Chapter 5: Extending the Leadership Role From Policy Broker to Sense-Maker: Emerging Evidence From Charter Schools

The accountability movement in this country has placed exceedingly high demands on school leaders as they strive to improve student instruction and augment learning gains (Firestone & Riehl, 2005; Tucker & Codding, 2002). The last two decades have witnessed reforms such as standards-based instruction, curriculum alignment, and data-based decision-making, and have propelled school leaders to assume a more active role to support and participate in instructional matters (Gates, Ross, & Brewer, 2000). The significance of school leaders engaging in leadership activities—that is, in taking an active role in leading instructional improvement—is supported by various research studies that have documented the crucial role between leadership and school effectiveness (Hallinger & Heck, 1996, 1998; Leithwood, Louis, Anderson, & Wahlstrom, 2004; Waters, Marzano, & McNulty, 2003). Although definitions of leadership vary, the literature reflects a general consensus that school leaders assist teachers in improving teaching and learning through specific activities such as observing classrooms, analyzing student work and achievement data, providing professional development support to teachers, and holding teachers accountable for instructional improvement.