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Melwin
Braggs, Business Editor
Although
it is recognised that school leaders
play a crucial role in a school's
efforts to raise standards of teaching,
pupil learning and achievement,
evidence-based knowledge of what makes
successful leaders remains elusive.
Some
pointers to assist add clarity and
direction of thought while check listing
good leadership qualities could be
1.
Leadership versus management:
Leadership is essentially the process of
building and maintaining a sense of
vision, culture and interpersonal
relationships, whereas management is the
co-ordination, support and monitoring of
organisational activities. To enact both
roles successfully requires a careful
balancing act.
2.
Development versus maintenance: If I
don't develop others, the school won't
develop. So that's my priority. Other
jobs can be delegated but not this one
should be the thought.
3.
Internal versus external change:
The growth in external scrutiny of
schools creates its own tensions. School
Heads find themselves positioned
uneasily between forces outside schools
instigating and promoting changes, and
their own staff who, ultimately, have to
implement them. Their leadership metal
is proven by the selection of which
initiatives to take on, the support they
provide for their implementation, their
knowledge of how others were tackling
new initiatives.
4.
Autocracy versus autonomy:
Although the school leader works closely
with his team, there has to be a time
when decisions are taken, and he has to
say whether one can or cannot do this
5.
Personal time versus professional
tasks: Increasing external
requirements upon schools have led many
heads to commit more and more of their
personal time to school-related business
at costs which were universally high
and, long term, potentially damaging.
6.
Personal values versus institutional
imperatives: Whilst there is little
evidence of opposing sets of values
within the schools, tensions does arise
from externally generated pressures of
rationalism, and from definitions of
efficiency and effectiveness which at
times are perceived as challenging
people centered values.
7.
Develop or dismiss: For heads who
have to make decisions about teaching
standards, continuing poor teaching by a
member of staff creates a leadership
dilemma, cutting across the head's
personal framework of values and
beliefs. Engaging in dismissal
procedures touches upon the culture of
the school, staff morale, and the nature
of the relationship between leader and
led.
8.
Power with or power over: The
basis of this dilemma is the extent to
which similar and dissimilar values can
be reconciled. The heads should sought
to achieve a balance between consulting
and involving staff in their decisions
while still providing a clear direction
forward, but need to be aware that such
involvement might well lead to demands
for a bigger say in the direction, and
that this might well challenge their
right always to make the final decision.
The
above is just a directional list one
could use to measure oneself as a school
leader-current or aspiring. Continuous
conscious training and development will
aid in developing effective leaders and
finally assist to Develop Schools.
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