A decade ago, principals were asked to become instructional leaders who exercised firm control by setting goals, maintaining discipline, and evaluating results. Today they are encouraged to act as facilitative leaders by building teams, creating networks, and "governing from the center." Rapid shifts in administrative philosophy can be…

The National Center for Education Statistics 1990-91 Schools and Staffing Survey examined the prior work experience of elementary and secondary public school principals. The survey found that 98.7 percent of principals had taught an average of 10.6 years before taking their administrative positions. The number of years of teaching increased with…

The district superintendent's instructional leadership has emerged as a critical issue in ongoing efforts to reform schools. To elaborate on this trend, an exploratory case study that focused on the perceived and actual leadership characteristics and actions of district superintendents is presented here. For the study, indepth interviews were…

Although principals are essential to their schools' effectiveness, they often receive only perfunctory evaluation. Themes from current literature on principal evaluation are highlighted in this digest; they include the reasons for principal evaluation, initial steps in designing evaluation systems, methods and sources of evaluation, and models of…

Findings from a study that explored the training/development opportunities desired by secondary school heads in Negara Brunei Darussalam are presented in this paper. A questionnaire administered to 22 national secondary school college heads who attended a workshop in July 1991 elicited 16 completions. Information was gathered about those aspects…

Leadership has long been a topic of discussion among school administrators. Stronger and more effective leadership is needed both in the school building and at the school district level. Researchers have only recently begun to explore school culture, leadership, and the interaction of the two. This book covers three topics: school culture,…

Like the three previous editions, this book is organized into three parts: "Organizational Realities and Societal Impingements,""Leadership and Management Tasks and Functions," and "Leadership Processes." However, the book's composition and substance reflect the new demands on principals. Part 1 has four chapters…

This study reviews the literature regarding the theoretical rationale for creating a computer-based school system simulation for educational leaders' use in problem solving and decision making. Like all social systems, educational systems are so complex that individuals are hard-pressed to consider all interrelated parts as a totality. A…

This booklet documents the 1990 colloquium for Massachusetts superintendents, Leading the Way. The colloquium program is one of several initiatives of the School-Based Improvement Project (SBIP), which is a partnership between the Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents and the Office of Community Education of the Massachusetts…

Teachers making the transition from the classroom to management can find many guides on management, but none on management in English language teaching (ELT) schools in the United Kingdom and elsewhere in the world. This book offers that guidance to new managers and administrators interested in running an effective teaching organization. Because…

This paper presents findings of a study that investigated the strategies that educational leaders use to implement change, the characteristics they bring to their role, and the contextual factors that influence their efforts toward change. The urban elementary school described in this paper was selected as one of five school sites in five states…

Consensus decisionmaking is a tool which utilizes the talents and knowledge of school personnel and recognizes the dignity and worth of each individual member of the staff. This process recognizes the abilities and dedication of the teachers and focuses on the organization as a whole, rather than individual facets of the organization. Because of…

The administrator is a causal factor within his or her organization: task structure and psychological infrastructure are initiated and maintained within an organization by the administrator. Some administrators use inappropriate strategies and subsequently are unsuccessful in achieving organizational effectiveness and efficiency. To enable an…

Each of the 11 chapters of this book was written by a professor of school management with practical administrative experience and expertise in a specific area. Thus, a feature of the book is the integration of theory and practice. Each chapter discusses a particular administrative position and its role; these positions include: superintendent,…

Aimed at both practicing administrators and university education professors, this book discriminates among certain "E-words" ("effective,""efficient,""excellent," and "empowerment") in the educational reform lexicon. According to the introductory chapter, levels of effectiveness, efficiency, and…