(JPES), Vol 19 (Supplement issue 3), Art 135, pp 936 944, 2019
online ISSN: 2247 806X; pISSN: 2247 – 8051; ISSN L = 2247 8051 © JPES
936
Corresponding Author: DELIGIANNIDOU TZENI, Email: tzenidel@gmail.com
DELIGIANNIDOU TZENI
1
, ATHANAILIDIS IOANNIS
2
LAIOS ATHANASIOS
3
STAFYLA AMALIA
4
1,2,3,4,
University of Thrace, Department of Physical Education and Sports Science, Komotini,
TEI of Central Macedonia, Logistics Department, GREECE
Published online:May 31, 2019
(Accepted for publication April 14, 2019)
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&%’ ’: In the complex and changing educational context of the 21st century, the role of school
principals has attracted the interest of many surveys as it is viewed as a key factor in school effectiveness.
& The purposes of this study were (a) to investigate the role of school principals based on specific
performance criteria, using as effectiveness indicators the perceptions of physical education (PE) teachers and
their principals of effective school administration, (b) to determine whether statistically significant differences
exist between PE teachers and principals regarding factors that express efficient school administration, and (c) to
determine whether statistically significant differences exist in the perceptions of PE teachers and principals of
the factor “work experience.” : A total of 415 teachers (223 PE teachers, 192 principals), who worked
during the school year 20172018 in primary and secondary education in the prefectures of Pieria and Imathia of
Greece, participated in the survey. The perceptions of PE teachers and school principals of efficient school
administration were measured with a questionnaire created by Pashiardis and Orphanou (1999). ( Results
indicated that, in general, PE teachers were satisfied with their principal’s management skills. Principals stated
that they are more efficient than teachers think they are. A ttest revealed statistically significant differences in
all the factors, in favor of principals. Α oneway analysis of variance revealed statistically significant differences
in the factor “school programs” according to PE teachers with more than 20 years of work experience. Moreover,
statistically significant differences were found in the factors “school climate,” “problemsolving and decision
making,” and “student management,” in favor of older principals; in the factors “organization and
administration” and “professional development of the principal,” in favor of principals with 1519 years of
experience; and in the factor “cooperation with the ministry’s officials,” in favor of principals with 1014 years
of experience. ) There is a discrepancy between the perceptions of PE teachers and their principals
of effective school administration. This suggests the need for improving principals’ competence through specific
training.
*+: leadership development, leadership preparation, School improvement, Principals’ leadership style
School leadership has worldwide been recognized as a key factor in the improvement of schools
(Sebastian & Allensworth, 2012) and in the efficiency of school organization, in relation to school success and
students’ achievement (Hopkins, 2001; Leithwood & Rielh, 2003; Brauckmann & Pashiardis, 2009; Marzano et
al., 2005; Kythreotis et al., 2010). Specialists in the field of educational leadership have stated that an essential
element of an effective school is an effective principal. In addition, many studies suggest that the two factors that
have the greatest impact on students’ achievement are classroom teaching and educational leadership (Coelli &
Green, 2012; Hallinger, 2011; Robinson et al., 2008; Urick & Bowers, 2011). Moreover, school leadership
comes only second to classroom teaching among the factors related to school effectiveness (Louis et al., 2010;
Leithwood et al., 2004). There is compelling evidence that some leadership behaviors are more effective than
others in promoting student learning (Bush, 2018). In addition, success in achieving the school’s goals and
purposes is a true reflection of successful leadership practices in school (AlJaradat & ZaidAlkilani, 2015).
Recognizing the crucial role of the principal in its effect on student results (Heck & Hallinger 2014;
Sammons et al., 2011; Louis et al., 2010), but also on factors related to the teaching staff (Taliadorou, &
Pashiardis 2015; Hulpia et al., 2011), the present study attempted to explore managerial attitude based on
specific performance criteria, using as effectiveness indicators the perceptions of physical education (PE)
teachers and those of the principals themselves. PE teachers teach a cognitive subject with specific goals, a
distinct structure and organization, and a greater workload (Mäkelä et al., 2014b; Mäkelä & Hirvensalo 2015;