Blazing New Trails - Connexions

Superintendent Leadership as the Catalyst for Organizational Learning 71
Instructional and Transformational Leadership of the Superintendent
Overall, the data from District A highlighted the important influence the superintendent
has on organizational learning. O’Day, Goertz, and Floden (1995) discussed how
superintendents must not only recognize, but also utilize the entire organization to increase
commitment and capacity. By focusing on his or her vision and leadership, the development
of a collective commitment, utilization of organizational structures, development of the
knowledge of faculty, and provision of adequate resources, the superintendent has a
significant influence within the classroom.
Leadership practices associated with transformational and instructional leadership
models focus exclusively on practices that bring about improvement in school conditions and
educational outcomes. Analysis of data provided the following perspective of the actions and
behaviors of the district superintendent as they aligned to instructional and transformational
practices.
Focus group participants, specifically principals, recognized the influence the
superintendent had on each administrator in developing effective practices at their school site.
They discussed how the superintendent provided written, clearly articulated expectations of
excellence and established a vision and created a culture focused on a common purpose of
improving students’ academic achievement. Through open and transparent communication
among all departments in the district, the superintendent was able to shape the culture and
promote the district’s vision for student success. The superintendent shared the following to
demonstrate this point:
[The chief operations officer] said to me, ‘Let me tell you one of the first things I want
to do. I want to sit down with the Grounds Department, and I want to explain to them,
we don’t mow the lawn because the grass grew. We mow the lawn because a wellkept
facility improves school culture, sets a climate and expectations for student
achievement and performance, and every one of us needs to understand that our only
purpose and function is to support student learning.’
The superintendent communicated the importance of the vision reaching into the
classroom recognizing support for instructional improvement by the superintendent, along
with allocation of resources for professional development opportunities to improve their
practices, and increased teacher participation and confidence in classroom practice leading to
a shared purpose of instructional effectiveness. This communication increased morale and
perpetuated a cycle of trust between the school site level staff and district administration.
Teacher B was able to address this in the following statement:
I just thought of something right now that I need to tell. Because of his vision and
because of the person that he is, the professional development that he gives us not only
lets us grow professionally but also on a personal basis.
Providing opportunities for teachers to come together to address a common purpose of
instructionally related issues pertaining to student achievement became a source of inspiration
for changes in the organization. As they become experts in teaching and learning,
instructional change became easier. The superintendent's deliberate efforts to shape the
culture of the organization, focusing on collaboration and knowledge creation among staff,
had a dramatic influence within the classroom.