Abstract

There is a dearth of research on how school leaders can directly affect classroom and school conditions that lead to increased student outcomes. This study presents a descriptive single case study on a school leader and identifies supports they provided to improve classroom and school conditions, which may have led to the increased student outcomes they saw over a seven-year period. Qualitative methods were used. Data were collected through interviews and document analysis. This study is unique in that it collects and examines data through the Perspectives on Learning Environment Framework discussed in Bransford et al.’s book How People Learn Book, Brain, Mind, Experience, and School, as opposed to using Instructional, Transformational Leadership Frameworks. This case study found detailed evidence that, over a seven-year period, an elementary school principal directly improved school and classroom conditions that may have led to increased student outcomes. Most notably the effective implementation of the principal’s supports played a direct role in improving both classroom and general conditions in the school. Though findings derive only from one case study, this method may be used in further studies on school leadership and potentially close the identified gap in the literature on school leaders. Research on school leadership is in need of clearer findings to the following question: how can school leaders improve classroom and school conditions in a way that leads to increased student outcomes?

Recommended Citation

Brown, Goldy III (2023) "How School Leaders Can Directly Support School and Classroom Conditions to Improve Student Outcomes," Journal of Educational Leadership in Action: Vol. 8: Iss. 3, Article 4.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.62608/2164-1102.1128
Available at: https://digitalcommons.lindenwood.edu/ela/vol8/iss3/4