The analysis of goal setting and performance criteria among school principals in the light of the third release of the Federal state educational standards in the Russian Federation

The importance of clear understanding of their goal by school principals is especially dramatic now when the third release of the Federal state educational standards was published. At the same time, there is a problem of working out formal criteria allowing to estimate the performance of such principals. This work aimed to identify which reference points school principals are focused on and how they approach them practically. One of the expected outcomes of this survey was to suggest the criteria of performance of school principals. Thirteen principles were interviewed in Moscow and Moscow Region for this purpose. The frequency analysis of their responses allowed them to identify the key words and phrases thus enabling to reveal the key tendencies and emphases in targeting and performance estimate. The interviewed principals did not manage to indicate the goals of their activity clearly which most likely leads to the difficulties in the efficient management. None of the respondents possessed the idea of objective and measurable key performance indicators of their work. Even quantitative values, such as the results of exams and tests, are not interpreted by principals as reliable estimates of their performance and the success of a school. The results obtained highlight the necessity to work out clear and measurable criteria to evaluate the performance of school principals. Such criteria may allow for unbiased estimates of achievements and introduce the corrections in management processes which will ultimately improve the quality of education. Some recommendations are suggested on how to teach school principals a clear goal setting taking into account the unique features of each school.

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