Variance of student achievement based on high school principal leadership practices, size of school, and tenure of principal

The purpose of this study was to determine if student achievement on state assessments in 10th grade mathematics and 11th grade communication arts vary as a function of leadership practices, size of high school student population, and tenure of the high school principal. Student achievement measures were the state assessment index scores in 10 th grade mathematics and 11th grade communication arts.; Fifty-eight surveys were returned and considered in the analysis, representing 35.6 percent of the possible participants. Three categories of school size were determined---small, medium and large. Small districts (n = 23) were schools from lowest student population up to 499, medium sized districts (n = 15) were from 500 to 1499, and large districts (n = 12) were those districts above 1499. Three categories of principal tenure were determined---3--10 years of experience (n = 38), 11--18 years of experience (n = 11), and 19--26 years of experience (n = 1). Factors such as sex, socio-economic factors, urban/rural distribution, and ethnicity were reflective of the general population in Missouri.; This study used the Leadership Practices Inventory (LPI) developed in 1997 by Dr. James M. Kouzes and Dr. Barry Z. Posner. Kouzes and Posner's research led to the identification of five elements which are critical to a majority of these "best" leadership experiences: (1) challenging the process, (2) inspiring a shared vision, (3) enabling others to act, (4) modeling the way, and (5) encouraging the heart. The LPI was comprised of a 30 item survey designed to represent these five elements of effective leadership.; Six research questions were developed and tested to determine if there was significant variance between self-perceived leadership practices of high school principals and two Missouri state assessment factors representing student achievement. The independent variables in this study were the self-perceived principal leadership practices of high school principals along with the length of principal tenure at that high school and the student enrollment of the high school. The dependent variable, student performance, was measured by the MAP index scores on both the mathematics and communication arts portions of the MAP test administered in Missouri High Schools.