Superintendent's Practical Intelligence Across High And Low Performing School Districts

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to compare the practical intelligence scores of Texas superintendents in high performing and low performing school districts. The Tacit Knowledge Inventory for Superintendents used in this study was developed by Dr. Christian Mueller with demographic questions added by the researcher. Responses to the tacit knowledge inventory scenario items were rated using a Likert scale. Superintendents in exemplary and academically unacceptable school districts were invited to participate in this research. Independent-samples t-tests were conducted and examined for differences in the superintendents' mean scores in the tacit knowledge categories. There were no statistically significant differences in the mean scores in interpersonal, intrapersonal, or organizational tacit knowledge when the two groups were compared in each category. The demographic questions were analyzed using descriptive statistics. The demographic questions reveal the superintendents in the two groups have a remarkable amount of similarities, especially in their amount of experience. Of the superintendents in the exemplary group, 57.1% have seven years or less experience as compared to 60.0% of the academically unacceptable superintendents. Of the superintendents in the exemplary group, 64.0% have been employed in their position five years or less as compared to 70% of the superintendents in academically unacceptable districts. The study concluded that the lack of differences in the superintendents' practical intelligence scores could be due to their numerous similarities.