Instructional leadership is one of the most important roles of supervisors. Supervisors lead other teachers in instruction to make them as effective as possible. They also lead teachers in developing and implementing an effective plan of instrution. The increasing complexity of teaching demands more help from supervisors and thus increases the complexity of the leadership role. Supervisors have to adapt to meet the needs of the people and the particular environment rather than practice a normative kind of leadership. Further, they must develop solutions for each individual problem as it arises rather than use "prefabricated" answers for any problem. Supervisors actively participate in the school's instructional program; for instance, they constantly evaluate the program and work with teachers so as to get the best results with students. Instructional leaders improve the quality of instruction by furthering professional growth for all teachers; in-servicing contributes toward accomplishing this end. Supervisors should be flexible enough to deal with any situation and should maintain a good relationship with their staff. For example, they should consider teacher input; help teachers to do their job; listen to and empathize with teachers concerning their problems; facilitate communications; and alleviate anxiety. The characteristics of good supervisors are originality, popularity, sociability, good judgment, good humor, cooperativeness, and the ability to inspire trust; however, the improvement of instruction is the first priority. Attached are 12 references. (RG)