A Phenomenological Investigation of Professional Development and the Impact on Elementary Principals Instructional Leadership

Purpose: The purpose of this phenomenological investigation is to identify and describe professional development components that elementary school principals in the Santa Clarita Valley perceive as having the greatest impact on their instructional leadership related to building teachers’ capacity for improving classroom instruction. Methodology: To investigate the professional development of elementary school principals in the Santa Clarita Valley and the impact on instructional leadership, the study will follow a phenomenological research design that includes a series of interviews. This research design will focus and describe professional development components and the perspectives of elementary school principals with regard to professional development in the area of instructional leadership. The sources used to gather data for this study include interviews, which will be used to examine various models and components of professional development and the perceptions of elementary school principals about professional development in the area of instructional leadership. Through one-on-one interviews with selected elementary school principals, the triangulation of data will support the researcher’s efforts in collecting and maintaining appropriate information. This procedure will allow the researcher to find themes and patterns, and to assist in presenting the beliefs related to elementary school principals’ perceptions of their professional development