Re-conceiving school leadership in the 21st century

Sree Devi Gundapaneni

Abstract

“Leadership is lifting a person’s vision to high sights, the raising of a person’s

performance to a higher standard, the building of a personality beyond its normal

limitations.” -Peter Drucker

Education in the 21st century has undergone a sea change. Schools need to inculcate

values, knowledge and skills required for community building and instill respect for

human rights, gender equality, social justice, diversity and environmental

sustainability, thus empowering learners to be responsible global citizens. Leaders

have to understand the significance of this and be actively leading as against merely

managing.

Visionary Leaders have to lead the change with a degree of emotional intelligence.

They need to emphasize on all aspects of school life, be it, curriculum development

and planning or Professional enrichment of teachers, Class Room management, varied

learning needs, guiding, supporting or motivating students and teachers alike to

achieve.

Educators will need to expand their view of leadership to include flexibility,

inclusiveness and diversity. These leadership models will be a process for establishing

direction, aligning people, motivating and inspiring them to embrace change. The 21st

century leaders should be equanimous and compassionate, with the ability to combine

a moral purpose and a willingness to be collaborative and promoting collaboration

amongst colleagues, whether through teamwork, or extending the boundaries of

participation in leadership and decision-making. This paper aims to present the role of

school leaders in empowering teachers with distributed leadership.

Background

“If we teach today’s students as we taught yesterday’s, we rob them of tomorrow.”

John Dewey.

The education of the 21st century has undergone a sea change from what it was in the

20th

Century. The 20th

century catered to the Industrial Age Economy, where

exploitation of natural resources, primary production, mass production and

bureaucratic management hierarchies were the standard model for economic

development. This kind of education was necessary at that point of time especially in

India because under the British Rule all that was expected of an Indian student was

that, they have the ability to read, write and follow instructions; the necessary

qualifications to become clerks without any involvement of the thought process. In

the 21st century this learning is rated as Low Order thinking Skills (LOTS) in the

Blooms Taxonomy of learning and education.

This learning while forming the base for the future-focused education will need to

ground itself in UNESCO’s Four Pillars of Education: Learning to know, Learning to

do, Learning to live together, and Learning to be, UNESCO (1996). Among these

pillars only the first one is practiced in many schools in India. Indian education needs

to realign itself to practice the other three also if we are to give our students the edge

to be on par with the rest of the world. Alongside this there is a need to rethink our

ideas about how our learning systems are organised, resourced and supported.

Secondly the pillars of learning stresses on important educational goal in contributing

to social cohesion, inter-cultural and inter-national understanding, peaceful

interchange, and, indeed, harmony. UNESCO (1996)

The 20th century was a time when life was static and moved at a slower pace. People

joined a job to work for a life time, where there was no need to update the skills and

knowledge once learnt. Pure academic skills were enough to take one to the higher

places by virtue of seniority. Strategy once set continued without any thought of

revision. All these have become redundant and obsolete in the 21st century - HTI

(2005).

Goh Chok Thong, the Second Prime Minister of Singapore said,

“The wealth of a nation lies in its people.”

If the rest of the world does not realize that students are these people then it will be to

its own peril. Creating the 21st century learner is a true investment; the challenge is

more complicated than it has ever been. All the teachers teaching today were born in

the 20th

Century, teaching the students of the 21st century. There might be only a

generation of gap in their ages but there is a century of difference in the knowledge

and the advancement that the students of the 21st century are exposed to. Today

knowledge is vast and dissemination by the Teacher as expected in the previous

generation is not possible. It is available at the press of a button.. Schools have to stop

looking at dispensing knowledge and reawaken themselves to equip the students with

the skills necessary to analyse, synthesise and evaluate which will lead to the High

Order Thinking Skills (HOTS) in the Blooms Taxonomy of learning and education.

Schools need to develop within their students the ability and confidence to pull

together ideas from a range of sources to make intuitive instant judgments and to

scrutinise the content according to the point of view of the writer to make educated

choices and form correct opinions.

The 21st century students have to be taught to be dynamic and on the move. They

cannot afford to rest on their laurels, especially countries like India which had

continued with the dregs of the British education. They need to reinvent themselves to

reach the global standards without letting go of their culture and tradition thus they

don’t want or should not accept hand-outs. Students have to be taught the importance

of working, right from the class room to the workplace. They should be exposed to

leadership attitudes, behaviours and qualities. They need to realize that staying ahead

of the game is important for which updating their skills and reviewing their strategy

will play a key role in thrusting them upwards.

In an information intensive age, education is mandated to respond to demands in two

directions: on the one hand, it has to transmit an increasing amount of constantly

evolving knowledge and know how, adapted to a knowledge driven civilization; on

the other hand, it has to enable learners not to be overwhelmed by the flows of

information, while keeping personal and social development as its end in view.

Therefore ‘education must ...simultaneously provide maps of a complex world in

constant turmoil and the compass that will enable people to find their way in it’.

Delors et al, p85 (2006).

Research clearly shows that people do not learn well as “spectators”, as passive

recipients of pre-packaged, bite-sized pieces of knowledge delivered to them by

experts; good learning requires active engagement in the “whole game”. The more

people learn, the more they are capable of learning. “If the purpose of schools is not

to transmit knowledge, then teachers’ roles must be reconceived. Similarly, if the

learner’s main job is no longer to absorb and store up knowledge to use in the future,

then learners’ roles and responsibilities also need to be reconceived. This calls for a

greater focus on recognising and working with learners’ strengths, and thinking about

what role the teachers can play in supporting the development of every learner’s

potential.” Rachel Bolstad and Jane Gilbert, with Sue McDowall, Ally Bull, Sally

Boyd and Rosemary Hipkins (June 2012)

Re conceiving the role of school Leaders

Jim Burke, noted writer on Education defines himself as a teacher in an Interview,

saying, “Every day, into the classroom to do the work, live the questions, join the

conversation, guided by what my kids need to succeed now and later, by what and

how they need to learn, to think, to create so they can make a living––and a life.”

Educators are striving to meet the demands for “21st century learners,” but at the core

of that work are teachers, the most influential people in the shaping of students’ lives.

Preparing teachers to meet this enormous challenge requires a systemic vision for

which there is a high level of layered support, ongoing learning and a serious

commitment to a dynamic in-house professional development system. Robb E. (2007)

Department and team goal setting fosters student progress. There will also need to be

wider public support for teachers and school leaders as they attempt what is

effectively a paradigm shift in practice.

Teachers seem to engage in what seems a constant struggle to get students to do what

they don't want to do. If we are serious about building an education system that is

capable of preparing young people for the “knowledge societies” of the future, we

need to reconfigure it in new, more knowledge-centered ways. However, it will only

be possible to do this when there is wider awareness amongst teachers and School

Leaders of the growing gap between the kinds of learning our young people are

getting, and the kind of learning they need. Therefore as we begin to find useful ways

to incorporate the Internet into the classroom, we find ourselves aligning what

students want to do—work online—with what we want them to do: inquire, evaluate,

investigate, and construct. Although some of these principles are understood by many

teachers, our education systems and practices are often set up in ways that do not

support these principles to operate in practice. Jim Burke(2011)

This is where the school leaders play a crucial role. They must understand what it is,

to be an effective 21st century teacher with the abilities to develop the necessary skills

mentioned in this paper. Mr. Vineet Joshi, Former Chairman of Central Board of

School education in his foreword to the School Quality Assessment and Accreditation

Manual (SQAA) said, “The destiny of a school, its students, teachers and parents lies

firmly in the hands of those who lead and manage schools.”Professional development

of the teaching staff within this is critical for effective learning and achievement to

occur.

Re conceiving the Characteristics of school Leaders

The Challenge for leaders in schools in the 21st century is to be able to understand,

respond to, and influence teachers to understand the importance of creating learning.

Two important ideas that underpin this work are (1) a shift in the meaning of

“knowledge”, and (2) the need to build education systems based around what we now

know about learning. Today’s school leader is expected to lead the school with this

ultimate goal of increasing student learning while helping staff to grow professionally.

Student learning is the ultimate measure of the success of a teacher and an

instructional leader.

School leaders need to be aware of how to develop new skills, competencies or

literacies that are required by Teachers to train students with the required skills when

entering the workforce of the future. They must understand the importance of

relevant, authentic learning that prepares a student for the future world which can only

be done when teachers know how to. Teachings at schools need to embrace personal

skills including an appreciation of others cultures, communication skills (involving

information technology) networking skills and collaborative and analytical skills. 21st

century school leadership must encourage entrepreneurial talents of all its future

citizens.

Research suggests that the most important school-based factor impacting a child's

academic success is the quality of the classroom teacher, which can only be

strengthened if the school leader is strong. Effective 21st century leadership is for

everyone and everyone is empowered to learn. Problem solving is done

collaboratively and teachers are empowered to inquire into their practice to solve

learning and teaching problems. There is a common understanding that is research

based on how students learn. The 21st century teacher’s needs to cater to students with

varied learning needs. Due to increase in research and awareness, more learning

disabilities have come to the fore. Teachers in class rooms need to know how to

identify and counsel the students or have to realize that these students need

specialised help. How can this happen? The answer is training teachers to identify and

address the need and not to brand students. To help prepare our students to be

engaged citizens and meet the demands of the increasingly complex and global

economy, we need better systems to recruit, prepare, support, retain, and reward

outstanding teachers and leaders.

Schools leaders need to realize that the best teachers need to be recruited for the

schools and students success.

President Barack Obama said “From the moment students enter a school, the most

important factor in their success is not the color of their skin or the income of their

parents, it's the person standing at the front of the classroom... America's future

depends on its teachers." This is also as true for India as it is for America. Having the

right teacher makes all the difference. Recruiting the best teachers is the biggest

problem facing schools as few people go into teaching by choice. It is the profession

that is chosen when nothing else works or people choose it when they have time on

their hands and think that it is the least demanding job with lesser working hours and

vacation matching the kids’ timings.

If schools wait for the best teachers to have the best schools then the best school will

only remain a pipe dream. School Leaders have to recognize that they need to make

the best out of the teachers they get. This can be done only when these teachers are

prepared for the class room. The three ‘E’s’ “enable, empower, and energize” come

into effect. Professional development of new teachers as well as existing ones is very

important. Existing teachers while in tune with the schools vision and mission need to

be energized and empowered. The new teachers on the other hand need to be prepared

and supported with the 3 E’s. Enabling and empowerment doesn’t only mean being

trained in teaching methodologies but they will also need mentoring and hand

holding. They need to be attuned to the working of the school based on the policies of

the school.

The role of school leaders is becoming increasingly complex and demanding, and

school leaders require a broad range of skills and attributes in order to carry out their

duties effectively. They have to be highly inclusive, having complete regard for the

progress and personal development of every pupil. They need to develop individual

students through promoting rich opportunities for learning both within and out of the

classroom. They are robust and rigorous in terms of self-evaluation and collecting

data for analysis with clear strategies for improvement. Up-to-date knowledge of

successful approaches to teaching, learning and assessment, the ability to

convincingly communicate the rationale for any change, the ability to lead staff

development that results in change, knowledge of the ongoing conditions needed to

support shifts in teaching practice, skill in monitoring the impact of the change and

making adjustments when needed. The school leader also acts on behalf of the school

management in taking the school initiatives forward.

We have no idea of what the world will look like in 10 years, much less 20 years, yet

we are charged with preparing our students for future worlds Greg Roebuck (2011).

21st century leaders will have to be dynamic and adapt quickly – with a future smart

eye on what’s possible. Future Prepared students need to be globally aware,

communicate well, be adaptable, be creative, be innovative, be able to problem solve

as well as use e-tools effectively.

Robb E. (2007) School leaders need to support achievement for all with five goal

setting categories. Amongst these five, three stand out. The first being student

achievement, where the school will need to improve the students growth and set goals

and time lines for enrichment or remedial accordingly. The Second of these categories

is Instruction. Schools need to prioritise instructional initiatives, curriculum mapping

and curriculum pacing. The third and most important being leadership which should

be developed among the staff.

School leaders can no longer do capacity building programmes on the principle of

“one size fits all”. Their job becomes more demanding when they have to assess and

evaluate the teachers and plan training for them based on individual needs. For this to

happen the teachers will need to become aware of the gaps in their learning and

functioning which can be pointed out and corrected only by a five tier Assessment

system. The first stage is Self assessment; Teachers assess and evaluate themselves

with respect to whether they have been able to follow the Schools policies, and goal

setting that places the responsibility of improving and learning on teachers

themselves. Secondly, Peer assessment; where the parallel teachers mentor, guide and

help the teacher adapt to the teaching methodologies and keep up with the parallel

teaching. In the third stage, Assessment is done by the Head of the Department where

the Head checks if the teacher is facing any problems or needs any help or

corrections. The Fourth stage consists of Assessment by the Headmistress and finally

the fifth and concluding assessment is done by the Head of the Institution. All these

assessments need to be documented and transparently discussed with the teacher,

solutions sought and finally need based training should be rendered to fill the gaps.

Informal Observations or evaluations should be done where, when the school leader

meets the teacher or walks into the class, he/ she observes and gives informal

feedback or advice or arranges for a meeting with the teacher and mentor to correct

wherever necessary.

A school will be as good as the person who leads it. School leaders will need to have

a lot of grit and determination to be able to lead the school effectively. Unlike leaders

in other professions who only lead staff members, school leaders deal with people at

three levels; students, teachers and parents. They cultivate a range of partnerships

particularly with parents who are the greatest stake holders in the development of

their children. They will need to deal with them empathetically rather than

sympathetically. They have consistent, high expectations and are very ambitious for

the success of their pupils. They are expert at assessment and the tracking of pupil

progress with appropriate support and intervention based upon a detailed knowledge

of individual pupils. They focus relentlessly on improving teaching and learning with

very effective professional development of all staff.

Effective 21st century leadership is for everyone and everyone is empowered to learn.

Problem solving is done collaboratively and teachers are empowered to inquire into

their practice to solve learning and teaching problems. There is a common

understanding that is research based on how students learn. Effective distribution of

leadership throughout the school is another key characteristic of effective school

leaders and is linked to the improvement of educational outcomes for pupils.

Effective leaders recognise that change can bring about counter-productive emotional

responses. It can also challenge established practices and professional values. School

leaders leading significant change need to pay particular attention to: ensuring that all

staff feel their concerns are genuinely listened to and understood, supporting staff

who feel they may lose control during the exploration of new approaches, explaining

how changed approaches may be consistent with some established values while

challenging others. Schools successfully working in a true 21st century way lead by

example and will be the game changers, where the leadership fosters and develops

teachers and students to create their own learning by engaging in authentic problem

solving leading them to where their passions lie.

There is a strong link between leaders’ personal qualities and leadership success. The

evidence indicates that the most effective school leaders share a number of key

characteristics, including that they are open-minded; ready to learn from others; have

strong values; and are emotionally resilient. Research suggests that effective leaders

of schools in challenging circumstances in particular share the following attributes:

Passion and Risk-taking; Personal Humility; Emotional Intelligence; Tenacity and

Resilience in Advocacy; Respect for others; and Personal Conviction.

21stcentury leadership demands that leaders have an in depth knowledge of the needs

of the school community. The students and parents now live in an increasingly

diverse, globalised, complex and media saturated society. The students are facing

many global challenges such as a global population explosion and other

environmental and social issues. These issues lead to a need for students to be able to

communicate, function and create change personally, socially, economically and

politically on local, national and international levels. Emerging technologies and

resulting globalisation also provide unlimited and exciting possibilities for teaching

and learning.

Re-conceiving the Behaviour of school Leaders

Leadership Behaviour includes decision-making, risk taking and crossing the line or

pushing the boundaries. Unless the leader is able to create Joined-up thinking and

active team-building, encouraging and motivating and leading by example cannot

happen.

An understanding of the importance of effective leadership equips us to focus on

teaching and learning which has a direct correlation to student achievement. To this

end it is the promotion of, and participation in teachers professional development

which impacts most strongly upon student achievement. 21st century leaders of this

type model and monitor types of interactions which foster teacher learning and caring

about student achievement. Personalising the learning, identifying talents, creating

learning pathways and moving away from the notion that everyone learns the same

way, therefore ensuring that authentic real learning contexts are engaging children and

allowing good achievement to occur will be the benchmarks of the most enlightened

schools.

School leaders need to recognise teachers and students as global citizens. Schools

need to develop an awareness of globalisation using the curriculum and contexts of

studies that build awareness within the students learning. Awareness of one’s own

country and society in relation with the other countries and societies is an important

part of this and a way of building understanding within student’s teachers and

community. Children within schools need to be connected to other communities

which can be done through student exchange programmes and in the present day

digital class room through the internet. Exchange of ideas and culture between these

students will foster a better world. Schools should create an environment that is

creative, authentic and relevant to students who function within a globally connected

world. Understanding what it means to be a global citizen participating within a world

will help students to realize their social responsibility. Welcoming innovation and

embracing change and challenge will be the hallmarks of students in the 21st century.

Students of the 21st Century need to be taught about environmental sustainability.

They need to become aware that their life and everyone else’ is dependent on the

looking after of the environment. They need to learn that development is necessary

but not at the cost of depletion of the environment. Their motto should be as Mahatma

Gandhi has said 'The world has enough for everyone's need, but not enough for

everyone's greed.' Gender sensitivity and equality is another aspect that a 21st century

student will have to be taught. The School leader will have to be careful while

designing the curriculum and training teachers, to see that gender bias and gender

stereo typing is avoided.

Schools should be catalyst for innovation and provide and expose teachers and

students alike to authentic ‘real world’ learning experiences beyond the classroom.

They should develop a learning culture where strengths are allowed to flourish and

encourage an appetite for innovation with a capacity to take risks and an ability to

experiment. Using e-tools for local and global good and create high expectations and

champion the journey, not the destination which has somehow been lost in the quest

for achievement where the pleasure of learning has disappeared.

Re conceiving the Attitude of school Leaders

Leadership Attitude is what will finally make the difference. Unless the leader feels

that he/she can do it and overcome challenging situations by establishing high

standards both for themselves and the others, he/she will not be able to win the trust

of his/her subordinates. Winning the trust will also help the leader trust and delegate

work thereby empowering the teachers.

An effective leader is one who engages employee, sets the bar high and encourages

them to stretch themselves. Effective leaders do not keep peeping over the shoulders

but allow people to make their own mistakes and let them learn from them. They

make change and growth synonymous and promote enthusiasm and positive thinking.

They seek ownership and accountability and decentralise power. Effective leaders

work as a team but lead from the front and by example.

When an effective leader is heading the school we see an empowered workplace

where teachers and students are seen to be interdependent, working and collaborating

with each other. Devolved ownership and responsibility is visibly seen where people

work for unified purpose with mutual regard for each other. School leaders can

consider themselves to be successful only if the staff and students display self-

motivation and ‘can do’ attitude. Good communication and information sharing leads

to open performance tracking and accountability. In such schools the ‘Blame culture’

is replaced by ‘lessons learned’ and teachers work with the leader and not for the

leader.

Re conceiving the competencies of school Leaders

Leadership entails painting a vision of where you want to go, establishing priorities

for getting there, building the right team, aligning the organization, and holding

people accountable for results. It also requires an ability to communicate effectively

so that everyone is on the same page. In addition, effective leaders create cultures

where mistakes are acceptable.

Leadership competencies lead to strategic vision and the ability to share clear

communication and messages. Success of the school should be the goal instead of

success beyond narrow professional boundaries. Such leaders lead by influence and

not by control. The flexibility and versatility of a leader will be the motivating and

inspiring factor for the teachers to follow.

Leaders put performance at the top of the agenda and translate vision into action. The

characteristics which make a leader great are: A leader is bold, i.e. able to take

decisions and stand by them. Tenacious, charismatic and visionary –looking at the

macro view or the bigger picture and resiliently holding on to it. This leader has

assurance and confidence leading to self awareness and focus and his/her energy and

passion is so contagious that they are easily able to persuade and influence thereby

inspiring the others to follow.

Re conceiving the Style of a 21st Century school Leader

“The price of inaction is far greater than the cost of making a mistake.” Meg

Whitman

Much "top-down" management was being practiced in the 20th

Century Schools.

Within the school, the climate appeared to be dim and gloomy because none of the

teachers had vitality and enthusiasm. Bossism was prevalent where the employees did

not care for what was happening as giving opinion was treated as insubordination thus

making the employees cautious or hesitant to venture forward with their opinion.

According to the study conducted by Blase (1990), who examined politics in the

educational setting, administrators were not revered as respected, caring and popular

by the people they led and managed.

In contrast a 21st century leader provides clear direction and supports and manages

through influence, rather than control. This leader maintains a broad understanding of

the context and situation. He/she keeps a working overview of issues and gives

considered and timely advice and is able to work in a pressured and political

environment, has strong communications and presentation skills and is equipped with

effective and tolerant interpersonal skills. He/she is analytical and has a creative

mindset and is truly outstanding. This leader doesn’t take ‘no’ for an answer, takes

risks and makes mistakes and owns up to these mistakes. This kind of leader is not

hesitant to acknowledge that they may not know best, recognises that talent doesn’t

always sit on the sleeve and knows that empowered teams tend to make more

informed decisions. Sheppard (1996) synthesized the research on instructional

leadership behaviors. He confirmed that there is a strong relationship between

instructional leadership behaviour and teacher commitment, professional

involvement, and innovation.

School leaders should foster teachers sharing and learning from each other.

Professional growth and development must be encouraged and accommodated. The

successful leaders will be the ones where they are best able to apply the creative

energy of teachers toward constant improvement. Their teaching techniques reflect

their personality as they are allowed to be empowered and creative.

Leadership is not about POWER but empowering others. The Vanderbilt Assessment

of Leadership in Education tool identifies six key steps or “processes” that an

effective school leader takes when carrying out his/her responsibilities. These are:

Planning, Implementing, Supporting, Advocating, Communicating and Monitoring.

Ethical leadership requires navigation by ‘moral compass’. It requires one to abandon

the idea that ‘the end justifies the means’, and instead embrace the idea that maybe

it’s the other way round. Not all their decisions will necessarily be popular, but an

ethical leader, whose life and leadership is centered on principles, will find that they

have true power, in that they and their decisions are trusted by those who follow them.

Re conceiving the habits of school Leaders

Covey (1989, p. 23) defined a habit as "the intersection of knowledge, skill, and

desire" Knowledge is; the what to do and the why. Skill is the how to do. Desire is the

motivation, the want to do. In order to develop a habit, all three have to be

incorporated. Covey developed seven habits for highly effective leaders and

suggested that all seven habits must be developed and continuously practiced. Self-

awareness, an in-depth study of self, serves as the basis for the seven habits and needs

to be cultivated by all school leaders.

Conclusion

From practice to theory, from doubt to conviction—the key to the speed of quality

change is embedded in the power of the School Leader helping to lead organization

and system transformation. “The main stumbling block for most principals is that they

don’t know what it means and/or how to do it.” Michael Fullan (May 1, 2009)

“The expectations from 21st century Student and Teachers have no doubt escalated

and it is impossible for one person to rise to the expectations and deliver. The 21st

century schools will need a separate leader who will only look after the Academics. In

this role the 20th

Century Principal cannot undertake the kinds of changes described in

this paper. If all these have to be implemented in schools, the creation of a new

position, “Academic Director” or “Director of Innovations,” is necessary whose

mandate is the cultivation of faculty development to reorient pedagogical practice

Brown D. (Rising Ed. Trends)

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