Principal professional learning is shifting in many districts in the United States of America away from didactic, central office-managed workshops to include more peer-led learning opportunities. Yet researchers have largely failed to examine issues of positionality and authority in principal professional learning, despite international…

Purpose: In times of reform and consequential changes, school superintendents act as mediators between government policies and those who implement them in the field. This article explores the perceptions of school superintendents in Israel concerning their professional development (PD) process, especially during the implementation of Israeli…

The move from teaching to administration is pivotal for creating innovative leaders. The National Policy Board on Educational Administration has called for principal recruitment and preparation reforms. This article discusses the socialization processes leading to the principal's role and describes implementation, benefits, and problems of New…

The purpose of this manual is to outline a case approach to administrator training based on a study (presented in a companion volume) of four Teacher Corps projects and the role of principals in those projects. It begins with a discussion of the usefulness of a "case vignette" approach to training and then presents 21 case vignettes…

For the past five years, researchers at the Research and Development Center for Teacher Education have studied the role of school principals and other educational leaders in facilitating school improvement. Through this research, much has been learned about the school improvement process and what facilitators do on a daily basis to bring about…

A project to promote role change for department heads in South African universities is discussed. Unique characteristics of universities in Southern Africa are also identified, including the fact that department heads have only limited decentralized authority over issues such as admission, personnel policy, and finances. Project goals were as…

Describes a conceptual framework that provides for the principal to be the "school leader" but not the "instructional leader." Defines the principal's primary duties as program planning, implementation, and evaluation. Discusses implications of framework on training and practice. (Author/NEC)

Describes practices, thoughts, and feelings of exemplary, shared-governance principals at nine schools affiliated with Glickman's League of Professional Schools in Georgia, using open-ended interviews. Findings showed that implementing shared governance incorporates five salient themes: meanings, involvement of others, redistribution of power,…

Earlier research by the Concerns-Based Adoption Model Project at the Austin campus of the University of Texas has identified seven "Stages of Concern" that teachers and other front line users of classroom innovations could have. This study examines, first, whether principals have the same or similar stages of concern about their change…

Despite the fact that teacher evaluation has long been a factor in the areas of promotion and salary increase, the proposed statewide implementation of a teacher assessment plan (the Mississippi Teacher Assessment Instrument) has aroused anxiety in Mississippi's educational environment. It is therefore critical that principals actively promote a…

A facilitator who was subsequently assigned to the principalship discusses the implementation of the Standards of Excellence model in Philips Elementary School (Denver, Colorado). In implementing the components of Standards of Excellence, principals were required to assume the role of instructional leader. Accordingly, assistance was rendered to…

The materials in this manual are designed to help workshop leaders prepare for and present a workshop for school board members on relations between school boards and administrators. Four elements basic to the establishment of effective relationships are reviewed: clarification of the roles and goals of the board and the administrators; effective…

The materials in this manual are designed to help workshop leaders prepare for and present a workshop for school board members on how to contribute to improved communications between the school organization and the community. The workshop covers one process board members and superintendents can use when determining how to communicate school needs,…

The materials in this manual are designed to help workshop leaders prepare for and present a workshop for school board members on improving school board meeting practices for increased effectiveness. Based on successfully used procedures and recent research, the suggestions presented in the workshop are organized under seven headings: the agenda,…

The materials in this manual are designed to help workshop leaders prepare for and present a workshop for school board members on the variety of variables that must be considered in the course of developing board policy. In the course of the workshop, board members are encouraged to develop stronger self-confidence as policy makers and increased…