Obstacles to learning from experience and principal training

This paper discusses the obstacles to on-the-job learning for school administrators. Applying Kolb's (1984) experiential learning model to understanding the on-the-job preparation of administrators, it describes how characteristics of the work, properties of the organization, and norms of the occupation make this form of learning often slow, unreliable, counter-productive, and biased. The four stages of experiential learning (concrete experience, reflective analysis, abstract conceptualization, and active experimentation) are analyzed and applied to the learning of school principals with particular attention to the obstacles to effective learning at each stage. Finally, the paper suggests ways that those who prepare, train, and work alongside principals can improve the quality of learning-from-experience for novice as well as veteran administrators.Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Education Research Association in Chicago, April, 1985.