Oluwatoyin Maquis HCM.718.O2- Leadership in Healthcare Admin. Dr. Reginald McCoy, DBH, MBA, MPA. MCPHS University February 6, 2022 Week 4 Article Summary : Journal Article 1: (2014) “In the USA and elsewhere, educators and policymakers strive to make a connection between leadership preparation and school outcomes” (Orphanos & Orr, 2013, p. 681), and new federal policies focus on the quality and effectiveness of leadership preparation (Orphanos & Orr, 2013, p. 681). Various researchers have found that “effective instructional and transformational leadership practices are strongly associated with improved teacher engagement and commitment and organizational culture and effectiveness” (Orphanos & Orr, 2013, p. 681). These influential principal practices combine elements of transformational and instructional leadership; Leithwood and Jantzi's (2008) findings validated the nature of effective transformational leadership practices having a direct effect on school and classroom conditions and an indirect influence on student achievement outcomes (Orphanos & Orr, 2013, p. 168). “Transformational leadership is the process whereby a person engages with others and creates a connection that raises the level of motivation and morality in both the leader and the follower” (Northouse, 2021, p. 253). In a study of Dutch teachers (2001), it was found that teachers’ perceptions of their principals’ transformational leadership, participation in decision making, sense of uncertainty, and professional development activities influenced how much they changed their practices. A transformational leader is a type of leader who is attentive to the needs and motives of followers and tries to help followers reach their fullest potential (Northouse, 2021, p. 253). It can be argued that the reason effective transformational leadership practices have an indirect influence on student achievement outcomes is that “in the classroom, teachers are being transactional when they give students a grade for work completed” (Northouse, 2021, p. 253). “An instructional leadership mindset includes an intense moral purpose focused on promoting deep student learning, professional inquiry, trusting relationships and seeking evidence in action” (Timperley, 2011). In this study, the preparation of principals and teachers appears to positively influence the nature of leadership practices (Orphanos & Orr, 2013, p. 683). Researchers have documented innovative program models and synthesized research on quality program features (Orphanos & Orr, 2013, p. 682). These models include: being standards-based, recruiting and selecting candidates based on leadership potential, having a coherent curriculum that addresses effective instructional leadership and school improvement, and using adult learning theory, developmental learning principles, or active learning strategies (Orphanos & Orr, 2013, p. 682). Although there is a present lack of research on the relationship between leadership preparation and student and school outcomes principal perception-based research suggests that there is a positive relationship between innovative leadership preparation and school improvement (Orphanos & Orr, 2013, p. 682). This study used a nonexperimental research design to test four research hypotheses and analyze data of six exemplary preparation and in-service programs, using national survey data on teachers to compare the experiences of graduates with other teachers (Orphanos & Orr, 2013, p. 685). Research showed that principals who take part in in-service programs that are part of a district-supported continuum of leadership preparation and development have stronger commitments to the principalship (Orphanos & Orr, 2013, p. 686). In a study of leadership preparation programs, the five programs had a consistent, comprehensive, standards-based curriculum, active, student-centered instruction, knowledgeable faculty, targeted recruitment and selection, and supervised internships (Orphanos & Orr, 2013, p. 690). The type of preparation the principals had was a moderating influence on the principal leadership-teacher outcome relationship. Teachers who had principals who had participated in innovative leadership preparation programs had higher teacher collaboration ratings (Orphanos & Orr, 2013, p. 695). The present study found that the presence of distributed leadership, teacher collaboration, parental support, and teachers' participation in professional development is related to teacher and school improvement outcomes (Orphanos & Orr, 2013, p. 696). The results show that quality leadership preparation does influence teacher outcomes and that the quality of leadership preparation influences the extent to which principals positively support and develop their staff, and broadly distribute leadership responsibilities in their schools (Orphanos & Orr, 2013, p. 697) providing important policy direction for improving teacher work conditions. References Geijsel F, Sleegers P, van den Berg R and Kelchtermans G (2001) Conditions fostering the implementation of large-scale innovation programs in schools: teachers’ perspectives. Educational Administration Quarterly 37(1): 130–166. Northouse, P. G. (2021). Leadership: Theory and practice (9th ed.). SAGE. Orphanos, S., & Orr, M. T. (2013). Learning leadership matters. Educational Management Administration & Leadership, 42(5), 680–700. https://doi.org/10.1177/1741143213502187 Timperley, H. (2011). Realizing the Power of Professional Learning. New York, NY: Open University Press.
