Becoming a School Leader: Voices of Transformation from Principal Interns, 12(7)
Authors
Donna Cooner
Rose Quinn
Ellyn Dickmann
Abstract
This article describes a two-year longitudinal study of how potential principals recorded shifting challenges during their internship process. Interns were trained to use a thinking process called Habits of Mind and an online journaling process called Journey Mapping. The study recorded 6,491 electronic reflections, which were coded qualitatively into critical themes. The most challenging situations for principal interns were those concerning students; next were interactions with the principal; and the third were interactions with staff. This study includes tables of two-week intervals during which interns recorded their challenges and quotations from the challenges. This study is the beginning of the process of recording the data and looking at change in the minds of new leaders.