The next wave of retirement is imminent – every head of school management position in Kenya will also have to be vacated within the next 5 years. What should potential heirs know? How does it feel to see daily work? And how did you become a headteacher? Here you can read the most important things in a compact way.
Headteacher: Teacher and director in private association
Anyone interested in any management position in any school should have multitasking talent. Because school principals are designers, administrators, organizers, directors, teachers, and often teachers are actively teaching in private unions. In the tensions between colleagues, students, parents, school officials, school ministries, and the public, they bring different interests under one roof – and do different things with confidence.
How is the school principal’s day job?
Proper service functions in the federal state are determined by the school law of the respective state. In practice, school principals are responsible or accountable for “almost everything” that is important for school management. You…
- Take care of the development of the school, i.e. further develop the school profile and manage the school accordingly,
- Present your school externally (with parents, in public, and in competition with other schools) as well as “above”.
- Call the school conference and general teacher conference,
- Provide and perform various administrative functions (such as student registration and enrollment),
- Apply compulsory schooling and house rules,
- Work together with colleagues, students, and parents,
- Take care of administration and organization (e.g. budget planning and learning delivery),
- Main committee or participation,
- Personnel management and development,
- Keep an eye on construction management,
- Organize collaborations (such as with a sports club) and
- Usually, teach yourself.
The main areas of responsibility are academic leadership on the one hand and design on the other and management and administration on the other. What and to what extent school principals teach depends on the federal state. In many countries, school principals have a school obligation, depending on the type and size of the school. In other federal states, they decide their own learning schedule.
What should school principals do?
First, the will to actively build the school. Diplomacy and commitment are as important as diplomatic skills, strategy, and flexibility. Intercultural skills, problem-solving skills, organizational skills, and a certain peace are also helpful.
Those who initially became teachers to work with children and young people are less likely to be lucky in this situation. But if you want career opportunities and a management position, you can find your calling as a school manager.
How did you become a headteacher?
Applicants for the main (traditional) criteria have to fill a position because the headteacher may differ from state to state – and the exact method and qualification options are quite different. At TSC, applicants pass the assessment center first through the assessment center and then through school management coaching as needed as part of the assessment process. Qualification is compulsory in Berlin; here you are a teacher. Trained in communication and project management and trained as a school principal. Many federal states, however, do not have separate training, for example in personnel management – there is so much to “learn”.
Conclusion: Here, there are more jobs than jobs
As a “career choice teacher,” the decision to become a headteacher is certainly more ideological than financially motivated. Depending on the type of school, time, work, and responsibilities are often reflected financially. Moreover, higher salaries are often effective “with delays” and can still be mastered during the probationary period.
Successful work requires a good dose of organization and management, flexibility, and idealism. Therefore the headmaster is not someone who wants to make more money, but who sees it as his call and actively wants to build and run the school. Anyone who does or wants to do this has a good chance – because many schools will look for a new principal in the coming years! Here is important information related to TSC recruitment, if you want, you can check it.
