公辦公營實驗國民小學教師知覺校長領導職能、學校組織文化對學校效能影響之多層次調節分析

A Multilevel Moderation Analysis of the Relationship Among Teachers’ Perceptions of the Principal’s Leadership Occupational Competency and the School’s Organizational Culture on the School’s Effectiveness in State-run Experimental Elementary Schools

實驗教育雖已成為臺灣當代教育的重要趨勢，然其發展仍面臨許多挑戰，例如如何提升學校效能，以達成其教育目標，其中，校長領導職能的實踐為關鍵要素。由於實驗教育學校之特殊性，若其學校組織文化傾向於創新學習或組織共識程度有所不同時，教師對校長領導職能的知覺與學校效能的關係強度和方向也可能隨之強化或削弱。因此，本研究以教師知覺校長領導職能為主題，探討公辦公營國民小學教師知覺校長領導職能、學校組織文化（分為創新學習與組織共識）對學校效能的影響，並分析學校組織文化在兩者間的調節效果。以111學年度公辦公營實驗國民小學教師為問卷調查對象，首先進行預試問卷分析，發出預試問卷160份，回收有效問卷158份後運用SmartPLS4進行驗證性因素分析。為了有較為理想之跨層級交互作用檢定力，本研究之正式問卷回收30所學校、每校6-12份有效問卷後，運用SPSS與HLM進行數據分析及模型檢驗，並驗證研究假設。研究結論如下：公辦公營國民小學教師知覺校長領導職能成效愈高，其學校效能也愈高；公辦公營國民小學具創新學習之學校組織文化對學校效能具正向影響效果；公辦公營國民小學具創新學習與組織共識之學校組織文化，在部分教師知覺校長領導職能與學校效能關係間具有調節效果，例如創新學習在整合與行銷職能及行政領導間具有顯著正向調節效果，並依據研究結論提出後續相關建議。

Research Motivation and Purpose

The rise of experimental education in Taiwan reflects a broader global trend emphasizing diverse and inclusive educational reforms. These reforms aim to meet the growing demand for personalized learning paths that cater to students’ varied needs and parental expectations. In 2014, Taiwan took a significant step forward by enacting the “Three Acts of Experimental Education,” which aimed to institutionalize innovation and diversity within its educational framework. This progressive legislation has encouraged the proliferation of experimental schools, fostering educational creativity and flexibility. However, the rapid expansion of experimental education schools has also brought significant challenges, especially in achieving effective school performance within these unique and less traditional frameworks. One critical factor in addressing these challenges is the principal’s occupational competency (OC) in leadership. Effective leadership directly impacts school effectiveness (SE) and interacts with the school’s organizational culture to either amplify or mitigate this impact. In the distinctive environment of experimental schools, where organizational culture varies widely– ranging from highly innovative practices to consensus-driven approaches– these cultural differences may significantly influence the relationship between leadership occupational competency (LOC) and school outcomes. This study investigates these complex relationships, providing a deeper understanding of how principals’ leadership skills and cultural factors shape SE in experimental education.

Literature Review

OC is a comprehensive concept that integrates knowledge, skills, values, and attitudes, serving as a crucial predictor of job performance. Within the educational context, transformational, transactional, distributed, and positive leadership styles– have consistently positively affected school outcomes. For instance, transformational leadership inspires teachers and students, transactional leadership ensures goal attainment, and distributed leadership promotes stakeholder collaboration. Despite the extensive research on these leadership styles, the specific examination of principals’ LOC in experimental education settings remains limited. Simultaneously, school organizational culture (SOC) is pivotal in shaping leadership effectiveness. Innovative learning within an organizational culture encourages creative teaching practices and collaborative problem-solving, while organizational consensus fosters unity and effective communication among stakeholders. By hypothesizing that these cultural dimensions moderate the relationship between LOC and SE, this study provides a more nuanced understanding of how these factors interact and influence each other.

Research Methodology

This study employed a quantitative survey methodology to explore the relationships among principals’ LOC, SOC, and SE in state-run experimental elementary schools in Taiwan. During the 2022 academic year, the study began with a pilot phase in which 160 questionnaires were distributed, yielding 158 valid responses. These data were analyzed using SmartPLS4 to validate the research instruments. The main survey phase expanded to 30 schools, collecting 6-12 valid responses per school, ensuring a robust multilevel dataset for analysis. The data were subsequently analyzed using SPSS for descriptive statistics and hierarchical linear modeling (HLM), allowing for the exploration of direct effects and multilevel interactions among variables. This comprehensive approach enabled the study to test its hypotheses and gain in-depth insights into the factors influencing SE.

Research Findings

1. Direct Impact of Teachers’ Perceptions of the Principal’s LOC on Aspects of SE

The study demonstrated that principals’ LOC significantly influences multiple dimensions of SE. Specifically, innovation, integration, and marketing competency positively affected administrative leadership, teacher performance, student learning, community recognition, and environmental infrastructure. These results highlight the importance of principals’ ability to integrate resources and implement strategic initiatives. Conversely, planning and execution competency, while beneficial for teacher performance, negatively impacted student learning, likely due to a misalignment between strategic priorities and student needs. Communication competency stood out for its role in enhancing community engagement and recognition, while global awareness competency introduced valuable international perspectives and resources, contributing to improved facilities and broader recognition. Self-management competency was particularly impactful for administrative leadership and student learning, underscoring the importance of principals’ professional growth and self-regulation. However, the effects of strategic operational and teamwork competency was less pronounced, indicating the need for a balanced leadership approach.

2. Direct Impact of Innovative Learning in SOC on SE

Innovative learning emerged as a critical cultural dimension, significantly enhancing administrative leadership, teacher teaching, student learning, and community recognition. However, it did not significantly affect environmental infrastructure, suggesting that its benefits are more pronounced in human-centered aspects of SE. While theoretically significant, organizational consensus did not directly influence SE in the sampled schools.

3. Moderating Effects of SOC

(1) Innovative learning positively moderated the relationship between innovation, integration, marketing competency, and administrative leadership, indicating that schools with an innovative culture directly enhance SE and amplify the impact of the principal’s LOC on SE.

(2) Innovative learning negatively moderates the relationship between global awareness competency and environmental infrastructure, suggesting that when school culture strongly emphasizes innovation, an excessive focus on global perspectives may detract from resource allocation toward ecological facilities.

(3) Organizational consensus positively moderated the relationships between strategic operational competency and administrative leadership, as well as teamwork competency and community recognition, demonstrating that a consensus-driven culture facilitates collaboration among school members and promotes school development.

Discussion and Recommendations

The findings underscore the pivotal role of a principal’s LOC in driving SE within state-run experimental elementary schools. Additionally, the innovative and consensus-driven aspects of SOC are critical factors that directly enhance SE and strengthen the impact of LOC. Based on these findings, the following recommendations are proposed:

1. Developing Leadership Competencies

Educational administrators should prioritize cultivating and developing LOC, which is pivotal in achieving comprehensive SE.

2. Fostering Supportive School Cultures

Efforts should be made to cultivate school cultures that encourage innovation and consensus. These cultural traits can significantly amplify the positive effects of leadership competencies on school performance.

3. Balanced Resource Allocation

It is essential to ensure balanced resource allocation, avoiding overemphasizing specific LOC or cultural traits at the expense of other critical dimensions. A holistic approach to leadership and culture will help maximize SE.

By integrating these strategies, schools can enhance their capacity to address the unique challenges of experimental education and foster environments conducive to innovation and effectiveness.