Standard 7: Leadership in Education
Standard 7 states
teacher leaders utilize instructional frames to improve teaching. This standard was taught mainly through the
“Leadership in Education” taught by Dr. Bond, a wonderful leader himself. During this course I had numerous
opportunities to reflect not on my teaching practice, but more so on my
internal character qualities. Dr. Bond
engaged us in discussion, presentations, and assignments all aimed at peeling
back layers of our own personalities and dissecting what it means to lead. As we all learned, there are numerous ways in
which one can effectively lead. However,
with that said I have come to realize some central ideas when it comes to
leadership.
My
prior thoughts pertaining to the course were mostly positive. I remember reading the syllabus and thinking
how straightforward the course appeared as well as thinking to myself “We are
actually addressing leadership in a straightforward manner?” In prior courses
the idea of leadership was wrapped into other goals such as assessment, curriculum
design, or professional development planning and implementation, to name a few.
However this was the first course to tackle leadership head on. I also thought I would come out of the course
with clear answers on what it means to lead in a school setting.
Reflection:
Don’t place people in “the box”
In this class we read the book Leadership
and Self-Deception, by the Arbinger Institute. In short, the main
protagonist struggles with seeing other individuals as human beings. This in turn causes people to be placed, “in
the box”. Leaders must not do this as it
distances you from the people you are trying to empower. By seeing others as people with feelings,
emotions, difficulties, and unique personalities, we can connect with them on a
meaningful level. This creates trust and
opportunity for relationships to form.
One of the most difficult things to do is yield to the idea of changing
people to fit your ideals. As stated in
the book (2010), “I’m trying to change them because, in the box, I think they
need to be changed” (p. 133). By
changing people we are effectively attempting to manipulate individuals into
our way of thinking and acting. This
demonstrates a lack of awareness of other people and their needs, emotions, and
desires in life. The antidote for this
ailment is simply listening and reflecting on people’s needs, emotions, and
desires. We must step outside of
ourselves to tap into what someone else might be feeling. Operating under this framework puts us into a
more sensitive state, one which helps build true relationships with those
around us.
Trust is a crucial element of effective leadership
What is the foundation of leadership? Is it confidence? Is it strong
tactics? After this course I firmly
believe the answer to this question is trust.
As stated by Wally Bock in the article “3
Reasons it’s hard to learn leadership” (2018):
“Learning
to lead is hard. You can’t learn to lead from books, you can only learn to lead
by leading and that means making mistakes. You must forget the romantic ideas
of heroic leadership and learn the mundane tasks great leaders do every day. If
you aspire to great leadership, you must strive every day to make yourself
worthy to be followed.”
Making yourself “worthy
to be followed” is the ultimate starting place of leadership. Simply put, if nobody wants to follow your
leadership then they won’t do so. If you
enforce people to follow you, that is not leading but commanding and dictating. As Dr. Bond mentioned in our last meeting,
the difference between leading with power and leading through empowerment is
quite drastic. Empowering others through
trust results in quality, effective, and sustainable leadership.
Another takeaway is knowing the
enemies of trust. In the article
“Enemies of Trust” by Robert Galford and Anne Seibold Drapeau (2003), multiple
different ideas pertaining to what kills trust are presented. The idea of
clarity in communication stuck out to me.
When leading, it must be crystal clear what you are asking and what you
expect from your peers. Many leaders
fail to accomplish tasks simply because the message is not clear. How can we expect success when the
individuals we are working with do not know what we are asking of them? As stated in the article, “Think through your
priorities. Before you broadcast them, articulate them to yourself or a trusted
adviser to ensure that they’re coherent and that you’re being honest with
people instead of making unrealistic commitments” (p. 4).
It all starts with self-compassion
When in a leadership position one should expect to make mistakes. It is inevitable. A great leader could be defined as someone
who isn’t perfect, but one who makes errors and adjusts accordingly. In order to do so leaders must forgive
themselves, or in other words, display self-compassion. Self-compassion is the
inner compass of a great leader, as it guides them through treacherous waters
and difficult situations. Self-compassion lifts the weight off one’s shoulders
to be perfect and spotless. As mentioned
prior, trust is the foundational element when building relationships between
peers, however self-compassion is a foundational element when building a
relationship with yourself. If one does
not have a healthy relationship with their own being, they will not be able to
lead effectively. As stated by Kristin Neff (2003) in the article
“Self-Compassion: An Alternative Conceptualization of a Healthy Attitude Toward
Oneself”:
“Self-compassion,
however, is not based on the performance evaluations of self and others, or on
congruence with ideal standards. In fact, self-compassion takes the entire
self-evaluation process out of the picture, focusing on feelings of compassion
toward oneself and the recognition of one’s common humanity rather than making
(positive or negative) self-judgments. Thus, it actually counters the
tendencies toward narcissism and self-centeredness that may stem from attempts
to maintain high self-esteem” (p. 92)
Future Implementation:
Even though this course and standard focused on large scale and broad
topics such as leadership style my future implementation strategy is
straightforward and simple. First, I
will place emphasis on building trust with my peers. I do not need to flex my leadership “muscle”,
or prove to others I can lead a task or initiative. This will only push people
away as the leadership feels forced and not genuine. However focusing on establishing a bedrock
layer of trust will make all future decisions more likely to be successful as
my peers trust me. Secondly, I will focus on developing a deep sense of
self-compassion. This will be achieved
through reflection, deep breathing, and positive self talk. Developing a strong sense of self-compassion
will enable me to continue on the leadership path through tough times. As a young leader I am going to make
mistakes. However, how I bounce back is
vital for my success long term. Self-compassion is a sort of insurance policy
to ensure I don’t beat myself up too much in the process of becoming a teacher
leader. To finish, Kristin Neff, in her
blog post “Definition of Self Compassion” beautifully states,“Instead of
mercilessly judging and criticizing yourself for various inadequacies or
shortcomings, self-compassion means you are kind and understanding when
confronted with personal failings – after all, who ever said you were supposed
to be perfect?” No leader is perfect, no teacher is perfect, and no human is
perfect. But with empowerment, trust,
and self compassion teacher leaders can have a drastic impact on the students,
school, and communities in which they teach.
Relevant Coursework:
VLA:
“Leadership and Self Deception” Reflection: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-E35h1Hld7yZJ7-U9kRRmSf-EoPsfZXms7g7uWbqIDo/edit?usp=sharing
Sources
consulted:
Bock, W. (2018). 3 Reasons it’s
hard to learn leadership. Retrieved from
https://www.threestarleadership.com/leadership-learning/3-reasons-its-hard-to-learn-leadership
Drapeau,
S. & Galford, R. (2003). The enemies of trust. In Harvard business review.
The Arbinger Institute.
2010. Leadership and self-deception. Oakland,
CA. Berrett-Koehler Publishers, INC.
Neff, K. (N.D)
Definition of self-compassion. Retrieved from https://self-compassion.org/the-three-elements-of-self-compassion-2/
Neff, K. (2003).
Self-compassion: An alternative conceptualization of a healthy attitude toward
oneself. Self and Identity, 2, 85-101. doi
10.1080/15298860390129863
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