American University of Beirut
Faculty of Arts and Sciences
Department of Education
Diploma in Educational Management and Leadership
***************************************
MANAGEMENT IN PRACTICE
Administrative Apprentice Handbook
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
Purpose and Overview
3
Practicum Guidelines
Areas of Administrative Responsibilities to be covered
Overview of Activities
4
5
Role of the Host Administrator
6
Practicum Expectations
7
General Intern Responsibilities
8
Practicum Schedule
9
Appendices
Professional Portfolio Components
10
Log of School Visits
11
Guidelines for Reflective Journal
12
Bio-data of Administrative Apprentice
13
Self-Evaluation Form
14
Intern Recommendation Form
15
PURPOSE AND OVERVIEW
The practicum experience constitutes the core activity in the Management in Practice Course
[Educ. 214]. Management in Practice is part of the block B courses required by the Education
Department to obtain a Diploma in Educational Management and Leadership. The course
provides the students with practical experiences and applications of the theoretical knowledge
base they acquired in Educ. 213 Introduction to Educational Administration and Educ. 226
Personnel Management and Development.
Management in practice is a field-based internship which places aspiring educational
administrators in schools to observe closely and participate in the work world of a school
administrator. The course is based on the belief that practical experience and mentoring are
essential to develop one’s leadership potentials. As administrative “apprentices”, participants
will have the chance to encounter the authentic challenges of day-to-day life in educational
settings and to build practical knowledge about the nature of the role and role responsibilities
of a school administrator.
The field work is planned and supported through classroom meetings. These meetings offer
the apprentices the chance to share their field experiences and discuss their concerns with their
colleagues and the course instructor.
The administrative apprentice is required to complete a minimum of 40 hours of field work
during the spring semester. This time should be spent observing, interviewing, shadowing the
host school administrator, and performing some administrative tasks. The apprentices are
expected to have a flexible schedule to tailor the site visits to the convenience of the host
school administrator.
Practicum Objectives:
The students will be expected to:
1. Experience the real life context of school leadership in Lebanon.
2. Describe school organization and leadership from the perspective of a Lebanese school
principal.
3. Describe the various functions of the school principal role based on their observations.
4. Identify some of the daily challenges faced by school principals.
5. Discuss some practical approaches to deal with the challenges faced by school
administrators.
6. Learn and practice basic data collection skills.
7. Analyze the observation data in relation to theoretical literature.
8. Develop a personal theory of the role of the school principal and of effective
leadership.
9. Propose professional development goals based on their identified personal professional
needs.
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PRACTICUM GUIDELINES
During the course of the practicum the intern is expected to perform the following:
Gather General Information about the School
1. History, Location, Community/External environment
2. Size:
a. Number of Students
b. Number of Teachers
3. School Mission and Goals
4. School Organizational Structure:
a. Departments and Divisions
b. Roles and responsibilities
c. Policies and regulations
d. Hierarchy of authority
e. Formal communication channels
f. Strategic plans
5. School Curriculum and Services
6. Future vision and current plans for improvement
Explore different Facets of School Leadership:
During the practicum the administrative apprentice is required to seek opportunities to learn
about the following:
A. Managerial Responsibilities:
1. Setting goals and communicating them to students, teachers, and parents.
2. Planning, organizing the school operation.
3. Developing and coordinating the decision-making process.
4. Preparing the budget and managing the school finances.
5. Managing the school building facilities and resources: operation and maintenance
of plant, student transportation, food services...
B. Human Resource Responsibilities:
6. Recruiting, selecting, and placing new teachers
7. Job design, assigning responsibilities, and planning for human resources needs
8. New teachers’ induction
9. Motivating and retaining teachers.
C. Instructional Supervision:
10. Planning the curriculum
11. Supervising instruction
12. Evaluating teachers
13. Professional development
D. Relation with Parents and the community
14. Managing student problems, services and activities.
15. Planning and managing the school-parent relationship.
16. Reaching out to the school external community
E. School Improvement:
17. Improving the school and introducing innovations.
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Range of Possible Activities
The administrative apprentices have an array of approaches to use as they attempt to learn
about the role of the school administrator. The choice of a particular approach should be done
in accordance with the nature of the area of responsibility and the convenience of the host
administrator. Possible activities include:
1. Shadowing of the host administrators.
2. General observations in different school units/divisions that are related to the administrator
areas of responsibilities listed above.
3. Interviewing the administrator and/or other members of the school administrative team
[head of divisions, coordinators…].
4. Gathering general information about the school, its policies and organizational structure
from school documents and electronic media.
5. Attending meetings [staff meetings, meeting with parents…]
6. Performing tasks related to the school principal work
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ROLE OF THE HOST ADMINISTRATOR
The role of practicing administrators who agreed to host administrative apprentice is vital to
the success of the practicum experience. Through your commitment to sharing your expertise,
you will introduce the apprentice to the daily challenges of administrative work while being a
guide, model, mentor and supervisor.
As a supportive mentor the role of the host administrator will involve:
Discussing the placement of the intern with the course instructor….
Providing the setting... through facilitating the apprentices access to the school and its
administrative offices, and giving them the opportunity to observe the administrator at work.
Guiding... orienting the apprentice to the rules, norms and culture of administration and
organization of the school. Become aware of the intern needs and challenges and discuss them
regularly with the intern and the course instructor as needed.
Teaching... instructing the apprentice in areas of administrative competency and knowledge
through answering questions and providing explanations of their observed actions.
Modeling... demonstrating the skills of effective administrative performance through
displaying patterns of professional behavior for the apprentice to emulate.
Offering opportunities for practice…. Assigning the apprentice tasks such as preparing
meeting agenda, letter to parents, announcement to teachers, and exposing them to problem
solving, plan setting, and decision making situations at the host school.
Evaluating the Intern… Communicating the evaluation frequently to the course instructor
during the course of the internship, and at the end of the practicum by completing a formal
evaluation identifying intern strength and weaknesses frankly and honestly.
Contacting the course instructor and practice teaching committee… when serious problems
occur.
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PRACTICUM EXPECTATIONS
The practicum experience is a unique opportunity for EDML students to observe closely and
participate in the work world of an experienced school administrator. As administrative
apprentice you are encouraged to keep an open eye, an inquirer mind and a learner spirit to
make the most of your time in the hosting schools.
All practicum participants will be expected to respect the following general policies:
Professional Conduct. Practicum participants must commit themselves to the highest level of
professional conduct in all their relationships, activities and endeavors. Participants should
especially abide by the regulations and codes of conduct of the host school.
Confidentiality. All practicum participants must carry responsibility for maintaining complete
confidentiality about issues, individuals, and the school discussed during class meetings, site
visits and informal gatherings. School documents submitted for class assignment or included
in portfolios should not contain names identifying information about students or school staff.
Absences. Absences are acceptable only for the most critical reasons. As participants in the
practicum you are making a professional commitment to have pre-scheduled presence in the
school. The administrative apprentice must notify the principal-mentor and the university
instructor the morning of the day to be missed.
Punctuality. It is not acceptable to arrive late to class or to your scheduled site visits. You
must be on time. For site visits -especially- plan to arrive 15 minutes early.
Attire. The way you dress should reflect your professionalism. Dress neatly in accordance
with the standards of the host school.
Thank You. As administrative apprentice, you are the guest of the institution. Your mentor
administrator has kindly agreed to stay with them. You will want to reciprocate this kindness
and maintain good relations with our host schools to insure future apprentice placements.
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GENERAL INTERN RESPONSIBILITIES
As an aspiring school leader and adult learner, the intern is expected to be deeply involved in
developing their own leadership potential and qualities; articulating the ideas, values and
beliefs that comprise your educational philosophy, and exploring your own learning processes
and needs. These are the general areas of responsibilities of the intern during the course of the
practicum:
1. Maintain a detailed log of your administrative practicum activities. The log should
include the date, number of hours spent in the school, location, a brief description of the
nature of the activity, and the related area of administrative responsibility covered. For
example if you spent an hour observing the principal meeting with a parent you list that under
area # 15.
2. Maintain a reflective Journal that captures the nature of your weekly activities as well as
your thoughts on what you observe and learn about during your practicum. The reflective
journal may also provide a “safe place” where you can speculate on alternative approaches
you might implement or why chosen solutions or strategies appear to be the best or worst
given the situation.
3. Keep in touch with your university instructor: This will offer your university instructor the
chance to help you plan your field work, oversee your progress in your practicum experience
and listen to your concerns.
4. Attend all scheduled sessions at the host school. Should intern miss any scheduled session,
he/she needs to notify the mentor in due time
5. Attend and actively participate in the scheduled class meetings. Come to class prepared
with views and stories based on your weekly readings and field experiences to share and with
questions and issues to discuss with the group.
6. If possible, complete a 2-4 days residency in the school.
7. Prepare an oral presentation at the conclusion of the semester. The presentation [15
minutes] will constitute your personal conclusion and summary of your field experience and
will be your chance to share your views with fellow practicum participants.
8. Assemble a reflective professional portfolio that includes evidence of your activities during
your visits to the host school. The portfolio should include a description of the school context,
reflections on your field work experiences, evidence of your activities and in-depth
description of all 10 areas of administrative responsibilities. [See proposed outline in
Appendix]
9. Enjoy the journey, make new friends, and learn a lot.
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PRACTICUM SCHEDULE
Schedule of Field Work Activities
Weeks 1, 2
Week 3
Weeks 4, 5, 6
Weeks 7, 8
Weeks 9, 10,11
Weeks 12, 13, 14
Week 15
Placement and Orientation: negotiating access
Develop field work plan and schedule with the host
school
Observations at the school
Full days of Shadowing
Shadowing, interviews
Shadowing, observations, interviews
Field Work Conclusion: Goodbye and thank you
visit
.
.
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APPENDIX 1
PROFESSIONAL PORTFOLIO COMPONENTS
Section 1: The Practicum Experience:
Introduction:
A brief overview of your practicum experience, duration, location, highlights of activities
and experiences.
General Information about the host school
To include: History, Location, Community/External environment, Size, School Mission
and Goals, School Organizational Structure, School Curriculum and Services, Future
vision and current plans for improvement
General Information about your main host administrator(s)
Brief statement about the professional background of host administrator(s).
Description of the different Facets of School Leadership that you explored
An organized presentation of the data you collected throughout your field work from
observations an interviews making sure to cover the following aspects: Managerial
Responsibilities, Human Resource Responsibilities, Instructional Supervision, Relations
with Parents and the community, School Improvement
Reflective Journal that captures reflections on your activities, observations as well as what
you learned against the backdrop of the literature covered during this course and the
Diploma. It can also include alternative approaches you might implement or arguments of
why chosen solutions or strategies appear to be the best or worst given the situation.
Executive Summary
The summary is a final synthesis of what you learned during your experience during the
practicum as it relates to your growing theoretical knowledge base in educational
administration.
Section 2: Future Plan as a Novice Principal
For this section, you have to imagine that you have been selected for the principal job [or
one of the main leadership positions] in your host school. Include the following:
 A personal Statement explaining your interest in leading the school and arguing
that you will be the best choice to do that at this juncture of its history.
 Your Leadership Platform: personal vision and beliefs about effective models
of school organizations and effective educational leadership.
 A plan for your first year that includes:
o What you will do for the school
o A professional development plan to acquire skills that you deem needed and
a priority in your first year that is based on your self-assessment of your
strength and weaknesses in the areas of administrative responsibilities
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Appendix





11
Your original plan for school visits
A detailed log of your administrative practicum activities: the log should include
the date, number of hours spent in the school, location, a brief description of the nature
of the activity, and the related area of administrative responsibility covered. For
example if you spent an hour observing the principal meeting with a parent you list
that under area # 15.
A letter of recommendation from your host administrator’s: Evaluating your
behavior during the practicum and giving their feedback on your learning experience
while in the field.
Your notes of the shadowing, observation, and interviews sessions; and all relevant
documents you collected during your site visits.
Relevant artifacts you collected from the host school
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APPENDIX 2
LOG OF SCHOOL VISITS
Area to be Explored
Done Date
Time
Spent
Location
General Information about the School
1. History, Location, Community/External
environment
2. Future vision and current plans for
improvement
3. Size:
a. Students
b. Teachers
4. School Mission and Goals
5. School Organizational Structure:
a. Departments and Divisions
b. Roles and responsibilities
c. Policies and regulations
d. Hierarchy of authority
e. Formal communication channels
f. Strategic plans
6. School Curriculum and Services
7. Current plans for improvement
A. Facets of School Leadership: Managerial
Responsibilities:
1. Setting goals and communicating them
to students, teachers, and parents.
2. Planning, organizing the school
operation
3. Developing and coordinating the
decision-making process.
4. Preparing the budget and managing the
school finances
5. Managing the school building facilities
and resources: operation and
maintenance of plant, student
transportation, food services...
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Nature of
Activity
B. Facets of School Leadership: Human
Resource Responsibilities:
6. Recruiting, selecting, and placing new
teachers
7. Job design, assigning responsibilities,
and planning for human resources needs
8. New teachers’ induction
9. Motivating and retaining teachers
C. Facets of School Leadership: Instructional
Supervision:
10. Planning the curriculum
11. Supervising instruction
12. Evaluating teachers
13. Professional development
D. Facets of School Leadership: Relation
with Parents and the community
14. Managing student problems, services
and activities.
15. Planning and managing the schoolparent relationship.
16. Reaching out to the larger community
E. Facets of School Leadership: School
Improvement:
17. Improving the school and introducing
innovations
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APPENDIX 3
GUIDELINES FOR REFLECTIVE JOURNAL
We do not actually learn from experiences as much as we learn from reflection upon
experiences
Pesner, G. (1995), Field Experience: A guide to reflective teaching. NY: Longman
Entries in your reflection journal should include some or all of the following:
1. Reflections about and responses to readings, presentations, and class
discussions.
2. Reflections about your own personal journey and professional development:
What are you learning and how this is affecting your views of yourself as a
professional?
3. Your personal vision of the school or educational setting you would like to
engage others in creating.
4. On-going self assessment of yourself as a leader and a learner.
Your Journal is not
1. A list of the day’s activities
2. An objective report
3. An overview of the day’s events
Your Journal is
1. Selection of 1-3 meaningful
events
2. A personal, introspective
subjective account
3. A search for patterns; asking
why?
Suggested Reflective Questions
The following reflective questions can be used to elicit your thinking while writing journal
entries.
1. What do you think?
2. How do you feel about _____?
3. Is there anything you don’t understand about _______?
4. What else would you like to know?
5. What is the most important fact or idea you learned while in the field and why do you feel
that way?
6. What were your first thoughts about ________?
7. What do you understand now that you did not understand before?
8. In what other way do you think you could solve this problem?
9. What didn’t work?
10. What is your idea what do you like to try?
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APPENDIX 4
BIODATA OF ADMINISTRATIVE APPRENTICE
1. Name ______________________________________________________________
First
Middle
Family
2. Date of Birth ________________________________________________________
3. Home City/Village ____________________________________________________
4. Nationality __________________________________________________________
5. Telephone No. ___________________ E-Mail ______________________
6. Secondary Education (School and Stream) _________________________________
7. University Degree/ Major ______________________________________________
8. AUB Current Status __________________________________________________
9. Current Courses
Course No. ________________
Course No. ________________
Course No. ________________
Course No. ________________
Schedule ___________________
Schedule ___________________
Schedule ___________________
Schedule____________________
10. Past Work Experience
a. Description ________________________ Years _____________________
b. Description ________________________ Years _____________________
c. Description ________________________ Years _____________________
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11. Current Work Status
Name & Address of Employer _________________________________________
Type of Work ______________________________________________________
Work Requirement [time on the job] ____________________________________
12. School visited for practicum ___________________________________________
13. Host administrator
Name __________________________________________________________
Position ________________________________________________________
Phone number ___________________________________________________
14. Academic Advisor ___________________________________________________
Name
AUB ext.
15. Other relevant information ____________________________________________
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APPENDIX 5
SELF-EVALUATION
Circle a number next to each item to indicate your perceived familiarity with each area.
Area to be Explored
Poor
1
Average Good
2 3 4
5
General Information about the School
1. History, Location, Community/External environment
2. Future vision and current plans for improvement
3. Size:
a. Students
b. Teachers
4. School Mission and Goals
5. School Organizational Structure:
a. Departments and Divisions
b. Roles and responsibilities
c. Policies and regulations
d. Hierarchy of authority
e. Formal communication channels
f. Strategic plans
6. School Curriculum and Services
7. Current plans for improvement
A. Facets of School Leadership: Managerial
Responsibilities:
1. Setting goals and communicating them to students,
teachers, and parents.
2. Planning, organizing the school operation
3. Developing and coordinating the decision-making
process.
4. Preparing the budget and managing the school
finances
5. Managing the school building facilities and resources:
operation and maintenance of plant, student
transportation, food services...
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B. Facets of School Leadership: Human Resource
Responsibilities:
6. Recruiting, selecting, and placing new teachers
7. Job design, assigning responsibilities, and planning
for human resources needs
8. New teachers’ induction
9. Motivating and retaining teachers
C. Facets of School Leadership: Instructional
Supervision:
10. Planning the curriculum
11. Supervising instruction
12. Evaluating teachers
13. Professional development
D. Facets of School Leadership: Relation with Parents
and the community
14. Managing student problems, services and activities.
15. Planning and managing the school-parent relationship.
16. Reaching out to the larger community
E. Facets of School Leadership: School Improvement:
17. Improving the school and introducing innovations
Review your answers and reflect on the results. Write a reflective essay [1-2pages ]where
you discuss the following:
1-The learning you achieved
2- The areas you would like to still explore
3- The reasons / conditions associated with your lack of familiarity/learning with some
areas.
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APPENDIX 6
INTERN RECOMMENDATION FORM
You need to submit one or two recommendations from members of the administrative staff at
your host school. It is preferable that you choose those that you had a chance to interact with
the most, ideally the host school principal. Make sure to allow time for your recommender.
Recommendations should be received by the end of the last week of the semester.
You can make copies of this form to give your recommender along with a pre-stamped
envelope addressed to: Education Dept
C/o Rima Karami
American University of Beirut
P.O.BOX 11-0236
Riad El Solh 1107 2020
Beirut- Lebanon
Name of Intern_______________________________________________________________
Name of Host School_________________________________________________________
Recommendation requested from________________________________________________
Please rate the intern ability based on your interaction with her during her experience as an
intern/apprentice at your school.
Outstanding
Very
Good
Good
Fair Poor
Inadequate
opportunity
to
observe
Motivation
Maturity
Ability to relate to and
interact with
Ability to ask meaningful
and relevant questions
Clarity of her goals for
the practicum
Communication skills
Respect for School
Culture and policies
Professional Conduct
Attire
Punctuality
Absences
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Please Comment on the intern/apprentice strengths and weaknesses and provide any other
information that pertains to his/her evaluation.
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Name __________________________
Signature_________________________
Date____________________________
Position_________________________
Preferred way to contact you ____________________________________________________
Telephone___________________________________________________________________
Email______________________________________________________________________
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