Administrative support of the instructional coach is critical to the success of instructional coaches in each building (Hall and Simeral, 2008; Knight, 2011; Sweeney, 2018). Effective instructional coaches support the transfer of new skills into practice to positively impact student learning outcomes (Costa and Garmston, 1994; Desimone and Pak, 2017; Knight and Cornett, 2007; Kraft, Blazar, and Hogan, 2019; Showers and Joyce, 1996). The purpose of this study was to identify instructional coaches' perceptions of principal support and the factors that contribute to those perceptions. The study aimed to address the following research questions: 1) What do instructional coaches perceive as principals' knowledge of the role of the instructional coach? 2) How do instructional coaches perceive the actions of principals in support of their work?
This descriptive study examined instructional coaches' perceptions of principal support given to instructional coaches in one large, suburban school division in Virginia. Data were collected through an online survey and optional participation in focus groups.
Findings included a misalignment between the instructional coaches' knowledge of the role of an instructional coach and that of the principal. Findings indicated the instructional coaches perceived support from the principal as including a shared knowledge of the role of the instructional coach, including the instructional coach in the vision for the school, maintaining regular communication and meetings, following up with teachers after a professional development led by the coach, providing professional development opportunities for the instructional coach, providing access to instructional resources, providing feedback on the work of the instructional coach, and building a relationship with the instructional coach. Implications outlined in the study identify specific actions principals can take to positively impact the instructional coaching in schools. / Doctor of Education / Instructional coaching is a growing method for building the capacity of teachers in schools. Administrative knowledge of the role of an instructional coach and principal support of the work of the instructional coach is critical to the success of the role of the instructional coach. Actions taken by the principal directly impact the perception of support for the work of the instructional coach and either negatively or positively impact the potential for the instructional coach to build capacity in the school. The work of instructional coaches is often interrupted by task assignments by the principal that engage instructional coaches in activities that detract from the instructional coach's role as instructional support. The purpose of this study was to identify instructional coaches' perceptions of principal support and the factors that contribute to those perceptions. Instructional coaches from one school division in Virginia participated in the study.
The study yielded eight findings and eight implications for principal actions that improve the instructional coaches' perception of principal support for the role of the instructional coach. Findings from the study indicated the instructional coaches perceived support from the principal as including a shared knowledge of the role of the instructional coach, including the instructional coach in the vision for the school, maintaining regular communication and meetings, following up with teachers after a professional development led by the coach, providing professional development opportunities for the instructional coach, providing access to instructional resources, providing feedback on the work of the instructional coach, and building a relationship with the instructional coach. Implications outlined in the study identify specific actions principals can take to positively impact the instructional coaching in schools. Future researchers may want to consider completing this study with instructional coaches from various school divisions. Additionally, future researchers may also want to compare instructional coaches' perception of principal support with principals' perception of the actions of support given to the instructional coaches.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:VTETD/oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/108079 |
| Date | 01 February 2022 |
| Creators | Stewart, Angela Lyn |
| Contributors | Counselor Education, Price, Ted S., Cash, Carol S., Russ, Jonathan Duane, Brinkmann, Jodie Lynn |
| Publisher | Virginia Tech |
| Source Sets | Virginia Tech Theses and Dissertation |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Dissertation |
| Format | ETD, application/pdf |
| Rights | In Copyright, http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ |
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