Campus Location
Dallas Campus (Online)
Date of Award
4-2022
ORCID
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2259-2986
Document Type
Dissertation
Department
Organizational Leadership
Degree Name
Doctor of Education
Committee Chair or Primary Advisor
Mary Christopher
Second Committee Member or Secondary Advisor
Simone Elias
Third Committee Member or Committee Reader
Daniel Bishop
Abstract
This qualitative study determined the perceptions of international school teachers regarding leadership and how these perceptions influenced their turnover decisions. Research completed largely in the United States shows that principals are a major factor in teachers’ decisions to stay or leave their schools, primarily due to teachers rating their principals highly in communication and support. Over the last 25 years, international schools have experienced a boom in growth, yet research into international schools has lagged. This study sought to build on previous research to find if teacher perceptions in international schools in South Korea mirror those of teachers in previous studies. This action research-based qualitative study used a teacher questionnaire, semistructured teacher interviews, and semistructured administrator interviews to collect data. Teacher participants were foreign-licensed teachers at accredited international schools in South Korea. Administrators were current leaders at the same schools. Teachers at participating schools received an email asking them to complete a questionnaire, at the end of which was a link to participate in an interview to delve deeper into the topic. Administrators at participating schools received an email asking for their participation in the interview. Coding of transcripts made from the audio-recorded interviews allowed for analysis using a general inductive approach. Results showed that teachers and administrators hold very similar opinions about the importance of various factors relating to what teachers need and what influences teachers to stay at their schools. These similarities included the importance of presence, positive feedback, relationships, and approachability. Similarity of perspective should encourage school leaders, as these seem intuitive to lead to positive perceptions of leaders from teachers, which research shows to decrease turnover.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Coleman, Caleb Philip, "Teachers’ Perceptions of the Impact of Principal Leadership Style on Teacher Transfers in International Schools in South Korea" (2022). Digital Commons @ ACU, Electronic Theses and Dissertations. Paper 440.
https://digitalcommons.acu.edu/etd/440