Principal Efficacy

Defining Efficacy...

• “Efficacy is a belief about one’s own ability (self-efficacy) or the ability of one’s colleagues collectively…to perform a task or achieve a goal (Leithwood & Louis 2012, p. 108).

Untitled Slide

• “Efficacy is a belief about ability, not actual ability” (p. 108).

Details of the Study:

• Nine Efficacy-Producing District Conditions

Condition 0ne:

• District-wide focus on student achievement and the quality of instruction

Condition One

• Provide resources to assist schools in achieving district-established
• Communicate high expectations for the work teachers & principals accomplish district direction and implement effective instruction
• Allow schools sufficient flexibility in pursuing district direction
• Engage ongoing or periodic review of directions and plans and make revisions appropriately

Condition Two

• Job embedded teacher professional development

Condition Two

• Hold principals accountable for implementing/following up on PD
• Approve diverse types of PD(aligned w/goals-objectives)
• Mandate participation in PD critical to district policies
• Encourage use of staff meetings for PD
• Provide evidence to assist in PD plans
• Provide adequate funding for PD

Condition Three

• Investments in both school and district level instructional leadership

Condition Three

• Make teachers' work main focus of attention for school leaders
• Hold principals responsible for student achievement
• Provide a wide range of PD to help principals capacity for instructional ledership

Condition Four

• District Personnel Policies

Condition Four

• Provide stability in district leader roles
• Hire competent principals from w/in who match school needs
• Hiring policies ensure principals select and retain outstanding teachers
• District leaders assume leadership roles when needed
• Principal succession is planned and minimized

Condition Five

• Emphasis on Teamwork and Professional Community

Condition Five

• Educators participate in district-wide decisions
• Schools are informed about state/district initiatives
• Districts provide structures that allow for sharing info and collaborative within and across schools
• Districts support and encourage collaboration (teacher/principal)

Condition Six

• District-wide use of Data

Condition Six

• Insists on data-based decision making in schools
• Use data to set goals for PD
• Provide schools with data needed to practice data based decision making
• Assist schools in interpretation and use data for decision making
• Create structures that foster the sharing of info across & between schools and districts

Condition Seven

• Targeted and Phased Focus of Improvement

Condition Seven

• Require development of improvement plans in all schools
• Clear school improvement plans aligned with state/district standards
• Also aligned with district improvement plans
• For school-developed improvement plans, district provision of a procedure for the development plan

Condition 8

• Relations with School and Stakeholders

Condition Eight

• Encouragement for communication among principals across schools
• Flexibility for schools in the implementation for district initiatives
• Significant opportunities for principals and teachers to be involved in decisions at district level

Condition Nine

• District Policy Governing School Choice
• (Out of Nine--only condition seen as negative)

Condition Nine (Negative Effects)

• School choice policies can create significant challenges & have adverse effects on principal efficacy
• An open policy can change a school's dynamics

Condition Nine (Principal Efficacy enhanced)

• District helps schools respond to rapid and drastic changes in curriculum and student populations

How Districts Build Principal Efficacy

Untitled Slide

• “The most powerful underlying source of efficacy is having “mastery experiences…when people have opportunities to develop the capacities needed to grapple productively with the challenges they face, their sense of self confidence or efficacy grows significantly” (p. 135).

Untitled Slide

• Instructional Leadership (both school-and district level “among the most powerful influences on their own sense of self-efficacy” (p.135).
• “…Principals’ capacity for instructional leadership…cornerstone of their improvement efforts” (p. 135).

District Professional Development:

Questions...

• How do principals assess the professional development and support their district provides?
• How does principals’ experience of professional development affect their collective sense of efficacy?
• To what extent is principals’ professional development associated with student learning?

Untitled Slide

• Most principals agree either moderately or strongly that district leaders:

Untitled Slide

• Encourage administrators and teachers to act on what they have learned in their professional development
• Encourage school administrators to work together to improve their instructional leadership
• Work with school administrators who are struggling to improve their instructional leadership

Untitled Slide

• However, principals felt uncertainty on a number of issues .

Untitled Slide

• Principals are uncertain that district leaders take a personal interest in an individual’s personal professional development

Untitled Slide

• Principals also felt district leaders provide quality staff development focused on priority areas only occasionally, rarely or very rarely

Untitled Slide

• Principals also felt districts provide opportunities to work productively with colleagues from other schools on an infrequent basis

PD Experiences & Collective Efficacy

Support vs. Pressure

• Targeted support vs. Pressure to increase achievement?
• Which is more useful? Should both be used?

Professional Development Measure

• To measure PD, Composite scale (using 8 standardized items) p. 138.

District Data Use & Targets Measures

• Measures use of data on student and school performance, student achievement, etc.

Principals' Collective Sense of Efficacy

• Measures the ability of leaders in a district to solve problems and improve student learning.
• Measures: knowledge and skill of staff, view on improvements, view on problems in the district etc.
• (p. 139)

Principals' Individual Sense of Efficacy

• Measured leadership competencies:
• Instructional strategies, coaching, managing student behavior, developing unity & motivating others, etc.

How is Principals’ PD Associated w/Student Learning?