Dilemmas of Assistant Principals in Their Supervisory Role: Reflections of an Assistant Principal

1994 ◽  
Vol 4 (5) ◽  
pp. 577-590 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey Glanz
Keyword(s):  
Assistant Principals ◽  
Assistant Principal ◽  
Anecdotal Evidence ◽  
Democratic Leadership ◽  
Instructional Process ◽  
Collaborative Efforts

Attention is focused, in this article, on the dilemmas of the supervisory role and the shift from a bureaucratic to a collegial culture. This article, based on practitioner reflection, provides anecdotal evidence to support the move from a bureaucratic culture to a collegial one. The author documents a basic conflict he has experienced which hindered his ability to function effectively. Specifically, the article explores an unresolved dilemma between the necessity to evaluate and the desire to genuinely assist teachers in the instructional process. This problem, although seemingly intractable, can, in fact be mitigated through more collaborative efforts which strive to foster participatory democratic leadership. These efforts are discussed.

scholarly journals Personality Traits and Leadership Styles and Management of the School Principals and Assistant Principals of MSU Community High Schools: Basis for Training and Development

2019 ◽  
pp. 76-82
Author(s):  
Myrna M. Asira ◽  
Rohanie Musa-Lucman ◽  
Farida B. Muti ◽  
Anabelie V. Valdez
Keyword(s):  
High Schools ◽  
Personality Traits ◽  
Leadership Styles ◽  
Assistant Principals ◽  
School Principals ◽  
Assistant Principal ◽  
Democratic Leadership ◽  
Correlational Research ◽  
Task Oriented ◽  
Relationship Of

This study surveyed the personality traits and leadership and management styles of the school principals and assistant principals in the 13 MSU Community High Schools. Descriptive correlational research design was used to determine the extent relationship of the personality traits and leadership styles practice by the principal and assistant principal using survey questionnaires. Findings revealed that the principal and assistant principal possess different personality traits but the most common traits were task oriented, fast paced and task oriented, slow paced. Leadership styles practice by the principal and assistant principal also varies but the democratic leadership styles were mostly used and directing and coaching is their common managerial approach. Moreover, findings showed that the personality traits of the school principals and assistant principals have positive correlation to their leadership styles and the relationships are highly significant. On the basis of the findings, the study concluded that personality traits of a person have positive and significant influence to their leadership styles.This implies that leadership styles of a person are shape according to their personality traits.

Assistant principal leadership development: a narrative capture study

2014 ◽  
Vol 52 (2) ◽  
pp. 173-192 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa Petrides ◽  
Cynthia Jimes ◽  
Anastasia Karaglani
Keyword(s):  
Leadership Development ◽  
School Leadership ◽  
Principal Leadership ◽  
Assistant Principals ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Assistant Principal ◽  
Leadership Roles ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Leadership Challenges ◽  
Teacher Professional

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the knowledge base on the ways in which assistant principals view their roles, and on the potential challenges involved in a distributed leadership model. Design/methodology/approach – The study employed a narrative capture method, in which assistant principals from two large urban school districts were asked to relate and self-interpret two leadership stories through a web-based narrative capture form. A total of 90 stories were collected from 45 assistant principals. Participants rated their stories based on a set of leadership indicators (including method of decision making and type of teacher interaction present in the story, among others); the results were analyzed statistically. Findings – Overall, participants tended to view their roles in terms of instructionally focussed leadership. However, leadership challenges emerged in several areas of leadership practice, including operational management and teacher professional development (PD). Demographic factors were found to influence leadership perceptions and practices. Research limitations/implications – This study begins to fill the empirical gap on assistant principal leadership roles, practices, and perceptions. Further research, using other methods (e.g. observation), is needed to collect evidence of in situ leadership practices of assistant principals, and how those practices impact and relate to school objectives for teaching and learning. Practical implications – The study sheds light on the leadership development needs of assistant principals and on the importance of ongoing, tailored PD, based on factors including where leaders are in their careers and how they envision their roles. Originality/value – This paper contributes to nascent scholarship regarding assistant principal school leadership.

scholarly journals An Analysis Of The Position Of Assistant Principal Of The Year In Indiana: An Analysis Of What Is Really Important

2016 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 87-94
Author(s):  
Stephen D. Mercer
Keyword(s):  
School Improvement ◽  
Assistant Principals ◽  
Assistant Principal ◽  
High Stakes ◽  
Chi Square ◽  
Achievement Gains ◽  
Positive Correlation ◽  
Ex Post ◽  
Ex Post Facto ◽  
Chi Square Analysis

This work is an analysis of the alignment between schools associated with an Indiana Assistant Principal of the Year, as selected by the Indiana Association of School Principals, and increases in academic performance of those schools on state mandated “high stakes” academic tests.  The focus was on school improvement using annual school report card data. Using a design looking for association and a Chi Square analysis, a significant positive correlation was identified.  The results shed some light on the potential excellent practices of assistant-principals and student academic achievement gains.  Although a positive correlation was found, the results can only give ideas for leadership consideration.  They are not considered predictive because of the ex-post facto nature of the data allowing for no manipulation of variables.

scholarly journals The Acclimation of New Assistant Principals

2016 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 9-18
Author(s):  
Hykeem M. Craft ◽  
Rene Malveaux ◽  
Sonja A. Lopez ◽  
Julie P. Combs
Keyword(s):  
Assistant Principals ◽  
Assistant Principal ◽  
Professional Relationships ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
District Leaders ◽  
Preparation Programs ◽  
School District Leaders ◽  
Aspiring Principals ◽  
Asking Questions ◽  
Training Position

Although the assistant principal position has been the career path for aspiring principals, some researchers have claimed the position lacks adequacy as a training position. With limited research available, the purpose of this study was to explore the induction and acclimation experiences of newly assigned assistant principals. Following a phenomenological research approach, interviews were conducted with six public school assistant principals. New assistant principals prepared for their positions by seeking prior leadership opportunities and asking questions, but they noted a lack of confidence in making decisions. These new assistant principals, recognizing the importance of professional relationships, worked to build trust with students and teachers. Implications for school district leaders, preparation programs, and aspiring candidates are provided.

Emotional Aspects in the Transition From Teaching to Assistant Principalship

2019 ◽  
Vol 28 (4) ◽  
pp. 348-365
Author(s):  
Rinat Cohen ◽  
Chen Schechter
Keyword(s):  
Assistant Principals ◽  
Assistant Principal ◽  
Transition Process ◽  
Educational Systems ◽  
Assistant Principalship ◽  
Emotional Challenges ◽  
Professional Career ◽  
Emotional Aspects ◽  
Group Interviews ◽  
Training And Support

The transition from teaching to assistant principalship is a turning point in a teacher’s professional career. This transition not only reflects a change in one’s hierarchical standing at the school but also constitutes a stage that affects one’s administrative identity and aspirations to further advance in the management arena. Despite the importance of the assistant principal’s position in the school, there is a lack of worldwide research on the transition process from teaching to assistant principalship and the emotional aspects of this process. This study’s objective is to examine the emotional challenges faced by teachers as they enter the position of assistant principal. It is based on a qualitative study in which 23 assistant principals were accompanied during various stages of their entering office. Thirty-seven semistructured in-depth interviews were conducted (some of which were repeated interviews, conducted a year after the initial interview). In addition, four focus group interviews were conducted with newly appointed assistant principals. The research findings indicate an unexpected emotional ordeal on entering the role of assistant principal, often including stress, fear, crying, insomnia, fatigue, regrets, and guilt feelings. The conclusions and recommendations provided by this study may enable educational systems and colleges of education to recognize the emotional challenges that new assistant principals may face, thus addressing their needs by offering them mentorship, training, and support programs fit to deal with this unique position in school organization.

The Assistant Principal: Neglected Actor in Practitioner Leadership Literature

1993 ◽  
Vol 3 (6) ◽  
pp. 707-723 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gary N. Hartzell
Keyword(s):  
Assistant Principals ◽  
Training Programs ◽  
Assistant Principal ◽  
Best Interests ◽  
Administrator Training ◽  
Leadership Responsibilities ◽  
Research And Practice ◽  
Organizational Contexts ◽  
Leadership Challenges ◽  
Different Levels

Both principals and assistant principals are site level administrators, and both are charged with leadership responsibilities in the school. Nonetheless, the organizational contexts in which they each attempt to fulfill those responsibilities differ in substantial and important ways. There are at least three reasons for this: (1) principals and their assistants are at different levels in the hierarchy; (2) they perform different duties; and (3) they are perceived differently by their subordinates. Because they work in differing contexts, principals and assistant principals face different leadership challenges. While there clearly are leadership consistencies to be found across contexts, there are also significant differences to be discerned between them. An examination of the principal's position as a first-level leader in contrast to the assistant principal's position as a second-level leader points to these differences, and supports the notion that it is in the best interests of both research and practice to address them. These contextual differences have implications for educational leadership researchers, for beginning administrator training programs, and for the development of principals as first-level leaders.

Exploring intersectionality and the employment of school leaders

2019 ◽  
Vol 57 (2) ◽  
pp. 134-151 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edward Fuller ◽  
Liz Hollingworth ◽  
Brian P. An
Keyword(s):  
School Leadership ◽  
Assistant Principals ◽  
School Leaders ◽  
White Male ◽  
Assistant Principal ◽  
Unique Contribution ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Race Ethnicity ◽  
And Gender ◽  
School Leader Preparation

Purpose There is growing recognition of the importance of educator diversity. The purpose of this paper is to examine the production, placement and employment of school leaders as assistant principals, principals and school leaders in Texas by the intersection of race/ethnicity and gender over 23 years. Design/methodology/approach This is a quantitative study that employs multilevel logistic regression analysis to examine using 25 years of educator employment data from Texas. Findings The authors find descriptive evidence of an increase in diversity of school leaders driven by a decreasing percentage of white men educators and an increasing percentage of Latina educators. Important differences, however, emerge when examining assistant principal vs principal positions, particularly with respect to the odds of being hired. The authors find black male and Latino educators are more likely than white male educators to be hired as an assistant principal but are less likely than white male educators to be hired as a principal. Women educators, regardless of race/ethnicity were less likely to be hired as assistant principals or principals relative to white male educators. Women of color had the lowest odds of being hired in any position relative to white male educators. With respect to school leader preparation program accountability, the authors find few program characteristics associated with placement and differences between programs explained very little of the variation in placement rates, bringing into question efforts to hold programs accountable for such outcomes. Originality/value A longitudinal examination of racial/ethnic and gender intersectionality over 25 years is a unique contribution to the study of inequitable access to school leadership positions.

Assistant Principal Mobility and Its Relationship With Principal Turnover

2021 ◽  
pp. 0013189X2199310
Author(s):  
Brendan Bartanen ◽  
Laura K. Rogers ◽  
David S. Woo
Keyword(s):  
School Leadership ◽  
Assistant Principals ◽  
Assistant Principal ◽  
Strong Relationship ◽  
Comprehensive Analysis ◽  
Prior Work ◽  
Principal Turnover ◽  
Education Personnel ◽  
Changing Schools ◽  
Leadership And Change

Assistant principals (APs) are important education personnel, but empirical evidence about their career outcomes remains scarce. Using administrative data from Tennessee and Missouri, we provide the first comprehensive analysis of AP mobility. While prior work focuses on promotions into principal positions, we also examine APs exiting school leadership and transferring across schools. We find yearly mobility rates of 25% to 28%, with 10% of APs leaving school leadership, 7.5% changing schools, and 7.5% to 10% becoming principals. We also document a strong relationship between AP mobility and principal turnover, where higher-performing APs are substantially more likely to replace their departing principal. Finally, principal transitions appear to increase the likelihood that APs exit school leadership and change schools.

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