Saturday, October 8, 2011
Current Issues in School Leadership
As a former charter school teacher, I am somewhat naïve about the current debate over teacher tenure. Because such things never affected me, I did not follow the process as it was being debated in the legislature. But I received an education about how it will affect administrators in the next few years. As I was sitting in my interview, I was asked why I wanted to become an administrator; as I began to explain my reasoning, my superintendent began to discuss how the new legislation will affect future administrators, and it sounds like a difficult situation. Although I can understand the legislator’s point of view, I really began to understand the personal aspect of such decision on veteran teachers who will the most affected by this change. While we discussed this issue in class, I could hear the anger and concern in the voices of those this will affect the most. It was at that point, that I realized the importance of understanding both sides of a situation is when making difficult decision. I needed to put my personal beliefs aside and listen with an open mind to truly grasp the concepts presented.
Technology also impacts the job of administrators. New procedures and regulations must be produced to keep up with these technological innovations. There is much debate over the use of social networking in the classroom. Recent studies show that students are more willing to communicate digitally with teachers than they are in more traditional ways. If a teacher is willing to put forth the effort to create such communication avenues appropriately, the administrator must give them the respect as a professional to allow them to reach these formally unreachable students.
New items of concerns will continue to add to the already immense stress and responsibility of an administrator. It is the job of all administrators to keep up with these new situations and head them off at the pass as best they can.
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