| Over the past two decades, online learning has experienced exponential growth through widespread implementation as a transformative medium for teaching and learning. Bolstered by state legislation and federal direction, online learning enrollment is projected to represent as much as 50% of all high school course enrollments within this decade. Such growth, coupled with a lack of adequate research on leadership for online learning, predicates the need for a theory of leadership to guide the implementation of online learning. Leithwood's (1994, 2010) work on transformational leadership provides such a theoretical base and applicable framework for the evaluation of current administrators' ability to provide leadership for online learning. Through survey research, this study determines the status and implementation of current leadership for online learning. In addition, this study examines policy for leadership for online learning at the state level. The results of this study have implications upon the structure and implementation of leadership for online learning at the building level and identify the need for a model of leadership uniquely suited to online learning. In addition, the results of this study have implications on state-level policy for online learning within the Commonwealth of Virginia and across model states for online learning. |
