From the Bluegrass Institute Board of Scholars - Getting serious about education reform: Empower principals and parents

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By Gary W. Houchens, Ph.D.Bluegrass Institute Scholar

Kentuckians are concerned about the quality of their schools and so, like many other states, the commonwealth has focused a lot of attention recently on improving its teacher evaluation system.

Research is clear that the quality of the classroom teacher is one of the single biggest contributors to higher levels of student learning; so, it makes sense to focus on improving teacher quality if we want to see better academic outcomes for kids.

But we often overlook the critical role school principals play in the educational process. Research is also clear that principals shape a school’s success by articulating a clear vision for improvement, marshalling resources and especially by working closely with teachers to improve their instructional practices.

The job of principal is also very difficult, as a recent research report by the Thomas B. Fordham Institute called “Lacking Leaders” explains.

Principals work extremely long hours with relatively low pay compared to their level of responsibilities. And with states and the federal government pushing toward more high-stakes, top-down, one-size-fits-all mandates for school improvement, principals often lack the autonomy and authority needed to make bold, effective leadership decisions.

“A principal’s authority and autonomy to run his building has generally not increased” despite a growing awareness of this problem, the Fordham report states. “In far too many places the principal’s role is more akin to ‘middle manager’ than to ‘executive.’”

The Fordham report calls on policymakers to “stop viewing principals as glorified teachers and more as executives with expertise in instruction, operations, and finance – and the ability to add others to their leadership teams who may possess the skills they don’t already have.”

One place where school principals have this kind of autonomy and authority is in public charter schools.

Charter schools are public schools that provide families additional educational options. Public charter schools often utilize innovative teaching strategies and create cultures of high expectations.

Many charters have outperformed their traditional school counterparts in terms of student achievement, especially with students who have often struggled with school in the past, while usually spending far fewer tax dollars to get those results.

One of the reasons public charters succeed is because they are free of most of the regulations, mandates and burdens faced by traditional schools. Principals in charter schools answer to a board of directors (and to the parents, of course, who may withdraw their children from the charter school at any time they are dissatisfied) but are otherwise free to hire, fire, train or retain teachers as they see fit.

Charter school principals can use their autonomy to foster a strong, student-centered culture and innovate new approaches to teaching and learning.

Kentucky is one of only seven states without public charter schools. While the state Senate has passed charter school legislation several times, the leadership in the state House of Representatives has steadfastly refused to consider the idea.

If Kentuckians are serious about improving education, lawmakers ought to embrace a strategy accepted in 43 states and empower principals to lead charter schools that provide more educational options for families and higher levels of learning for students.

Gary W. Houchens, Ph.D., is associate professor and coordinator of the School Principal Certification program in Western Kentucky University’s Department of Educational Administration, Leadership and Research, and a member of the Bluegrass Institute Board of Scholars.  Houchens is a former social studies teacher, assistant principal and district administrator who has served in both public and private school settings. Reach him at Gary.houchens@wku.edu.