School Session – With 2012-13 school year planning beginning or underway, we wanted to pass along this very intriguing report recently issued by The Wallace Foundation about the importance of leadership training for school Principals.
Excerpt from the Executive Summary . . .
“Experience and new research suggest that heeding the following five lessons could help propel many more districts toward the goal of having strong leadership in every school:
1. A more selective, probing process for choosing candidates for training is the essential first step in creating a more capable and diverse corps of future principals.
2. Aspiring principals need pre-service training that prepares them to lead improved instruction and school change, not just manage buildings.
3. Districts should do more to exercise their power to raise the quality of principal training, so that graduates better meet their needs.
4. States could make better use of their power to influence the quality of leadership training through standard-setting, program accreditation, principal certification and financial support for highly qualified candidates.
5. Especially in their first years on the job, principals need high-quality mentoring and professional development tailored to individual and district needs.”
The full report is available here and on The Wallace Foundation website.