Supervisors who work directly with teachers and wish to influence their classroom practice and encourage their professional growth must behave in ways congruent with teachers' expectations for involvement, social support, and stimulating leadership. Although these styles and behaviors may vary somewhat with various supervisory roles and teacher and school characteristics, there is little doubt that the effective supervisor, according to teacher perceptions, is one who, in attempting to provide staff leadership, is close to the teacher he is trying to help and uses the skills of facilitating personal and institutional growth, giving social support and involving his staff in the decisionmaking processes of the school. (Author)