Instructional Leadership

(Abstracts of Articles Appear Below)

Blase, J. & Blase, J. (2000). Effective Instructional Leadership: Teachers’ Perspectives on How Principals Promote Teaching and Learning in Schools. Journal of Educational Administration, 38(2), 130-141.

Blase, J. & Blase, J. (1998). Handbook of instructional leadership. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.

Glickman, C.D., Gordon, S.P., & Ross-Gordon, J.M. (2004). SuperVision and Instructional Leadership: A Developmental Approach. Boston: Pearson.

Hallinger, P. & Leithwood, K. (1998). Unseen Forces: The Impact of Social Culture on School Leadership. Peabody Journal of Education, 73 (2), 126-151.

Hallinger, P. (1992). “The Evolving Role of American Principals: From Managerial to Instructional to Transformational Leaders.” Journal of Educational Administration 30(3): 35-48.

Harchar, R. L. and Hyle, A. E. (1996). “Collaborative Power: A Grounded Theory of Administrative Instructional Leadership in the Elementary School.” Journal of Educational Administration 34(3): 15-29.

Hart, A. W. (1995, September). “Reconceiving School Leadership: Emergent Views.” The Elementary School Journal 96(1): 9-28.

Heck, R. (1992, Spring). “Principals’ Instructional Leadership and School Performance: Implications for Policy Development.” Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis 14(1): 21-34.

Heck, H.R., Larsen, T.J., & Marcoulides, G.A. (1990) Instructional leadership and school achievement: Validation of a causal model. Educational Administration Quarterly. 26(2), 94-125.

Hoy, A.W. & Hoy, W.K. (2006). Instructional Leadership: A Research-Based Guide to Learning in Schools. Boston, MA: Pearson Education.

Hoy, A. W. & Hoy, W. K. (2003). Instructional Leadership: A Learning-Centered Guide. Boston, MA, Allyn and Bacon.

Kleine-Kracht, P. (1993, May). “Indirect Instructional Leadership: An Administrator’s Choice.” Educational Administration Quarterly 29(2): 187-212.

Krug, S. E. (1992, August). “Instructional Leadership: A Constructivist Perspective.” Educational Administration Quarterly 28(3): 430-43.

Lemahieu, P. G. and Others (1997, January). “Through a Lens Clearly: A Model To Guide the Instructional Leadership of Principals.” Urban Education 31(5): 582-608.

Reitzug, U. C. (1997, Summer). “Images of Principal Instructional Leadership: From Super-Vision to Collaborative Inquiry.” Journal of Curriculum and Supervision 12(4): 324-43.

Rowan, B. (1995, August). “Learning, Teaching, and Educational Administration: Toward a Research Agenda.” Educational Administration Quarterly 31(3): 344-54.

Smith, W.F. & Andrews, R.L. (1989). Instructional leadership: How principals make a difference. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

Southworth, G. (2002, February). “Instructional Leadership in Schools: Reflections and Empirical Evidence.” School Leadership & Management. 22(1): 73.

Spillane, J.P., Hallett, T., et al. (2003, January). Forms of Capital and the Construction of Leadership: Instructional Leadership in Urban Elementary Schools. Sociology of Education. 76: 17.

Tallerico, M. and A. Blumberg (1991, October). “Instructional Leadership in Practice: Fostering Meaningful Exchange.” Journal of School Leadership 1(4): 316-327.

Wallman, D. G. (1991, January). “Relating Theory to Practice: Instructional Leadership and the Principal.” Journal of School Leadership 1(1): 87-90.

Wildy, H. and C. Dimmock (1993). “Instructional Leadership in Primary and Secondary Schools in Western Australia.” Journal of Educational Administration 31(2): 43-62.

Blase, J. & Blase, J. (2000). Effective Instructional Leadership: Teachers’ Perspectives on How Principals Promote Teaching and Learning in Schools. Journal of Educational Administration, 38(2), 130-141. Over 800 American teachers responded to an open-ended questionnaire by identifying and describing characteristics of principals that enhanced their classroom instruction and what influences these characteristics had on them. The data revealed 11 strategies and 2 effective-leadership themes: talking with teachers to promote reflection and promoting professional growth. (Contains 44 references.) (MLH) Administrator Effectiveness;
Elementary Secondary Education;
Instructional Leadership;
Leadership Qualities;
Principals;
Professional Development;
Questionnaires;
Reflective Teaching;
Teacher Attitudes;
Teacher Survey
Blase, J. & Blase, J. (1998). Handbook of instructional leadership. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin. The Handbook of Instructional Leadership is drawn from a study of more than 800 teachers schools nationwide. In this expanded Second Edition, the authors incorporate recent findings and insights from research, literature, and national reports. Also included in this new edition is an in-depth examination of the elements of instructional leadership related to the development of a professional learning community. This book is written for practicing and prospective instructional leaders whose objective is to develop reflective, collaborative, problem-solving contexts for dialogue about instruction, and what successful leaders do to enhance teaching and learning. These leaders are namely principals, assistant principals, lead teachers, department chairpersons, curriculum directors, and staff developers. This book will illuminate basic elements of effective instructional leadership and describe specifically how it supports both teacher and student learning. Autonomy;
Control;
Instructional Leadership;
Instructional Supervision;
Learning;
Reflection;
Staff Development;
Supervisors;
Teacher Supervision
Glickman, C.D., Gordon, S.P., & Ross-Gordon, J.M. (2004). SuperVision and Instructional Leadership: A Developmental Approach. Boston: Pearson. This classic market leading text in instructional leadership and supervision continues to challenge the conventional purposes, practices, structure, and language of supervision. The text’s emphases on school culture, teachers as adult learners, developmental leadership, democratic education, and collegial supervision have helped redefine the meaning of supervision and instructional leadership for both scholars and practitioners. The Sixth Edition continues the book’s trend-setting tradition by placing instructional leadership and school improvement within a community and societal context; providing new examples of direct assistance, professional development, and action research; and presenting an entire new chapter, “Supervision for What? Democracy and the Good School.” Action Research;
Adult Development;
Behavior;
Case Studies;
Change;
Democracy;
Developmental Supervision;
Knowledge;
Instructional Leadership;
Professional Development;
School Effectiveness;
Skills;
Supervision;
Teacher development;
Teaching
Hallinger, P. & Leithwood, K. (1998). Unseen Forces: The Impact of Social Culture on School Leadership. Peabody Journal of Education, 73 (2), 126-151. Reviews 1980-95 research exploring the relationship between principal leadership and student achievement. Principals exercise a measurable, but indirect, influence on school effectiveness and student achievement via vision, mission, and goals. Previously described discrepancies may be attributable to researchers’ conceptual and methodological tools. Research on means and contextual forces is needed. (70 references) Academic Achievement,
Administrator Effectiveness,
Elementary/Secondary Education,
Goal Orientation,
Institutional Mission,
Instructional Leadership,
Principals,
Research Problems,
School Effectiveness
Hallinger, P. (1992). “The Evolving Role of American Principals: From Managerial to Instructional to Transformational Leaders.” Journal of Educational Administration 30(3): 35-48. Analyzes the evolving U.S. principalship between 1960 and the present, focusing on three influential roles: program manager, instructional leader, and transformational leader. Assesses these roles in light of contextual changes, particularly developments in national and state educational policy. Unfortunately, a strong administrative leader image is being grafted onto transformational restructuring notions. (35 references) Administrator Role;
Context Effect;
Educational Policy;
Elementary Secondary Education;
Instructional Leadership;
Principals;
Program Implementation;
School Restructuring;
Transformational Leadership
Harchar, R. L. and Hyle, A. E. (1996). “Collaborative Power: A Grounded Theory of Administrative Instructional Leadership in the Elementary School.” Journal of Educational Administration 34(3): 15-29. Describes a study seeking to develop a theory of instructional leadership grounded in interview data from practicing administrators and their teachers. Effective elementary instructional leaders engaged in various strategies designed to balance power inequities in their school community. They exemplified the use of collaborative power based on trust, respect, and collegiality. (23 references) Administrator Effectiveness;
Collegiality;
Instructional Leadership;
Interviews;
Participative Decision Making;
Power Structure;
Principals;
Teacher Administrator Relationship;
Trust (Psychology)
Hart, A. W. (1995, September). “Reconceiving School Leadership: Emergent Views.” The Elementary School Journal 96(1): 9-28. Discusses challenges to traditional views of school leadership posed by many school reform initiatives, curriculum innovations, and teacher incentive plans. Examines teacher leadership structures in light of the purposes and goals they seek to advance. Uses nonhierarhical theories of leadership from the general leadership literature to examine these new work structures and the goals they seek to advance. (AA) Change Agents;
Decision Making;
Educational Administration;
Instructional Leadership;
Leadership Qualities;
Leadership Responsibility;
Leadership Styles;
Leadership Training;
Models;
Principals;
Social Structure;
Teacher Characteristics;
Teacher Role
Heck, R. (1992, Spring). “Principals’ Instructional Leadership and School Performance: Implications for Policy Development.” Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis 14(1): 21-34. The effects that principals’ instructional leadership has on school achievement/outcomes were examined using questionnaire data from the principal and at least 4 teachers from 31 elementary schools and 25 high schools in California. Achievement outcomes can be predicted based on teachers’ and principals’ perceptions of instructional leadership. (SLD) Academic Achievement;
Accountability;
Elementary School Teachers;
Instructional Leadership;
Outcomes of Education;
Policy Formation;
Predictor Variables;
Principals;
Questionnaires;
School Districts;
School Effectiveness;
Secondary School Teachers;
Teacher Attitudes
Heck, H.R., Larsen, T.J., & Marcoulides, G.A. (1990) Instructional leadership and school achievement: Validation of a causal model. Educational Administration Quarterly. 26(2), 94-125. Individuals face intense pressure to conform in today’s team-oriented workplaces, where one-size-fits-all behaviors are often fostered by such programs as total quality management and employee involvement. In the process, both organizations and individuals lose a vital advantage. For as Stan Herman argues, even in a world of groups, individuality remains the key to inventive solutions and organizational success. In A Force of Ones Herman acclaims the power of the individual in the workplace and reminds us all of the importance of ones; a team – and its organization – after all, can only be effective when individual members are capable and self-assured. He offers guidelines and exercises to help you identify your particular strengths and hone them to achieve self-empowerment and satisfaction at work. Through stories and poems he illustrates how to use these important tools to increase self-understanding and focus clearly on priorities. Herman demonstrates ways to make more powerful contact with others through individual initiative networks, and to function effectively amidst the power and political dynamics in your organization. Instructional Leadership
Management;
Organization;
Social values
Hoy, A.W. & Hoy, W.K. (2006). Instructional Leadership: A Research-Based Guide to Learning in Schools. Boston, MA: Pearson Education. Traditional supervision in which the principal rates the effectiveness of teachers is an outmoded concept. This is the first text of its kind, written for principals and other instructional leaders to help them understand current theories of teaching and learning as well as the practical curriculum applications of these perspectives. This text uses a learning-centered approach that emphasizes making decisions that support student learning. The authors address the critical aspects of the teaching-learning process-student differences, learning, student motivation, teaching, classroom management, assessing student learning, and assessing and changing school climate and culture. Each chapter is grounded in the latest research and theory in that area and provides specific suggestions for applying that knowledge to practice. Assessment;
Classroom management;
Instructional Leadership;
Learning;
Teaching;
School Climate;
School Culture;
Student Learning;
Supervision;
Hoy, A. W. & Hoy, W. K. (2003). Instructional Leadership: A Learning-Centered Guide. Boston, MA, Allyn and Bacon. This text goes beyond traditional supervision books and assumes that teachers and principals must work as colleagues to improve teaching and learning in schools. Traditional supervision in which the principal rates the effectiveness of teachers is an outmoded concept. This is the first text of its kind, written for principals and other instructional leaders to help them understand current theories of teaching and learning as well as the practical curriculum applications of these perspectives. This text uses a learning-centered approach that emphasizes making decisions that support student learning. This text addresses the critical aspects of the teaching-learning process—student differences, learning, student motivation, teaching, classroom management, assessing student learning, and assessing and changing school climate and culture. Each chapter is grounded in the latest research and theory in that area and provides specific suggestions for applying that knowledge to practice. Classroom Management;
Instructional leadership
Learning;
Organizational Culture;
School Climate;
Students;
Teaching
Kleine-Kracht, P. (1993, May). “Indirect Instructional Leadership: An Administrator’s Choice.” Educational Administration Quarterly 29(2): 187-212. Investigates indirect instructional leadership as demonstrated by a secondary high school principal. Uses data from a qualitative study of high school principals to present organizational factors that enhance the principal’s ability to exert an indirect influence on instruction. Considers also the potential importance of indirect leadership behaviors for restructured school settings. (18 references) (MLH) Departments;
Instructional Leadership;
Principals;
Qualitative Research;
School Restructuring;
Secondary Education;
Teacher Participation
Krug, S. E. (1992, August). “Instructional Leadership: A Constructivist Perspective.” Educational Administration Quarterly 28(3): 430-43. Argues for a constructivist perspective on approaches toward instructional leadership. Describes a study that tracked over 80 principals for 2 weeks and found that the qualitative difference in principals’ performance was not explained by differences in their activities but rather by differences in meaning that they attributed to their activities. (30 references) (MLF) Cognitive Style;
Instructional Leadership;
Models;
Occupational Information;
Principals
Lemahieu, P. G. and Others (1997, January). “Through a Lens Clearly: A Model To Guide the Instructional Leadership of Principals.” Urban Education 31(5): 582-608. Describes an analytic framework developed to support principals’ instructional leadership in the context of contemporary reform perspectives. The leadership model suggests “lenses” through which educational experience can be examined: (1) content standards; (2) performance standards and assessment; (3) teacher instructional practices; (4) student learning experience; and (5) environment and context. (SLD) Administrator Evaluation;
Educational Assessment;
Educational Change;
Educational Environment;
Educational Practices;
Evaluation Methods;
Instructional Leadership;
Learning;
Models;
Principals;
Standards
Reitzug, U. C. (1997, Summer). “Images of Principal Instructional Leadership: From Super-Vision to Collaborative Inquiry.” Journal of Curriculum and Supervision 12(4): 324-43. Examines images of principals’ instructional leadership, based on 10 supervision textbooks published between 1985 and 1995. Textbooks portrayed principals as experts and superiors, teachers as deficient and voiceless, teaching as fixed technology, and supervision as a discrete intervention. Images of professional growth (stressing collegiality and continuous improvement) suggested by studies of successful schools differ significantly from these textbook images. (96 references) (MLH) Administrator Attitudes;
Collegiality;
Definitions;
Instructional Leadership;
Leadership Styles;
Misconceptions;
Principals;
Professional Development;
Teacher Administrator Relationship;
Teacher Supervision;
Textbooks
Rowan, B. (1995, August). “Learning, Teaching, and Educational Administration: Toward a Research Agenda.” Educational Administration Quarterly 31(3): 344-54. Educational administration research is frequently criticized for overlooking issues of learning and teaching in schools. This special issue features four articles suggesting steps to establish a larger research agenda on learning, teaching, and educational administration. Topics include common schooling problems, school-based management, instructional leadership reform, and the educational policy-instruction relationship. (26 references) (MLH) Educational Administration;
Educational Policy;
Educational Practices;
Educational Research;
Instructional Leadership;
Learning Processes;
Models;
Research Problems;
School Based Management;
Theory Practice Relationship
Smith, W.F. & Andrews, R.L. (1989). Instructional leadership: How principals make a difference. Alexandria, VA: ASCD. Educators have great moral, ethical, and legal obligations to create schools where all students can achieve their full potential and receive an equal opportunity to succeed in society. Central to that goal are principals who act as instructional leaders. Drawing upon literature, research, and case studies of principals in practice, the first four of six chapters present a clear portrait of the instructional leader. Principals with very different communication, management, and personal styles can all be strong instructional leaders. Possessing the key qualities of resource provider, instructional resource, communicator, and visible presence, strong instructional leaders spend a substantially greater percentage of time on educational program improvement. Consistent with current literature on organizational theory and practice, this book emphasizes the importance of the underlying themes and values that hold a system together. Additionally, a clinical supervision model requiring the supervisor to observe the principal in action, to discuss relevant issues and provide feedback, and to develop a plan for the principal’s evaluation is provided. Appended is a zero-base job analysis questionnaire, the score sheet and instructions, a discussion of administrative job dimensions, a time analysis sheet, and a time summary sheet. (87 references) (KM) Administrator Effectiveness;
Administrator Evaluation;
Educational Improvement;
Elementary Secondary Education;
Instructional Leadership;
Leadership Qualities;
Leadership Responsibility;
Principals;
School Administration;
School Supervision;
Teacher-Administrator Relationship;
Teacher Supervision
Southworth, G. (2002, February). “Instructional Leadership in Schools: Reflections and Empirical Evidence.” School Leadership & Management. 22(1): 73. Examination of instructional leadership organized into four sections: Reflections on school leadership, definitions of instructional leadership, reviews of two empirical studies on instructional leadership, and conclusions about the development of instructional leaders. (Contains 44 references.) (PKP) Administrator Effectiveness;
Educational Improvement;
Educational Research;
Elementary Secondary Education;
Foreign Countries;
Instructional Leadership;
Organizational Development;
Professional Development;
Small Schools
Spillane, J.P., Hallett, T., et al. (2003, January). Forms of Capital and the Construction of Leadership: Instructional Leadership in Urban Elementary Schools. Sociology of Education. 76: 17. Using data from observations and interviews with 84 teachers at eight Chicago public elementary schools, this article examines how, through a process of social construction, forms of capital are a basis for instructional leadership. The authors argue that teachers construct influential others as leaders on the basis of valued forms of human, cultural, social, and economic capital. Moreover, the construction of leadership for instruction is often situated in various types of interactions (e.g., subject area) and varies by the leaders’ position. Although the teachers in the study constructed school administrators as leaders largely on the basis of cultural capital, they constructed other teachers as leaders on the basis of human and social capital as well as cultural capital. Understanding the role of different species of capital in the construction of leadership will help researchers specify mechanisms that support professional learning and change in schools. Capital;
Instructional Leadership;
Interactions
Leaders;
Professional Learning;
Teachers
Tallerico, M. and A. Blumberg (1991, October). “Instructional Leadership in Practice: Fostering Meaningful Exchange.” Journal of School Leadership 1(4): 316-327. Practitioners and scholars alike would be well served by new research attempting to draw connections between teacher perspectives and the administrative/organizational structuring of the work place. A sample of experienced teachers selected for detailed interviews described the conditions that facilitated their engagement in meaningful dialogue about their work. (25 references) (MLH) Collegiality;
Instructional Leadership;
Professional Development;
Teacher Participation;
Teaching Conditions
Wallman, D. G. (1991, January). “Relating Theory to Practice: Instructional Leadership and the Principal.” Journal of School Leadership 1(1): 87-90. The major problem for principals using the outcomes-based paradigm is convincing teachers that outcomes are the appropriate criteria for judging effectiveness. Although risking teacher backlash, the principal as instructional leader has the opportunity to provide a climate where everyone is both a learner and a teacher. Includes five references. (MLH) Educational Environment;
Innovation;
Instructional Leadership;
Leadership Responsibility;
Principals;
Teacher Administrator Relationship;
Teacher Effectiveness;
Theory Practice Relationship
Wildy, H. and C. Dimmock (1993). “Instructional Leadership in Primary and Secondary Schools in Western Australia.” Journal of Educational Administration 31(2): 43-62. Investigates teachers’ and principals’ perceptions of instructional leadership in a sample of Western Australian government primary and secondary schools, using the Instructional Leadership Questionnaire. Instructional leadership was viewed as a shared responsibility; teachers felt principals were less involved than principals felt they were. Principals were perceived as least involved in managing curriculum and providing performance feedback. (Contains 41 references.) (MLH) Administrator Attitudes;
Administrator Role;
Decision Making
Foreign Countries;
Instructional Leadership;
Questionnaires;
School Effectiveness;
Teacher Attitudes;
Teacher Participation