The Alberta Teachers’ Association

School principals in Alberta have always been responsible for what goes on in their schools and, over the last three decades, they have been part of many exciting and dramatic changes to both the education system and their own roles within that system. In my opinion, the major changes of the past 30 years have been student safety and access to technology, increased accountability and public information about academic results, inclusion of all students into public education and equality of opportunity, and the importance of hearing and listening to “the student voice”.

Safety

It used to be a justifiable assumption of parents and the public in general that school was one of the safest places in our society — there was adult supervision at all times; students could learn and play in an environment that was safe; and parents only had to be concerned about getting their children to and from the school. When I first became a school principal, there was no such thing as a school “lock down.” All we had was an annual fire drill to comply with the requirements of the local fire department. At that time, security and the use of metal detectors was an issue only for airports, not schools! The idea that we might have to deal with the issue of what to do if a person with a firearm arrived at the door was the furthest thing from my imagination. But clearly that and other similar issues have changed the way principals look at school safety and security. It is still reasonable for parents to expect that their children will be safe while they are at school, but ensuring that safety has become a much greater challenge for school administrators. The challenge has become how principals can ensure student safety while retaining a healthy learning environment.

This challenge has been compounded by the technological advances of the past 30 years. With the advent of cell phones and other communication technology, parents (and the public and media) are only seconds away from their children in the classroom. Principals must convince parents that they can trust the school to keep them informed about issues that might affect the safety of their children.

Ensuring this sometimes means the principal must build partnerships with the police and the media. This is not an easy task for principals, and they may require specific guidance and training. It has been my experience that the police enter these partnerships willingly and proactively. Working with the media, however, can be a much greater challenge for the school principal. After all, bad news is good media! The key is for the principal to have a plan in place that provides protocols and guides the way staff and students should react to media. It’s vital that staff and students are aware of this plan. This can be one of the biggest learning curves — even for veteran principals.

A positive aspect of the technology revolution is that it has exposed bullying as a school safety issue, enabling schools to deal with issues faster and more efficiently, thereby enhancing student safety.

Academic Results

Thirty years ago in my school district, academic and school survey results were sent to the principal and discussed at the district level, but they were not typically shared with the public. While the principal was encouraged to share the results with staff, it was really his or her decision whether and how to share the data. Over time, demands and expectations for public accountability increased. Now principals share data with staff and parents and use it as an impetus to examine and analyze academic results. The information helps us to both recognize exceptional achievements and to correct deficiencies. Sharing this data helps principals determine how to improve and better support our students to achieve at a higher level. While some principals and teachers are uncomfortable with this information being public, I feel that it has had a dramatic effect on schools becoming far more focussed on the right issues. For example, if reading scores are not matching grade level expectations, then corrective action and supports can be put in place to remedy the deficiency.

School surveys cover a wide range of attitudinal questions about educational issues for students and parents. The results allow the principal to evaluate this information relative to their performance. As a principal, results of student, staff and parental surveys can be a bitter pill to swallow! The surveys generally include a variety of questions ranging from confidence in the principal to safety in the playgrounds. Years ago, this type of information was only available to principals, but now it is shared with staff and parents with the aim of providing useful guides for improving a school’s “climate” and measuring school improvement over time. In response to this information, principals need to be brave, honest and open to change and new ideas. I consider the public nature of academic results and survey information a tribute to public education and a positive major change to the principal’s responsibility in school administration.

As a school principal for many years, I do have a caveat regarding sharing school test results. It is critical that this public information be used to measure schools only against themselves as a way of quantifying true progress. I am well aware of some organizations that endeavour to rank order schools. Too often the criteria are neither clear nor justified, and the ranking is counterproductive rather than supportive. Not all schools can be in the top 10, but each school can improve on an annual basis with the right support and leadership. It should be exciting for all schools to examine and review what they tried to do and what they achieved.

Inclusion

When I first became a principal, there were very few choices for parents of children with special needs. These students were assigned to designated schools, and too often the students did not get the opportunity to achieve their potential. While educators thought that they were doing the best for the students, this exclusion was based on a traditional viewpoint and often became a case of “out of sight, out of mind.” Over the past 30 years, the opportunity has been created for many special needs students to be included in regular schools. This simple change in equity of access has turned our traditional view of education upside-down. It has democratized education, and students have responded positively to the change. Anyone who visits a fully inclusive school can’t help being impressed by the way in which the general student body accepts all students of all abilities. For me, this embracing of diversity is one of the most encouraging features of today’s youth. They are open, accepting and encouraging of one another, and this can only lead to a better society.

While this inclusiveness has been an exciting and encouraging change, it has, at times, presented challenges and complications for school principals. Equity of access for all is the current challenge facing schools. Once we have included all students, we must be creative with our teaching so that all students achieve to the limit of their ability, and courses must be designed to ensure they have the potential for success. The hard work of parents and advocates for inclusive education must be acknowledged because they have worked tirelessly over the years to get us to where we are. The feasibility has been clearly established, so now it is the principals’ responsibility to ensure that inclusion has an opportunity to work in schools. Principals have many audiences to respond to as they work to ensure inclusion and equity of access for students. New principals can benefit from specific professional development for this.

Student Voice

Over the years there has been an increased emphasis on the importance of educators, and principals in particular, to be conscious of and hear the student voice. Embracing this particular major shift in our educational system has the potential to take education into the future. Long gone are the days when educators knew what was best for students. Back then, it was our responsibility to “tell and teach” students, and it was their responsibility to “learn.” Students have become far more articulate about what they would like to see happening in their schools. They know the courses that they would like as options, and they have definite opinions about what they would like the school’s climate to be. As the classroom has become a more public space, students have become used to adult visitors in the classroom, and they can better articulate ideas about their learning and how it relates to prior learning. Students regularly complete surveys about their teachers and the school principal, and, generally speaking, they know good teaching and they appreciate it. In the past, educators assumed that they knew what courses would be best for students. In many cases the courses were prescribed and offered students limited options. Student demand for more options has led to the opening of far more career avenues for them to pursue.

The school principal has the opportunity to access the student voice every day and in many ways. Teachers interact with students about their learning and their courses both inside and outside the classroom. While some are skeptical about increased student responsibility and the value of the student voice, I have seen excellent examples of it during my career as a principal. One such case was many years back when we had funds for school renovation. I consulted the students on how they would like to spend some of the money. They requested chilled water fountains at strategic places in the school, and their recommendation came with a floor plan of the school and where they would like to see them installed. I believe that our students can and should help design the schools of the future. Technologically, they are generally ahead of their educators; they have great ideas about education in the future; and they are inclusive. I believe that we should use this source in designing our educational programs.

Over the years, society has become more demanding of principals and the education system. In Alberta, the provincial government has developed principal quality standards. While it is good to have these expectations clearly laid out, I am not convinced that any educator can achieve all of these expectations. It is more realistic to set these expectations as goals, achievable over 5 to 10 years in the principalship.

As an educator for many years, I consider the principal’s job to be the most exciting and rewarding but also one of the most challenging in education. Principals need support and professional development opportunities to help them succeed in adapting to the changing needs of education.

Shirley Stiles is a retired teacher and administrator who was employed by the Edmonton Separate and Public School Boards for most of her teaching career. She became a school administrator in 1988 and held several administrative positions both as a school principal and in central office of Edmonton Public Schools. Since her retirement, Shirley has been active as a consultant and coach of principals and senior district staff in many school jurisdictions in Canada and the United States.