staff schools. Data collection included individual and focus group interview data from five principals and 17 teachers with longevity in urban, high-poverty, high-minority schools in Southeastern Virginia. An analysis of the data indicated that administrative support, principal-teacher relationships, shared leadership, clear expectations and instructional leadership are essential to teacher retention in urban, hard-to-staff schools. The results of this study may impact the recruitment and development of school leaders by both districts and school leadership programs. / Ed. D.