A principal’s leadership is crucial for the success of the school. The supervision of a principal impacts student achievement in several different ways. These include instructional leadership, transformational leadership, and building a productive climate.
Instructional leadership
How principals foster better student outcomes can be measured by several indicators, including the principal’s influence on teacher hiring, teaching, and learning. Principals also directly impact students, affecting attendance and suspension rates. Ultimately, they can accelerate student achievement. Using a synthesis of 219 high-quality studies about school leadership since 2000, this updated report examines the impact of principals. For example, the authors found that principals in the 75th percentile of their effectiveness yield a three-month increase in student learning. They suggest that effective principals ensure that the school supports the teaching and learning process. In addition, they recommend that the principal spend at least 50% of their time on improving student achievement. In addition to the impact of principals on students, they also affect the quality of teachers. Researchers concluded that the most effective principals foster productive collaboration, facilitate professional learning communities, and strategically manage their personnel and resources.
Transformational leadership
Transformational leadership is known to contribute significantly to student achievement. It emphasizes the importance of a school’s vision and goals. It is also said to improve organizational culture. Therefore, this study aimed to find out the correlation between transformational leadership in principals and their leadership practices and students’ academic achievement. The study compared the effects of two leadership styles in high and low-performing schools. A total of 13 schools participated. They were stratified based on their socioeconomic status, cognitive ability, and instructional leadership. Transformational leadership in principals is defined as building morale and encouraging staff to participate in reform efforts. In addition, it promotes the implementation of a shared vision. This is a challenging practice. However, it can be successful if the leader has a firm grasp of external and internal forces. Principals who use integrated leadership were found to have better student achievement outcomes. The principals were more likely to discuss teaching problems and create a school’s vision. Moreover, they are more likely to motivate teachers to participate in school management and become leaders.
Building a productive climate
A positive school climate is associated with many positive impacts on student achievement, including lower absenteeism, higher motivation to learn, and lower substance abuse. Principals play a crucial role in creating a productive school climate. They serve as influential community leaders, advocate for their schools, and work with teachers to develop a shared sense of responsibility for student learning. Effective principals provide teachers with thoughtful feedback, engage students in high-leverage instructional activities, and manage resources effectively. They also facilitate collaboration, set clear expectations, and model effective teaching practices. To build a productive school climate, principals need to consider the following factors: Teachers, Students, Parents, and Leadership. A school leader can improve student performance by examining these four areas of influence. After classroom instruction, school leadership is the second most influential factor in student learning. The most effective leaders use classroom observation to provide teachers with constructive feedback. This feedback is closely related to coaching. Successful leaders also promote a productive climate for teachers. For instance, schools that use an expected planning time saw higher achievement growth. Moreover, a school’s professional atmosphere can reduce teacher burnout and increase retention rates.
