Enhancing Academic Achievement for Students Living in Poverty Through Transformative Leadership, Instructional Practices and Professional Learning Communities

This study utilized the mixed methods research to explore the correlation between academic achievement and poverty. The collection and analysis of quantitative data on reading, writing and mathematics; demographics (born outside of Canada, primary home language, special needs learners) and school community characteristics (e.g. family income) facilitated the identification of high performing schools (performing above 60% at levels 3 and or 4 in EQAO Education, Quality and Assessment Office reading, writing and mathematics at either Grade 3 or 6) serving economically disadvantaged students. The stratified sampling technique allowed for the selection of a subgroup representative of the sample under study. The purposive strategy enabled the selection of the most outstanding successes related to academic achievement and poverty. The qualitative data was used to explore transformative leadership, instructional practices and professional learning communities (PLCs) as possibilities for changing the trajectory of underachievement to achievement. From the data collected, analyzed, and presented, the researcher made the following conclusion: Schools in the sample experienced a higher level of academic achievement even though their placement on the Learning Opportunity Index (LOI) ranking was considered high. The findings have implications for policy development, leadership training, teacher education, and professional development.