Servant Leadership to Be or Not to Be? The Impact on Team Learning and Student Achievement

• In Event: Leadership That Improves School Outcomes

Abstract

We examined the effects of servant leadership on team learning and academic achievement. For this study, 162 teachers from fifteen southern New York State public elementary schools with varying levels of achievement participated. Achievement was measured by taking the average mastery levels of the 2007, 2008, and 2009 Grade Four New York State English Language Arts Assessments. A 2x2 ANOVA was used to measure team learning, descriptions of teachers’ perceptions of principal servant leadership behaviors, and academic achievement. The results suggest that high levels of servant leadership had a positive impact on team learning, however, servant leadership and team learning had a negative impact on student achievement.

Authors

• Brian Biscari, Dowling College

• Christopher Dillon, Dowling College

• Christopher Herr, Dowling College

• Elsa-Sofia Morote, Dowling College

• Brian Zahn, Southampton High School

• S. Marshall Perry, Dowling College