Professional standards and performance evaluation for principals in China

Abstract

This article presents the results of an interpretive policy analysis of China's Ministry of Education Standards (2013) for the professional practice of principals. In addition to revealing the evolution of the evaluation of principals in China and the processes by which this policy is formulated, a comparative analysis was conducted to compare it with the Interstate School Leaders Licensure Standards 2008 (ISLLC 2008). The analysis was conducted on the specific standards and indicators across the two documents. The results indicate the presence of both significant similarities and differences in performance expectations for principals: differences are explained by the cultural and national contexts within which school leaders work in both countries. In February 2013 the Ministry of Education in China issued for the first time the national Professional Standards for Compulsory Education School Principals, which provide the specific expectations of quality school leadership. The unprecedented interest in international benchmarking of student academic performance has led to the belief that there are common elements in education policy and school leadership practices. It is hoped that this research sheds new light onto the current thinking on the expectations and evaluation of principal leadership.

Initiating conversations and opening doors

“…Although this study is situated in the US, research reveals principals in varying places around the world are held to similar standards as those in the US (Qian, 2017). For example, as applicable to the present study, principals in China are expected to focus on "optimizing internal organizational management" and "creating a nurturing school culture" (Liu, 2017). Similarly, principals in Australia are also expected to focus on "creat[ing] a positive culture of challenge and support .…”

Principal evaluation in the United States: A national review of state statutes and regulations

“…By 2014, 36 states had adopted laws requiring principals to receive regular evaluations of their performance (Superville, 2014). However, with notable increases in expectations for principals, specifically, in instructional and equity-oriented leadership (Farley et al, 2019), attention to the role expectations of principals as well as the evaluation of such expectations has continued in the United States and across the globe (e.g., Díaz-Delgado & Garcia-Martinez, 2019;Fuller et al, 2015;Lambert & Bouchamma, 2019;Larochelle-Audetet al, 2019;Liu et al, 2017;Rivero et al, 2019;Williams, 2015).…”

Challenges of Being a Chinese Principal: Practitioner Perspectives

“…A 2007 articulation of a new school evaluation framework centered on student development both academically and socially (Chu & Cravens, 2012). In 2013, the Ministry of Education in China issued the first national Professional Standards for Compulsory Education School Principals which outlined the criteria for qualify school leadership (Liu, Xu, Grant, Strong, & Fang, 2017). Primary and junior…”

“…The role of principals changed a great deal in the new era of Chinese education reforms (Chu & Cravens, 2012;Yang & Ni, 2018). A shift from managers who carried out government-issued mandates regarding curriculum and virtually all aspects of school governance were now faced with the challenge of becoming instructional leaders who shared authority with stakeholders, particularly teachers, and actively developed and supervised locally relevant curriculum and student-centered instruction (Chu & Cravens, 2012;Liu, XU, Grant, Strong, & Fang, 2017). While a review of pertinent studies regarding the new role that Chinese school leaders have found themselves in regarding the implementation of recent reforms follows in the next section, Haiyan, Walker, and Yulian (2016) found that there are relatively few empirical studies that have been conducted to enlarge the understanding of what Chinese principals are asked to do and how they respond to those professional responsibilities.…”