School Leadership Successful Principles

Introduction Principals are an important part in the development and maintenance of successful schools. However, there is, surprisingly, less research on the methods that can be used in developing people to get the required knowledge of running schools effectively. This condition is in an environment in which principals are increasingly pressured to make improvements in their leadership regarding teaching and learning.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on School Leadership Successful Principles specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The need for an improvement in the leadership skills of principals is also necessitated by the fact that their responsibility spans a lot of specialties and thus it is hard for a principal who is not well trained to be effective in his/her work. Principals are, therefore, expected to be visionaries in educational matters, experts in public relations in order to relate well with parents, children and other stakeholders. They should also be community builders, expert overseers, budget analysts, expert disciplinarians, facility managers and experts in assessment. Principals should also be in a position to act as agents in solving the conflicting interests of various stakeholders, and they should also be dynamic and sensitive enough to attend to the needs of their students (Davis, 2005, pp. 1-5). This paper is an in-depth exploration of the leadership in schools that seeks to establish the best kind of leadership in schools and suggests what can be done to improve leadership in learning environments. Literature review Status quo The state of schools as far as leadership is concerned has attracted a substantially large number of critics, with some being privy to management of schools. Most of these critics have been forced, by the kind of leadership that is currently in our schools, to believe that programs for education qualification in our university are inefficient, or at best mediocre. This is because such programs fail to address the real world challenges that their ex-students face when they assume leadership position in schools. It is alleged that such programs lack effective leadership training, and that the knowledge base is archaic and impractical. Admissions have also been faulted with their alleged lack of rigor in selection leading to certification of unreasonable numbers of graduates. Clear and holistic analysis of the programs for school leadership and the practice of school leadership are therefore critical if any positive changes are to be made (Davis, 2005, pp. 3-5).Advertising Looking for research paper on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Essential elements of good school leadership There is increasingly growing consensus on what good leadership in schools should be. One of the key elements that good school leadership should have is the implementation of pragmat ic approaches for ensuring that the teachers and other workers in the school are as effective as they can be. This will be achieved by provision of incentives and support that can help workers to improve the effectiveness of their work. Additionally, the school leadership should have models of effective practice that will benchmark the performance of its workers (Elmore, 2000, p. 21). This will ensure that workers embrace a culture of responsibility and accountability because performance will be easily measured by comparing actual performance with the benchmarks. These benchmarks should be developed with consideration of a variety of factors. Some of these factors include past performances of the school, the aims and goals of the school, the performances of leading schools in the vicinity of the school, a consideration of the special challenges that the school might be facing etcetera. The leaders should also ensure that they facilitate the development of common goals and values tha t each stakeholder in the organization must embrace. This will lead to a culture of productiveness of all stakeholders in the school. The goals and objectives will also form a platform on which the aforementioned benchmarks for performance can be developed since the school will be working towards the realization of its goals and objectives. It is also important for the school leadership to ensure that communication is effectively promoted, and clear any obstacles to work effectiveness. Lastly, there is need for development of productive partnerships with interest groups that will help in minimizing the problems that the school could face (Hess, 2003, p. 37). Such interest groups could be Non Governmental Institutions offering scholarships and training, governments interested in exchange programs for students, media houses willing to highlight the situation of leadership in schools in the region, and the like. Good school leadership is also characterized by a strong academic backgrou nd. This ensures that the leadership is at ease when solving the problems arising at the school since the leaders have also experienced the same.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on School Leadership Successful Principles specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More It will also make the development of policies, goals, values and moral easy since the leadership will have had to live under policies and morals of their former schools. Additionally, there are courses that are very crucial for leadership in schools, and which candidates for leadership in schools should have studied. The above elements of good leadership are most likely to be found in principals who have had a chance to attend holistic training programs in college. It is thus of essence that universities design their training programs for teachers well so that they become effective leaders when they are given the chance to lead schools. The following sub-to pic discusses some of the essential features of a good training program for school leaders. Features of effective training programs for principals Research related to the training of principals indicate that there are certain features that must be present in a training program for principals, if effective school leaders are to come out of the program. One such feature is the aspect of research in training programs for principals. The program should thus impart its participants with skills of leadership, instruction, development of schools and management of change within schools. It is thus apparent that universities operating with mediocre training programs should revise the content of their development and preparation programs for school principals. Such changes should be made such that graduates are able to promote effective and successful teaching and learning. They should also be able to develop networks within the school leadership for collaborative decision making, and also ha ve distributed leadership abilities. Also among the required skills is the fact that the principals should be imparted with skills to encourage a culture of community within the school, and be able to steer development of the competence of school management (Jackson, 2002, p. 69). Apart from the professional training which principals should be given, there is also need for development of ethical standards in them so that they will be ethical school leaders. This will ensure that they promote moral values in other stakeholders of the school, and possibly mitigate problems of misconduct, fraud and other vices.Advertising Looking for research paper on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The principals should also be taught the social and cultural principles surrounding the school environment (Jackson, 2002, p. 70). This understanding will help them to have immediate solutions to problems as they arise during their time as school leaders. Also among the features of a good training program for principals is the observance of curricular coherence. The best training programs for principals have well-thought goals and vision, and they are coherent with internal and external values, administrative practices and beliefs of the profession. Programs that exhibit high coherence have a logical flow, have effective links between theory and practice and they are sequentially ordered with an array of courses. The program should also be in conformance with the theories of adult learning in order for them to qualify as coherent (Levine, 2005, p. 91). Such a program gives the principal a potential for success in the practical world of school management. Practical methods for implem enting effective programs There are a number of methods that must be used in order to implement an effective program for training principals. The first is field-based internships, in which the principals are given a chance to gain practical knowledge of school leadership. Additionally, the students should be given problem-based training such as simulations of real-life problems. This prepares the principals by making them aware of when and how to use the theory they learnt in class in solving problems. There is also the need to promote the use of cohort groups in the teaching of principals since these kinds of groups are known to produce good results for adult students (Wilson, 1996, p. 332). The groups are effective because within the group, principals are able to practice how they will be solving real problems in the field since a lot of school problems are solved through consultations and assemblies. The students are also able to socialize in their cohort groups, making them deve lop social skills which are very relevant in school leadership. Lastly, it is important for principals to have mentors within the administration who may guide them in solving personal problems. In this case, the mentor and the student are supposed to work as a team towards the achievement of a development plan for the student. The development plan can be designed by the administration, or it can be developed by the mentor and the student, or even by the student alone (Levine, 2005, p. 77). Other pathways to school leadership In the discussion above, we have identified university programs for principals as one way of developing leadership skills in principals. The discussion was a bit lengthy because this is the main foundation of principals and thus its effectiveness will mean that the students who graduate from the university have the required skills to lead schools effectively. However, as it has been mentioned, the programs offered in universities are mediocre and there is a need to find alternative pathways for further leadership development after graduation of students. This sub-topic seeks to identify these alternative pathways to leadership development in principals. Some reformers have strongly argued that the only solution to the leadership problems we are facing in schools is the recruitment of people who have natural administrative capabilities even if they have not studied education. However, this argument conflict with the requirements for good school leadership because in order for one to be a good school leader, he/she has to have a strong academic background (Davis, 2005, p. 8). This is necessary because, in order to lead an organization, one has to be passionate about, and know, the intricacies of the trade of that organization. In some states, principal credentialing is common. This is a case in which candidates sit for an examination designed by the state, and the candidates who pass the exam are licensed as principals for schools. Thus a pe rson who has not necessarily studied education may end up being a school principal (Davis, 2005, p. 11). This method may pick potential candidates and weak ones depending on the kind of examination that is set by the state. Summary As evidenced in the discussion above, school leadership has not been taken as seriously as it should be. This has had many negative effects on our schools which have been unlucky to get mediocre principals. There is thus the need to review programs for training principals in the universities in order to ensure that effective school leaders are produced from these institutions. All programs for training principals in the universities should thus be reviewed to ensure that they abide by the requirements highlighted in the discussion above. In a nutshell, the requirements are aimed at linking theory with practice during training, developing values and morals in the principals, utilizing the resources offered by a variety of stakeholders and making students e ffective decision makers. As discussed in the above paragraphs, universities should also ensure that they use effective methods of implementing the features leadership development in principals. Such methods should promote practicability of knowledge, consultation, group work and problem-oriented development of knowledge. They should also ensure that the program is implemented in accordance with the findings of existing research about effective adult education. The suggested methods include use of cohort groups and mentors, implementation of problem-based learning and ensuring that students are able to attend internships based in the field so that they get practical knowledge through experience. Care must also be taken to ensure that the use of the aforementioned alternative pathways to school leadership do not contribute to the jeopardy of school leadership. It is thus of essence that graduates are effectively trained instead of picking people who do not have an academic background . All in all, there is hope for our schools if the suggested ideas are implemented in both the universities producing principles and in the schools. Reference List Davis, S. (2005). School Leadership Study: Developing Successful Principals. PDF File. Web. Elmore, R. (2000). Building a New Structure for School Leadership. Washington DC: The Albert Shanker Institute. Hess, F. (2003). A license to lead? A new leadership agenda for American schools  (Policy report). Washington, DC: Progressive Policy Institute. Jackson, B. (2002). Exceptional and innovative programs in educational leadership. New Jersey. Bell Bain. Levine, A. (2005). Educating School Leaders. New York: The Education School Project. Wilson, P. (1996). Preparing school leaders: What works? Journal of School  Leadership. Volume 6, Issue 3, pp. 316-342. This research paper on School Leadership Successful Principles was written and submitted by user L1v1a to help you with your own studies. 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