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Supervision based on collaboration, participative decision making, and reflective practice is the hallmark of a viable school improvement program that is designed to promote teaching and learning. Action research has gradually emerged as an important form of instructional supervision to engage teachers in reflective practice about their teaching and to examinefactors that aim to promote student achievement. This article examines supervision as it has evolved and moved toward action research advocacy and presents two case studies that show how action research improves teaching and learning. Practical guidelines for implementing action research as instructional improvement are provided for principals.

Attention is focused, in this article, on the dilemmas of the supervisory role and the shift from a bureaucratic to a collegial culture. This article, based on practitioner reflection, provides anecdotal evidence to support the move from a bureaucratic culture to a collegial one. The author documents a basic conflict he has experienced which hindered his ability to function effectively. Specifically, the article explores an unresolved dilemma between the necessity to evaluate and the desire to genuinely assist teachers in the instructional process. This problem, although seemingly intractable, can, in fact be mitigated through more collaborative efforts which strive to foster participatory democratic leadership. These efforts are discussed.