The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) placed unique demands and constraints on principals. Principals did not always make similar instructional leadership choices in how to spend their time, how to lead, and what to emphasize as a result of perceptions about their role, job demands, and the priorities for individual schools.

Rosemary Stewart's job demands, constraints and choices model (1982) was integrated with Hoy and Miskel's (2008) social systems of schools framework to describe and analyze principal perceptions and instructional leadership choices. Demands, constraints, and choices were used to categorize perceptions about what exists and paired with the four frames of open systems. Instructional leadership was examined through the use of the Maryland Instructional Leadership Framework (MILF).

This research was designed as a qualitative case study to answer three research questions. 1) What are the current demands that elementary principals perceive in their work? 2) What are the constraints that impact implementation of the CCSS? 3) How does a principal make instructional leadership choices in implementing the CCSS?

The study used purposeful sampling and included six elementary principals within one district. Principals were with 3 to 30 years of experience and led medium sized schools with low levels of poverty and second language learner populations. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews, document, and memo review.

Findings indicated that principals experienced a range of expected demands including supporting school climate, meeting district expectations for adherence to policies, managing the school building, and navigating the power structures of the district and community. Constraints included time, attitude, the distribution of power, attending to community needs, and the organizational hierarchy of the district. Instructional leadership priorities centered on supporting school conditions to facilitate collaboration and directing the professional development of staff.

The results of this study provided a portrait of the challenges that principals faced, areas of possible influence, and how instructional leadership choices unfolded in a reform environment. In addition, the research served as an influential starting point for evaluating whether the instructional leadership practices utilized are sufficient to achieve the expected outcomes for CCSS implementation.