Concepts and evidence of

leadership

Exploring Professional Leadership

Objectives
To provide an avenue for articulation of what we have
learnt and experienced about educational leadership
To share empirical observations of how different types
of leadership function in real school contexts
To enrich our understanding of the key
concepts of leadership discussed in
recent research
To enrich our vocabulary for discourse
on leadership

Mean anything to U?
The pessimist complains about the direction of
the wind, the optimist expects the direction to
change, but the leader simply adjusts the sails.
Anonymous

Management is efficiency in climbing the ladder

of success; leadership determines whether the
ladder is leaning against the right wall.
Stephen Covey

References
School Leadership: Concepts and Evidence
(http://www.ncsl.org.uk/mediastore/image
2/bush-school-leadership-full.pdf)
Distributed Leadership
(http://newportal.ncsl.org.uk/media/F7A/87/be
nnett-distributed-leadership-full.pdf)
Ten questions for school leaders
(http://www.ncsl.org.uk/mediastore/image2/kp
ool-evidence-green.pdf)

Defining leadership
30 words in 3 minutes

Defining leadership
Leadership

values

Influence

vision

Working definition
Leadership is a process of influence leading to the achievement of
desired purposes. Successful leaders develop a vision for their
schools based on their personal and professional values. They
articulate this vision at every opportunity and influence their staff
and other stakeholders to share the vision. The philosophy,
structures and activities of the school are geared towards the
achievement of this shared vision.

Word of caution
The current emphasis on vision in leadership
can be misleading. Vision can blind leaders in a
number of ways The high-powered,
charismatic principal who radically transforms
the school in four or five years can be
blinding and misleading as a role model my
hypothesis would be that most such schools
would decline after the leader leaves
Principals are blinded by their own vision when
they feel they must manipulate the teachers
and the school culture to conform to it.
(Fullan, 1992, p. 19)

Leadership & Management

Administration

Management

- Maintaining current
organisational arrangement
- Related to implementation
and technical issues

Maintenance

Leadership

linked with change

influencing others
action in achieving
desirable goals

Development

What if?
Over-managed

Under-managed

Under-led

Over-led

Which is more important?

Management or Leadership?

Brainstorming about types of

leadership
Instructional

Participative

Moral
Transformational

Managerial

Contingent

Interpersonal

Postmodern

Sharpening the focus

Leadership in action

Instructional

Transformational

Participative

Moral

Practicalising theories
Instructional leadership

Research
findings

Practice

Effective instructional leadership comprises:

A sharp focus on learning and teaching
Talking with teachers
Promoting teachers professional growth
Fostering teacher reflection
Some effective strategies:
Modelling

Monitoring
Professional dialogue and discussion

Practicalising theories
Transformational leadership

Research
findings

Transformational leadership occurs when one or more

teachers engage with others in such a way that
administrators and teachers raise one another to higher
levels of commitment and dedication, motivation and
morality.
Successful principals are both transactional and
transformative

Practice

Higher level of commitment +

Greater capacities = extra effort + greater
productivity

Practicalising theories
Participative leadership

Research
findings

People are more likely to implement

decisions which they have participated in
making
Evidence of successful implementation of
participative leadership in schools is sparse

Practice

Collaborative decision making

Practicalising theories
Moral leadership

Research
findings

Practice

Similar to transformational leadership but with a

stronger emphasis on values and beliefs
Providing schools with a clear sense of purpose
The metaphors the heart, the head and the hand
of leadership

Outstanding heads demonstrate the following values

and beliefs through their words and deeds: inclusivity,
equal opportunities, equity or justice, high
expectations, engagement with stakeholders, cooperation, teamwork, commitment and understanding

Making judgements
Instructional

Transformational

Moral
Participative

Interpersonal
Managerial

Contingent

Postmodern

Making judgements
Most successful leaders are
likely to embody most or all of these
approaches in their work.
Able to carry out effective situational analysis
and adapt their approaches to the specific
context.

Triangulation - DOD
Document Study

Observation

Principal's presentation
Study of SHS
results, SSA,
Evaluation of the
KPM and other
delivered curriculum
relevant school
documents to
inform drafting
of enquiry
school effectiveness
points and to
is a key indicator of
guide the review
quality leadership

Discussion
Daily meetings
with Principal

Triangulation processes - meetings and interviews with different

levels of school personnel (SMC, SIT, MM, LASW and basic rank
Ts) and stakeholders (parents and students)

Exploring further
What questions would you ask to guide your
onsite inquiry about school leadership?
Which type of school leadership is more likely
to be successful at this stage of education
reform?
How does a school leader strike a
balance between his/her
leadership and managers role in
enhancing school development
and performance?

To cope with a demanding reform

agenda and avoid burn-out
Sustainable Leadership @
http://www2.bc.edu/~hargrean/docs/seven_pri
nciples.pdf

What have we learnt?

Concepts and evidence of leadership
Evaluating leadership in the course of
school review

In a nutshell,

Leadership and management are both

important
No single leadership style can reign
supreme better adopt an eclectic
approach to leading and managing
educational change
Quality of leadership represents itself in
the day-to-day running of the school