Every individual has either studied in a school with a strict principal or is lucky enough to have been under the wings of an awe-inspiring principal. We reckon that it is the time that even the principals get groomed as per the new age rules and trends. Here are some tips that you can adopt as a school principal. They will make you more accessible to the students and help in the overall development of your school.
Tip 1: Understand the Roles of a Principal
What is the role of a principal in any school? The answer is simple, to solve the issues of the students and support the teachers and other staff during tough situations. However, these basic roles have become too old to sustain in today’s world. Nowadays, most kids are smart enough to solve their issues on their own. Also, access to online teaching materials and stuff provide enough insights about teaching to the teachers. To be relevant in today’s world, you need to be flexible enough to accommodate new roles and challenges.
For example, you should be ready to take on the role of a teacher whenever a teacher is unable to attend school due to personal reasons. Also, instead of showing the teachers how to teach, you can focus on suggesting ways to unwind and relax. These new roles and responsibilities will allow you to engage with the kids and teachers regularly. Also, it will allow you to reinvent and re-establish professional goals.
Tip 2: Digitize your school
The world is now digital and becoming future ready is of paramount importance. As a principal, you have to find a platform that will help automate the processes. From admission management to transport management, everything will be available at your fingertips, if you choose a brilliant school management system.
Tip 3: Cultivate leadership skills
Most teachers are promoted to the post of a school principal based on their experience or popularity in the school. If you have become a principal recently, you can join some leadership programs that are designed for corporate leaders. It will not only give you fresh insights on how to run a school but will also prepare you for the challenges that are likely to arise as you take on the reins from the previous school principal. After all, a private school is a private organisation and the principal is the CEO who needs to be alert and prepared for any untoward crisis.
Tip 4: Waiting for the opportune time
If you have been recently promoted to the post of a school principal, your mind must be full of ideas. The ideas will usually be about redefining the school and reinventing its lost purpose and direction. However, don’t hurry as you have just joined. Take some time to understand your new responsibilities and try to build a strong relationship with the faculty members. You never know who will bail you out from a difficult situation. Therefore, being street smart can help you in the long run.
Also, before implementing any idea or policy, discuss it first with your staff and faculty. It will help you earn their trust and they can also help you with some suggestions that might work in your favour.
Tip 6: Be a Smart Negotiator and Delegator
A school principal is often the negotiator between the teachers and authority or school trust. Therefore, you must be smart enough to act like a peacemaker, leader, and negotiator as per the demands of the situation. Proactive thinking is another tool that can help you to become a wise and popular school principal.
For instance, if the school management is about to evict a teacher due to a silly or unethical reason, you can create a task or activity that cannot be done without the contribution of that specific teacher. It will not only force the management to think about their decision but you may actually save the teacher’s job. Similarly, you will have to be a negotiator between the students and students as well. You must be able to take on different roles as per the situation and act in favour of the school and its students.
Also, if you are a new principal, you must hone your delegation skills promptly. Delegating means dividing the important duties and roles among deserving members of the school. You must pay attention to all details without appearing too controlling. For instance, if your school is about to participate in an inter school sports competition, you must ask your sports or PT teacher to prepare the students accordingly. You must also see to it that the teacher takes all the efforts required to groom the students for a specific event or activity.
Tip 5: Be Fair and Patient
Just because you are a principal, it doesn’t mean that you have to be rude, angry, and dominating all the time. You must be patient enough to hear about a particular event or situation before passing a judgement. Being a school principal is a responsible job. Also, most of the time, your decision will be considered as the final order. Therefore, you must try to act as fair as possible.
Also, when it comes to verbal or non-verbal fights between teacher-student, student-student, or teacher-staff, you must exhibit a strong personality and warn the responsible individuals. At times, you might have to take a strict decision for the larger interest of the school and students. Therefore, as a school principal, your duty is to be accessible to everyone, but you cannot be too modest or else many people can take undue advantage of it.
Conclusion
Being a school principal can be a tricky job. While it is your duty to understand what is the role of a principal, you must also try to learn a few things from experience. Being proactive and accessible and acting as a skilled delegator and negotiator are the few things that can make you a wonderful school principal!
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