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110 PREPARATION OF SCHOOL LEADERS

two activities, the assessment using standardized school personnel and the feedback session.
The PLE assessment was conducted using acceptable practice examination protocols; all
encounters were videotaped. PLE members had 20 minutes to interact with the standardized
school personnel and complete documentation of the encounter. They then had 5 minutes to
score the communication checklist. The communication checklist was also completed by the
standardized education personnel immediately after each encounter and by an external
reviewer the following day. Participant ratings for each checklist item were determined by
comparing the checklists ratings of the standardized education personnel, the participant self
assessment, and the external reviewer.
After the assessment, PLE participants attended a half-day formative feedback session.
During the feedback session, participants received an itemized report of checklist items
observed and not observed as defined by the standardized education personnel, the
participant’s self report, and the external reviewer as well as a report of each participant’s
areas of strengths and weaknesses based on the checklist categories. Each participant also
selected one videotaped encounter for the class to view. The selected encounter could be one
that the participant perceived that they utilized their leadership skills to produce a positive
outcome or an encounter they perceived they did not utilize such leadership skills to produce a
positive outcome; in either situation the participant received feedback on the taped encounter.
The facilitator encouraged the PLE participant to choose a variety of cases so that everyone
could observe a sample of each scenario. Tapes were viewed and each participant self-
evaluated his/her strengths, followed by feedback from colleagues and faculty. Based on the
written and viewed material, participants identified areas for improvement. Based on pilot
results, modifications were made on the PLE. The PLE underwent a second pilot with 11
candidates using the same protocols as described above.

Table 1. Description of Scenarios in Principal Leadership Experience.

Station No. Topic Description Communication Challenge

1 Teaching
the teacher

Veteran teacher needs to

improve student EOG scores

Knowledge & skills assessment

Teaching the teacher

2 Interview PTO president interviews Articulation of Goals and Objectives,
Collaboration, Philosophy

3 Parental
dispute

Teacher is called in after parent

phone call complaint

Fact finding, problem-solving, follow-up

INITIAL IMPRESSIONS OF BOTH PILOT GROUPS

Following the assessment, the principal preparation candidates were surveyed to
determine their perception of the value of participating in the PLE. The participating students
indicated they felt the PLE was a valuable addition to the data they had obtained through the
Master of School Administration (MSA) Assessment program. They valued the feedback
from the two individuals who rated their performance and saw value in being able to view
their performance on videotape and discuss it with colleagues during the feedback session.
Several students felt the ability to view the videotape with others was superior to viewing and
scripting the tape of their leaderless group behavior in the MSA Assessment program alone.
Students thought that one-on-one interactions was another needed addition to the activities in