Developing Criteria for Selecting Secondary School Principals in Palestine

The present study aimed at developing proposed educational criteria for the selection of the teachers at UNRWA Schools in north of Palestine. Accordingly, it tried to answer the following basic questions: 1- What is the exact level of the proposed educational criteria for the selection of the teachers at UNRWA Schools in the north of Palestine from the points of the population of the study? 2- What is the exact hierarchy of the proposed criteria for the selection of teachers at UNRWA Schools in north of Palestine with respect to their importance? 3- Are there significant differences in the proposed educational criteria for the selection of the teachers at UNRWA Schools in north of Palestine from the points of view of the population of the study attributed to the following variables: qualifications, the administrative experience, sex. The population of the study included all the principals at UNRWA schools in north of Palestine in the scholastic year 2000-2001. The total number was (86) principals distributed to three areas: Nablus, Jerusalem/Ramalla and Hebron. To achieve the purposes (of the study, the researcher himself developed a questionnaire after surveying the related literature. The validity of this questionnaire was judged by a jury of specialists who confirmed its validity. As for the reliability, it was computed by using Cronbach Alpha. It was found to be (.92). The questionnaire consisted of 89 items distributed to 17 factors . The questionnaire used the Likard's scale: strongly agree, agree, neutral, disagree and strongly disagree. It should be noted that those five levels were hierarchically graded from five to one. With respect to the statistical analysis, the following were used: -The percentage, the statistical mean and the standard deviation were used to all the questions of the study. 1- 14 criteria out of the 17 criteria of the study were strongly agreed upon by more than 80%. 2- Three criteria were agreed upon by more than 70%. 3- The most five high criteria were hierarchically ordered with their respect to their importance: -The profession manners. -Guidance and counseling. -Time management. -Human and educational relations. -The way of selection of the basic grade teachers. The study showed that there are differences belong to a change. Qualifications: more than 80% of the principals with diploma degrees highly agreed those criteria in comparison to other degrees. Administrative experience: more than 80% of the principals with more than 15 years’ experience strongly agreed those criteria in comparison to other levels of experience. Sex: more than 80% of female principals highly agreed those criteria in comparison to the male. On the basis of the results of this study, the researcher hopes: 1- Those in charge should consider these proposed criteria in the selection of the teachers of UNRWA schools. 2- Those in charge of the programs of teachers training in the colleges and universities should take into account these proposed criteria , and apply them as indispensable components of training programs.