The superintendent's maintenance and influence on classroom instructional capacity: a mixed method study

Abstract

The primary objective of this investigation is an increased knowledge of the dynamics of these interactive relationships and the influence of the district superintendent on school improvement centered on instruction and student learning. Using the conceptual lenses of superintendent instructional leadership and instructional capacity, this investigation explored the attitudes, opinions and teachers' views of their superintendent's ability to influence classroom instruction. Specifically, we wanted to know the ability of the superintendent to teachers' ability to produce worthwhile and substantial student learning. In this mixed method analysis, data were drawn from seven medium sized school districts in Missouri. In-depth and triangulation interviews with forty-seven classroom teachers were conducted. Teachers completed a questionnaire designed to examine factors related to teacher's perceptions of the district superintendent's instructional leadership, the superintendent's role in fostering an organizational environment that supported instructional capacity. Results of the correlational and regression analysis indicate a significant predictable relationship (R₂ = .878; F (2, 877) = .618, p =. 000) between the two independent variables (superintendent's instructional leadership and teacher's professional development and instructional practices) the dependent variable (instructional capacity).