A 13-member working group of principals and education leadership experts will review and finalize the long-awaited school leadership standards later this month before sending them to the National Policy Board for Educational Administration for approval in October.
Three principals were added to the final standards-revision process after a review showed that practicing principals were under-represented on the committees that worked on the standards during the nearly two-year undertaking, said Mary-Dean Barringer, the strategic-initiative director for education workforce at the Council of Chief State School Officers, which is leading the revision process jointly with the national policy board.
The standards are used to set benchmarks for what principals should know and be able to do to lead students and teachers.
They were last updated in 2008. Two previous drafts—one released last September and another in the spring—were met with mixed reactions from the principal and educational leadership communities.
While the updated standards garnered positive feedback overall, the most recent draft was criticized by some educators, who felt that the standards did not sufficiently emphasize ethical behaviors and the role that principals play in addressing equity and other social-justice issues in schools.
The revision is funded by the Wallace Foundation, which also supports coverage of arts education, extended-learning time, and leadership in Education Week.
