In defense of school principals

About a month ago, this paper published an article on a school survey called the 5Essentials. None of the local districts took the survey except District 97 and, according to the article, “Students and faculty take the survey, but D97’s student response rates at most of the schools were so low that no results are available.” The article does not say how many teachers responded but goes on to talk about results. Huh?

One of the questions really got my goat. “When asked if the principal is ‘an active and skilled instructional leader who sets high standards for teaching and student learning,’ teachers at both middle schools responded with average-to-low ratings,” said the article.

This requirement that the principal be the school’s instructional leader has been gospel for more than a dozen years, but I think it’s basically flawed and not based in reality.

Of course principals care about instruction, but let’s give a little thought to how they spend their time. They are so busy “putting out fires,” it’s a wonder they get into the classrooms at all. First of all, they are expected to be everywhere — visible in the halls, visible in the lunchroom, visible at the beginning and end of the day, visible at every assembly, etc.

Much of what really eats up their time is confidential. For example, if a kid comes to school with signs of abuse or neglect, even though the teacher is a mandated reporter, it is likely the school nurse will be involved, the social worker will be involved, the principal will be involved, the kid will be interviewed, and if DCFS is called, certainly the central office will be informed. There goes the morning. God forbid the principal was invited to a classroom that morning to observe a student project/performance or had scheduled an observation. The kids and teachers may be disappointed, and will not know the reason.

Or let’s suppose a teacher is going off the rails, acting erratically, suffering from a serious illness, or having an inappropriate affair. Parents will also be going off the rails. Union leadership and district administration will have to be involved and the decision-making might be slow. Meanwhile, parents will do their thing — take sides, which usually does not involve trusting that the situation is being handled.

Let’s not even talk about an unannounced visit from the police.

So if principals aren’t instructional leaders, who is? The answer is easy — teachers.

I worked in the central office of a school district for 10 years and consulted with school districts for another 10 years or more. Teachers — and kids — always know who the good teachers are and who the bad teachers are. 

Teachers should mentor their own, evaluate their own, and be able to recommend action against bad teachers. Teachers’ unions should not only be about salaries and working conditions. They should be professional organizations with professional standards and they should act on them. 

Principals should be administrators.