Does Principal Leadership Impact Teachers' Perception of Purpose and Understanding of Evaluation Systems?

• In Event: 66.080 - Roundtable Session 26
  In Roundtable Session: 66.080-4 - Exploring the Relationships Between School Leaders, Teachers, and Evaluation Systems

Abstract

Research has demonstrated that principals significantly influence the implementation of outcome-based reforms such as new teacher evaluation policies. However, we have limited research on how teachers’ perceptions of leadership translate into their own perceptions of new systems. This paper draws from motivational theory and uses mixed methods to examine how teachers’ perceptions of their principals influence their perceptions of the purpose and understanding of a new evaluation system in an urban school district in Texas. Analyses revealed that principal leadership was a significant predictor of teachers’ perception of the purpose, as well as their level of understanding, of the new evaluation system.

Authors

• Anandita Krishnamachari, The University of Pennsylvania

• Claire Robertson-Kraft, University of Pennsylvania