School Leadership Successful Principles

Introduction Principals are an important part in the development and maintenance of successful schools. However, there is, surprisingly, less research on the methods that can be used in developing people to get the required knowledge of running schools effectively. This condition is in an environment in which principals are increasingly pressured to make improvements in their leadership regarding teaching and learning.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on School Leadership Successful Principles specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The need for an improvement in the leadership skills of principals is also necessitated by the fact that their responsibility spans a lot of specialties and thus it is hard for a principal who is not well trained to be effective in his/her work. Principals are, therefore, expected to be visionaries in educational matters, experts in public relations in order to relate well with parents, children and other stakeholders. They should also be community builders, expert overseers, budget analysts, expert disciplinarians, facility managers and experts in assessment. Principals should also be in a position to act as agents in solving the conflicting interests of various stakeholders, and they should also be dynamic and sensitive enough to attend to the needs of their students (Davis, 2005, pp. 1-5). This paper is an in-depth exploration of the leadership in schools that seeks to establish the best kind of leadership in schools and suggests what can be done to improve leadership in learning environments. Literature review Status quo The state of schools as far as leadership is concerned has attracted a substantially large number of critics, with some being privy to management of schools. Most of these critics have been forced, by the kind of leadership that is currently in our schools, to believe that programs for education qualification in our university are inefficient, or at best mediocre. This is because such programs fail to address the real world challenges that their ex-students face when they assume leadership position in schools. It is alleged that such programs lack effective leadership training, and that the knowledge base is archaic and impractical. Admissions have also been faulted with their alleged lack of rigor in selection leading to certification of unreasonable numbers of graduates. Clear and holistic analysis of the programs for school leadership and the practice of school leadership are therefore critical if any positive changes are to be made (Davis, 2005, pp. 3-5).Advertising Looking for research paper on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Essential elements of good school leadership There is increasingly growing consensus on what good leadership in schools should be. One of the key elements that good school leadership should have is the implementation of pragmat ic approaches for ensuring that the teachers and other workers in the school are as effective as they can be. This will be achieved by provision of incentives and support that can help workers to improve the effectiveness of their work. Additionally, the school leadership should have models of effective practice that will benchmark the performance of its workers (Elmore, 2000, p. 21). This will ensure that workers embrace a culture of responsibility and accountability because performance will be easily measured by comparing actual performance with the benchmarks. These benchmarks should be developed with consideration of a variety of factors. Some of these factors include past performances of the school, the aims and goals of the school, the performances of leading schools in the vicinity of the school, a consideration of the special challenges that the school might be facing etcetera. The leaders should also ensure that they facilitate the development of common goals and values tha t each stakeholder in the organization must embrace. This will lead to a culture of productiveness of all stakeholders in the school. The goals and objectives will also form a platform on which the aforementioned benchmarks for performance can be developed since the school will be working towards the realization of its goals and objectives. It is also important for the school leadership to ensure that communication is effectively promoted, and clear any obstacles to work effectiveness. Lastly, there is need for development of productive partnerships with interest groups that will help in minimizing the problems that the school could face (Hess, 2003, p. 37). Such interest groups could be Non Governmental Institutions offering scholarships and training, governments interested in exchange programs for students, media houses willing to highlight the situation of leadership in schools in the region, and the like. Good school leadership is also characterized by a strong academic backgrou nd. This ensures that the leadership is at ease when solving the problems arising at the school since the leaders have also experienced the same.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on School Leadership Successful Principles specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More It will also make the development of policies, goals, values and moral easy since the leadership will have had to live under policies and morals of their former schools. Additionally, there are courses that are very crucial for leadership in schools, and which candidates for leadership in schools should have studied. The above elements of good leadership are most likely to be found in principals who have had a chance to attend holistic training programs in college. It is thus of essence that universities design their training programs for teachers well so that they become effective leaders when they are given the chance to lead schools. The following sub-to pic discusses some of the essential features of a good training program for school leaders. Features of effective training programs for principals Research related to the training of principals indicate that there are certain features that must be present in a training program for principals, if effective school leaders are to come out of the program. One such feature is the aspect of research in training programs for principals. The program should thus impart its participants with skills of leadership, instruction, development of schools and management of change within schools. It is thus apparent that universities operating with mediocre training programs should revise the content of their development and preparation programs for school principals. Such changes should be made such that graduates are able to promote effective and successful teaching and learning. They should also be able to develop networks within the school leadership for collaborative decision making, and also ha ve distributed leadership abilities. Also among the required skills is the fact that the principals should be imparted with skills to encourage a culture of community within the school, and be able to steer development of the competence of school management (Jackson, 2002, p. 69). Apart from the professional training which principals should be given, there is also need for development of ethical standards in them so that they will be ethical school leaders. This will ensure that they promote moral values in other stakeholders of the school, and possibly mitigate problems of misconduct, fraud and other vices.Advertising Looking for research paper on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The principals should also be taught the social and cultural principles surrounding the school environment (Jackson, 2002, p. 70). This understanding will help them to have immediate solutions to problems as they arise during their time as school leaders. Also among the features of a good training program for principals is the observance of curricular coherence. The best training programs for principals have well-thought goals and vision, and they are coherent with internal and external values, administrative practices and beliefs of the profession. Programs that exhibit high coherence have a logical flow, have effective links between theory and practice and they are sequentially ordered with an array of courses. The program should also be in conformance with the theories of adult learning in order for them to qualify as coherent (Levine, 2005, p. 91). Such a program gives the principal a potential for success in the practical world of school management. Practical methods for implem enting effective programs There are a number of methods that must be used in order to implement an effective program for training principals. The first is field-based internships, in which the principals are given a chance to gain practical knowledge of school leadership. Additionally, the students should be given problem-based training such as simulations of real-life problems. This prepares the principals by making them aware of when and how to use the theory they learnt in class in solving problems. There is also the need to promote the use of cohort groups in the teaching of principals since these kinds of groups are known to produce good results for adult students (Wilson, 1996, p. 332). The groups are effective because within the group, principals are able to practice how they will be solving real problems in the field since a lot of school problems are solved through consultations and assemblies. The students are also able to socialize in their cohort groups, making them deve lop social skills which are very relevant in school leadership. Lastly, it is important for principals to have mentors within the administration who may guide them in solving personal problems. In this case, the mentor and the student are supposed to work as a team towards the achievement of a development plan for the student. The development plan can be designed by the administration, or it can be developed by the mentor and the student, or even by the student alone (Levine, 2005, p. 77). Other pathways to school leadership In the discussion above, we have identified university programs for principals as one way of developing leadership skills in principals. The discussion was a bit lengthy because this is the main foundation of principals and thus its effectiveness will mean that the students who graduate from the university have the required skills to lead schools effectively. However, as it has been mentioned, the programs offered in universities are mediocre and there is a need to find alternative pathways for further leadership development after graduation of students. This sub-topic seeks to identify these alternative pathways to leadership development in principals. Some reformers have strongly argued that the only solution to the leadership problems we are facing in schools is the recruitment of people who have natural administrative capabilities even if they have not studied education. However, this argument conflict with the requirements for good school leadership because in order for one to be a good school leader, he/she has to have a strong academic background (Davis, 2005, p. 8). This is necessary because, in order to lead an organization, one has to be passionate about, and know, the intricacies of the trade of that organization. In some states, principal credentialing is common. This is a case in which candidates sit for an examination designed by the state, and the candidates who pass the exam are licensed as principals for schools. Thus a pe rson who has not necessarily studied education may end up being a school principal (Davis, 2005, p. 11). This method may pick potential candidates and weak ones depending on the kind of examination that is set by the state. Summary As evidenced in the discussion above, school leadership has not been taken as seriously as it should be. This has had many negative effects on our schools which have been unlucky to get mediocre principals. There is thus the need to review programs for training principals in the universities in order to ensure that effective school leaders are produced from these institutions. All programs for training principals in the universities should thus be reviewed to ensure that they abide by the requirements highlighted in the discussion above. In a nutshell, the requirements are aimed at linking theory with practice during training, developing values and morals in the principals, utilizing the resources offered by a variety of stakeholders and making students e ffective decision makers. As discussed in the above paragraphs, universities should also ensure that they use effective methods of implementing the features leadership development in principals. Such methods should promote practicability of knowledge, consultation, group work and problem-oriented development of knowledge. They should also ensure that the program is implemented in accordance with the findings of existing research about effective adult education. The suggested methods include use of cohort groups and mentors, implementation of problem-based learning and ensuring that students are able to attend internships based in the field so that they get practical knowledge through experience. Care must also be taken to ensure that the use of the aforementioned alternative pathways to school leadership do not contribute to the jeopardy of school leadership. It is thus of essence that graduates are effectively trained instead of picking people who do not have an academic background . All in all, there is hope for our schools if the suggested ideas are implemented in both the universities producing principles and in the schools. Reference List Davis, S. (2005). School Leadership Study: Developing Successful Principals. PDF File. Web. Elmore, R. (2000). Building a New Structure for School Leadership. Washington DC: The Albert Shanker Institute. Hess, F. (2003). A license to lead? A new leadership agenda for American schools  (Policy report). Washington, DC: Progressive Policy Institute. Jackson, B. (2002). Exceptional and innovative programs in educational leadership. New Jersey. Bell Bain. Levine, A. (2005). Educating School Leaders. New York: The Education School Project. Wilson, P. (1996). Preparing school leaders: What works? Journal of School  Leadership. Volume 6, Issue 3, pp. 316-342. This research paper on School Leadership Successful Principles was written and submitted by user L1v1a to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

The American Civil War

The American Civil War Free Online Research Papers The Civil War was bound to happen one way or another. The inevitability of the Civil War can be pin-pointed back to many issues that occurred during colonial times. Political, economic, and social problems helped with the causes of the Civil War. The Civil war occurred during the years 1861 and 1865. This was a fight to preserve the Union which during this time was the United States of America. It included the secession of the South from the Union. The North and South varied on many issues such as: political, social, and economic differences. Politically, the south was much less dependent on the federal government than the north which were highly dependent on, to build everything. The South feared that a strong central government would interfere with slavery.There were reasons other than slavery for the South’s secession. Economically, the South relied heavily on agriculture. The South grew cotton, which was its main cash crop. Many southerners knew that heavy reliance on agriculture would hurt the south, but their warnings were not heeded. The invention of the cotton gin was another key element to the inevitability of the Civil War. The cotton gin enabled the south to have a great interest in their traditional lifestyle in order to feel the need to depend it from the North. The North as stated before relied on its government to do everything. The North depended on factories and businesses to supply everything. The North was established as an industrial society; labor was needed, but from immigrants, not slaves. Immigrants traveled from mostly countries in Europe to the North to find a better life. As the immigrants started working in the factories for minimum wage, the North stated to form again. On a social note, the growth of the abolition movement added to the causes of the Civil War. Each day the northerners became more against slaver. Many people say that slavery was the main cause of the Civil War, because of Abraham Lincoln. Some believe that the main cause was the secession of the southern states. Arguments that slavery was undesirable for the nation had long existed, and the northern states all abolished slavery after 1776. Slavery had been a part of life in America since the early colonial period and became more acceptable in the South than the North. Southern planters relied on slaves to run larger farms or plantations and make them profitable. Many slaves were also used to provide labor for the various household chores that needed to be done. This did not sit well with many northerners who felt that slavery was uncivilized and should be abolished. It can be easily said that the secession of the southern states was the underlying cause. Although, before the 1860 election of Abraham Lincoln, seven states had seceded from the Union: South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas. Even though things were coming to a head, when Lincoln was elected in 1860, South Carolina issued its â€Å"Declaration of the Causes of Secession.† They believed that Lincoln was anti-slavery and in favor of the North. This seemed unnecessary since the seven states already left the Union. Since colonial times throughout the 1700s, many â€Å"ideas† erupted that could lead up to the Civil War. The American Revolution could easily be cast into the causes of the war. The American Revolution was the biggest war fought on American soil before the Civil War. This war could easily add to the causes because if the United States hadn’t of fought, then there wouldn’t be a need to fight the Civil War. The Civil War was indeed inevitable. No matter how hard any political leader or regular person could’ve tried; there would’ve been no use in it. From said things that had happened in the past, this war was bound to happen in one way or another. Whether it be slavery, political differences, economical or social problems it would have paved a way for the war to happen. The South was more scared that the North was trying to modernize everything that they had worked for, to make it more like the North. This was really not the case. The North wanted to abolish slavery in the South so no more real issues would occur. The South, not so happy about this, they decided to secede from the Union all together. No matter which way the North or South turned, the Civil War was definitely inevitable. Whether slavery or political, economic and social differences, the real underlying cause of the Civil War is still a mystery. Research Papers on The American Civil War19 Century Society: A Deeply Divided EraNever Been Kicked Out of a Place This NiceThe Effects of Illegal ImmigrationQuebec and CanadaPETSTEL analysis of IndiaTwilight of the UAWCapital PunishmentAssess the importance of Nationalism 1815-1850 EuropeComparison: Letter from Birmingham and CritoAppeasement Policy Towards the Outbreak of World War 2

Regulatory Theory cw2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Regulatory Theory cw2 - Essay Example That made it necessary to merge with British Satellite Broadcasting and that is how a new entity came into existence called BSkyB. Currently, BSkyB is the most dominating company in the British pay-TV market. By owning 100 percent of BSkyB, Rupert Murdock is likely to have a dominant role in the British print and electronic media that subsequently may play a critical role in influencing major government economic and political policy issues. Rogers (2003) sees the mass media channels such as TV, newspapers, radio in a different perspective as mass media have the capacity to reach a large audience quickly, spread information and alter weakly held attitudes. Thus, too much concentration of media power in one hand or group of people could be detrimental as it may even affect the plural fabric of the society. It is a fact that some 30 years ago the newspapers such as ‘The Times’ and ‘Sunday Times’ were allowed to have a control by Rupert Murdock even though at that time he owned other print publications such as ‘The News of the World’ and ‘The Sun’. The reasons were given that it was necessary in view of the likely closure of these two print media if matter were referred to the MMC. In 1990, Sky TV and the British Satellite Broadcasting (BSB) were merged for the reasons that both were making losses and that was the only alternative to save both of them (Douglas, 2010). In a current scenario, pay TVs continue to expand in size and BSkyB with around10 million subscribers in its fold and revenues that is 2-3 times larger than its nearest rivals BBC and ITV has a dominant position in the market. That means that complete buyout of BSkyB will place Rupert in an enviable position to exert considerable influence in the national media (Douglas, 2010). On this acquisition efforts, competition such as BBC, Daily Telegraph, Daily Mail and BT wrote to Vince Cable urging him to initiate necessary

Strategic Management Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Strategic Management - Assignment Example Many research scholars still argue over creating cogent definition of strategic management. Various research scholars like Michael Porter, Philip Kotler, John Kotter, VA Zeithaml and many others successfully tried to create a theoretical framework of the concept but still their frameworks failed to create a universal theory of strategic management probably due to multidimensionality of the concept. Organizations use strategic initiatives in accordance with culture, leadership style, frequency of crisis and business objectives. Gray (1) has bifurcated strategic planning from strategic management and described two aspects in the following manner. ... Meyer (3) illustrated strategic management as process that helps top level management of the company to understand business objectives, future threat and opportunities; identifying suitable strategy to deal with these issues and taking control over external variables; creating direction to accomplish strategic objective of the organization. Nutt and Backoff (4) have modified the concept of Meyer. According to them strategic management actually combines short and long term planning of the organization in order to achieve organizational objectives like increasing profitability, increasing control over existing product portfolio, achieving high growth rate, expanding many business in foreign market, creating market entry barrier for competitors by increasing competency level (Tyndall, Cameron and Taggart, 1990, p. 9). Strategic management is a multidimensional concept and the study cannot cover all the aspects of strategic management. The study will focus on a particular concept of stra tegic management in order to create a cogent representation of assignment topic. This report will analyze Michael Porter’s generic competitive strategies from the view point of theoretical concept and real life application in order to understand functionality of the concept. 3.0 Michael Porter’s Generic Competitive Strategies In 1980, Michael Porter developed the basic strategic model for companies in order to achieve competitive advantage over competitors. He modified the concept into more confined model in 1985. Main agenda of the model is to help organizations to create a sustainable and not easy to copy strategy with which they can not only achieve competitive advantage over adversaries but also can build a sustainable

The use of power and persuasion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The use of power and persuasion - Essay Example Similarly, others stress on how the power must transcend by virtue of leadership, implying that people relate to larger groups and thus, the art of leadership must be paralleled with the art of gauging the deep rooted insights of human responses (Harvard University 2005). However, in order to apply this strategy, it is imperative to build trusts and a dynamic interpersonal relationship with the people. Similarly, commenting on the need of innovative leaders, the academia also tends to differentiate between an ordinary leader and the one which tends to innovate, since innovative leadership doesn’t solely rely of a vision and leadership qualities; instead it tends to seek inspiration and drive these innovators towards positive direction to deem outputs (Yolderwise 2010). Therefore, a leader offer inspiration, motivation and even a dynamic personality for others to relate to and follow, with an innovation leader carrying even more elaborate responsibilities. Thus, there is need t o explore various dimensions on the nature and functioning of innovative leadership. As mentioned above as well, there are distinct leadership styles and leadership qualities which can be undertaken by a leader, and therefore may be understood from various lens. However, question arises on which approach may be accurate and appropriate for an innovation leader. In this context, various researchers have commented that such a leader may borrow concepts from various leadership styles to create a distinct style of his own to instill innovation and direction in the intended audience. Therefore, an innovative leader will employ distinct strategies to carve out a leadership style which then contributes towards producing creative and original ideas, services, products or solution Thus concept of innovation leadership was first put forth by Dr, Gliddon

The Real Madrid Football Club

The Real Madrid Football Club Real Madrid Club or what is more commonly known as Real Madrid has been perpetually considered as a money maker through its many ways of doing business and generating profit. This professional football club in Madrid, Spain has been attributed, with each rich history, to be earning millions of euros in its operation. The Santiago Bernabeu Stadium itself has been giving a lot of income for the club through the sales from the tickets of every football game. Fans flock the stadium and they actually pay too little attention with how much they pay compared to the benefit of the satisfaction that they get for every game seen. One of the easiest ways in which they earn money is through their museum in which people pay in order to experience a tour and to be able to witness the rich history of their football club unfolding right before their eyes. For a die hard football fan of the team, the entrance fee to the museum can be assumed to be nothing compared to what you will see inside. Being the most valuable football brand inEuropeand being one of the best brands in the world, it is indeed worth throwing extra amount just to have a fair share of the Real Madrid experience. Another way in which Real Madrid is earning money is through its players. The football players of the club are very well established and known in the global landscape of sports and advertising since they have actually become valuable brands themselves. A big part of their revenue can be attributed to the shirts and jerseys with their names which are selling like pancakes, especially for the fans. Not only through the shirts, they are also available through other items which can serve as an unforgettable memento of the club. For instance, David Beckham playing for Real Madrid has earned them a lot of euros especially considering the fact that Beckham is a global sports icon and that his brand value is very high. Every Beckham item being sold is a sure fire hit for the club to earn. RealMadridretains fifty percent of the image rights on every endorsement made by its players. In the case of Beckham, Real Madrid has the right to half of every earning from any endorsement made by the lege ndary and world-renowned football player. Like Beckham, Cristiano Ronaldo is also one of the major players of the club which is attributed to be a money maker. When Ronaldo was bought by Real Madrid from Manchester United, the club was then very much aware of how this deal will increase the value of their team and how they will generate more money in exchange for paying a huge amount just to acquire Ronaldo. Kaka being a member of the team is also another factor which will continue to increase the market value of Real Madrid and therefore would give the club more opportunities to generate more money. Another way in which Real CMadrid is earning money is through advertisement. The football clubs stadium is full of ads from companies such as Coca Cola, Adidas, and Audi. The names of these companies scattered all over the club, and being attached on the uniforms of the players is money making machine for the company. They are paying Real Madrid a lot of money just to have the names of their brands associated on the name of the football club. From that way, the companies will benefit because during the game, the fanatics can be able to see the brands being advertised. As a global brand name and a rich football club, Real Madrid is also an economic force more than just being a sports team. The prestige of the club itself coupled with acquiring some of the best players in the field of football are both contributory to the profit which the club has been generating. The company employs marketing strategies which will give them the pitch for both sports and business. The Santiago Bernabeu itself, serving as a venue for their game, can be already classified to be giving them passive income with every game. When the seats are taken, then the club is enjoying rocketing revenues. Their VIP areas balconies, which are sold at a higher price, are also giving them a lot of earnings. The Bernabeu has been also regarded as having a special magic which inspires visitors with the experience of the club. The merchandising efforts of the club, particularly as far as the players are concerned, could be assumed as the greatest money maker. It allows them to earn through the use of the clubs brand and the popular image of their world-class football players. QUESTIONS: 1. If you were part of the management of Real Madrid, what other marketing efforts would you extend to improve the image of the brand and to generate more profit? 2. Beckham and Ronaldo are some of the players generating profit for Real Madrid. Do you think that Real Madrid is successful only because of the popularity of their players which increases the brand value of the football club? 3. What is the sustainable competitive edge of Real Madrid against its competitors? 4. It is said that what Real Madrid lacks is a global marketing strategy. How do you think such aspect can be improved?

The Golden Greek :: Running Yiannis Kouros Papers

The Golden Greek One April morning Spring became intoxicated She is intoxicated and is singing and is dancing madly She has become intoxicated by her joy, by her flowers the bee hive too has buzzed, oh! this spring intoxication. One afternoon in April, you fell in love, oh heart! You fell in love and you are weeping, you're ashamed but don't admit it You became intoxicated by the moon and your intoxication does not subside, you became intoxicated by the nightingales by the sweet swallows, One eve in April I will turn into a night bird so that I can see your shadow and all your carryings on. So that I can become intoxicated with you and discover your soul so that I can remember your gaze and the taste of your kisses. -y kouros "There's the world class, the elite, then there's Yiannis." Trishul Cherns For those of you out there who know who Yiannis Kouros is, but cannot believe a normal person could do what he has done (so you call it talent) open your eyes right now and realize that Yiannis is a man who has overcome many things throughout his life and has learned from each of them, has made something good out of virtually nothing. He is just a man, he is not a "Greek God," but he has done many great things which many of us cannot even comprehend. The funny thing is that Yiannis couldn't comprehend them before he did them, either. Yiannis is a very special person who has a deep understanding of his own existence. That understanding is why he can run as he does, as a Golden Greek gone Australian. Yiannis Kouros holds world records for 12, 24, and 48 hours, 6 days, and 1,000 miles. He is also the owner of many Greek and Australian records, along with the many course records he has set along his way. To state it this simply tells nothing of Yiannis himself. One can say, for lack of understanding, that it is pure talent that this man has. That each of his records was set by him with complete ease, as if he were exempt from experiences every runner goes through in any ultra race. Yiannis obviously has talent, as do all of the world class ultra runners. It is what is in his mind that pulls him so far above that level.