Great teachers need great principals

Though politicians and reformers have fixated on teacher performance, many overlook a key element for student achievement -- principals, writes Will Miller of the Wallace Foundation in The New York Times. Currently, great principals rarely work where they're needed most: in low-income schools. A generation ago, good principals were efficient managers who oversaw budgets, bus schedules, and discipline. Today's principals must focus on teaching quality. Most begin as teachers and earn master's degrees in educational administration, but university principal-training programs are often inadequate. New principals are frequently thrown into tough jobs with little assistance from districts, quitting within three to four years before they can turn things around, less than the five to seven years recommended by the Wallace Foundation's study of school leadership. As lawmakers debate reauthorization of the ESEA, they should make principal training a priority. Federal policy should improve preparation and mentoring of principals, and require equitable distribution of those who are effective. States should toughen principal-training accreditation and principal-licensing requirements. Universities should selectively admit outstanding candidates to programs, and districts should groom school leaders through proper training, matching principal strengths to school needs. Great teachers are essential, but not enough. They must be led and developed by great principals. More

Source:  Public Education News Blast

Published by LEAP

Los Angeles Education Partnership (LAEP) is an education support organization that works as a collaborative partner in high-poverty communities.