The Learning Policy Institute (LPI) report Developing Effective Principals: What Kind of Learning Matters? adds to an extensive body of research indicating that high-quality principal preparation and professional development programs lead to positive school, principal, teacher, and student outcomes. Based on a review of peer-reviewed research and survey data, the Read more
School administrators serve as instructional leaders and set the tone for the culture of a school, play an important role in hiring and retaining teachers, and impact student outcomes from attendance to achievement. The principal’s influence is pivotal. In this month’s issue brief, Core Education explores effective school leadership and Read more
Over the past two decades, the policy landscape and the research landscape of school leadership have experienced major shifts. High-stakes accountability, multiple-measure teacher evaluation systems, heightened policy attention to educational equity, and other changes have altered expectations for what leaders need to know, how they spend their time, and the Read more
Recently in The 74, Marianna McMurdock wrote a piece on pandemic-related school principal attrition. Excerpts of the piece appear below: Across the country, many principals are preparing to leave the education field altogether. A survey of more than 500 this fall by the National Association of Secondary School Principals has Read more
How have principals experienced changes in schooling over the last two years? To answer this question, the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP) launched Leaders We Need Now, a series of research reports on how the unprecedented crises and turmoil in 2020–21 have affected the work of principals and Read more
Principals can improve their teachers’ classroom practice, either directly or indirectly by arranging resources, to support improvement. However, there is limited information about how principals spend their time. A snapshot from the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) provides insights on workday time allocations for principals in 100 schools. Key findings Read more
For many years, school administrators have served as instructional leaders and have set the tone for the culture of a school. The COVID-19 pandemic further expanded the role of the school administrator – with major emphasis on student health and wellness, school safety, and equitable practice. Indeed, the school leader’s Read more
The Wallace Foundation recently released a report focusing on the potential for Assistant Principals to help foster educational equity, school improvement, and principal effectiveness. Recent years have seen a surge in the number of assistant principals and the percentage of schools with them, but despite its growing presence, the AP Read more
Writing for the Christensen Institute, authors Thomas Arnett and Bob Moesta present the findings of a study designed to help the proponents of continuous improvement approaches better understand how context shapes choices about how to improve. Every principal and superintendent accepts their role knowing that they will be expected to Read more
The George W. Bush Institute Education Reform Initiative has released a new resource for districts, policymakers, and funders based on the initiative’s five-year research collaboration with four school districts. The newly released Principal Preparation Guidebook, the fourth in a series of guidebooks, provides guidance on how to effectively prepare a Read more
The George W. Bush Institute’s Education Reform Initiative recently released a tool designed to help education leaders turn their vision into reality – the Effective Implementation Framework. Researchers are currently using it in a School Leadership District Cohort research project with four district partners to implement the Principal Talent Management Read more
Rand has released a new report on The Wallace Foundation’s Principal Pipeline Initiative (PPI). Students performed up to 6 points above the median percentile on state tests in schools that implemented the program, which is aimed at improving school leaders. Research across the decades has confirmed that effective school leadership Read more
Effective principal leadership practices improve school organization, teaching, and student achievement outcomes. These practices include framing and communicating a school’s goals and mission, creating shared expectations of high performance, clarifying roles and objectives, and promoting professional development. However, research demonstrates that teachers tend to rate principals lower on important leadership Read more
Principals and districts benefit when principal supervisors move beyond the role of administrator to coach and mentor, according to a new Vanderbilt University report. The report, “A New Role Emerges for Principal Supervisors: Evidence from Six Districts in the Principal Supervisor Initiative,” details the implementation of five key components to Read more
School administrators serve as instructional leaders and set the tone for the culture of a school. The principal’s influence is pivotal. In Core Education’s May issue brief, we explore effective school leadership and recommendations for policy to improve the preparation, support, and evaluation of educational leaders. In addition, we review Read more
In her newest policy paper and accompanying data visualization, Roxanne Garza explores how support systems for principals vary across the country. Over the last decade, the term instructional leader has worked its way into the vernacular of the education community to describe the role of school principals. What people actually Read more