Reflection Paper 2

Running Head: REFLECTION PAPER: PRINCIPALSHIP

Reflection Paper: Principalship
Chad Hedderman

South Dakota State University

Fall 2008

Principalship EDAD 707

Dr. Gus Scully

Reflection Paper 2

Reflection Paper: Principalship

The principal is the leader of any school. They are the backbone, and heart of the school. An effective principal understands the needs of the school in an ever changing society. They are the pivot point for what happens in the school. A principal leads an organization by addressing the needs of the individual student, teacher, and school. A principal must lead with his/her values and must be willing to share the responsibility in order to encourage leadership in others. An effective principal thinks outside the box, always challenging those around to proactively question current practices while maintaining the integrity of the organization. A principal must, “promote the success of all students by acting with integrity, fairness and in an ethical manner” (Hughes & Norris, & Ubben, 2007, pg 1).

The principal is responsible for creating the vision for the school. They must be willing to effectively communicate this vision in order to gain confidence and commitment among those working in the organization. The principal must have a wide knowledge of educational theory and principals. They are problem solvers, always being able to act in the best interest of the school and the students when making decisions. A principal is a leader in the change process. They are open minded and are willing to analyze the current situation to make it more productive. A principal must have high expectations for success and will set even higher expectations for his/her self. High expectations results in high performance. A principal must be willing to model and encourage excellence. An effective principal is an instructional leader who works to form bonds between students, parents and teachers. Learning communities produce more effective high-performance schools (Hughes & Norris, & Ubben, 2007). They realize that for any school to become a high-performance school a continual relationship must exist and be communicated between student, school and parent. If any link in this chain is broken, communication will fail and schools will become less productive.

An effective principal always leads with his/her heart. They care about the students, teachers, and staff. The principal must understand the needs of the entire staff. They do this by getting involved. An effective principal must get to know the staff personally as well as professionally. People work harder for a leader when they know that leader cares about them as a person, much like a student will work harder for a teacher when they know that teacher cares about their success. A principal should always act in an ethical manner and must demonstrate a respect toward others in regards to confidentiality and engage in honest interactions (Hughes & Norris, & Ubben, 2007). An effective leader builds relationships with those around them that extend outside the walls of the school. They focus on improving the school’s culture by building relationship and creating a positive learning environment. A principal must model the values of and beliefs important to the institution.

The principal leads others to become independent leaders, working toward a common purpose. They must have the ability to surrender his/her power over towards others to accomplish the goals and vision set forth. They will empower others around them to become leaders who challenge themselves to be more productive for the organization. A principal will challenge individuals to grow by providing a climate of support and security (Hughes & Norris, & Ubben, 2007). This increase in trust brings about higher levels of enhanced learning and deepens the relationship with the individuals. An effective principal must involve other in the decision making process. By allowing others to be involved in this process empowers them to have a feeling of importance and a sense of ownership to the school community.

A principal must work at the improvement process of the school. They are strong instructional leaders who know how to manage time and money effectively. An effective principal has a clear sense of purpose and priorities and will involve others in the process. They realize that a school improvement plan is continually on going. A principal should be involved in the community and use them as a source for the school. They should belong to a variety of groups in the community and interact with groups of conflicting perspectives. It is the role of a principal to work with members of the community that do not have ties in the school. In order for any bond to pass a principal must work with the senior citizens and business leaders in a community. A school leader must work with higher education centers, businesses, and government agencies to promote positive student learning. They must also work with the local media and have a trusting relationship with the press and local television networks. A principal must be able to analyze current conditions and develop goals for future challenges and know how to implement strategies to attain those goals.

The principal is a leader in technology and incorporating research based educational methods in the school. Technology is changing rapidly, and schools must be on the front lines incorporating the change to benefit the students. An effective principal works to ensure that all students become life-long learners. They must strongly encourage the teachers to apply application to real-world predictable and unpredictable situations. A principal must support teachers to teach the skills necessary for students to be successful not only in school but also in the business world. A principal must ensure that all teachers are teaching rigor and relevance in their classroom. They work to design comprehensive professional growth and development plans for the staff (Hughes & Norris, & Ubben, 2007).

A principal must get into the classroom and supervise teachers. They encourage growth by allowing the teachers to reflect on their own teachings and work with the teachers to improve performance. An effective principal supervises, not evaluates the teachers. By allowing the teachers to grow by reflection empowers them to take more ownership in their teaching style and encourages them to be part of the school community. A principal works to develop communication and positive attitudes that encourages parent participation (Hughes & Norris, & Ubben, 2007). An effective administrator makes it a priority to get into the classrooms and supervise every day. A school leader works with the teachers in developing goals and strategies for improvement.

One of the most important roles of the principal is to hire qualified staff (Hughes & Norris, & Ubben, 2007). They work to ensure that the teaching staff is organized and is teaching in the best possible situation for student learning. A principal knows the laws, rights, and due process procedure of the teachers, and students. School policies, rules, and regulations must stand the test of substantive due process (Hughes & Norris, & Ubben, 2007). Principals must know the law obtaining to unreasonable search and seizures, cruel and unusual punishment, the rights and responsibilities of others. A principal works to ensure that the school and staff operate in a legal manner, and that students’ rights are ensured. They work to ensure that educational equity and legal principles are used. A principal is organized and will document all procedures needed for the non-renewal of staff, but always works with the teachers to improve classroom strategies. It is also extremely important that all principals understand all rules and laws associated with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, Americans with Disabilities Act, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Act, and many others.

A principal works with other cooperatively and other administrations. It is important that a principal work together with other principals for the success of the students and the school district. They also must work with noncertified staff, such as the custodial and maintenance personal, to ensure a safe and clean learning environment. The physical environment of the school building grounds influence the learning and teaching environment (Hughes & Norris, & Ubben, 2007).

References

Hughes, L. W., & Norris, C.J., & Ubben, G.C. (2007). The Principal: Creating Leadership for Excellence in Schools (6 ed.). Boston: Pearson Education, Inc. 6