For me, I define leadership as the human aspect to the navigation of an organization or community. My view of what leadership is has evolved out of many years of working with my students and parents in a variety of projects and activities related to the engineering program at my school. We have a lot of people who hold an office or committee chair position but are not leaders while at the same time we have others who hold no official position, but are leaders in their own right. What I have witnessed, and in turn nurtured, is that our leaders set the direction and focus for our program. Their leadership may help or hurt, but it is undeniable. It is important to take this further than anecdotal evidence from my classroom. In this weeks lectures, a similar theme emerges. We learned in Dr. Fong’s first lecture (n.d.), that over the last 120 years or so, we have seen the way people and organizations look at and define leadership change. It would take a lot longer than we have in this short discussion board to clarify, but it does seem that the changes in leadership style and understanding have shifted with shifts in the culture and economy. For example, I cannot help but notice that the first era listed in the lesson ends around the same time as the start of the Great Depression. This correlation is not definitive, but it is interesting and might be worth looking into. In Dr. Fong’s second lecture (n.d.), we were introduced to more recent styles of leadership that are commonly in practice. The transactional style is very much in line with how I had conducted class when I started teaching. I would give students grades in return for their performance. I believed that the incentive of good grades would motivate students to perform better. In my experience, that expectation only went so far. Over time, I had adjusted my personal leadership style and how I worked with those in my educational community of parents and students. I didn’t realize it until this lesson that over time, I had moved to a more transformational style and was building that within the class. I use the term “more” deliberately. In the lessons, the eras and styles were clearly defined and delineated. What I witness when putting the academic theory alongside the practical application in the classroom is that the boundaries seem much fuzzier. To conclude this discussion, the lessons this week coincide with my current definition. I say current, because I am sure that over time, as I grow and learn more, my understanding and implementation of leadership will change. For now, leadership has less to do with position and duties and more with connecting with people to motivate and encourage action. References: Fong, D. (n.d.). Introduction to Leadership: Week 1: Lecture 2 [video]. Blackboard. https://luonline.blackboard.com/ultra/courses/_183930_1/cl/outline
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About 5311This is my first course in my principal certification program. The course focus on leadership. ArchivesCategories
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