Development and Validation of an Instrument for Assessing Departmental Leadership in China

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  In Virtual iPresentation Only: SIG-Leadership for School Improvement Virtual Poster Session

Abstract

This study developed and validated an instrument, the departmental leadership scale (DLS) for assessing departmental leadership in China. Using multiple analyses on two independent samples of 3584 and 5077 teachers, the authors obtain a four-factor, 20-item DLS with a stable factor structure and good psychometric qualities. The four factors include building a shared vision, leading teaching reform and innovation, promoting teachers’ collaborative and professional development and managing and evaluating teachers, indicating that department heads in China exercise a combination of professional leadership and administrative leadership, which can be attributed to the Confucian philosophy of Zhong-Yong thinking.

Author

• Jia Zhang, Zhejiang University