Lyn McCarty, Grant Joint Union High School District, Sacramento, California Educate lawmakers. So often laws are passed without any thought for those ramifications and how they impact principals, teachers, and other school personnel. We often hear about the benefits of smaller class size, especially in the early grades. Mandate a maximum school size, not to exceed 300 or so students, to make schools more personal. Lucie Boyadjian, Glen Oaks School, Hickory Hills, Illinois Allow more leverage in staffing decisions.
Unions make terminating teachers who perform poorly very difficult.
If principals are accountable for poor performance, they need to be able to hold teachers accountable. School boards need to support principals in getting rid of marginal teachers. Lucie Boyadjian, Glen Oaks School, Hickory Hills, Illinois Organize better. Principals need to do a better job of organizing. They need a loud collective voice to draw attention to the critical role principals play as instructional leaders.