Exploring the Relationship Between Administrator Role Clarity, Teacher Protection, and Student Bullying: A Multilevel Analysis

• In Event: 33.062 - Culturally Relevant Leadership for Instruction, Equity, and Improvement

Abstract

This study examines the relationship between administrator role ambiguity, teacher protection and student bullying. Data were collected from 1,554 teachers and 198 campus administrators from 105 elementary schools in Texas. Intraclass correlations are calculated to identify the level of variation in teacher perceptions of student bullying, and an intercepts as slope HLM model is created to isolate potential interaction effects between level 1 (teacher perceptions) and level 2 (administrator perceptions and school level demographic) variables. The findings of this research indicate that when teachers and administrators clearly understand their roles, bullying incidents decrease. To that end, enhancing both teacher and administrator role clarity provides important ways for universities, school districts, and individual campuses to reduce incidents of school bullying.

Authors

• Sean Kearney, Texas A&M University - San Antonio

• Page A. Smith, The University of Texas - San Antonio

• Ramiro Nava, University of Texas at San Antonio