The presented paper aims to examine the influence of principal leadership on teaching practices in order to reveal direct and indirect effects of instructional and distributed leadership models on teachers’ instructional quality, with the mediating effect of teacher collaboration and job satisfaction. This research conducted secondary data analysis using the Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) 2013 dataset collected by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Multilevel structural equation modeling (SEM) was applied to the analysis of the data. The results suggested a significant direct effect of principals’ instructional leadership on instructional quality, while the effect of distributed leadership was mainly indirect, mediated by teacher collaboration and job satisfaction.

Aim: While integrated leadership has received significant scholarly attention in the past decade, most existing research in this vein has focused on its impact on student achievement and often dismissed how it might be related to instructional practices, which are at the center of many school reforms. In this research, we examined the relationship between integrated leadership and teacher professional learning and teacher practices in Turkey, where educational policy makers have recently introduced several school reform initiatives. More specifically, we aimed to examine the moderating function of transformational leadership in the relationship between instructional leadership and teacher practices, with an emphasis on the mediating role of teacher professional learning. Research Design: We conducted this study with a cross-sectional design and moderated mediation model. Data collected from 616 teachers working in a mix of primary and secondary schools in Turkey were analyzed using structural equation modeling and bootstrapping tests. Findings: We found evidence that transformational leadership acted as a moderator of the indirect effect of principal instructional leadership on teachers' instructional practices through teacher professional learning. Implications: This study adds to the accumulated body of knowledge on the effects of school leadership by concluding that the effect of instructional leadership on teacher learning and practice is contingent upon the extent to which principals enact transformational leadership. School principals who adopt a more comprehensive leadership approach that combines instructional leadership and transformational leadership practices can maximize their effects on student achievement through teacher learning, and better address the ever-growing demands of educational reforms.

The present study sought to contribute to the growing international knowledge base regarding the influence of school leadership on teacher learning by examining the relationship between principals’ instructional and transformational leadership types and teachers’ professional learning perceptions with the mediating effects of teachers’ perceptions of collective efficacy and trust. A cross-sectional survey design of the quantitative research method was employed using the data collected from a total number of 1,200 teachers in Turkey. Mediation analysis in structural equation modelling (SEM) with the bootstrapping method was used to analyse the structural relations among variables. The result showed that both principals’ instructional and transformational leadership types were significantly related to teacher professional learning, mediating by teacher trust and collective teacher efficacy. The study reconfirmed the results of the growing body of global literature on the relationship between principal leadership and teacher professional learning and practice.

This paper examines the effects of instructional leadership on the change in teachers’ classroom practices, with the mediating role of shared practice and learning effectiveness. The study employed a cross-sectional survey design, using quantitative methods. Confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling were used to analyze the data collected from 350 teachers in primary and secondary schools in various provinces of Turkey. The results provided evidence consistent with the previous research from western English-speaking societies, suggesting an indirect relationship between leadership and teachers’ instructional practices with the full mediation roles of shared practices among teachers and their sense of agency in learning effectiveness. This work concludes that teacher learning and collaborative practices among teachers, influenced by principals’ instructional practices, can facilitate a significant change in several diverse components of classroom instruction, such as the quality of grouping, questions, homework, instructional strategies and differentiated practices.

A vast amount of contemporary research has been devoted to defining effective school leadership roles and practices and measuring their influence on school processes, structures and outcomes. This paper examines the effects of trust in principals and school leaders’ focus on instruction on teacher collaboration and teacher self-efficacy. Using teacher survey data collected from 45 lower secondary Turkish schools across the country in the 2018–2019 academic year, this study employs multilevel structural equation modelling with Bayesian estimation to investigate the structural relationships between trust in principals, alongside leaders’ focus on instruction, and teacher collaboration and teacher self-efficacy. The study confirms previous research, indicating that trust in principals has a crucial role in teachers’ emphasis on instruction and that these principals’ instructional leadership practices enhance teachers’ sense of efficacy both directly and indirectly through teacher collaboration. The research concludes that, while the way these practices are carried out might differ across contexts, the principals’ leadership practices focusing on teaching and learning still matter for teachers’ beliefs and practices in non-western countries. Implications for policy, practice and further research are discussed.