“New Teachers: Is Your Principal a P.A.L. (Pretty Awesome Leader)”

By: Lisa Michelle Dabbs

http://www.edutopia.org/blog/new-teacher-principal-support-lisa-dabbs?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+EdutopiaNewContent+%28Edutopia%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

I think some principals often times assume that new teachers have been adequately trained during their education programs for the classroom. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. As a result, principals overlook the fact that a new teacher’s success depends significantly on his/her role as a leader in the areas of guidance, mentoring, observations, etc. Often times, new teachers are assigned a mentor who is too busy themselves trying to meet professional demands and therefore do not do a very good job mentoring. And while I realize principals have a lot on their plate, support from an administration or the lack thereof can make or break a new teacher. I’ve had the best of mentors and the worst of mentors so I know what it’s like from both perspectives. Luckily for me, I had already worked in other capacities of the education sector before deciding to teach. So unlike a number of new teachers, this gave me an opportunity to observe and learn immeasurable strategies which later contributed to my success in the classroom. I do think that ample support from administration is everything for a beginning teacher. It’s pretty much like a parent nurturing a young child until he or she is independent enough to master certain skills on his or her own. In spite of busy schedules, principals have to also find ways to nurture new teachers. The idea for principals to keep in mind is most beginning teachers bring something new, refreshing, and different to the table. So, helping them succeed can be beneficial to all stakeholders but especially the children.