The school principal in late career Experiences of senior Israeli principals in the pre-retirement working years

Demographic changes in headship Aging of the labor force in education More heads / teachers over 50 In Israel, more than 25% of the teaching force is over 50 What do we know about them?

Hall’s model of career growth development growth stagnation establishment exploration decline age 20 + 30+ midlife

Principal’s career stages Induction: socialization, acceptance, learning the school culture, inexperience, developing a sense of confidence Establishment: growth, enthusiasm, control, competence, confidence, identity-building Maintenance vs. renewal: low levels of opportunities for growth, stagnation, or enchantment, renewal, high satisfaction

The research questions What are the career issues and problems faced by late-career school principals? What is the place given to this stage in the principal’s career cycle? How is late career interpreted in principals’ life story accounts?

A dual portrait of late-career workers Physical and mental withdrawal Slow reactions Subject to illness Unwilling to change Hard to train Deficits in processing capacity Declining intellectual performance Socially conscientious Loyal to work High level of skills No different between younger workers Deepened expertise High job satisfaction Mature Consultation

Research sample/method 12 primary and secondary school heads Age: 55-65, Seniority: 7-35 5 men, 7 women 4 – primary schools, 7 - secondary schools, 1 – Special Education school 2 – B.ed, 8 – MA, 2 – doctoral students Criterion to measure career stage – age and positional tenure (55, 7) Life story, semi-structured interview

Findings – general picture Five major but not necessarily interrelated career issues in late career of principals Enchantment and creativity A sense of greater professional competence Change initiation and implementation Participative and considerate leadership Changing the focus to other life spheres

Enchantment and energy The majority of the late-career principals in this study typically described themselves as holding an educational vision, feeling high physical and mental energy rather than job burnout. Few of them expressed concern for an impending decline in physical energy, neither did they feel any dwindling of this kind of energy due to their age. For example, (next slide)

Late-career principals’ voices I still feel the enchantment of creation, and that's what distinguishes between a burned-out principal and I still fight for things I believe in, I still enjoy a child’s smile, I still cope with problems at school, and I'm not bitter… (F, 56) I don't feel at the end of the road. I feel I have much energy and enthusiasm to go on working and doing for the school…and I hope to be healthy and energetic. (F, 55) …I miss the school, the kids. I come every day with a song in my heart; I love my work. (F, 57)

A sense of greater professional competence …You acquire experience. If you made small mistakes in negotiations, you learned from that. Today I'm not making mistakes that maybe I would have made before I had professional experience…for example, the experience I acquired in interpersonal relationships, in budgeting helps me very much today. (Male, 59)

Change initiation and performance I am always engaged in developing new projects that are not yet existent in the educational system. They are our flag…I always want to find niches that no one else has developed yet. 'I need revitalisation, to look for new things, to open horizons, I think that this is the secret of my leadership, open mindedness, open horizons, a desire to move forward, to find new challenges…'

Towards a participative, considerate leadership orientations I used to define myself as a principal of the children…but, during the last three years I have realised that one can't be a principal of the children without being a principal of the teachers…several years ago, I could reprimand a teacher in front of a student, when he wasn't okay…Today, I wouldn’t do that, I will close the door I moved from centralisation to decentralisation, I can't control everything, I am working with people who in my eyes are cleverer,

A focus on other life-spheres Greater Work experience More available time More time to Personal issues Male: new roles in Education, politics Female: family issues Reading, study

Conclusions and implications They are not disengaged, or disenchanted, not burned-out, nor stagnated (as theorist claimed) A positive portrait of late-career – why? Strong emotional commitment to school, children. The introduction of market-like reforms that emphasize creativity, competition, change and innovation