The relationships of teacher perceptions and administrator time on instructional leadership with school learning climate

摘要

The primary purpose of this investigation was to analyze the relationship of administrator time on instructional leadership, teacher perceptions about instructional leadership, and school effects which measured school learning climate. This analysis attempted to establish a causal pattern among the variables which would explain the way these variables combine to influence school effects. A review of literature suggested a conceptual framework representing the relationships between the variables. The Dynamics of Instructional Leadership Model was hypothesized a priori to the data analysis which tested cause-and-effect patterns within the total model;Forty-one school buildings were the units of analysis for this study and were comprised of over 1,000 teachers and fifty-six administrators. The convenience sample included five school districts which had each requested a School Improvement Model project from Iowa State University. Data were collected before intervention techniques were begun for teachers and administrators. Hypotheses were tested for this investigation by applying correlational, predictive, and path analysis techniques;Teachers\u27 perceptions were found to influence similar perceptions in administrators. Administrators tended to spend time on instructional leadership activities in proportion to how important they perceived those activities to be, and since those administrators\u27 perceptions were influenced by teachers\u27 perceptions, the teachers\u27 perceptions appear as the most powerful force within the model influencing school effects;The highest correlation and most influential predictor within the model was the teachers\u27 perception of their administrators\u27 effectiveness as an instructional leader. These findings suggest that school administrators influence school effects indirectly, that is, through teacher perceptions.