Chapter 3: Instructional Practice, Teacher Effectiveness, and Growth in Student Learning in Math: Implications for School Leadership

A large body of international research accumulated over the past 30 years supports the view that the school leadership facilitates growth in student learning (Bossert, Dwyer, Rowan, & Lee, 1982; Leithwood, Day, Sammons, Harris, & Hopkins, 2006; Robinson, Lloyd, & Rowe, 2008; Witziers, Bosker, & Kruger, 2003). One primary pathway is by shaping conditions in the school that foster the school’s capacity to provide effective teaching and learning such as facilitating the development of school values that support learning, establishing educational partnerships, increasing teacher collaboration regarding curriculum development and organization, enhancing professional development opportunities, and fostering more effective assessment practices (e.g., Hallinger, Bickman, & Davis, 1996; Leithwood, Louis, Anderson, & Wahlstrom, 2004; Leithwood et al., 2006; Robinson et al., 2008; Supovitz, Sirinides, & May, 2010). Leadership, therefore, serves as a key mediating construct between the school’s context (e.g., community values, support, involvement) and composition and its instructional practices, which directly influence student outcomes (Bossert et al., 1982; Heck & Hallinger, 2009; Heck & Moriyama, 2010). School leaders targeting instructional improvement, then, must facilitate school changes that are embraced and owned by the teachers, who are responsible for implementation in classrooms (Barth, 2001; Hall & Hord, 2001).