An investigation of social justice leadership culture and school effectiveness in southwest Texas elementary schools

The academic achievement gap in Texas Elementary schools has increased significantly in the past twenty years. Local, state, and government efforts to improve the academic achievement for traditionally marginalized students have not produced significant results. Rural Southwest Texas elementary schools with an influx of students who are English language learners and who live in impoverished conditions are among the most challenged. Generally, inadequate resources, environmental influences, and context-specific challenges are perceived to be the cause for the unfavorable outcomes. During the course of this study, the researcher identified the leadership challenges (e.g., inhibiting factors, roadblocks, obstacles, and opportunities) associated with implementing and sustaining social justice leadership cultures in elementary campuses that are capable of effectively addressing the teaching and learning support needs of disadvantaged and marginalized students in Southwest Texas elementary schools. The researcher applied a Social Justice Leadership Culture and School Effectiveness (SJLC-SE) conceptual model as a literature-grounded means to investigate these leadership challenges faced by Southwest Texas principals in their elementary campus communities. A qualitative phenomenological case study design was utilized to collect and analyze school culture perceptual data from principals in participating school districts along with an analysis of campus-level STAAR scores. The research design was based on a series of interviews with principals in comparison pair and outlier schools identified from the total school sample. The interviews were conducted to glean additional insights on context-specific implementation factors and sustainability strategies and best practices that help explain principals’ relative progress and overall success levels in implementing and sustaining an effective SJLC-SE. After transcribing the audio-taped data and reviewing state assessment data, reading and coding of the data was carried out by the researcher to classify key emerging themes and specifically select quotations that exemplify themes. Three themes were identified from the cross-case analysis of the ten case studies to support effective social justice leadership and school effectiveness. The three themes encompass district and campus-level approaches that principals and superintendents may tap into to implement effective SJL-SE in districts with a growing population of disadvantaged students. The campus-level strategies include: social justice leadership, collaboration, response to intervention, professional learning communities, positive culture and climate, and academic expectations for all students. The district-level strategies include: effective hiring practices, consistent curriculum and instructional practices, progress monitoring instruments, and professional development coupled with applicable teacher support mechanisms.