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Prioritizing responsibilities and creating tension

The time devoted to all aspects of the job creates a tension caused by a limited amount of time (DiPaola&Tschannen-Moran, 2003). As Darling-Hammond, La Pointe, Myerson, and Orr (2007) contend, “They must be educational visionaries and change agents, instructional leaders, curriculum and assessment experts, budget analysts, facility managers, special program administrators, and community builders” (p.1).

Principals are concerned about the growing responsibilities for both manager and instructional leader and note the increasing amount of time spent on managerial tasks versus instructional leadership tasks (Shen&Crawford, 2003; Worner&Stokes, 1987). Principals believe the instructional role, more than the managerial role, influences student learning (Leitner, 1994); however, day-to-day managerial operations usurp much of the time (Cunard, 1990; IEL, 2000). In fact, principals are spending less than one-third of their increasing work week on curriculum and instructional activities (Cooley&Shen, 2003; Eisner, 2002; Goodwin, Cunningham&Childress, 2003; Schiffe, 2002). Most school leaders did not become principals to be managers and see these roles as a disconnect (Donmoyer&Wagstaff, 1990; Goodwin et al., 2003; Portin et al., 1998). If the importance of academic accountability is increasing in our schools, the principals need to be spending more time with instructional responsibilities. Clearly, instructional leadership is a priority honored more by its ranking than its actual execution (Worner&Stokes, 1987).

Viable reform solution: school administration manager

Districts have been exploring various solutions (Cushing, Kerrins,&Johnstone, 2003; Grubb&Flessa, 2006) to the leadership-management dilemma. The message from this study is clear: The principal cannot do the job alone. Principals cannot execute the job single-handedly (Leithwood et al., 2004; Spillane, 2005); they rely on the contributions of others. Elmore (2000) believes that in knowledge-intensive environments there is no way to perform the many complex tasks without distributing the leadership responsibilities. Distributing the leadership responsibilities is about enhancing the skills and knowledge of people in the organization, and holding people accountable to the common goal. Distributive leadership models include: teacher-leaders, principal-teachers, assistant or associate principals, co-principals, or management or services coordinators (DiPaola&Tschannen-Moran, 2003). Management or services coordinator is a model that is becoming more familiar in many districts across the nation with noted success relative to the principal’s efficiency and student achievement.

Kentucky’s alternative school administration study

In 2002 the Wallace Foundation launched a project called the Alternative School Administration Study (ASAS) with three elementary schools in Louisville, Kentucky. The purpose of the project was to examine the use of principal time and the conditions that prevented school leaders from making instructional leadership their priority. The project is a strategy or process referred to as School Administration Managers (SAMS) and designed to restructure the role of the principal, originating from the need to assist principals to work more effectively and efficiently. By reorganizing the work day of the principal, instructional leaders had more time to work directly with teachers and students on instructional issues. The premise of the program is to change the current practice of the instructional leader by freeing up some of the management time to increase the time for instruction. In turn, this new structure should result in stronger organizations with improved classroom instruction, greater student engagement, and improved student achievement.