Forum readers: This is not hard science, but good insight re opinion on policy issues. I thought this special edition re School Leadership would be of interest to those who are giving these ed issues the discourse they deserve. Note that Summary and full report available online now at no charge. Kathy Kosnoff
============================================== Public Agenda Alert -- Special Edition, Nov. 14, 2001 * New Study Released on School Leadership http://www.publicagenda.org ============================================== Trying to Stay Ahead of the Game: Superintendents and Principals Talk About School Leadership School superintendents and principals nationwide believe that good leadership can turn around even the most troubled schools, but that politics and bureaucracy too often stand in the way, according to Public Agenda's latest study. "Trying to Stay Ahead of the Game," based on surveys of 853 public school superintendents and 909 public school principals, is being released as school leadership faces increased pressure to raise academic standards and as some education experts predict a shortage of top school administrators over the next few years. The Public Agenda study was financed by the Wallace-Reader's Digest Funds, which has spearheaded a movement to elevate quality education leadership as a core element of education reform. There is overwhelming agreement (superintendents 79%; principals 69%) that finding a talented principal is the first step in turning around a troubled school. But large majorities of superintendents and principals say they need more autonomy to reward good teachers and fire ineffective ones. What's more, over half of superintendents (54%) say they have to work around the school system to get things done, and one in 10 say the system actually ties their hands. Over half of principals (57%) say that in their own district even good administrators are "so overwhelmed" by day-to-day management that their ability "to provide vision and leadership is stymied." These issues outstrip other concerns about high-profile areas such as standardized testing and funding, with a notable exception: nearly nine in 10 superintendents say federal and state mandates are increasing "without getting the resources necessary to fulfill them" and eight in 10 say they have to use a disproportionate amount of money on special education. A Web summary of the report is available at: http://www.publicagenda.org/specials/leadership/leadership.htm Kathy Kosnoff [EMAIL PROTECTED] _________________________________________________________________ Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com/intl.asp _______________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A Civil City Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Digest option, and more: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
