For more than a century, numerous studies examined and reported how principals allocated their time. Assuming that differences in selection, participation and satisfaction of tasks by principals resulted in different outcomes, researchers have continued to study principal time use. In 1989, Wimpelberg, Teddlie, and Stringfield indicated a need for…

This paper presents the use of the time-on-task analysis (TOTA) diagnostic model as an instrument to improve the efficient management of allocated academic time in schools and focuses on the descriptive analytics produced by the TOTA model. The model aims to analyse how time is spent during the school day to enable school leaders, managers, and…

Districts are increasingly investing in coaching programs to improve teacher practice and student outcomes. However, merely providing schools with the funding for a coaching position is not enough. To maximize the return on the investment of coaching, our research on the Dynamic Learning Project (DLP) shows that districts need to ensure that they…

This mixed-methods, concurrent nested study was designed to explore the extent to which one state's school counselors reported daily activities that align with the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) National Model. Despite federal and state legislation, state policies, and a state model supporting school counseling practices, a…

Background: Empirical evidence increasingly suggests that leadership which motivates, supports, and sustains the professional learning of teachers has a knock-on effect for both student learning and school improvement. The current study was conducted in China, where the workplace learning of teachers is embedded in a strong tradition of…

The purpose of this study is to determine the levels of concern of Illinois principals regarding the adoption of an evaluation system modeled after Charlotte Danielson's Framework for Teaching. Principal demographics and involvement in the use of and professional development surrounding Charlotte Danielson's Framework for Teaching were studied for…

The purpose of this grounded theory qualitative study was to explore the value and effectiveness of key aspects of the accreditation process. The aspects explored were the procedures and structures that school leadership establishes in response both to the schoolwide Action Plans that a school develops as part of the self-study process and to the…

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to describe, measure, compare, and contrast the perceptions of elementary teachers and principals regarding the degree to which the schools in which they are employed have implemented learning organizations conforming to Senge's (1990) 5 disciplines: mental models, personal mastery, shared vision, team…

Social studies at the middle-level represented a marginalized discipline in South Carolina. Although it was integrated into the state's accountability testing agenda and weighted equally with English, math, and science content in state school and district report card rating calculations, differences exist in the amount of time allocated for social…

Education reform has been on a new path over the last 15 years; a path that leads to more accountability, more choice for students and parents, highly qualified teachers, as well as, best practices in instruction. In an effort to move along the path of reform and as a result of previous reform, the 2004 reauthorization of IDEA reviewed the field…

The coprincipalship has been suggested as an organizational structure that addresses the increasing workload and time demands of the principal as well as the shortage of qualified applicants for the position. This article presents the findings of a qualitative study of coprincipals in public and private schools in California, Illinois,…

School principals have complex jobs. To better understand the work lives of principals, this study uses observational time-use data for all high school principals in Miami-Dade County Public Schools. This paper examines the relationship between the time principals spent on different types of activities and school outcomes including student…

Describes a North Carolina elementary principal's efforts to turn around two schools by adopting the Dunn and Dunn Learning Styles Model. The first school succeeded by recruiting all teachers, using small-group techniques, redesigning classroom space, and developing hands-on math materials for each grade level. Both teacher and administrator…

This synthesis of research findings translates investigations in instructional leadership into a working model for practitioners--principals, assistant principals, teachers, and others. Three kinds of research--theoretical, practical, and ethnographic--are used to develop a model based on six interrelated functions of instructional leadership,…