ETL504 Reflective Journal Blog Task

My first few attempts at developing a concept map on Leadership in Schools was numbing when I realised I had constructed quite a number of them without the inclusion of a Teacher Librarian.  Furthermore I had included only roles and responsibilities as key concepts of Leaders.  This perhaps reflects my initial misconception of a leader from only a management perspective. Developing a mind map has been an interesting experience which has lead to much reflection. Are my beliefs and knowledge of the potential impact a Teacher Librarian can have, different to what I actually practice? Am I currently an untapped professional in the school library? Is this a reflection of how others also miss and undervalue the skills and abilities of a Teacher Librarian?

However at this point I am reminded of some much valued input that I received at our first retraining day in Sydney and that is ‘This year, just concentrate on finishing these studies, they are now your priority’. So in effect I am practising leadership skills in the personal domain by exhibiting strength and commitment to ongoing professional development, belief in what I am doing and why I am doing it and focusing on the bigger picture or long term goals.

My views on leadership in general have expanded and I find myself in meetings thinking about the skills I see played out in front of me from my Principal, Executives and fellow teachers and generally find myself in awe of their experience and skills and feel that I am most certainly standing on the shoulders of giants. I also find myself contemplating if particular teams are balanced and which of those staff are the doers, dreamers, innovators, system thinkers or relationship builders.

ETL401, 503 and 504 have provided me with knowledge, understanding and a positive attitude in relation to a Teacher Librarian in a leadership role.  Burney (2005) and Samaardak (2011) suggest that leadership is not innate but learned and after all readings I am inclined to agree. Jaap (unspecified) suggests ones ego comes into play when interacting with others.  I have now found receiving feedback bears an entirely new light as I begin to consider how I could have done things differently and more effectively and now attempt to push my emotions aside.

I have been acting as a servant leader but aspire to one day be transformational.  The School Leadership Capability Framework seems to focus on Instructional Leadership and I do wonder what bearing this will have on future leadership styles within DEC NSW. 

Sergiovanni (2005) emphasises the importance of leadership and learning and that as a leader it is important to cultivate and amass the intellectual capital needed for an organisation to achieve it’s goals. This highlights for me the necessity of professional development and training in a learning oriented school as well as networking and sharing practical skills and knowledge with colleagues through communication and collaboration. Personally this information increases my desire to embrace learning and to develop this same learning oriented culture in students.

Professor Geoff Scott, Quote

‘It is the combination of brains and heart that ultimately makes the difference’

Learning Principals

Succesful techonology oriented professional development

Strong and useful training, coupled with:

• time to practice new skills
• social support, ongoing through local social support system
• technical support, ongoing and post training
• changes in values, includes changes in classroom structures, roles and behaviours, knowledge and understanding, and uses of technology in classrooms.

This leads to sustained change in practice.

 

Schifter (2008) from Ch.XIV, Effecting Change in the Classroom Through Professional Development. 

Sergiovanni, T. J. Quote

‘Important differences exist among incompetent, and excellent schools. …Students in excellent schools accomplish far more and teachers work much harder than can ordinarily be expected’.

Tom Jaap Reading

About enabling leadership

This is about engaging people in working on issues affecting themselves and their organisation. Trust and respect plays an significant part and working as a team is preferred. Enrol everyone to be involved in a constructive process of teamwork. Encourage others to give feedback. Don’t take things personally. ‘if you don’t know yourself, how do you expect to know others?’
Recognise and value contributions that everyone can make.
Recognise that mistakes will happen – providing great learning opportunities to display humility and openness to feedback.
Flow from leaders to supporters to leaders to supporters etc.

http://bottomupleadership.com/about-e/

Reading Knapp, Copland and Swinnerton (2007)

Data Informed Leadership –

Interests, ideologies and institutional context are factors that influence decision making along with comprehensive and systematic data gathering. Data may also prompt questions and deliberation, create occasions for inquiry, respond to public images of the educational system’s functioning and raise questions about the school system’s policies or responsiveness to particular constituencies or needs
Federal ‘No child left behind act’ added to educational accountability.
Leadership Activities:
• Diagnosing or clarifying instructional or organisational problems
• Weighing altenrative course of action
• Justifying chosen courses of action
• Complying with external requests for information
• Informing daily practice
• Managing meaning, culture and motivation
Tension
Between immediate feedback to inform current practice and the longer-term documentation of performance
Between what is technically desirable and what is politically or culturally possible

Types of data available to educational leaders:
Student demographic, perceptions, student learning, school processes and teacher characteristics, behaviour and professional learning.

We live in an information rich environment. Leaders are able to conduct inquiries to provide indications or warnings and hints about system performance. Building cultures of inquiry help to =
Assessing or searching for data and evidence, making sense of data and its action implications, taking action and communicating it is different arenas of data use, learning from action through feedback and further inquiry and focus and (re)framing problems for inquiry.

We Seek, We interpret, We act on information.

Retrieved from http://content.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.csu.edu.au/pdf19_22/pdf/2007/QQQ

Makers or Takers

James (2013) suggests that there are twelve things successful people do.  Think it is only worth remembering those of a maker, immersing myself with what is good to do is how I focus on what I want to do and be:

Confidence – know will succeed, don’t care what others think

Commitment – find resources within themselves to run race & turn roadblocks into speed humps

Sacrifice – choose to do what would rather avoid if to achieve a goal

Selectivity – constantly assess what see and experience, what’s useful and not

Awareness – focus on own behaviour and how it impacts other

Courage – make changes even when everything seems okay

Mastery – work on essential skills and techniques until mastered

Control – captains of own destiny

Responsibility – see problems and revel at how to fix it

Gratitude – deeply appreciate any help and never take it for granted

Generosity – step up and give their own when others in need

Perspective – realise they’re successful because ‘they’re standing on shoulders of giants’

 

http://www.news.com.au/business/worklife/twelve-things-successful-people-do/story-e6frfm9r-1226689275187

Don Tapscott – 4 Principles of an Open World applied to school libraries and TLs provide a framework to follow as a leader:

Collaboration – Just like Taspcott’s starlings as a whole we are stronger.  A TL could operate in isolation but as a result information skills and lifelong learning could become undervalued, underutilised and disconnected.  A TL skills and abilities teamed with that of CRTs enables integration of content between the class and library, strengthening the learning experience for students. They will need lifelong skills enabling them to define, locate, select, organise, present and assess information now and in the future.  Furthermore, the internet provides a means for the whole school community to collaborate more effectively in this endeavour.

Transparency – Be available, be open, be accountable and be informative, involve all stakeholders in library operations. Be a guide, be a filter, be an innovative leader.  Relay pertinent information.

Sharing – Open communication, sharing, guidance and support in regards to resources that support the needs of the school and meet curriculum requirements. Approach staff meetings sharing ideas, websites, resources with others, create systems to curate these (wikispaces, diigo).  Network and share with other TLs.

Empowerment – Empower others in the information process increasing their confidence, drawing on strengths and innovative ideas. Work together to solve problems, give feedback, acknowledge contributions and share the load.

Problem Solving with 7 steps

RFF is covered by TL. Difficult to plan any collaborative teaching opportunities with CRTs. Students learning in library may not be contextually relevant to classroom learning.

Step 1 – Definition
• Library program does not always integrate with classroom focus.
• TL RFF is not in sync with CRTs and limits collaborative planning as TL provides RFF to CRTs.
Step 2 – Data Collection (conferencing, surveys, emails, meetings)
• Timetabling and budget allocations, what is available for planning
• Content students learn in library and content students learn in class
• Network with other TLs, how do other schools manage it
• Communication options for CRTs and TL, evaluate efficiency of what’s available
• Knowledge of TLs role and benefits of their teaching in library
• Role of TL is not considered important
• Can TL match or support CRT to build student knowledge
• What does the Principal, CRT and students want, what can be done as a team
• What infrastructures/resources support sharing of info
Step 3 – Cause Analysis (WHY?)
• TL provides RFF for CRTs? (Budget? Teacher Request?)
• Skills and Abilities of TL and SAO? Time allocation for TL to fulfil requirements?
• Responsibilities of TL (e.g. Computer Coordinator)?
• Collaboration of implementing TL and Library as integral part of school
Step 4 – Solution Planning and Implementation
• Develop proposed plan from data collection for sharing and review. Information meeting for staff, parents?
• Brainstorm and discuss as whole staff, stage groups and exec
• Implement plan and set a review date
• Link on Library website re role of TL and flyer home to parents
• Time factored into schooling year (per term) for TL to plan with CRTs
Step 5 – Evaluation of Effects
• Review new data with old data at set date, what was the preferred means?
• Was meeting, time, resources used productively?
• How will teachers know which skills students need to gain – more data needed
• Monitor feedback from all involved
Step 6 – Standardisation
• Can this solution be used elsewhere, in other areas?
• Can this be used across stages
Step 7 – Evaluation of the process
• Was the problem solved? How was this done? What was learnt?
• Continue to gather information (including from other schools)
• Final survey to establish growth

Hackman & Wageman Reading – Asking the right questions about leadership

Q1 Not do leaders make a difference but under what conditions does leadership matter?
What circumstances leader actions are highly consequential for system performance from those which leaders behaviours and decisions make no difference.
Q2 Not what are the traits of leaders but how do leaders’ personal attributes interact with
situational properties to shape outcomes?
It is the interaction between traits and situations that count.
Q3 Not does common dimensions exist on which all leaders can be arrayed, but are good and
poor leadership qualitatively different phenomena?
Leader behaviour and style in relation to ‘initiation structure’ and ‘consideration’ dimensions. Patterns of behaviour differ from good leaders to poor leaders.
Q4 Not how do leaders and followers differ, but how can leadership models be reframed so
they treat all system members as both leaders and followers
Leaders act, followers react. All leaders must have followers and followers also exhibit leadership. Skill needed to balance between role as leader and role as follower. Shared leadership can take on new meaning.
Q5 Not what should be taught in leadership courses but how can leaders be helped to learn?
Ideally motivated in ways that foster their own continuous learning from their experiences. Emotional maturity required in dealing with one’s own anxiety and anxiety of others.

Hackman, J. Richard and Wageman, Ruth (2007) Asking the Right Questions About Leadership: Discussion and Conclusions, American Psychologist, Issue: Vol.62(1), Jan 2007, p43-47.