Principal instructional leadership and teaching for learner autonomy: A multilevel analysis of the case of South Korea

Abstract

This study aims to explore how teachers' use of instructional strategies to foster learner autonomy varies depending on principal instructional leadership. Based on a nationally representative sample of approximately 2,200 teachers in 131 middle schools in South Korea, a series of hierarchical generalized linear modeling analyses has been conducted. The main findings from this study lend credence to the idea that teachers whose school principals provide greater instructional leadership are significantly more likely to integrate instructional strategies to advance learner autonomy into their classroom teaching. This result appears very robust even after a range of variables pertaining to school and teacher characteristics is simultaneously taken into account.