An education leadership degree focuses on how to be effective in administration positions. Some possible positions may include principals, vice principals, college deans and chief academic officers. These education careers require not only specific degrees, but also experience requirements that vary greatly from region to region. Factors such as school population, the degree of personal education and district regulations can all affect what is considered to be a proper amount of field experience.
Studying Education Leadership
Education leadership is a second tier career field. This means that training for this career does not truly begin until studying for a master’s degree. There are three steps for beginning educational leadership studies. The first is to complete a bachelor’s degree in teaching. This step involves meeting the state requirements and completing student teaching.
Praxis Exam Series
The next step is to complete the Praxis exam series. This test series is known for being rigorous and difficult. Each state has different requirements for how many Praxis exams must be taken and when. Many states offer the first exam early in the bachelor degree. This part of the series tests writing, math, and reading skills.
The second Praxis exam is usually taken after the bachelor degree is completed but before students enter into the master’s degree. Colleges and universities may choose to accept students based on their Praxis 2 exam scores. This test series focuses more on the professional field that students wish to teach in, rather than focusing on basic skills. There is an educational leadership Praxis exam offered, but students might be required to take other parts of the Praxis 2 exam in conjunction with it. Students wishing to pursue an education leadership degree are highly advised on the Praxis website to check with state requirements for their teaching certification standards.
After completing the Praxis series, most states require graduates to complete certification forms and submit the appropriate fees in order to become licensed teachers in their field. Some students may wish to enter the teaching field and complete their education leadership master’s degree online. Other students may wish to defer their teaching career until they have completed their master’s degree or doctorate. Regardless of how much education a student possesses when they enter into the teaching field, most states and regions require a certain amount of teaching experience before any administration level can be obtained. The advantage to working while becoming certified with an online degree is the ability to gain experience while earning the degree.
Different Levels of Education Leadership
There are different levels of administration in education. Some career possibilities are principals, vice principals, deans of students, and chief academic administrators. As far as school administration is concerned, principal and vice principal positions are two of the most basic. They are growing in demand due to the high rate of retirement in the education field, and their demand growth will increase at an 8% rate until 2018. With more than 230,000 jobs, principals and vice principals represent almost half of the available education leadership jobs in the country. Each job has the potential to earn about $97,000 as a principal or $79,000 as a vice principal.
College deans of students require a doctorate degree in education leadership for the position. However, many deans of students earn about $88,000 a year, which is less than the pay average of public school principals. As with any education field career, these positions are in demand, and will continue to be so, as the older generation of administrators retire en masse. Deans of students comprise over 125,000 jobs are also experiencing an 8% rate increase that will also continue to increase in demand until 2018.
Chief academic officers report directly to the president of the college or university. They are responsible for creating near-term and long-term plans for the college and providing the metrics to measure the progress by. This position requires a doctorate degree and more years of experience than deans of students require. Although, the pay for becoming a CAO is considerably higher at $158,000 a year. CAOs account for over 127,000 jobs and are increasing at an 8% increase.
Part of being an effective administration leader is staying on top of current studies and reviews. Some academic journals that are peer-reviewed are Academic Leadership Online Journal and Practical Assessment, Research And Evaluation. These journals add new content as regularly as any printed journal. Websites can also provide helpful information, such as The Institute For Learning or ASCD Publications. They provide the opportunity for discussion and research topics. These resources can help students learn about school administration before entering the field. Students who are considering pursuing a master’s degree in education leadership can find their state requirements for the Praxis exam.
