Today, principals are often stuck with a one-year contract while teachers remain tenured. The contemporary principal must also have a skill set that encompasses technology and its many uses. Discussions about the number of computers in a class is silenced by more substantive issues such as how to plan for technology that will improve classroom instruction and relieve administration functions. Keeping up with advancements is a beastly burden. Couple this with securing the resources to outfit a school with hardware and software and a principal can be overwhelmed.
Technology is, after all, part of the school curriculum plan required of the principal.
Seventy percent noted increased marketing responsibilities. The irony is that principals with responsibility for site-based professional development are often bound by collective bargaining rules. In many districts, professional development time varies from one hour a week to one hour a month. In schools with more than 600 students, principals typically delegate some of this responsibility to assistant principals. Yet many principals do not have a say in which teachers get hired.