Principal Instructional Leadership Behaviors: Teacher vs. Self Perceptions.
In response to ever increasing accountability of school principals to demonstrate higher levels of student achievement, instructional leadership continues to be an important focus among educational researchers. In this paper, researchers briefly review the literature base regarding instructional leadership, then present the conceptual framework adopted for the study. Using the Principal Instructional Management Rating Scale (PIMRS) the team measured self perceptions of principals (n=17) regarding frequency of instructional leadership behaviors enacted in daily leadership, then compared self reports to reports of teachers (n= 407) in principals' schools. Findings revealed no significant differences between respondent groups a departure from typical findings in similar studies. Further investigation of these non significant differences, however, indicated that magnitude and direction of principal teacher differences varies among schools in the sample. The article concludes with possible implications for further research and practice.