Survey Finds Rising Job Frustration Among Principals

A new national survey finds that three out of four K-12 public school principals, regardless of the types of schools they work in, believe the job has become “too complex,” and about a third say they are likely to go into a different occupation within next five years.

The 29th annual MetLife Survey of the American Teacher , based on telephone interviews with 1,000 K-12 public school teachers and 500 principals, tells a story of enduring budget problems in schools and declining morale among both teachers and school leaders. (The MetLife Foundation provides funding to Education Week Teacher to support its capacity to engage teachers interactively in professional community.)

According to the survey, conducted for MetLife Inc. by Harris Interactive, the majority of principals say school leadership responsibilities have changed significantly over the last five years. Nearly half of principals surveyed indicated that they “feel under great stress several days a week.” And job satisfaction among principals has decreased notably, from 68 percent indicating they were “very satisfied” in 2008 to 59 percent saying so...