Principal Influence on Collective Efficacy: A Single Case Study Looking at Principal Efficacy Influence on an Elementary School through the Perspective of Teachers.

Abstract

This study explored ways in which self-efficacy beliefs and actions of a principal contributed to the shaping of school’s collective efficacy through teachers’ perceptions. A general qualitative methods approach was used. The study featured a single embedded case design highlighting one high-poverty school achieving state accreditation standards for student proficiency levels in English and math. The study population consisted of 14 elementary school teachers in a district in a state in the mid-Atlantic region. Data were collected through a survey, semi-structured interviews, and a focus group to answer the following research questions: (1) What experiences/elements were influential in developing the school’s collective efficacy? (2) How has the self-efficacy of the principal contributed to the school’s collective efficacy and influenced achievement? The major purpose of this study was to seek understanding of how the self-efficacy beliefs and actions of a principal contributes to the shaping of a school’s collective efficacy through teachers’ perceptions. Two major themes and five subthemes were revealed by the research and concluded with implications for practice and research. Seven significant findings resulted from this work and illuminated the potential for principal development to support the building of collective efficacy of elementary school principals.