McREL’s meta-analysis of studies on district-level leadership found that successful superintendents:

• Set "non-negotiable" goals for achievement and instruction.
• Involve others, especially principals, in setting those goals.
• Align school board support to performance and instructional objectives.
• Continually monitor progress and make corrections when needed.
• Focus resources, especially for training, on district wide goals.

These are the findings of Robert J. Marzano and J. Timothy Waters and the basis for the keynote presentation by Bryan McNulty at the MASA Fall Conference. In a paper released this month, the authors from Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning (McREL) distill 27 studies on district leadership and student results. Using meta-analysis techniques, they combined the effects found in those studies and arrived at a positive and statistically significant correlation. Actions aimed at creating what they called “goal oriented” districts were the most powerful.

Paul D. Houston, the executive director of the American Association of School Administrators, said he hopes that political leaders and school board members pay attention to the message of the new analysis. The view that administration has little value to schools’ instructional mission has recently fueled interest in the “65 percent solution”—a requirement that at least 65 percent of school dollars be spent on the classroom.

“If you’re defined by others as sort of a superficial appendage to the process, that not only shapes your self-concept, but also the power and authority you need to get the job done,” said Mr. Houston, whose Arlington, Va.-based group represents district superintendents.

He also noted that the analysis found a significant positive link between achievement and superintendents’ tenures, suggesting that high turnover among leaders undermines efforts to improve learning.

McREL plans to publish a book expanding on the study’s methodology and findings, as the lab did with the meta-analysis of effective principal leadership, which became the basis of School Leadership That Works, published last year with the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development in Alexandria, Va.

Source: Education Week, 10.11.06
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