Volume 2 - Issue 1 - DBU Journal of K-12 Educational Research - Page 33

Journal of K-12 Educational Research 31 Introduction For years, principals and teachers have been asked to implement new research-based programs without being provided effective implementation structures or strategies. Research is consistent in finding that fidelity of implementation is vital to successful school improvement (Fixsen, Naoom, Blasé, Friedman, & Wal - lace, 2005; Reeves, 2010). Due to differing degrees and processes of implementation in districts and on campuses, if research-based intervention programs or practices are not executed with fidelity, the research basis of the design is nullified (Anagostopoulos & Rutledge, 2007). Only when there is a fidelity of implementation can positive outcomes be expected and shown to impact teach- ing and learning (Casserly et al, 2011). When an intervention is proven effective in one setting, the same intervention may be in - effective in another setting if the implementation does not follow the original intent and design (Protheroe, 2008; Dean & Parsley, 2010). According to Eisenhart (2001), implementation of a program from the district level to the campus level involves multiple inter- pretations as the program is made to fit into the dynamics of each campus and its beliefs and values. Without clear expectations and structures for implementing any type of program or practice from the district level, opposing translations of program expectations make consistent implementation difficult (Anagostopoulos & Rutledge, 2007; Dean & Parsley, 2010). With the high stakes of accountability and the need to im - prove teaching and learning, many districts are hiring instruction- al coaches on campuses to provide job-embedded professional development in the classroom (Neufeld & Roper, 2003). While the research-based practice to improve teaching and learning includes instructional coaching, the fidelity of implementation is often overlooked (Protheroe, 2008). Summary of Study The problem addressed in the study was the fidelity of implemen - tation of an instructional coaching program. The study examined the perceptions of six principals and seven instructional coaches after the first year of implementation of an instructional coach - ing program in a suburban North Texas school district. Qualita - tive research was chosen for the study as it relates to the lived experiences of principals and instructional coaches during the implementation of a coaching program (Creswell, 2015). Quali - tative methods are used when a phenomenon utilizing participant perspectives is being explored. The chosen method supported the assumption that variables would emerge as the different data sources were collected and analyzed (Creswell, 2015). Qualitative research allowed the researcher to capture and understand perceptions from the lived experiences of study participants, case by case. Therefore, the study used a phenom - enological approach to capture the perceptions of the principals’ and instructional coaches’ experiences (Creswell, 2015; McMil - lan, 2012). The phenomenological design highlighted specific phenomena through the lens of individual perceptions of a situa- tion. The utilization of this approach allowed the principals and instructional coaches to relate their understanding of their roles on their respective campuses during the implementation of the coaching program in the district. Triangulation, in the form of interviews, job description, member checks, and an expert reviewer, was used in this qualita - tive research study to support the guiding questions which added Pamela Bell Reece, Ed.D. FIDELITY OF IMPLEMENTATION OF AN INSTRUCTIONAL COACHING PROGRAM: AN INTERVIEW STUDY Journal of K-12 Educational Research 2018, VOL. 2, ISSUE 1 www.dbu.edu/doctoral/edd