The ISLLC Standards for School Leaders: A Comparison of Traditionally Certified Administrators and Administrators Certified Via Examination in California Tamerin Capellino Oral Defense University of La Verne

Why this study? Personal Story

Background “ Leadership is second only to classroom instruction among all school- related factors that contribute to what students learn at school” Waters, Marzano, & McNulty, 2003 Large numbers of veteran school administrators are reaching retirement age. The USBLS projects there to be an increase of 53,000 school administrator jobs by Although there is a pool of credential-eligible candidates across the country, many teachers chose to remain in the classroom. Certification/credentialing is one barrier to employment school administrator candidates face. California is the only state to offer the SLLA as a replacement for traditional coursework.

The Problem Alternative certification routes have been developed in many states in an effort to combat administrator shortages. Little is known about the individuals certified via examination or alternate routes. There is a lack of research addressing if differences in performance exist based on certification route. Assumptions and biases exist that may prevent administrators certified via examination from securing an administrative position.

Purpose of the Study To investigate and compare supervisors’ assessments of traditionally certified site administrators and administrators certified via examination on leadership performance as measured by the ISLLC Standards for School Leaders. The six standards are shared vision, school culture, management, collaboration, ethics, and community advocating.

Research Questions 1. What percentage of traditionally certified site administrators demonstrate each of the six standards for school leaders at the “highly effective,” “effective,” “ineffective,” and “highly ineffective” levels as assessed by their supervisors? 2. What percentage of site administrators certified via examination demonstrate each of the six standards for school leaders at the “highly effective,” “effective,” “ineffective,” and “highly ineffective” levels as assessed by their supervisors? 3. Is there a significant difference in the assessment of performance by the supervisors of traditionally certified site administrators and administrators certified via examination as measured by the ISLLC Standards for School Leaders?

Methodology Descriptive study Survey research Data collection took place April-June 2008 using SurveyMonkey online survey provider 12 school districts in Riverside County 404 site administrators identified Sample consisted of 23 traditionally trained and 11 certified via examination

Findings- Research Questions 1 & 2 The majority of both traditionally certified site administrators and those certified via examination rated either “highly effective” or “effective” on all performance indicators. No traditionally trained site administrators or those certified via examination rated “highly ineffective” on any performance indicator.

Findings- Research Question 3 Examination of quantitative data collected from supervisors revealed no significant differences in assessed performance were observed on any of the 30 performance indicators.

Demographic Data Observations Site administrators in this study were typically white males Site administrators certified via examination reported more years experience in education (14.73 years) than their traditionally trained counterparts (10.57 years). Site administrators certified via examination reported higher levels of education (90.9% masters +30 or higher) compared to their traditionally trained counterparts (65.2% masters +30 or higher).

Demographic Observations (cont.) Traditionally trained site administrators tended to serve in elementary (47.8%) and middle/junior high schools (39.1%) whereas those certified via examination predominately served middle/junior high schools (45.5%) and high schools (36.4%). Traditionally trained site administrators were more likely to be serving as a principal (43.5%) than administrators certified via examination (18.2%). Site administrators certified via examination were found to hold assistant/vice principal positions 72.7% of the time, whereas traditionally trained site administrators held the same positions 52.2% of the time.

Implications Graduate training in school administration may not make the difference in the effectiveness of site administrators. There may be other dispositions, characteristics and experiences that contribute to effective leadership. Districts may be unnecessarily excluding highly educated and experienced aspiring site administrators simply because of their certification route.

Conclusions Site administrators certified via examination are not new to the profession and have more years of education experience and graduate education than their traditionally trained counterparts. No significant differences exist in assessed performance of traditionally trained site administrators and administrators certified via examination. Site administrators certified via examination are effective administrators who should be considered without bias for any administrative opening in California.

Recommendations for Action Districts should be proactive in their identification of teachers within their organization with high levels of teaching experience and education who have the desire to enter school administration in order to encourage them to be certified via examination. Graduate school administration programs and school districts should provide candidates with the experiences, education and support that will contribute to their effectiveness as a school leader. School districts may want to reconsider their hiring practices and eliminate the requirement a credential be earned through coursework as an unnecessary barrier to employment.

Thank you Dr. Phil Pendley, Chair Dr. Bob Taylor, Committee Member Dr. Dave Horton, Committee Member Dr. Pat Ensey, Outside Reader Tony Capellino, Husband Marjorie Phillips, Mother Michael Roe, Friend Dr. Christy Goennier, Friend Audience members

Next Steps Share findings with all participating districts. Make findings available to CCTC who is currently creating a task force and will be re-examining the test option. Make presentations regarding these findings to appropriate professional organizations. Write an article for a professional publication.