An Analysis of the Instructional Leadership Role of the Jamaican Principal as It Is Affected by Local and External Education System Document Policies
Magnus-Brown, Bernice
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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/69219
Description
Title
An Analysis of the Instructional Leadership Role of the Jamaican Principal as It Is Affected by Local and External Education System Document Policies
Author(s)
Magnus-Brown, Bernice
Issue Date
1988
Doctoral Committee Chair(s)
Rodgers, Frederick A.
McGreal, Thomas
Department of Study
Education
Discipline
Education
Degree Granting Institution
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Degree Level
Dissertation
Keyword(s)
History, Black
Education, Administration
Education, Curriculum and Instruction
Abstract
This exploratory study was designed to analyze the effect of educational systems documents on the instructional leadership role of Jamaican principals. Literature on instructional leadership, dynamics of leadership theory, and effective schools, coupled with the writer's knowledge of Jamaican education, provided the conceptual framework of the study.
Content analyses and evaluation were the research methodologies employed in conducting investigations. The educational systems documents involved in the study were content analyzed, while school records and the principals' responses to questionnaires were evaluated.
The sample for the content analysis comprised eight documents, viz., Educational Code of Regulations, Handbook of School Management, Ministry of Education Principals Job Specifications, Ministry of Education Teacher Evaluation, Policy Memos from the Ministry, New Deal Act, and Ministry of Education Five Year Plan. The documents were analyzed by categorizing their content, based on the criteria of instructional leadership principles. The theme within a sentence was the unit of the content analysis.
The sample for the evaluation consisted of 580 Jamaican principals: 130 secondary school principals and 450 elementary school principals participated. All participants responded to items on four questionnaires; namely, Perceived Policy Influence, Principals' Perceived Instructional Leadership Policies, Professional Role Orientation Scale, and Demography. Each item was rated by the researcher, either receiving 1 to 5 or 1 to 10 points. The items addressed matter pertaining to instructional leadership or educational system documents policy influence. Responses were checked and later analyzed statistically.
The findings of the study revealed: (a) Educational system documents policies with the exception of the external examination policies placed greater emphasis on the bureaucratic duties of the principal than on his instructional leadership duties, (b) principals believed that their goals related to the academic pursuits of the schools were not similar to the Ministry of Education policy-makers' goals, (c) educational policies which originated from private sectors or a combination of the private sector policies and the Ministry of Education policies had a more positive impact on the instructional leadership behavior of the principal than policies which came solely from the Ministry of Education, and (d) principals felt that they did not always act as instructional leaders.
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