Abstract
For a variety of reasons the responsibilities facing principals are expanding and evolving simultaneously. This study identifies and investigates expectations held by school community constituents in relation to work tasks and domains of principal control associated with the responsibilities of the principalship. Constituent perceptions of contextual factors which may impinge upon and modify principal performance are also investigated.The opinions of departmental officers, parents, principals, students and teachers provided data to determine the relative importance of forty principal work tasks, various associated influencing factors, and the extent of the relationship existing amongst the respondent groups concerning their role expectations of primary school principals. Thirty departmental officers, forty-eight parents, twenty-six principals, ninety-six students and ninety-four teachers responded to a questionnaire. Twelve principals participated in semi-structured interviews.
The analysis of the data involved two discrete phases and was facilitated by construction of an analytical framework. The findings furnished forty-one bases upon which the study's conclusions were established.
All respondent groups attach considerable importance to the majority of principal work tasks. Adult constituent responses reflect a much higher discriminating ability and inter group consistency, than do student responses. A high level of accord regarding the domains of principal control exists amongst adult school community constituents. Respondents emphasise the educational leadership role of principals but do not regard the educational leadership role and the administrative role as mutually exclusive roles. Administrative and managerial work tasks which facilitate a school's educational program are accorded greater importance than administrative tasks which are perceived to be more general in nature. Factors such as devolution; School Council involvement in school decision making; external influences; and non-academic, student related issues are seen to be having an increasing influence on principal performance and their further professional development. It is within the external environment that the greatest potential source for hindrance is to be located. Principals will need to take a proactive stance to neutralise perceived negative, external involvement.
The potential and facilitating capacity of the personal and professional perfonnance of staff may be an unrecognised and under exploited source of assistance for principals. Principals spend the least amount of time doing what they enjoy most, and the greatest amount of time on those domains considered the least important by adult groups. Because of the intrinsically human nature of education, skills in aspects of Human Resource Management would be valuable to principals in the discharge of their duties.
Suggestions derived from the study's findings, and relating to practices at school and system level are proposed.
| Date of Award | 1992 |
|---|---|
| Original language | English |
| Supervisor | Darol Cavanagh (Supervisor) |