Supportive leadership for Pre-kindergarten public school teachers

The purpose of this study is to determine if principals are supportive of Pre-kindergarten (Pre-K) teachers and if accountability mandates serve as barriers to the possibility that leadership support lack for Pre-K teachers. Additionally, this study was to determine if specific factors contributed to the amount of support principals provided Pre-K teachers. The 12 participants from a Florida school district were asked 10 open-ended interview questions about their lived experiences working with on-campus Pre-K teachers. The results showed eight major themes as having at least a 75% frequency level or higher. Overall, the research study revealed principals understood their accountability to Pre-K as non-instructional verses instructional. Moreover, the school district and Head Start staff served as the main factor contributing to the amount of support principals provided Pre-K teachers. Therefore, no specific barriers were identified that impacted the level of support principals offered Pre-K teachers.