Are you ready to lead? Three Considerations for School Administration
Written by Abena Sey
July 24, 2017
Abena Sey is an educator who leads by encouraging others. She firmly believes in the transformative power of positive relationships on students’ success.
Introduction
Managing the daily operation of a school, leading and developing an entire staff, and liaising with parents and other members of the community are some of the challenges of school administration. Thus, burgeoning teacher-leaders must carefully consider all that school leadership encompasses, and critically reflect on their readiness for the role. Warm (2011) suggests that “the road to self-knowledge is a difficult one and involves reflection.” Here are three questions to ask yourself when considering school administration.
What are my core values?
The primary step on the journey to school administration is the teacher-leader establishing a set of core values to guide his/her intentions leading at this level. Effective school administrators lead others with a clear vision for their school, and its fulfillment is predicated on the decision the leader makes based on these core values. In reference to Eikenberry’s research (2010), van Niekerk & Johan summarize “that values are important to leaders because they strengthen their ability to influence, give clarity, reduce stress and guide decision-making and actions” (2017). Expressing these values is a catalyst for authentic leadership. Authenticity helps a leader build trusting relationships with his/her followers, and this trust plays an important role for the team to fully engage in the overall vision for the school. Comparatively, we see this dynamic in the classroom, where students can sense whether or not we truly care about them based on our daily decisions, and if we prove ourselves untrustworthy, the year will be rife with challenges and negatively impact learning. Moreover, a school administrator’s core values are also reflected in his/her response to change.
How do I respond to change?
Embracing change that is constructive and value added is necessary for growth. A wise and mature leader sees failures as learning opportunities, and seeks ways to engage his/her followers to create viable solutions to problems. He/she trusts staff members to contribute ideas, gives staff permission to try them, and supports them even if they fail. An attitude like this contributes to a positive school culture. Barth suggests instructional leadership is changing a school’s culture to one that appreciates and encourages lifelong learning (Barth 2002). However, this can be a challenge for a new administrator assigned to a school in which the culture is to resist changes. Culture building requires the will to transform the elements of school culture into forces that support rather than subvert the school's purposes (Barth 2002). Consequently, the teacher-leader must decide his/her willingness to persevere despite pushback from those who resist the opportunities that constructive change offers them.
Am I ready to serve others?
Everyday is an opportunity to exercise leadership, because in each circumstance we can make choices to improve the lives of others (Dudley 2010). School administrators have the unique privilege and responsibility to consider the small actions that he/she can make within the school environment to have a positive impact on their staff, students, and parents. Serving others is a necessary component of school administration, and is oftentimes displayed in unconventional ways. I distinctly recall a day when I picked up my son from his school a few years ago, and entered the building to see the vice-principal with a large industrial mop and bucket of soapy water in her hands. She smiled at me and said “I wear many hats in this school.” As exemplified, effective school leadership means being humble enough to roll up one’s sleeves to help in any way, give of one’s time, and to show you see the value in others. This is evident whether you are mopping to help out an overwhelmed custodian, co-teaching with a flustered first-year teacher, encouraging an at-risk student to believe in himself, or serving breakfast to members of the school band. Effective leadership involves investing in others.
Conclusion
One will get out of school administration what he/she is willing to invest, and this investment includes how the leader reflects his/her core values, responds to challenges, and demonstrates care for the well being of others. To those outside the field of education, it seems counterintuitive that the leader of the school should seek to elevate those lower in rank. For teacher-leaders, the ultimate goal is that our students are better off as a result of being with us. I believe the same applies between the school administrator and those he/she leads.
References
Barth, Roland. S. (2002). The Culture Builder. Educational Leadership, 59(8), 6–11.
Caruth, Gail D.; Caruth, Donald L. Understanding a Resistance to Change: A Challenge for
Universities. Turkish Online Journal of Distance Education, v14 n2 p12-21 Apr 2013
Dudley, Drew. (2010). Everyday Leadership [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.ted.com/talks/drew_dudley_everyday_leadership/transcript?language=en.
van Niekerk, Molly; Botha, Johan. Value-Based Leadership Approach: A Way for Principals
to Revive the Value of Values in Schools. Educational Research and Reviews, v12 n3 p133-142 Feb 2017
Warm, Rick. (2011) Leadership: A journey of Transformation, in J. D., Barbour & G.
Robinson Hickman (Eds.), Leadership for transformation (pp. 81-96). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.