Leading professional learning: comparative perceptions of teachers and school leaders

Abstract

A comparison of responses from teachers and school leaders is used to assess the effectiveness of various leadership strategies in facilitating teacher professional learning. Analysis used t-tests at a 95% confidence level to determine significant differences between the responses of the two groups. Results about effectiveness of strategies used by school leaders show agreement between the teachers and school leaders, and confirm existing research about their efficacy. However, results about the frequency that school leaders use these strategies show statistically significant differences between teachers and school leaders’ experiences of their use. These strategies include the use of school leader/teacher collaboration on professional learning, professional learning that is directly applicable to a teachers’ classroom, and the use of inquiry in the learning process. Additionally, significant differences were reported in the frequency with which school leaders observe teachers teach.