First in a two-part series
"Would you like to be a principal?" As a generation of principals reaches retirement age, it's a question school districts are asking existing staff members, and even many prospects outside education. Programs for aspiring principals, often called principal academies, are designed to help people who answer "yes."
As discussed previously (see "Memo to NYC Schools: Talent First, Then Training" in Related Items), one of the keys to a successful principal academy is finding individuals who have the inherent talent to become great principals. Talent is elusive and intangible, but it can be identified by studying the best.
Gallup National Study of School Principals
Gallup's national study of school principals, which is nearing completion, seeks to study great principals and determine what they do differently from less-than-great principals. The study began two years ago with focus groups and in-depth interviews with outstanding principals in six states. The focus group principals were identified as outstanding through a variety of methods, including several who had been chosen as Principals of the Year by school principal associations. Teachers at the schools where the principals work were also interviewed to help confirm that these principals are outstanding.
The focus groups included principals from a variety of backgrounds, including different district sizes (large, medium, and small), school types (elementary, middle, and high school), and settings (rural, suburban, and urban). The participants also varied in their experience levels, age, gender, and race. But despite such dissimilarities, these outstanding principals share many similar philosophies and approaches to their jobs.
Using insights that the focus group participants provided, Gallup researchers developed hypotheses, tested later in assessment instruments, about the specific talents that make these principals so different.
So what did the principals say about themselves?
The Importance of School Climate
Perhaps the most fundamental similarity among great principals is a focus on creating a climate conducive to learning. They share a common belief that the climate of the school determines its success. Outstanding principals also share many of the same strategies for building a climate of success.
At first, principals had difficulty describing this climate. An East Coast principal said, "You can just walk in the door and you feel it." Another principal suggested the climate is apparent through " . . . the way people are talking to each other." A principal from the Midwest described the principal's job as " . . . creating an atmosphere that encourages them [teachers] and where we all look at ourselves as learners, and we're all in this together."
These principals create a school climate that includes high expectations for performance, an equally high emphasis on the people (students and staff), and a high level of staff member involvement.
High Expectations
Teachers describe these great principals as demonstrating tough love. They hold high expectations for students, staff members, and themselves.
The principals assert that people will perform as expected. High expectations become the standard to which students and staff must rise. A West Coast principal asserted, "What we believe in people is what they will become. If we believe that our staff will be successful, if we believe that our children will be successful, then they will aspire to reach that level."
Emphasis on People
Outstanding principals understand the importance of the people in the school. A Midwest principal observed, "Nobody tells you that 99% of the job is dealing with relationships." They take time to know and learn the names of students, teachers, and their families. A West Coast principal described the importance of "people skills" this way: "A lot of being principal has to do with relationship-building and being able to connect at a personal level with students and teachers."
Investment in Others
These principals invest in teachers' ideas so that teachers take on greater leadership. "There's got to be a whole lot more leadership than just coming from the office," one principal suggested. Consequently, they find ways to involve all staff members in decisions, and encourage everyone to have a voice.
One teacher describes her principal in this way: "She enables others to shine for whatever is best for our children and their families. She has a servant's attitude and treats everyone . . . like royalty." These principals realize that teachers do the work of educating students, and they work to facilitate their teachers' work. "You have to see what teachers want, let ideas they have surface, and be there at the right moment," suggested a focus group participant.
Three keys to achieving a climate of success emerge in these focus groups. The second part of this series will focus on how principals "set the tone" for excellence in their schools, and how one principal and his staff used these three keys to turn a school around.