Principals? Leadership Behaviors Related to Teachers? Professional Development: The Mediating Effects of Teachers? Self-directed Learning

This study determines the relationship affect between senior and vocational high school principals? leadership behaviors and teachers? performance of professional development and investigates the mediating effect of teacher self-directed learning. The population of this study was the 75,520 teachers in vocational high school. And the sampling technique was stratified sampling. The participants were teachers in public and private senior and vocational high schools, including 304 teachers in public school and 335 teachers in private school. The sample included 10 senior high schools (including five public and five private schools) and 10 vocational high schools (including five public and five private schools). The results showed that public school principals? transformational leadership behaviors and private school principals? transactional leadership behaviors were positive with teachers? performance of professional development, and particularly, teachers? self-directed learning had complete mediating effects. Transformational or transactional leadership behaviors enhance teachers? self-directed learning willingness and promote their performance of professional development in public and private high schools.