THE TRANSCENDENT SPACE BETWEEN THE INSTRUCTIONAL LEADERSHIP COACH AND SCHOOL LEADERS: AN EMBEDDED MULTIPLE-CASE STUDY
ABSTRACT THE TRANSCENDENT SPACE BETWEEN THE INSTRUCTIONAL LEADERSHIP COACH AND SCHOOL LEADERS: AN EMBEDDED MULTIPLE-CASE STUDYTommy Sharell Hoard Kathy Rho This embedded multiple-case study examines the relationship between instructional leadership coaching and school leaders, describing how coaches foster equity-centered coaching, culturally responsive practices, and data-informed decision-making to strengthen instructional leadership and improve student outcomes. Situated within a national organization dedicated to advancing equity-centered instructional leadership, this qualitative study investigates the experiences of 17 instructional leadership coaches who support school leaders across urban and rural public schools in the United States. Fullan’s (2006) seven premises of change theory serve as a theoretical lens for understanding how coaches facilitate leadership transformation by navigating complexity, fostering collaboration, and sustaining meaningful change in diverse school settings. Using interviews and document analysis, this research investigates how equity-centered, culturally responsive, and strategic coaching influences school leaders’ capacity to drive instructional change and foster stronger school environments. The findings reveal that effective coaching is rooted in cultivating trust and meaningful relationships, reinforcing leaders’ sense of motivation and purpose, encouraging reflective decision-making, providing contextualized learning experiences, and fostering transformative spaces for growth. From this analysis, the concept of “transcendent space” emerges as a critical component of the coaching process, developing through the dynamic exchange between the coach and leader. This space facilitates mutual learning, adaptive reflection, and innovation, positioning coaching as a co-constructive process rather than a one-directional transfer of knowledge. The implications of this research extend to how leadership coaching can be leveraged to create sustainable school improvement models and build capacity for equity-centered leadership.
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