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Principal (school)
 
 
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Principal or Head of School is the title of the chief administrator of an elementary school
Elementary school

An elementary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as Primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in many countries, especially in North America....
, middle school
Middle school

Middle school or junior high school serves as a "bridge" between elementary school and high school. The terms can be used in different ways in different countries, sometimes interchangeably....
, or high school
High school

High school is the name used in some parts of the world to describe an institution which provides all or part of secondary education. The term originated in Scotland and spread to the New World countries as the high prestige that the Scottish educational system had at the time led several countries to employ Scottish educators to develop the...
 in some English-speaking countries, including the United States
United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
, India and Australia
Australia

Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the southern hemisphere comprising the Australia of the world's smallest continent, the major island of Tasmania, and numerous list of islands of Australia in the Indian Ocean and Pacific Oceans....
. Public schools in the United States
Public school

The term public school has two distinct meanings depending on the location of usage:* in the United States, Australia and Canada: A school funded from tax revenue and most commonly administered to some degree by government or local government agencies....
 generally use the title Principal whereas private school
Private school

Private schools, or independent schools, are schools not administered by local, state, or national government, which retain the right to select their student body and are funded in whole or in part by charging their students tuition rather than with public funds....
s in the United States generally use the title Head of School. In other English-speaking countries, the terms head teacher, head master or head mistress are used.






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Principal or Head of School is the title of the chief administrator of an elementary school
Elementary school

An elementary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as Primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in many countries, especially in North America....
, middle school
Middle school

Middle school or junior high school serves as a "bridge" between elementary school and high school. The terms can be used in different ways in different countries, sometimes interchangeably....
, or high school
High school

High school is the name used in some parts of the world to describe an institution which provides all or part of secondary education. The term originated in Scotland and spread to the New World countries as the high prestige that the Scottish educational system had at the time led several countries to employ Scottish educators to develop the...
 in some English-speaking countries, including the United States
United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
, India and Australia
Australia

Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the southern hemisphere comprising the Australia of the world's smallest continent, the major island of Tasmania, and numerous list of islands of Australia in the Indian Ocean and Pacific Oceans....
. Public schools in the United States
Public school

The term public school has two distinct meanings depending on the location of usage:* in the United States, Australia and Canada: A school funded from tax revenue and most commonly administered to some degree by government or local government agencies....
 generally use the title Principal whereas private school
Private school

Private schools, or independent schools, are schools not administered by local, state, or national government, which retain the right to select their student body and are funded in whole or in part by charging their students tuition rather than with public funds....
s in the United States generally use the title Head of School. In other English-speaking countries, the terms head teacher, head master or head mistress are used. Books and documents relating to the early days of public education in the United States show that the title was originally Principal Teacher.

United States

In the United States, the term Head of School has largely replaced Head master or Head mistress at schools where gender is not significant to the position.

In 1999 there were about 129,000 "principals" in the United States.

Australia

In many Australian schools, a principal is the head administrator
Academic administration

An academic administration is a branch of university or college employees responsible for the maintenance and supervision of the institution and separate from the faculty or academics, although some personnel may have joint responsibilities....
 of a school
School

File:Primary Student of Pakistan.JPGA school , is an institution designed to allow and encourage students to education, under the supervision of teachers....
 who has been appointed to her/his position by the school board
School Board

School Board may refer to the education arrangements in different parts of the United Kingdom:* School board * School board ...
, superintendent, or other body. The principal, often in conjunction with the school board, makes the executive decisions that govern the school, as well as having the authority over the employment (and in some cases firing) of teachers. The principal is often the chief disciplinarian
School discipline

School discipline is a form of discipline appropriate to the regulation of children and the maintenance of order in schools.The term refers to students complying with a code of behavior often known as the school rules....
 of the student
Student

The word student is etymology derived through Middle English from the Latin Latin conjugation#Principal parts for the active voice Grammatical conjugation verb "studere", Meaning "to direct one's zeal at"; hence a student could be described as 'one who directs zeal at a subject'....
s. In many US schools, however, student discipline is the vice-principal
Vice-principal

In larger school systems, a principal is often assisted by someone known as a vice-principal or assistant principal. Unlike the principal, the vice-principal does not have quite the decision making authority that the principal carries....
's responsibility, and broader school decisions are the duty of the principal.

Assistants

In larger schools the principal is assisted by one or more vice-principals, assistant principal
Assistant principal

An assistant principal, sometimes called a vice-principal or Deputy Principal, assists a principal in the general governance and leadership of a school....
s, or deputy principals. Their position is secondary to the principal with regard to school governance. Assistant principals generally perform specific duties such as handling student discipline or curriculum, whereas the principal has the ultimate responsibility for the school as a whole.

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