This paper presents findings of a case study that explored the micropolitical strategies used by a principal to influence teachers in a school-based decision making context. The selected suburban school was located in the south-central area of Texas and had utilized school-based management for five months. The principal was recommended as…

Although empirical research in the area of educational administration is plentiful, often it seems to be of little practical use. This paper presents findings of a study that examined the usefulness of a framework of collective solutions, or strategies for success, for women superintendents. A single-case qualitative study of one female…

Superintendents who aspire to lead rarely find clear explanations of what to expect from their constituents or about what they should do. This book presents findings of a study that explored superintendents' approaches to leadership, constituents' responses to their superintendents' initiatives, and the resulting changes in practice. The book is…

Based on principals' own perceptions, this paper examines how the principal's role has changed, what constitutes principals' major problems or concerns, and how state and federal regulations and community pressures have affected the principal's role. The project identified and interviewed 56 public school principals for an 11-county area served by…

Findings from a study that examined the relationship between work role-expectations of public school principals and work outcomes are presented in this paper. Methodology involved completion of the Miller-Carey Work Role Inventory by 200 elementary and secondary principals in 9 Georgia school systems. Findings indicate that the principals…

This paper examines the implications for change in the role of the principal when a school moves from a traditional model to a specific restructured model, an accelerated school. The paper begins with a review of the characteristics of both traditional and restructured schools in general, and the accelerated school as a particular example of a…

This case study presents findings from a year-long ethnographic study of the female principal of a secondary school in an innercity setting. It concludes one of seven studies conducted in elementary and intermediate schools in urban, suburban, and rural settings to investigate the instructional management role of principals. Data collection…

The use of reflective leadership among school principals is examined in this paper to develop a framework for the process of reflective decision making, with a focus on administrators'"strategic sense." Field notes and interviews with principals and their teachers were used to identify leadership roles and principals' perceptions of those roles.…

Predicated on the two basic dimensions of leadership--concern for performance of the organization and for relationships among individuals therein--this study investigates differences in leadership style effectiveness of elected and appointed superintendents as perceived by principals, school board presidents, the superintendents themselves, and…

Organizational cultures are systems of publicly and collectively accepted meanings, beliefs, values, and assumptions that a staff uses to guide its actions and interpret its surroundings. In an effort to suggest concrete ways a principal can change or maintain a culture, three important elements of a school culture are discussed: content, symbols,…

Implications of conflict management for the superintendent's role as instructional leader are explored in this study. A theory of conflict management that looks at the shift in the administrator role from nonpartisan to political professional is applied to case studies of three Illinois school districts in which superintendents involved in teacher…

This paper describes the Tri-Partite Theory of institutional change, which proposes that organizations in general and educational institutions in particular pass through three phases, each dominated by a specific personality type: person-orientation (loyalty to a charismatic leader as the basis of motivation); plan-orientation (functions…

This book contains practical information on creating a positive work climate within an organization. Twenty separate characteristics of successful "climate creators" are discussed. Information is also included on: (1) climate; (2) climate creators; (3) dynamic characteristics of climate creators; (4) the challenge of creating a positive climate;…

The literature of the effective schools movement argues for three very different images of what constitutes leadership, which are regarded in this paper as confused images of leadership. The first image is of a supremely pragmatic but rational actor, the second is of a leader who adheres to the norms typical of the local community culture, and the…

This paper identifies the factors that can make a building principal an effective instructional leader, as seen from the superintendent's perspective. According to the author, the effective instructional leader helps those in the educational community define instructional goals and objectives, works to develop effectiveness in teaching, builds a…