Date of Award

2022

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Education (Ph.D)

Department

Administrative and Instructional Leadership

First Advisor

Anthony Annunziato

Abstract

The COVID-19 crisis put more stress on students graduating from high school during the 2020-2021 school year in a myriad of ways. During regular times, this transition can already be overwhelming, disappointing, and even treacherous for some students (Hollander, 2020). In the uncertain days of COVID-19, the education landscape has been disrupted. This study examined the relationship between a high school administrator’s perception of their school as a learning organization, the instructional models implemented, and the percentage in which students graduate under the COVID-19 Pandemic. Given that students may be farther behind than in a typical year due to the loss of three (3) to four (4) months of formalized instruction, high schools across the country needed to redefine their instructional delivery and adapt to the many health and safety requirements under the COVID-19 Pandemic. While the COVID-19 learning interruptions are unprecedented in modern times, there was minimal research on school systems that practice learning organization theory and their ability to adapt during significant change and maintain high graduation rates. The findings in this study suggest that high schools who adopt the learning organization framework experienced higher graduation rates. This study aligns with Peter Senge’s Learning Organizational Theory and implies that when schools practice the five disciplines of a learning organization, a high graduation rate outcome is achieved. The study provides implications for school practitioners and leaders as the findings provide a basis for change in school districts. The significance that schools with high graduation rates have acquired the necessary knowledge of a learning organization and its five core disciplines is a catalyst for schools worldwide to adopt this practice.

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