This quantitative case study examined teacher perceptions within one rural, public East Tennessee school district of principal leadership styles based upon Kouzes and Posner's five domains: challenge the process, enable others to act, encourage the heart, inspire a shared vision, and model the way to determine if a dominate domain existed within teacher perception of the principal's leadership style. Principals who understand the effectiveness and impact that different leadership styles have upon the school environment, specifically teacher perceptions, generally identify with a particular style allowing the creation of a positive educational environment (Rowland, 2008). Teacher understanding of principals' leadership styles increased self-awareness and job satisfaction the teacher achieved. Effectively decreasing the chances of teacher burnout and job-related stress (Meador, 2016).

Abstract: Purpose. The purpose of this investigation of teacher's perceptions of principal's leadership behavior and student achievement (reading) was to explore those factors of principal's leader behaviors that differentiate low achieving and high achieving schools as perceived by teachers. Sample. Two hundred sixty-one teachers in seven selected northeast Ohio school district and seventeen buildings participated in this study. Teachers in this study had at least three years of experience and one or more years of supervision from the principals whose leadership behavior they described. Instrument. The revised Leader Behavior Description Questionnaire Form XII was used. This instrument measured only four subscales, consideration Initiating Structure, Persuasion and Superior Orientation. This instrument was used to explore answer to five research questions. Findings. The study results did not support the premise that the leader behavior task structure differentiated effective from ineffective schools. Teachers in both groups of schools perceived that principals exhibited this characteristic. However, the results revealed that the leader behavior, consideration, did differ at the .05 level of significance as perceived by teachers between principals in high and low achieving schools. The data also showed that discrepancy existed between principals self perception and teacher perceptions of the leader behavior, superior orientation at the .05 level of significance. The data also revealed that the level of staff involvement, such as awareness, implementation, and curricular focus was more evident in low achieving than in high achieving schools. Conclusion. The investigation concluded that there is substantial need for further exploration of the leadership variable. An important recommendation is that additional research be initiated using the LBDQ and other research instruments as a strategy to consistently operationalize the leadership characteristics of Effective Schools Movement.

Since a building principal is the most important employee in a school building with regards to setting educational standards and creating culture, it is important for this leader to consider leadership style and to recognize the importance of teachers' perceptions on effectiveness. The purpose of this ex post facto study was to explore the relationship between the leadership style of building principals and perceived effectiveness of those leaders. Subtopics of this study considered the relationship that gender, leadership style, and educational level of the school building (elementary vs. secondary) have on perceived effectiveness of leaders. Data were collected via Bass & Avolio's web-based survey entitled the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ) from a sampling of elementary and secondary building principals in Nassau and Suffolk County districts and at least five faculty members from each principal's school. In total, 38 building principals and 236 teachers participated in the study. Descriptive statistics were compiled on the demographic data obtained, and two-way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) tests and an Independent Samples t-test were run using SPSS to understand if there was any significant relationship between gender, type of school and leadership styles or between leadership style, gender, type of school and the perceived effectiveness of the building principal. Further, this study explored if there was a statistically significant difference between the perceptions about leadership style and effectiveness between principal participants and teacher raters. Results of the study revealed non-significant associations for all research questions; however, statistically significant simple main effects found that at the elementary level, female principals were considered significantly more transformational than male principals. Findings also indicated that teachers on both educational levels perceived their male principals to exhibit more laissez-faire leadership behaviors than female principals, and there was a statistically significant difference in effectiveness scores between elementary and secondary school levels for male principals with elementary school teachers rating their male principals as more effective. Through these findings, certain strategies can be ascertained to help current leaders reflect on practice, to better prepare future leaders, and to contribute to the discourse about gender, school type, and leadership in education.