The Role of Principal Leadership in Improving Student Achievement

School and district leadership has been the focus of intense scrutiny in recent years as researchers try to define not only the qualities of effective leadership but the impact of leadership on the operation of schools, and even on student achievement. A recently published literature review titled How Leadership Influences Student Learning contributes to this growing body of knowledge by examining the links between student achievement and educational leadership practices.

Authors Leithwood, Seashore Louis, Anderson, and Wahlstrom (2004) make two important claims. First, “leadership is second only to classroom instruction among all school-related factors that contribute to what students learn at school” (p. 7). Second, “leadership effects are usually largest where and when they are needed most” (p. 7). Without a powerful leader, troubled schools are unlikely to be turned around. The authors stress that “many other factors may contribute to such turnarounds, but leadership is the catalyst” (p. 7).

The review, commissioned by the Wallace Foundation, is the first step in a five-year, 180-school study of the links between student achievement and educational leadership practices. The planned study is a joint effort of the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto and the University of Minnesota’s Center for Applied Research and Educational Improvement. The foundation’s first report could be released as early as November.

This month’s newsletter summarizes what the review reveals about the basics of successful education leadership and offers practical suggestions for their implementation.

The Basics of Successful Leadership

The authors warn that it is tempting to get caught up in defining the many adjectives often used to describe leadership in education literature (e.g., participative, instructional) but note that ultimately these descriptions focus on style, not substance. A more productive strategy, they contend, is to examine the following three sets of practices that make up the basic core of successful leadership:

• Setting direction.
• Developing people.
• Redesigning the organization.

The authors acknowledge that “rarely are … [these] practices sufficient for leaders aiming to significantly improve student learning in their schools. But without them, not much would happen” (p. 10).

Setting Direction

Examining the Evidence.The review suggests that leaders who set a clear sense of direction have the greatest impact. If these leaders help to develop among their staff members a shared understanding of the organization and its goals and activities, this understanding becomes the basis for a sense of purpose or vision. The authors emphasize that “having such goals helps people make sense of their work and enables them to find a sense of identity for themselves within their work context” (p. 10).

The authors suggest that school improvement plans can be a means of setting direction. “It’s difficult for schools to make progress without something to focus their attention, without any goals,” says coauthor Kenneth Leithwood, a University of Toronto education professor. “Improvement plans are a rational model about how to act purposefully in schools.”