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“Whereas, the Center for the Future of Teaching and Learning, for over a decade, has been steadfast in the pursuit of its mission to ensure that every student in California’s elementary and secondary schools has a well prepared, effective, and caring teacher…The clear, impartial advice provided on effective approaches to strengthening the state’s teaching profession will always be of benefit to California’s education leaders…”
-California Senate Resolution No. 1242, August 15, 2006 |
Message from the President
State must help school leaders develop
Now it’s official: There will be no rescue for California as the state’s budget worries continue to mount. School districts across California continue to scramble in response to the news of even more severe budget cuts. Already more than 26,000 teachers have received pink slips, warning of potential job loss, with concern that more will follow. Across the state, in neighborhoods rich and poor, schools are reeling from what is now a certain loss of teachers.
Yet, for all the discussion, there has been little mention of the principals who will remain at our schools. And in the face of cutbacks to teaching staffs and other educational resources, they ultimately will continue to be responsible for the education of California's children. Faced with grim budget realities, these school leaders will be challenged to maintain the quality of instruction as never before.
Unfortunately, little is known about the capacity of principals and other school leaders to meet these challenges. While there are many fine principals across the state, California has underinvested in preparing them for employment and supporting them once they are assigned to a school.
In a recent policy brief published by the Center for the Future of Teaching and Learning, "Strengthening California's System for Preparing and Supporting Principals: Lessons from Exemplary Programs," principals reported having less experience and less access to internships, mentoring and other learning opportunities than those in other states. California's principals also report that they spend less time on key instructional leadership functions and appear to be more discouraged about their jobs than principals elsewhere.
Long hours, increasing demands and low compensation are increasing retirements, resulting in turnover. Only 48 percent of California principals say they plan to stay in their jobs until retirement, compared with 67 percent nationally, and only 22 percent of California's secondary school principals plan to do so.
Unfortunately, few are lining up to take their place.
This is a doubly tragic situation because research shows that effective school leaders are instrumental in creating a culture within schools that supports improvements in student learning and achievement. And school leadership is a key factor in the recruitment and retention of teachers. Conversely, weak school leadership can have a damaging effect. A recent study by Ken Futernick at California State University, Sacramento, finds that 42 percent of teachers who leave the field cite "an unsupportive principal" as a reason for leaving. And more than half (52 percent) cite poor administrative support from the school district.
Budget problems will hamstring the state's and school districts' ability to strengthen school leadership in the short term. However, California would be wise to develop a comprehensive strategy to address educational leadership with an eye toward building teaching excellence if students are to reach the high academic goals set for them.
The first step is to develop a better understanding of the status of the education leadership work force. Policy-makers must have sound, reliable information about the quality and utility of preparation for school leaders, what is needed to increase the knowledge and skill required to succeed in changing school climates and demographics, and what barriers to entering and staying in the profession stymie recruitment efforts.
California urgently needs to augment CALTIDES, the teacher work force data system that already exists, shaping it to learn more about school leaders. This information will serve as a base for effectively strengthening recruitment, preparation and professional development programs for principals that will enable them to meet the needs of the teachers and students they serve.
The challenge is daunting but not insurmountable. Targeting investments toward a system of leadership development, not the patchwork quilt of programs and opportunities that Linda Darling-Hammond has so aptly described as "random acts of professional development," is a good place to start. Further, exemplary practices and programs from other states offer important clues to what can be done to strengthen leadership and, importantly, the new federal stimulus legislation may offer California resources for addressing these needs.
California's schools will be greatly challenged by the current budget crisis, but at the same time there is little doubt of the need to transform schools in ways that ensure all students succeed. Every student deserves not only a fully prepared, effective teacher in every classroom but also a fully prepared, effective and supported principal in every school.
Adapted from an op-ed published in the Sacramento Bee, April 24, 2009
Margaret Gaston
President & Executive Director
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