På 50 år, en yrkesgeneration, har rektors roll förändrats drastiskt. Från en administrativ chef som fördelar resurser till en både långsiktig och allseende doer med det yttersta ansvaret för i princip allt som händer i skolan. Det kräver ett helikoptersperspektiv. "Du måste bli både operativ och strategisk, proaktiv och reaktiv. Det kräver självkännedom och reflektion",…

Jaana Nehez forskar om ledarskap och skolutveckling vid Högskolan i Halmstad. Boken Rektors utvecklingsarbete baseras på ett kommunalt projekt med ett antal rektorer. Det började bra men problem dök upp, skriver Peter Fowelin, lärare, organisationskonsult och skribent med inriktning på ledarskapsfrågor.

The volume and pace of decision-making among school leaders can cause fatigue, write Ronald Williamson, professor of leadership and counseling at Eastern Michigan University, and author Barbara Blackburn. In this article, they share some strategies to help deal with decision fatigue, including avoiding back-to-back meetings and scheduling short mental breaks.

Teachers' relationships with their administrators serve as one of the most influential reasons on whether to stay at or leave a school. Jodi Zeis explains how principals can make a smooth transition with educators in the building when stepping into a new role.

A school's principal can play a large role in helping to curb high rates of chronic absenteeism among students, according to a study of Tennessee principals by Brendan Bartanen, an assistant professor at Texas A&M University. Data shows the "principal effect" can reduce absenteeism rates by 4 percentage points on average -- and 6 percentage…

To understand why excessive turnover exists, researchers have investigated the relationship between principal turnover and various features of the principalship; which principals are most likely to leave; and which schools are more vulnerable to principal turnover. (pdf)

Principals are a key in-school factor associated with student achievement. When principals leave, it can disrupt school progress, increase teacher turnover, and stall student achievement. A new study reviews existing research to identify why school leadership matters and the impacts of principal mobility on student achievement.

Principals have a lot on their plates. According to recent research, the job's challenges have led to an 18% average turnover rate in public schools. Yet, many leaders have found workable solutions to juggle the responsibilities. Principals on Twitter shared their tips and tricks for staying cool under - well, you know the rest.

Effective school leaders walk a strict ethical line, writes Toni Faddis, a veteran educator and principal in California. In this article, Faddis shares how she is driven by her personal and professional belief system that she calls principle-centered leadership.

The role of the principal has often been compared to "drinking from a fire hose," "wearing many hats," or "putting out fires." While those characteristics may be true at times, William L. Sterrett and Sabrina Hill-Black argue that principals are uniquely poised to nourish a learning climate by enabling innovation, collaboration, and growth.

At last week's Learning Forward conference, two experienced administrators shared what they've learned from coaching other principals.