Educational Leadership Dimensions and Perspectives Part One Common borders. Common Solutions.

Outline  Explore different concepts of effective educational leadership  Examine the integration of different perspectives  Understand what are the key leadership capabilities and how they can be developed  Discuss the challenges of leading through change Common borders. Common Solutions.

Leadership Matters! “A highly effective school leader can have a dramatic influence on the overall academic achievement of students.” Michael Fullan “Successful 21 st century educational leaders will need to depart from past traditions, get out of their comfort zones and take risks!” Tony Bush Common borders. Common Solutions.

Great Leaders Tell Three Stories... 1 Tell a compelling story about themselves; who they are, where they come from, what they stand for, what they expect. 2 Tell a compelling story about the organisation: its mission and purpose, why it is a great place to work, invest in and buy from. 3 Make people feel an essential part of the story through the work they do every day...Knowing their part in the organisation’s story engages people and gives them a sharp sense of purpose. Common borders. Common Solutions.

What is Educational Leadership? “Leadership is about influencing others’ actions in achieving desirable ends. Leaders are people who shape the goals, motivations, and actions of others...” Larry Cuban Common borders. Common Solutions.

Instructional Leadership ‘Learning – Centred Leadership’  Instruction = the process or act of teaching: education  Leadership = a person who rules, guides, or inspires others Common borders. Common Solutions.

Elements of Instructional Leadership  Resource provider, instructional resource, communicator and visible presence  Encourager, facilitator of the study of teaching and learning, facilitator of collaborative efforts amongst teachers, establishing coaching relationships with teachers and using research to make instructional decisions  Direct assistance to teachers in their day to day activities, development of collaborative groups amongst staff, designing effective staff development, curriculum development and use of action research Common borders. Common Solutions.

Elements of Instructional Leadership cont.  Defining schools mission, managing curriculum and instruction, and promoting a positive school climate  Understands effective practices in curriculum, instruction and assessment, and the ability to work with teachers on the day to day problems that relate to these topics Common borders. Common Solutions.

Transformational Leadership  Focus on inspiring academics/teachers to be engaged in their work  Motivating others to achieve more than originally planned or intended  Provide stimulus for change and innovation  Individual needs and differences are acknowledged and respected  Focus on the common good, through commitment to the mission and vision of the organisation Mutual trust and respect are essential! Common borders. Common Solutions.

10 “Communities of practice are groups of people who share a concern, a set of problems, or a passion about a topic, and who deepen their knowledge and expertise in this area by interacting on an ongoing basis.” - ‘Cultivating Communities of Practice: A Guide to Managing Knowledge’, Wenger, E., Snyder, W. & McDermott, R. A., Harvard Business Press, What is a Community of Practice? Common borders. Common Solutions.

 Reduction in hours needed to solve problems  Decrease learning curve  Decrease rework and prevent reinvention  Increase innovative/breakthrough ideas  Avoidance of costly mistakes  Improved speed of response Communities of Practice contribute to… Common borders. Common Solutions.

Points of Difference  Leadership is distributed  Key principle of participation and trust  Volunteer membership  Peer to peer relationships  The knowledge and expertise are more important than position or rank Common borders. Common Solutions.

What is Distributed Leadership?  Distributed leadership centers around a different model within the school where the distinctions between followers and leaders tends to blur (Gronn, 2000)  It incorporates the activities and efforts of multiple groups and implies (Spillane, 2001): social distribution of multiple leaders inter-dependency rather than dependency Common borders. Common Solutions.

INSTRUCTIONAL LEADERSHIP? TRANSFORMATONAL LEADERSHIP? DISTRIBUTED LEADERSHIP? ??? New Instructional Leadership Meeting the Challenges of the 21 st Century Education Common borders. Common Solutions.

Strategic Leadership - Start with WHY? “Very few organisations know why they do what they do. Why is not about making money. That’s a result. It’s a purpose, cause or belief. It’s the very reason your organisation exists.” Simon Sinek “Start with Why”, 2009 ‘The Golden Circle’ Why? How? What? Start with why business approach Traditional business approach

Leading Strategically  Not about where you are Not management of the status quo (good manager + representative)  About where you plan to be Leading to something new (change) Find the strategic vision – ask: Status quo ok for our long-term future? If not, what kind of future do we want? What do we have to do differently to get to that future vision? (strategies) Make it clear, specific, strong Goal + Timeline + Benefits Common borders. Common Solutions.

Leading Strategically cont.  Maintain the vision Commitment and repetition Focus on the benefits  Manage towards the vision Evaluate choices – use the vision as a criterion for decision making Search for opportunities – proactively advance your strategies  Communicate the vision Repetition – a vision needs to be seen Celebration – progress revitalizes vision

Successful Leadership It’s not about you...  Aligning people versus organising and staffing  Setting a direction versus planning and budgeting  Motivating people versus controlling and problem solving  Creating a culture of leadership “Many of you want to be leaders, to make a difference. But you might be spending too much time self-marketing and not enough time researching, building bridges by taking an interest in someone...In true leadership situations, listening comes before arm-waving.” Yahoo’s Tim Sanders Common borders. Common Solutions.

Final Thoughts Leaders don’t create followers...  Leaders who failed are the ones who do it by themselves. Leaders who succeed are ones who allow others to help them.  Bad leaders believe they have all the answers...they would rather celebrate their own success than the success of their workers.  In a nutshell, bad leaders think it’s all about them, good leaders think it’s all about others. “The job of a leader today is not to create followers. It’s to create more leaders.” Ralf Nader Common borders. Common Solutions.

Questions for Reflection Are You a Good Leader? 1.Do you like having people count on you? 2.Do you compliment others easily? 3.Do you cheer people up even when your own spirits are down? 4.Are your group’s accomplishments more important than your own personal glory? 5.Would you enjoy representing your group at an outside gathering? Common borders. Common Solutions.