Date of Conferral

5-14-2024

Date of Award

May 2024

Degree

Doctor of Education (Ed.D.)

School

Education

Advisor

Kathleen Kingston

Abstract

Current elementary data from a large suburban district in the eastern part of the United States demonstrate that less than half of students in Grades 3 through 5 are demonstrating sufficient literacy achievement as measured by state assessments. This problem is of great concern since strong literacy achievement is fundamental to student success in school and preparation for college and career. The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to explore the perspectives of elementary principals from this district on their role and practices as leaders in their students’ literacy achievement. The conceptual framework for this study is Murphy’s model of instructional leadership. The research questions for this study address the elementary principals’ perspectives on their role as leaders for student literacy achievement and the specific literacy leadership practices they employ to improve student literacy achievement. Ten elementary principals were selected using purposive sampling and interviewed using a semi-structured approach. Key findings indicated that elementary principals believe they have a critical role in promoting student achievement in literacy. Thematic analysis using a two-cycle approach revealed six themes from this study: (a) the importance of early literacy, (b) the importance of elementary literacy leadership, (c) the importance of building capacity, (d) the importance of time spent in classrooms, (e) the importance of progress monitoring, and (f) the importance of structures for collaboration. This study may positively impact social change by improving overall student literacy achievement resulting in increased chances for overall student success in school and readiness for college and career, while also decreasing chances for negative outcomes caused by illiteracy including risk for dropout, incarceration, and underemployment.

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