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Developing Leadership In Students and Staff 

By Diann Rodgers-Healey, Founder CLW

Leadership Dinner for the South Eastern Cluster of the Catholic Education Office, Wollongong NSW Australia, 15 August 2002 

My talk today will focus on developing leadership in two areas, in Students and Staff, in a School environment.  Out of it will emerge my definition of leadership, why I believe it is necessary for leadership to be developed in students and staff and some suggestions and considerations for how this can be achieved. 

Why should leadership be developed in our Students? 

Before we look at how leadership can be developed in students, let’s look at why it should be developed in students.  My answer to this questions stems from what is happening in the world today. A look at what has made headlines internationally and nationally in the last week, and in the recent forty-eight hours is a good starting point.  Below are listed some of the headlines: 

•      Americans back Iraq attack, Howard calls for national debate on Iraq

•      Merits of Pacific solution to be debated in Pacific Forum

•      Australia yet to sign Kyoto Protocol

•      Stem cells – Science and ethics clash

•      UN warns six million Zimbabweans will face hunger as Mugabe tells  white farmers to leave land

•      Double-dip US recession to affect Australian exports

•      US abstains on U.N. vote to enforce treaty on torture

•      Anthrax detected in New Jersey Post-box

•      2.3m children currently facing starvation due to food crisis in Africa.

At the recently held UN Children's Summit, Secretary General Kofi Annan listed these statistics relating to children: 

I am sure that you will agree that the world is changing at a fast pace, that this change is not only unprecedented at a global scale, but that it is turbulent.  Such upheaval has affected many sectors - political, social, humanitarian and every other sector that you may think of.   

In this context of upheaval, if we are to address the real needs of young people, their need to feel important, to belong and to feel valued; if we are to enable youth to engage in the world, that is to feel that they can partake in decision making and affect change; and if we are to enable youth to create new realities, then we as educators must develop leadership in students.  

How do we go about undertaking such a task? 

The Essence of Leadership 

The essence of leadership I believe is to construct a new reality.  To construct any new reality, one needs: 

•Vision

•The ability to inspire others to consider this vision and express their own vision

•And the ability to develop a shared vision in collaboration with others and manage its implementation. 

The Building Blocks of Leadership 

There are many theories of leadership, ranging from the autocratic to the democratic. However, these theories apply to adults and usually in a workplace environment.  What is needed is an understanding or distilling of leadership into manageable concepts that can be embedded in the school’s curriculum without resorting to delegate such learning to a separate subject area.  Leadership needs to emerge from all subject areas and in the day-to-day schedule of the school environment. 

I propose that there are two Building Blocks of Leadership that we can begin to work on with students. They are: 

•Developing the Self

•Practising Leadership

 

Developing the Self

I would like to focus on five areas with respect to Developing the Self in Students. They are:

•      Self-Identity

•      Strategic Thinking

•      Self-Confidence to Communicate a Vision

•      Mobilising Others

•      Skills of Facilitation and Team Work
  

Self-identity as we all know is the make-up of an individual, the individual’s values, beliefs, principles and morals. It is the character or what substance the individual is made of. It is the inner life of the person as opposed to the external influences.  The quality of the individual’s vision or the goodness of the vision is determined by the character of the individual. “Lasting leadership must be rooted in moral character if it is to endure. If it is for personal gain, it will compromise integrity and ultimately erode our own and public confidence.” (John Baldoni) 

How effectively does our interaction and teaching focus on developing a sense of self, and of self-appraisal in students?  

When students graduate from school, we focus on which career or tertiary course they will be undertaking.  Could we not focus on asking them, do they know who they have become?  Do they like the person they have become? Do they know what their strengths and weaknesses are and how they can overcome their weaknesses? What are the issues they are most concerned about as they embark upon the world? 

Strategic Thinking for Students 

You would have been dealing with the concept of Strategic Planning in your aim to create a vision for your school. Garratt’s definition of Strategic Planning I believe has elements that can be extrapolated to teach Strategic Thinking to students.  The elements are:

•to see beyond the bulk of accumulated knowledge

•to gain different perspectives – by  questioning, debating, hypothesizing

•to look both forwards and backwards while appreciating the present and come to their own conclusion

•to formulate their own vision for the future 

When we give students a project on Hitler for example, instead of asking them to tell us everything they can find out about what Hitler did, perhaps we could ask them the question, if you were to judge Hitler in a Court of law today, how would you judge him; or would you become a follower of Hitler, if he were a leader today?  The alternate questions gives students the opportunity to engage in the issues with a personal focus. They would still need to do their research, but this would be targeted to identify the issues, problems and solutions underlying the events of the time while engaging them ethically and intellectually.  Students would be looking both forwards and backwards while formulating their own evaluation and in so doing, they will be developing their personal code of ethics. 

Self-confidence to Communicate a Vision 

Students need to be encouraged to voice their views and rationale, however contradictory to ours.  They need to be aware that learning is a discovery, not an absolute given that needs to be prescribed to them. We need to acknowledge that their individual progress is important.  Accepting that society places an emphasis on comparative progress, individual progress must be valued for the development of self-identity and self-appraisal. 

Mobilising Others 

If students are going to inspire others to express their own vision and believe that together they can affect change, then as leaders, they need to be shown the importance of living what they preach, of walking the talk of Integrity and of being cognisant of their inner values and motives, so that they are able to understand the behaviour of others.

Facilitation and Teamwork

To develop and implement a shared vision, leaders need to collaborate with others. As teachers, we need to take credit for the excellent and pervasive use of teamwork in our group activities. I would like you to consider the importance of not just getting students to focus on the outcomes of their teamwork, but on the process of teamwork.  If students understand the process of teamwork, then they are able to implement the model outside the classroom setting for the purpose of working together with others in any given context. The following questions are examples of those that can be asked of the whole group to derive students’ understanding of the process: How did you arrive at the group’s conclusion? Who took on the role of leader? Did you all elect the leader? Which views were compromised when coming to the final conclusion?

The skills required in the application of facilitation and teamwork are listed below. 

Skills required for Facilitation and Teamwork:

Listening

Setting goals

Offering constructive feedback

Negotiating outcomes

Delegating

Being a team player

Reporting

Thus far we have focussed on the first Building Block of Leadership – Developing the Self.  Before we move on to the second Building Block of Leadership – Practising Leadership, I would like to make the point that all of the above needs to be made explicit to students and not remain implicit in their teaching.  The language and theory of leadership needs to be conspicuous if students are to become familiar in their understanding and usage of this language. 

Practising Leadership 

With respect to the second Building Block of Leadership, I would like to focus on two areas:

•Experiencing Leadership

•Witnessing Leadership

Experiencing Leadership

I believe that leadership is not just for the brighter students but for ALL students.  All students need to experience the gamut of leadership feelings, thoughts and processes inorder to become aware of the power of being a leader and the change their leadership can affect.  Students need to be given opportunities to experience leadership in a formal, informal, protracted or prolonged time frame.  The opportunity to be a leader and learn about leadership in the real world after they leave school, I believe are quite slim.

Witnessing Leadership

If the Staff, Parents and the Community (Parish) exuded leadership, would not this be a terrific environment for students to be emersed in.  It would not require such a great effort from us to educate students in leadership, as they would be living and breathing leadership outside and inside the school setting.  However, as such a Utopian world does not exist, one small step in this direction would be to develop leadership in the staff of the School.  Just how this can be achieved will be the focus of the second part of my talk.  However, before I move on, I would like to re-cap the areas we have covered and also bring to your attention that you will find parallels when we consider how leadership can be developed in staff.  The areas we have covered are: 

The Building Blocks of Leadership

Developing the Self                                                                 Practising Leadership

- Self-identity                                                                            - Experiencing Leadership

- Strategic Thinking                                                                 - Witnessing Leadership

- Self-confidence to communicate the Vision

- Mobilising others

- Facilitation & Team Work

 

 Developing Leadership in our Staff

When you were employed to be Principal of the School, you became the Appointed Leader of the School. How can you, as the appointed leader, develop the leadership potential of your staff? 

It must begin with you. As Gandhi said, ‘We must be the change we wish to see.’

Being a Leader vs a Manager

When you became the appointed leader of the School, you were given a Job Description that elaborated on the responsibilities of your position.  To fulfil those requirements, you are task oriented, focusing on the operations and logistical functioning of the School. You are in fact a Manager. 

You will enter the realm of leadership when you voice your own vision and inspire others to identify theirs, and work with your staff/parent and school community to facilitate a mutually shared vision. 

So how do you begin to work on your vision? 

Self-Identity 

Think beyond the role of Principal to find your vision. 

Include domains other than education, areas that you have personally found meaning in, such as politics, literature, the arts etc.  What is it about these areas that have made a connection with you?  Why are you passionate about these aspects of life?  What do they represent for you about all that is good in life as you see it? What insights have you gained as a Parent that you can use in your role as Principal?

Assess your Life.  Why are you still an Educator? Why are you in the Catholic Education system as opposed to any other?  What attracted you to teaching in the first place? Can you rekindle that original drive?  

Put back into your profession your acquired wisdom.  If students are on the road to discovering the golden experiences that they can put into their treasure chests, then what gold have you found in your journey that you can share with others in your profession?  Herein lies one of the parallels in leadership development, as self-identity remains the key to finding one’s vision.  “Leadership is rooted in character. Fundamentally, it stems from a sense of inner conviction that is shaped by experience and example.” (J. Baldoni)
Professional Practice & Professional Knowledge 

Hughes found that there were two areas that were vital to developing school leadership. They were Professional Practice and Professional Knowledge.  In both areas you need to be at the forefront of what is going on locally, nationally and globally.  For example, your expertise as a teacher must be alive if you are to appreciate the strengths of your staff. You need to model the democratic values that you would like them to develop in their professional interaction.  Your knowledge of management, administration, global changes in education and leadership, for example, needs to be current so that you can use the best of what research is available to you. 

In other words, the question I ask you is this: ‘Is your House in order?’  Before you enter the realm of leadership, what shape is your own house in? 

A Transformational Leader 

To those who feel that their house is in order and is ticking over very nicely, I would like to ask you, have you looked at some of the solutions and strategies that are being used to solve old problems or emerging issues.  Have you researched what it is that your parents and community are wanting from leadership and have you addressed their needs?  Are you aware of your stakeholders needs?  A Transformational Leader asks “Why Not?” envisions a tomorrow that is totally different from the present one, persuading others to follow their vision, and in the process completely reinvents the organisation.

The Relationship between you and your Staff

The relationship between you and your staff is pivotal to leadership.  Psychologists have found that money is not the key motivator for individuals to achieve in the workplace. “The deepest principle in human nature is the craving to be appreciated.” (Mark McCormack)  Affirmation, appreciation, acknowledgement and recognition are.  

Do you relate to your staff with honesty, trust, respect, and care?  Do you value them?  Chains of command, whereby the Principal works with an Executive, means that power and meaning is distilled as it travels down the line of command. Chains of command, in my view, are about degrees of importance. The higher up you are, the more important you are to the leader and to the organisation. The lower down you are means a reduced degree of empowerment and engagement in the organisation and its key decision-making processes.  I prefer flatter management structures so that everyone can equally partake in steering the organisation. 

As Principal, how aware are you of your staff’s strengths and weaknesses, their hopes, values and their openness to change?  Are you aware of their perceptions of you? What expectations do they have of you?  Have you enquired as to why they find passionate the subject area they have chosen to teach?  How do they impart this wonder to their students?  Have you had the opportunity to see them in action and discover what their unique talents are, so that when you refer to your staff, you are able to praise them in terms of their special attributes, rather than holding on to a collective appraisal of them as being a dedicated team who give more than a hundred percent?  Needless to say, it takes a great deal of mutual trust and respect for a staff member to agree to a Principal coming into a classroom to view them in action.  If this were to occur with any hint of threat, then such an opportunity is better never to have been considered. 

The reason why your relationship with your staff is pivotal to leadership, is because although you are in the position to call the shots, that is make the final decision and set the direction for the organisation, you do not by yourself own this. The credit must be given to all those involved who have contributed their input and worked towards a shared vision. They and you, therefore, are the owners of the vision.  With this give and take, a shared vision emerges, leader and follower, or the leader and the contributor become unified in purpose and the organisation can grow and prosper. 

Organisational Culture of Leadership

For schools to take on the task of developing and succeeding in their leadership objectives for their students and staff, the central organisation that heads them ie the Education Office, must epitomise leadership. It must lead through example. Its house must be in order. Its definition of leadership must emerge from all of the rank and file members.  If it emerges from the Executive only, then it must be put to the rank and file members for discussion and evaluation.  The modified/shared vision that emerges will unify the organisation. Although this process is laborious and time-consuming, it is necessary so that ownership of the vision is spread throughout the organisation. 

Conclusion 

In conclusion, I would like to leave you with some final thoughts for why leadership needs to be developed in students and staff.  

As educators, ours is the responsibility to avail students the opportunity to understand and practice leadership so that IF they choose to ENGAGE in constructing new realities, they will have the aptitude, knowledge, skills and experience to do so.  

They do not have to become leaders when they embark in to the world. Theirs is the privilege to Engage.  However, we as educators would have done our part in equipping them with the necessary skills and experience that they can rely on, should they wish to become leaders. 

With respect to developing leadership in Staff, as appointed leaders, ours is the responsibility to empower teachers by nurturing their leadership potential so that they can engage in the bigger picture that links, what they do and why they do it, to a broader vision of direction, value and purpose. 

When we embarked upon a career in education, we did so primarily to develop the potential of children.  We continue to give the best of our intellect and experience to them. However, when it comes to developing our own potential within the workplace, we are left with the option of attending in-services.  I believe that Principals are in a privileged position to empower their staff.  As appointed leaders they owe it to them.

 And if you choose to ignore all of this, then I would like to bring you back to the person of Christ. His leadership was about serving. He was the Servant Leader. His leadership was rooted in the political and social injustices of the time. Before he led others, he had to develop his own identity. Was there any collaboration in his vision?  This is where we move beyond the theory of any leadership as his vision continues to unfold through a collaboration of the Holy Spirit and us.  We have not even met this man, yet his character and deeds still persuade us to follow him some two thousand years later.  If that is not lasting leadership, I do not know what is. 

Thank you. 

Copyright 2002  D.Rodgers-Healey CLW  www.leadershipforwomen.com.au

 

 

References:

Kennedy, K., (2001) Uncertain pathways: creating schools for the future. Paper presented at the Australian College of Education’s Seminar on Excellence in School Leadership, 4-5 June 2001, Canberra.

Hughes, P., The context of leadership. Paper presented at the Australian College of Education’s Seminar on Excellence in School Leadership, 4-5 June 2001, Canberra.

Baldoni John., The Leadership Message. 2002 www.LC21.com