Principal-teacher high-quality exchange indicators and student achievement: testing a model

Purpose – Research findings claim that indicators, representing high-quality exchanges between leaders and followers, are important predictors of organizational effectiveness. There is scarce evidence related to the role of these indicators in student achievement. The purpose of this paper is to test a hypothesized model including three important high-quality exchange indicators. Design/methodology/approach – Totally, 449 teachers from 166 elementary schools in Tehran provided data on trust in principal and procedural justice and 166 principals provided data on organizational citizenship behavior of teachers. Student achievement was calculated by averaging grade five students’ scores on district examinations in science and math. Data were collected in each school during regularly scheduled meetings and were analyzed using correlation analysis and structural equation modeling. Findings – The hypothesized model has an adequate fit to observed data, supporting the argument that principal-teacher high-quality exchanges provide positive outcomes in the form of student achievement. Originality/value – Since most studies on high-quality exchange indicators are limited to non-educational settings, this study extends this line of inquiry in public schools. It also contributes to school effectiveness literature by providing empirical evidence concerning the link between trust in principal, procedural justice, organizational citizenship behavior, and student achievement.