Time Not Wasted: The Effects of Principal Time and Autonomy on Student Achievement and Attendance

• In Event: 79.016 - Time, Policy, and Competition: Principal Pressures and Constraints

Abstract

After spending decades improving teacher evaluations, policymakers are increasingly turning to principal professional development as a new lever for school improvement. This study leverages three years of survey data from a large school district in the mid-Atlantic region to isolate the effect of self-reported principal time allocation and autonomy on student achievement and attendance. We employ a ¬k¬-means clustering algorithm and school and year fixed effects to understand the distribution of principals across schools and how principal time allocation and autonomy affect student achievement and absences. We find that simultaneous increases in time spent on management and principal autonomy are associated with approximately three fewer days of student absences, along with modest, but inconsistent effects, on student achievement.

Authors

• Haisheng Yang, University of Pennsylvania

• Adam Kirk Edgerton, Learning Policy Institute

• Nell Williams, University of Pennsylvania

• Rebecca L Nyquist, University of Pennsylvania