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Instructional leadership: Principals making a difference with high-poverty and minority populations to improve instruction and increase student achievement

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Date Issued:
2006
Summary:
The purpose of the study was to examine instructional leadership through an in-depth multi-case study of three high poverty and high minority elementary school sites where the principals had been identified as instructional leaders. The study identified how schools with unique populations practiced instructional leadership and compared the methods used to the six standards described by the NAESP. In addition, the research identified actions of instructional leaders used to enhance school improvement efforts in schools serving high poverty and high minority populations while contributing to the understanding of the principal's role as an instructional leader. The three findings were: that the elementary school principals leading high minority and high poverty schools each incorporated the six standards set by the NAESP to improve instruction and student achievement; each of the principals implemented the NAESP standards based on the specific needs of their schools by using a reframing process to assess the context and identify which standards to focus on; and principals were reflective and responded to the needs of the environment by shifting leadership roles. The findings in this study were based on interviews of teachers and principals, observations of both formal and informal meetings, and review of school documents. Based upon the three findings, the following three conclusions resulted from the study. First, the six NAESP Standards provide a foundation of practice for what principals need to know and be able to implement in order to become effective instructional leaders. Second, instructional leadership is a flexible, not a stagnant model. Third, the use of reflective practice is essential for providing the flexibility in the thinking that is needed to reframe the six NAESP Standards to fit the unique context and lead a school toward continued improvement. Building an effective foundation using the six NAESP Standards is contingent upon the principal applying a focus on the standards that will contribute the most to student achievement and being able to be a reflective practitioner demonstrating flexibility in both thinking and leadership roles.
Title: Instructional leadership: Principals making a difference with high-poverty and minority populations to improve instruction and increase student achievement.
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Name(s): Hopkins, Julie.
Florida Atlantic University, Degree grantor
Maslin-Ostrowski, Patricia, Thesis advisor
Type of Resource: text
Genre: Electronic Thesis Or Dissertation
Issuance: monographic
Date Issued: 2006
Publisher: Florida Atlantic University
Place of Publication: Boca Raton, Fla.
Physical Form: application/pdf
Extent: 167 p.
Language(s): English
Summary: The purpose of the study was to examine instructional leadership through an in-depth multi-case study of three high poverty and high minority elementary school sites where the principals had been identified as instructional leaders. The study identified how schools with unique populations practiced instructional leadership and compared the methods used to the six standards described by the NAESP. In addition, the research identified actions of instructional leaders used to enhance school improvement efforts in schools serving high poverty and high minority populations while contributing to the understanding of the principal's role as an instructional leader. The three findings were: that the elementary school principals leading high minority and high poverty schools each incorporated the six standards set by the NAESP to improve instruction and student achievement; each of the principals implemented the NAESP standards based on the specific needs of their schools by using a reframing process to assess the context and identify which standards to focus on; and principals were reflective and responded to the needs of the environment by shifting leadership roles. The findings in this study were based on interviews of teachers and principals, observations of both formal and informal meetings, and review of school documents. Based upon the three findings, the following three conclusions resulted from the study. First, the six NAESP Standards provide a foundation of practice for what principals need to know and be able to implement in order to become effective instructional leaders. Second, instructional leadership is a flexible, not a stagnant model. Third, the use of reflective practice is essential for providing the flexibility in the thinking that is needed to reframe the six NAESP Standards to fit the unique context and lead a school toward continued improvement. Building an effective foundation using the six NAESP Standards is contingent upon the principal applying a focus on the standards that will contribute the most to student achievement and being able to be a reflective practitioner demonstrating flexibility in both thinking and leadership roles.
Identifier: 9780542525797 (isbn), 12190 (digitool), FADT12190 (IID), fau:9097 (fedora)
Collection: FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection
Note(s): College of Education
Thesis (Ed.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2006.
Subject(s): Educational leadership--United States
School improvement programs--United States
Elementary school principals--United States
Poor children--Education--United States
Held by: Florida Atlantic University Libraries
Persistent Link to This Record: http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/12190
Sublocation: Digital Library
Use and Reproduction: Copyright © is held by the author, with permission granted to Florida Atlantic University to digitize, archive and distribute this item for non-profit research and educational purposes. Any reuse of this item in excess of fair use or other copyright exemptions requires permission of the copyright holder.
Use and Reproduction: http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Host Institution: FAU
Is Part of Series: Florida Atlantic University Digital Library Collections.