THE SCHOOL PRINCIPAL’S COMPETENCES

Abstract

The quality of work andefficiency of a school are more and more dependent on the principal, his/her capability for school working organization, competent/pedagogical leadership which he/she conducts, as well as his personal traits and other potentials. The changes in schools are directed towardschanges of school organizational development and towards changes in school leadership. The principal has to have certain competences in order to realize his/her leading role, in other words to be equally successful in conductingadministrative/technical and competent/pedagogical activities in the school. Logically speaking this entails intensive professionalization and respect of competence standards for principals. Competence standards encompass systematical and functional knowledge in the area of the principal’s leadership, capabilities, abilities and values, which every principal should have so that he might achieve goals, assignments and the school working plan. Principal’s competences determine many results of the school and students’ achievements which enlarge their responsibility for achieving school results. The same reasons imply that the principal should find the manner of leadership in order to affirm the school, not only as a place for learning and teaching, but as an organization that learns permanently. Overcoming differences between the actual and the desired principal is made possible by professionalization that is to say by systematical training and competent specialization of the principal, which has a permanent raising of the principal’s competences as its goal. Professionalization of the principal should begin by his/her delegation based on the trustworthy criteria together with application of quality programs of principal training, with permanent monitoring, encouraging and evaluation of principal’s achievements.