RELATION TO PUPILS

Personal Acquaintance. - Except in very large high schools the principal should be personally acquainted with every pupil; should know something of his home surroundings, his ambition and that of his parents for him, his disposition, and his success in the work of the school. This knowledge cannot be gained without effort, and when gained, it will avail but little unless it is used in a spirit of genuine devotion to the pupil's welfare. It is desirable that the principal should speak personally with each pupil on the opening day of school or earlier, and make at that time such mental and written notes as shall enable him to follow his subsequent career intelligently. It is not sufficient that he should give attention to the dull or troublesome pupils. The best and most ambitious are just as much entitled to his personal care, encouragement, and advice. By virtue of his position, it may be assumed that he is not only the principal teacher, but also a superior teacher, and a superior person as well. Pupils are entitled to the influence of his personality and wisdom in individual matters as well as to the benefit of his counsel in the management of the school as a whole. The principal who does not find in this close personal relationship one of the greatest joys and privileges of his work, certainly lacks one element of efficiency; and the school authorities who so load the principal with other duties

that time and strength are lacking for this most important work, are, to put it mildly, making a great mistake. In the very large schools this relationship cannot be maintained, and the pupil must find his adviser in some teacher to whose care he has been assigned, as suggested in a former chapter.

Teaching. It is unfortunate that the clerical and administrative duties of the principal sometimes become so great that he has no time for teaching. The wisdom of such a policy is doubtful. If he is as good a teacher as he ought to be, pupils would find special profit in his instruction. Of even greater importance is the reflex influence of this teaching upon the principal himself. Teaching gives him a definite intellectual interest along with his administrative duties; it affords an opportunity to exert a large influence upon his class and, through its members, upon the school as a whole; and it keeps him alive to the actual problems of the class room, thus enabling him the better to assist other teachers in the solution of their problems. It seems quite worth while for him to retain one class daily even if doing so requires the employment of additional clerical and supervisory assistance. It should go without saying that if, in a large school, the principal teaches even one class, he must be relieved of some other duties.

The "Hard Cases."- Because of his greater experience, attainments, responsibility, and official position, it

is proper that the principal should always deal with the "hard cases" in discipline and management. These constitute the most disagreeable part of his work, and they make the greater demands upon his thought, tact, and nerve force. Nevertheless he cannot escape the duty. In the disposal of such cases he should demand from teachers and give to them cordial coöperation, but when the necessity of final decision falls upon him, he cannot honorably shift the burden. He must use strenuous means, if necessary, and take the consequences. At such times especially, he seems to earn his larger salary, yet it is for just such duties that he is given superior remuneration and higher official recognition. If he fails in the wise performance of these duties, he demonstrates his incapacity for the position. His success will be the greater, however, if he can so administer affairs that the hard cases rarely appear. It is more honor to avoid extreme situations than to meet them successfully when they arise.

Pupil vs. Teacher. One of the most delicate and difficult tasks falling to the lot of the principal is that of judging between teacher and pupil when the latter feels that the teacher has done him injustice and appeals to the principal for redress. In such a case the principal may find it extremely difficult to decide the case on its merits, for if he fails to support the teacher, the latter's authority and consequent usefulness in the school are practically

at an end, and confidence in the authority of other teachers is disturbed. Unless the mistake is a flagrant one, the principal is almost compelled to support the teacher publicly, even though the circumstances require correction or reproof for the teacher in private. In case of flagrant error or injustice on the part of the teacher, the principal may be justified in requiring him to bear his own burden and to adjust the difficulty either by making satisfactory amends to the pupil or by resigning.

RELATION TO PARENTS

Coöperation. The principal is indirectly the employee and professional adviser of the parent regarding the educational welfare of children committed to his care. At times he stands in loco parentis. It is his duty to do for the child the best that can be done; and, in the school, his authority, granted by the State, is superior even to that of the parent. The pupil may be withdrawn from the school, but, as long as he remains, he is subject to its rules as administered by the teachers and especially by the principal. Possible antagonism between the authority of the parent and that of the principal should never become more than a mere possibility. Their relation should be that of hearty, intelligent coöperation. As faithful parents it would be strange if the father and mother did not know some needs and characteristics of the child of which

the principal is, for a time at least, ignorant. As a professional educator it is natural that the principal should be able to judge more wisely than the parents regarding some educational policies. Each should be accessible to the other, and should have the benefit of the other's superior understanding of the child and his needs. Coöperation is here the key to success.

Mediation. In the not infrequent cases where this coöperation is unattainable, it becomes the duty of the principal to stand as mediator between the will of the parent and the welfare of the child. Such mediation may require either punishment or encouragement for the pupil. Whatever his welfare as a future citizen of the State demands, should be honestly given, for the principal is directly the servant of the State and only indirectly the employee of the parent. In the occasional conferences, sometimes "scenes," unfortunately, between parents and principal, there will be needed on the part of the latter an abundance of tact, patience, sympathy, and good judgment. Parents should be led to feel that he is an honest, safe, and interested adviser. On the other hand, the principal should never permit the consciousness of his official authority or the mechanical routine of the school to blind him to the vital human interests of both pupil and parent. In case the principal knows that a parent has come in bad humor to make complaint on behalf of his child, it may be a wise policy to forestall the complaint by