Boundaries of Israeli Assistant Principals’ Instructional Leadership

Whereas school principals’ instructional leadership has received research attention, assistant principals’ instructional leadership role has been relatively neglected. The current research explored those instructional leadership responsibilities that assistant principals do not perform. Data collection included interviews with a diverse sample of 34 Israeli assistant principals. Data analysis was a four-stage process of condensing, coding, categorizing, and theorizing. This study emphasizes the need for a framework that specifically defines the instructional responsibilities of assistant principals, possibly while excluding instructional practices that involve strategic leadership, authority, and personnel management. Implications and further research are discussed.