The document discusses challenges facing school principals based on several studies. It finds that principals spend much of their time on low-value tasks and maintenance rather than instructional leadership. Interruptions also fragment their days and prevent focus on important priorities like curriculum development and staff training. Effective time management is needed to address these issues and ensure principals can concentrate on their core role of improving teaching and learning.

1. Seminar for Principals and Deputy Principals On Time 4 th November 2004 Education House, NUI Maynooth.

2. Leader and Boldt, 1994 Principals and Principalship, A Study of Principals in Voluntary Secondary Schools by Donal Leader and Scott Boldt, Marino Institute of Education, Dublin, 1994 One can never anticipate what might happen before the day is completed................................. 91% agree Frequent interruptions underlines the ‘bitty’ nature of a lot of the principal’s work.................... 91% agree Mornings are ‘totally fragmented’....... 61% agree In a typical day, a principal does not get ‘any length of time at anything’.................................... 61% agree

3. Leader and Boldt, 1994 continued Principals and Principalship, A Study of Principals in Voluntary Secondary Schools by Donal Leader and Scott Boldt, Marino Institute of Education, Dublin, 1994 ...the unmistakable evidence from the diaries, the interviews and the case studies, (is) that principals generally involve themselves directly with low value tasks. Many of these tasks are maintenance and janitorial in character.(p.95) ...many principals were quite surprised to discover how many of their activities were ‘low-value’ or ‘trivial’. This suggests that some principals may be unconsciously living out a model of principalship inappropriate to the challenges and responsibilities of principalship today.

4. Leader and Boldt, 1994 continued Principals and Principalship, A Study of Principals in Voluntary Secondary Schools by Donal Leader and Scott Boldt, Marino Institute of Education, Dublin, 1994 ..only 2% of respondents said that they spend most time on curriculum development and planning. Yet, instructional leadership and planning were seen by the principals as functions to which they ought tp devote the most time. (p.96) 77% of them say they should spend most of their time staff development and encouragement; 55% say they most time should be devoted to curriculum development; only 30% feel that administration should receive most attention

5. National Education Convention Report, 1994 Report on the National Education Convention, edited by John Coolahan, 1994 Instructional leadership is ......the most neglected aspect of the principal’s work in the school. Pressure of time, with the urgent taking precedence over the important, and insufficient back-up support services, were cited as the main reason for this neglect.

8. A Novelty Quiz on Time for School Leaders TRUE or FALSE ? 8. Time management techniques will turn you into a machine with no freedom to do the things you want to do. 9. For routine, day-to-day decision making, it is best to wait until you have acquired all relevant information and data before making a decision. 10. How you manage your time will directly influence your effectiveness in supervising, communicating with and motivating your colleagues

10. A Novelty Quiz on Time for School Leaders TRUE or FALSE ? 8. Time management techniques will turn you into a machine with no freedom to do the things you want to do. 9. For routine, day-to-day decision making, it is best to wait until you have acquired all relevant information and data before making a decision. 10. How you manage your time will directly influence your effectiveness in supervising, communicating with and motivating your colleagues. FALSE FALSE TRUE

11. High Importance High Urgency Low Importance Low Urgency 4 3 2 1 NEEDS ACTION NOW! TYPICAL INTERRUPTIONS REFLECTION and PLANNING for the future TRIVIA A Priority Matrix This matrix can be used to analyse a day’s/week’s work. In which quadrant do the key issues re Teaching and Learning occur?

13. TIPS ON TIME Write ‘must do later’ on a notepad to save energy and free up headspace. Delegate. Manage your diary Don’t act on impulse – check your actions with your goals Dehydration lessens concentration and brings distractions – drink water! Re-focus after interruptions. Deal with the unpleasant tasks first; see the easier tasks as a reward – a form of delayed gratification! Regularly check priorities – especially re Teaching and Learning. Divide overwhelming tasks into chunks and do one at a time. Learn from experience –– How will I do it better next time? School work can expand to fill all the available space, so .... Exercise! Plan SMART : S mall, M anageable, A chievable, R ealistic T argets