Purpose: This article aims to identify the main challenges faced by headteachers after taking up their first headship in the UK. It also compares how these challenges have changed over time. Other purposes include the setting of the initial phase of headship within a whole career model and how heads become socialised into the role.…

This article is concerned with the nature of novice teaching principals' interactions in Queensland rural communities. Stories selected from case accounts are used to provide insights into the teaching principals' interrelationship with the community. The article concludes with a discussion of some implications for practice suggested by these…

Greater attention is now being directed at issues associated with the professional development of new school leaders. This paper identifies some of the major concerns of beginning school leaders across different nations, some of which include needs for knowledge about basic managerial skills, adequate socialization to the job, and a sense of self.…

Findings of a study of beginning principals and their roles as managers are presented in this paper. Interviews were conducted with 12 new primary and secondary principals in Victoria, Australia as part of a longitudinal study from 1989 to 1993. This paper focuses on interview data collected during the first year of the study. Drawing from…

Findings of the first phase of a longitudinal study that developed a descriptive profile of new principals in New York City are presented in this paper. A survey of 216 newly appointed principals in New York City elicited 158 responses, a 73 percent response rate. Findings indicate that despite the emphasis on aspects of transformational…

Anticipating a 50 percent turnover of principals in the next few years, school districts and university training programs are exploring mentoring as one way to help aspiring and beginning principals learn complex administrative tasks and ease into their roles. This monograph highlights some formal administrator mentorship programs in Oregon.…

This research reports the personal characteristics of middle-level principals, their professional and academic preparation, the nature of their jobs, their future plans, and their recommendations for the development of future middle-level principals. Implications for current middle-level principals are noted as are recommendations for the…

Discusses hurdles to new principals' success. Principals must respect school culture, including ghosts and heroes; realize that working relationships will change; and anticipate isolation and overwork. Meeting individual teachers, locating the power, keeping central administrators informed, listening and learning, finding mentors, and picking…

This book displays tools and templates for planning, organizing, and monitoring a beginning principal's daily tasks. The templates can also be downloaded from Eye on Education's website and they include a planning calendar, homework policy, letter to community partners, letter of introduction to your staff, and staff meeting agenda. Chapter 1…

"El Escalafon" is the process for appointing school directors and "el Doble Turno" is the double shift of morning and afternoon session in Mexican schools. These two concepts open the door to examine more general issues in the appointment of school directors and the structure of the school day. Director appointment and school…

Purpose: This paper aims to examine the challenges facing new principals in Africa. Design/methodology/approach: Based on recent research and literature, the paper analyses the experience of principals and proposes an induction model for principalship in Africa. Findings: School principals in Africa face a daunting challenge. They often work in…

The Kentucky Beginning Principal Internship Program (KBPIP)--the first of its kind in the United States--was mandated by the Kentucky General Assembly to upgrade the quality of educational leadership in the schools through testing and an internship program especially for school principals. Following an overview of educational reform in Kentucky…

Findings from a comparative study of new and experienced urban principals that examined variables associated with work-related stress and role conflict are presented in this paper. A total of 27 male and female principals in a large, urban school district in the South were surveyed--13 first- and second-year principals and 14 experienced…

To ensure that first-time educators in any of Ohio's 615 school systems have access to a supportive environment that would make their professional success more likely, in 1987 the state's Department of Education enacted a policy requiring all school districts to plan and implement programs that provide support to newly employed educators. Because…

New standards in the state of Virginia are being instituted to require that professional development programs for pre-service principals include experience with technology. This study was designed to identify relevant topics that should be part of that experience. Surveys and interviews were used to gather information from in-service principals…