The purpose of this quantitative correlational research study was to develop a better understanding of how successful principals lead and more importantly how they help their students achieve at higher levels through their role as principal. The study focused on the principal's role in providing instructional leadership as defined by Krug (1992), transformational leadership as defined by Bass and Avolio (1995), specifically in the context of elementary education, and measuring the effect these principal leadership constructs have on student achievement.

The study was designed to determine if there was a benefit derived by principals who attend to at least three of the five dimensions of instructional leadership and practice at least three of the four transformational leadership behaviors. The five dimensions of instructional leadership are: defining mission, managing curriculum and instruction, supervising and supporting teaching, monitoring student progress, and promoting instructional climate. The four transformational leadership behaviors are: idealized influence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and individualized consideration.

The study sample was drawn from public schools in Cooperative Educational Service Agencies 2–12 in the State of Wisconsin, an area that covers 90% of the state excluding the large metropolitan areas in and around Milwaukee. Results revealed no statistically significant correlations between principals who did or did not exhibit transformational and or instructional leadership and higher academic student performance. Post-hoc analysis revealed statistically significant correlational coefficients between management-by-exception passive and high student achievement r = .515 for reading, r = .479 for language arts, and r = .567 for math with n = 31 and p < .05, two tails. These findings indicate that previous research findings may be in question for both instructional leadership and transformational leadership constructs.