The Impact of Leadership Behaviors of Blue Ribbon Catholic School Principals on School Culture

• Main Author: Cardarelli, Rosaline
• Format: Others
• Language: English
• Published: W&M ScholarWorks 2014
• Subjects: Education; Educational Administration and Supervision; Educational Leadership
• Online Access: https://scholarworks.wm.edu/etd/1539618797; https://scholarworks.wm.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2007&context=etd

The purpose of this study was to conduct an analysis of six successful Blue Ribbon Catholic schools to determine the relationship between principal's leadership behaviors, teacher's perceptions of principals and resulting school culture within six successful Blue Ribbon schools. A mixed methods approach for analysis was used through both qualitative and quantitative methods by means of principal interview data, observations, survey data, principal survey, and teacher survey. Participants in the survey included six principals and 80 teachers from elementary and high schools from rural as well as urban schools. The six schools in the study were all co-educational and ranged in size from 450 students to 1,200 students, with an average of 36 teachers per school and a 16:1 student teacher ratio.;The Bolman and Deal Four Frame Model (2008) provided the basis for the questions and surveys used to collect data concerning principal leadership, teacher's perceptions of principal leadership and overall school culture. The four frame organizational theory model components are described as: the Structural Frame, which focused on goals, rules, and policies; the Human Resource Frame, which addressed roles, norms, and relationships; the Political Frame, which focused on power, self-interest and aspirations; and the Symbolic Frame, which provided a view of culture, norms and values. Constraints included deviation from normal school schedules due to significant weather-related school closures and limited time for long term classroom observation. A correlation between principal leadership and overall school culture was validated overall but there was no significant statistical difference among the values of the frames as they apply to impact on school culture.