Elementary Assistant Principals as Instructional Leaders: Characteristics and Experiences That Contribute to Their Perceptions of Readiness for the Role

Abstract

The purpose of this quantitative study was to identify the characteristics and experiences of elementary assistant principals that contributed to their perceptions of readiness to serve as instructional leaders. Data were collected from survey responses of 118 elementary assistant principals across the state of Alabama. Six key findings were: (1) a majority of respondents reported that their current role required 50% or more of their time was spent on instructional leadership; (2) a high percentage (59%) of elementary assistant principals in Alabama perceived themselves as ready to serve as instructional leaders; (3) neither age nor years of experience as an assistant principal and the age was significant in terms of perceptions of readiness as instructional leaders; (4) ready assistant principals received their most valuable mentoring from one-on-one mentoring for instructional leadership by their current principal as well as mentoring provided by experienced or senior administrators that assistant principals initiated; (5) ready assistant principals reported that the two most effective professional growth opportunities they participated in were one-on-one mentoring and informal meetings with their current principal to discuss issues; and (6) assistant principals who perceived themselves to be ready for the role of instructional leader participated in more professional growth opportunities than assistant principals who perceived themselves as not ready for this role.