Balanced leadership : how effective principals manage their work / Sheryl Boris-Schacter and Sondra Langer.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Boris-Schacter, Sheryl.

Contributor:

Langer, Sondra.

James Hosmer Penniman Book Fund.

Series:

Critical issues in educational leadership series

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

School principals--United States--Attitudes.

School principals.

School management and organization--United States.

School management and organization.

United States.

Educational leadership--United States.

Educational leadership.

Educational surveys--United States.

Educational surveys.

Physical Description:

vii, 111 pages ; 24 cm.

Place of Publication:

New York : Teachers College Press, [2006]

Summary:

Alarmed by mounting evidence of a national shortage of qualified and willing principals, the authors surveyed over 200 school principals from across the country to find out why so many are leaving the profession and how those who stay manage their work. They discovered that regardless of a principal's race, gender, school level, geographic region, or tenure, there was a remarkable consistency in the challenges identified and suggestions given for revamping the role of the American principal. Featuring stories shared by practicing principals, this timely volume: Offers fresh insights on ways to both attract and retain good principals. Shows how successful principals reconcile their expectations and hopes with the realities and disappointments encountered in their work. Examines issues common to all principals, such as time management, staff evaluations, keeping the focus on instruction, community expectations, and pursuing a balanced life. Presents strategies that principals have used to make their role more effective and more attractive. Provides practical ideas for coping with the present and envisioning the future, including alternative principal models.

Contents:

The Principal Shortage: The Big Picture 1

Standards of Practice That Could Reshape the Principalship 5

1 Understanding the Principal Shortage and Why Current Policies and Practices Have Been Inadequate 7

Understanding the Principal Shortage 8

Repositioning the Profession 12

Our Response to the Shortage: A National Study 13

2 Negotiating Instructional Leadership and Managerial Tasks 17

Defining Instructional Leadership 18

Obstacles to Leadership 19

Effective Coping Strategies 26

3 Negotiating Personal and Professional Balance 34

Obstacles to Leadership 35

Effective Coping Strategies 41

Integrating Personal Passions into Professional Lives 47

A New Mentorship for All Principals 49

Gender Matters 49

Sharing Information That Personalizes Relationships and Builds Capital 50

Seeing Balance in Perspective 51

4 Negotiating Community Expectations and Personal Definitions of Effective Leadership 53

Defining the Community 54

Obstacles to Leadership 54

Effective Coping Strategies 63

5 Negotiating Sustainable Principal Models 71

The Case for New Models and Structures 72

Two Kinds of Responses to Changing the Principalship: Structural and Cultural 73

Beyond Co-Principalship: Other Flexible Models That Address the Principal Tensions 75

You Don't Know Until You Try 83

Conclusion: Lessons Learned 84

Principal Strategies 86

Leadership Counts 86

What Is Necessary to Change the Present Unsatisfactory Situation? 87

Appendix A Research Methodology 89

Appendix B Respondent Demographics 93

Appendix C Interview Instrument 95

Appendix D Survey Instrument 97.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 99-101) and index.

Local Notes:

Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the James Hosmer Penniman Book Fund.

ISBN:

0807746991

0807746983

OCLC:

63122882