The effective instructional leader

Abstract

This study examines school principals’ insights into effective instructional leadership. It follows the implementation by the New South Wales Department of Education, Australia, of a state-wide strategy that featured Instructional Leaders. Over 200 were appointed to selected schools as completely new positions. However, the initial implementation contained no published role description or guidelines. In a context relatively devoid of supporting information, school principals found it necessary to construct the concept and role of ‘instructional leader’ themselves – including the appointment level within the school staffing profile. Using qualitative research based on in-depth interviews, the study explores the insights of six school principals who had an Instructional Leader appointed to their school. The data were analysed to explore the principals’ perceptions of effective instructional leadership, and ascertain whether it had an impact upon the depth of professional learning in their schools. The study found that: (i) principals did not view themselves as instructional leaders, but as facilitators of the concept; (ii) understanding of instructional leadership was weak and diffuse, and depended on prior experience; and (iii) instructional leadership could be considered effective in improving student outcomes by improving teacher practice, developing purposeful professional learning, and building strong relationships across the school.

Keywords:

• Instructional leader
• instructional leadership
• teacher leadership
• Early Action for Success
• NAPLAN
• New South Wales

Acknowledgments

The authors thank all interview participants. We also thank Merran Campbell, Instructional Leader at Cabbage Tree Island and Goonellabah Public School, for helping the researchers understand the EAFS strategy, and our New Zealand colleagues, Dr Brian Annan and Mary Wootton, for conversations and reflections on instructional leadership and student agency. The research was conducted under approval from Southern Cross University’s (Australia) Human Research Ethics Committee and the NSW Department of Education’s State Education Research Applications Process (SERAP); these require that all data collection was under fully informed conditions and with all professional or management relationship declared and recorded.

Notes

1. NAPLAN is a national assessment of Australian school students’ basic skills. It is administered annually for students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9.

2. The average age of students in New South Wales schools who are in: Kindergarten is 5 years, Year 2 is 7 years old, Year 3 students is 8 years old, Year 5 is 10 years, Year 7 is 12 years, and Year 9 is 13 years.

3. The School Measurement, Assessment and Reporting Toolkit (SMART) provides feedback and data analysis for the National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN), Higher School Certificate (HSC) and Validation of Assessment for Learning and Individual Development (VALID) – to NSW participating schools and their communities.