Triangulating principal effectiveness: How perspectives of parents, teachers, and assistant principals identify the central importance of managerial skills

Authors
Jason Grissom,
Susanna Loeb
Year of publication
2011
Publication
American Education Research Journal
Volume/Issue
48(5)
Pages
1091-1123

While the importance of effective principals is undisputed, few studies have addressed what speciá´€c skills principals need to promote school success. á¼€is study draws on unique data combining survey responses from principals, assistant principals, teachers and parents with rich administrative data to identify which principal skills matter most for school outcomes. Factor analysis of a 42-item task inventory distinguishes five skill categories, yet only one of them, the principals' organization management skills, consistently predicts student achievement growth and other success measures. Analysis of evaluations of principals by assistant principals coná´€rms this central result. Our analysis argues for a broad view of instructional leadership that includes general organizational management skills as a key complement to the work of supporting curriculum and instruction.

Suggested Citation

Grissom, J., & Loeb, S. (2011). Triangulating principal effectiveness: How perspectives of parents, teachers, and assistant principals identify the central importance of managerial skills. American Education Research Journal, 48(5), 1091-1123