School Principals Instructional Leadership and Strategies in Working with Teachers
Roč.30,č.3(2025)
School Leader(ship) in Focus: Understanding Current Challenges and Shaping Future Perspectives
Instructional school leadership (ISL) refers to a set of roles and tasks undertaken by school principals (along with other stakeholders involved in school leadership) to enhance the teaching and learning process. This is achieved by guiding, supporting, and providing resources for teachers and students. This article presents research findings on ISL, aiming to deepen the understanding of factors that may either facilitate or hinder ISL practices, with a particular focus on the relationship between principals and teachers. The research objectives were to assess principals' perceptions of the frequency of specific ISL behaviors in Croatian schools and to explore, from their perspective, the key dimensions of ISL. Furthermore, the study examined the frequency of specific ISL strategies used with diverse groups of teachers based on their attitudes toward principals' instructional activities aimed at improving teaching. A total of 204 principals from primary and secondary schools across Croatia participated in the study. Data collection took place in June 2023 via an online survey. The research employed a survey method using two scales: the Scale for Measuring Instructional School Leadership Characteristics and the Strategies of Instructional School Leadership scale. The findings confirm that principals in Croatian primary and secondary schools frequently engage in instructional leadership activities. Notably, the most prominent dimensions of ISL align with those strongly associated with improved teaching and school achievement in related studies. A particularly encouraging finding is that principals often implement strategies aimed at empowering students in their learning. Insights from studies conducted in other national contexts highlight the importance of more frequent use of strategies focused on strengthening teacher capacities, especially those that enhance their sense of effectiveness and foster a supportive work environment. However, the results also reveal that a significant number of principals struggle to identify effective strategies for working with teachers who do not support initiatives aimed at improving teaching and learning. Whether these teachers are resistant or indifferent to such initiatives, the data suggest that the presence of such teachers in schools may be substantial (from the principals' perspective) and should not be overlooked.
educational improvement; instructional strategies; principal-teacher relationship; school principals; supportive; indifferent and resisting teachers
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