Contemporary models of school reform acknowledge the principal as the passport to school success and the manager of an increasingly complex organization. This digest asserts that principals benefit from professional development that examines best practices, provides coaching support, encourages risk taking designed to improve student learning,…

Although instructional leadership is acknowledged to be a critical skill in educational administration, few principals and superintendents have had in-depth training for that role, especially in a standards-based environment. Current definitions of instructional leadership include much deeper involvement in the "core technology" of…

In the current climate of accountability, the responsibilities of principals have increased. The new role of principals requires new forms of training, and standards-based reform is generating major changes in principal-preparation programs. This digest examines some of those changes. First, it looks at the effectiveness of principal-preparation…

Many educational professionals have some knowledge of assessment practices, ranging from principles of test development and use to the practices associated with the use and interpretation of standardized and teacher-made tests. The skill levels associated with many important student assessment principles are, however, not consistent with the…