At what point did you actually start feeling confident as an Assistant Principal?
I’m entering my third year as an Assistant Principal, and I’ve been thinking a lot about this lately.
Before becoming an AP, I taught ELA and ESL for 10 years. By my third year in the classroom, I remember feeling pretty confident in my craft. I knew what I was doing, had a good sense of what worked and what didn’t, and generally felt like I could handle whatever came my way.
I don’t feel the same way as an AP.
I’m going into Year 3, and while I obviously have a lot more experience than I did when I started, I still don’t necessarily feel confident in my craft. There are so many situations where I find myself thinking, “Am I handling this the right way?” or wondering what a more experienced administrator would do.
I’m curious for those of you who have been administrators for a while:
What school year did you finally feel like you really knew what you were doing as an AP/principal?
Was it Year 3? Year 5? Did it take becoming a principal? Or do you still feel like you’re figuring it out?
And if you remember your first few years, what** **changed that helped you finally feel more confident?
I’d especially love to hear from people who came from teaching and felt very confident as teachers but surprisingly less confident when they transitioned into administration.
Just trying to figure out if what I’m experiencing is normal or if I’m somehow behind where I should be.