What constitutes a good leader and effective leadership?

Abstract

Much has been written about the art of leadership and the identification of traits, which forms the effective leader. In this paper I hope to identify the key qualities, which exemplifies good or effective leaders and leadership. This will be achieved through a review of the literature in the field of leadership and the association to the literature via survey responses from teachers at a high performing inner city government primary school in Melbourne, Victoria.

For the purpose of this paper I will use Gronn’s (1996) definition of a leader and leading which states that, ‘ . . . the two core attributes which best define a leader are influence and identification, while leading is defined as the framing of meaning and the mobilisation of support for a meaningful course of action’.

When taking into thought the attributes of a good leader or good leadership it needs to be noted that the contextual basis of that leader/ship plays a major function in what that leader does or says and what form their leadership takes to be successful.

Sergiovanni (2000) claims that it is tough to identify what makes a good leader as ‘context plays a key role in deciding whether certain approaches to leadership will be effective or not. Thus what a leader says or does to be effective in one kind of enterprise may not lead to effectiveness in another kind of enterprise’.

Introduction

The school at which the survey was administered is a high performing inner city public government primary school in Melbourne, Victoria. The staff is made up of approximately 25 teachers, with extra support staff. The school has classes from preparatory to year 6 with a mixture of straight and composite grade structuring and has 450 students with a fairly homogeneous cultural and socio-economic student and parent population.

There is a disproportionate number of graduate and beginning teachers to experienced or leading teachers present at the school. Many experienced teachers retiring over the course of the last year, and a systematic rehiring of graduate teachers, was undertaken to replace them.

Teachers plan in teams, which are made up of two year levels once a week and are also assigned to participate in subject specific teams once a fortnight to act on behalf of the staff to seek out best practice in key learning areas and support year level teams with the new found knowledge.

The school is made up of a leadership team consisting of the principal, assistant principal, heads of faculty and subject coordinators. As a result of the loss of some experienced heads of faculty and subjects, the leadership team has given opportunity to those graduates displaying leadership qualities to take on extra responsibility in leading significant areas of the school.

Years of service in the teaching profession amongst those undertaking the survey ranged from six months to 20 years. The longest serving member at the school, who undertook the survey, had been there for 13 years and the shortest for only six months. Therefore,some based their view of a good leader on the leadership styles within the school and others a combination of both the school and other organisations that they have worked in, some places of work that were not within the education system.

The question was administered to 12 teachers holding varied roles within the inner city school, amount of years in the teaching service and amount of years teaching at the school itself. A ranking of responses according to the amount of times respondents listed similar elements of a good leader, identified 10 key attributes associated with one being a good leader.

The question which teachers completed and which formed the basis for comparison to the literature in the field of leadership was, ‘In your view, what makes a good leader?’ Teachers were reminded that the role of leader could be assigned to others not only those holding titles of leadership, such as, principal or assistant principal.

Respondents invariably crossed over into the ‘doing’ aspects of one bestowing the role of leader or being part of the leadership team, which linked to the effectiveness of the leader/s in creating an environment conducive to creating a successful school.

Moller (2005) has the view that ‘Leadership effects are primarily indirect working through variables related to curriculum and classroom instruction’.

Therefore, much of the leaders’ actions and interactions individually and in partnership with others in the construction of best practice teaching and learning will shape curriculum and instruction by teachers in classrooms. The better the leader deals with the interactions and if the value of their personal actions are noted, the more teachers will follow the leader in enacting the intended curriculum for the best outcomes for all its students and school community.

Thus, there seems to be a dichotomy of what its means to be a good or effective leader, the set of attributes one should have when undertaking the role of leader and what one does with those set of attributes in the process of leading others for a successful school community.

As Gronn (1996) states ‘…the assumption that role incumbency automatically bestowed leadership’ has lost its impetus as far back as the 70’s’. Meaning that leadership is a skill of its own and therefore one not only has to have the identified skills of a leader but be knowledgeable in how to act out those skills and understand the processes of leadership to successfully achieve a set vision for the school community.

One respondent explained it like this:

‘A good leader should not only be knowledgeable in their field of leadership, but should have the skills to pass on that knowledge and ideas to their team.’
(2nd year teacher)

As a result, the 10 attributes, fig. 1.1, in order of most identified characteristic derived from the survey completed by teachers considering the question: ‘What makes a good leader’, crosses over into the effectiveness of how well that individual can lead, which ultimately is evaluated on the level of success the school experiences in the areas of teaching and learning.

Figure. 1.1: 10 attributes of a good leader

The 10 attributes of a good leader (fig. 1.1) will form the basis for further discussion and comparison against literature in the area of school leadership, with each characteristic broken down and explored individually on a deeper level for further understanding and clarification of what it means to be a good leader in our schools in the 21st Century.

Ten attributes of a good leader and effective leadership

SUPPORTIVE. The one attribute that all teachers agreed on as the most important characteristic of a good leader or effective leadership is that they are supportive of teachers and the work that they do. In this sense, teachers felt that the leader was there for them when they needed assistance and guidance in matters of teaching, learning and further progression of their vocation through targeted professional development; professional development that not only meets the needs of the school, but development that meets each individuals’ professional and personal aspirations.

In response to the survey, some of the teachers wrote this about supportive leaders:

‘Respects, encourages and acknowledges the potential, skills and talents of all staff members.’ (20th year teacher)

‘A good leader needs to be supportive and encouraging to colleagues without being a 'pushover’.’ (2nd year teacher)

‘A good leader is positive and empathetic; they show their human side and support others when it is important to do so.’ (5th year teacher)

‘A leader must have an ability to never seem as though they're too busy to help.’ (1st year teacher)

McDonald (1999) in describing leaders that support others and do it really well, quotes a Zen saying which asserts that, ‘the best leaders of all, the people know not they exist. They turn to each other and say: “We did it ourselves”.’

Supportive leaders empower those behind them to lead from the front. When leaders are being supportive, they are not holding your hand as such, instead they are there for you after they have delegated a task to complete and have an open door policy when you want an ear to share your thoughts.

The supportive leader sits down with you at agreed upon intervals to see how you are progressing and to see if you have considered all possible scenarios and solutions to the assigned task. This is not micro-management, but instead the passing on of the skills of leading to another.

McDonald (op. cit) views the supportive aspect of good leadership and leaders as those who ‘know the people they work with. They are on the lookout for their potential for leadership. In recognising such qualities in others, the leader is not only sharing responsibility in the school, but is helping to ensure that a pool of potential leaders is always being developed’.

A 13-year teacher veteran sums up the importance of being supportive in leadership and being selfless in this act as, ‘helping others to clarify their personal and professional goals, and to work towards them’. The supportive leader knows that a contented teacher, both personally and professionally, is at work more; functions better and are more willing to take on extra responsibilities to see the success of the school eventuate.

Geist et al’s (2004) view of ‘benevolence’ as a key quality or component of leaders building trust amongst constituents, has some connection with the identified characteristic here of a leader who is supportive. He contends that ‘it (benevolence) means having an interest in another person’s welfare. The role of mentor suggests this idea. A mentor or guide displays concern, good faith, and altruistic intentions toward a protégé.’

The idea of support is also about keeping the welfare of one’s staff at the forefront of one’s mind, with the teachers being the schools’ biggest asset, it serves the leader well to interact with the staff in a way which shows they’re valued and supported in their endeavours to increase the success of the students socially, emotionally and academically.

AN EXCELLENT LEADER. The Encarta World English Dictionary defines listening as ‘to pay attention to something and take it into account’. Good leaders are excellent listeners; able to listen to others on issues that the other party values, showing the capacity to take on a different perspective before making a decision.

Heifetz & Linsky’s (2002) metaphorical depiction of a good (listening) leader or leadership is when someone can take himself or herself away from the eventfulness of the ‘dance’ (where there are lots of people challenging for space, attention, where it can get quite noisy and confusing) to the ‘balcony’ to get a different perspective and to reflect on the evenings’ affairs while it is happening. Once at this vantage point on the ‘balcony’ the leader is able to take on different perspectives to the one they had while on the ‘dance floor’, and can consider all possible angles and inputs prior to making a decision.

At the viewpoint above the ‘dance’ it could feel and look quite different to when you’re actually involved in the dance on the dance floor. You might be able to see (metaphorically speaking) from above that not everybody is dancing, that some have left the event, some are upset that it is too crowded and that they don’t like the music or are fed up with the same old dance!

This ‘dance’ (meetings, discussions, consultation, issue, etc) is where everyone expects the leader to actively listen to their viewpoint on matters concerning teaching and learning, and at times the ‘dance floor’ (staffroom, office) can become so busy and bewildering that one could make hasty decisions or be seen to offend. The concept of moving to the ‘balcony’ (reflecting away from the discussion and considering all perspectives) to make a more informed and better thought out decision is what separates the good leaders from ones of mediocrity.

Several respondents on the issue of listening viewed this as not only the ability to listen, but also to understand:

‘(A good leader has) excellent people skills and the ability to articulate their own ideas while listening with understanding.’ (13th year teacher)

‘A good leader listens and knows when to stray from their plan.’ (20th year teacher)

‘A good leader is a good listener. They consider all aspects of a problem as a total package and take advice from others who have experience or expertise, which relates to the issue, or problem and reviews with others what action is best to take before taking it.’ (5th year teacher)

‘A good leader will always listen to someone’s concerns and problems.’ (4th year teacher)

‘I believe a good leader is someone who inspires others through their creativity, their enthusiasm and their willingness to listen to others and take risks.’ (2nd year teacher)

Peterson (2001) outlined the ‘complexity and demanding’ tasks of principals by stating that:

‘…A manager’s work is characterised by brevity, variety and fragmentation. This is especially true for school leaders. Principals’ daily work is characterised by hundreds of short tasks of enormous variety . . . Effective principals must be able to lead within these quickly paced days and hundreds of interactions.’

If you are to be a good leader, then the many and varied day-to-day interactions with staff, students and parents have to be dealt with in a fashion, which makes the individual or groups you’re interacting with feel valued, understood and that their viewpoints will be considered.

CREATES INCLUSIVE ENVIRONMENTS. I took this attribute of leadership to mean that the leader values the input of all teachers, students and parents in the decisions, which affect the entire school community, but most of all the students. The leader creates the types of spaces, conditions and timetabling which lend it to people coming together to make decisions regarding the best interest of the school, its students and its core business, learning.

The leader is the foremost one, which articulates the need for the inclusive nature of discussion and safe spaces and protocols to undertake such discussions. They display this in their own dealings with all members of the school community and are seen as a person who holds that value (inclusiveness) at the forefront through consistency of its application in day-to-day school situations.

Sergiovanni (2000) explains that:

‘Schools need special leadership because school professionals don’t react warmly to the kind of hierarchically based command leadership or hero leadership that characterises so many other kinds of organisations. Nor do professionals have a high tolerance for bureaucratic rituals. Though school leaders may be in charge, the best of them are aware that often the teachers they supervise know more about what needs to be done and how to do it than they do.’

Some of the respondents viewed it as such:

‘A (good) leader must create an environment where everyone is comfortable to put ideas forward and feels they are being treated fairly.’ (2nd year teacher)

‘A good leader is decisive but inclusive in the decision-making process.’ (5th year teacher)

‘(A good leader) has a desire to understand others and an ability to see things from another’s perspective. They have the ability to create a team environment that is inclusive and effective.’ (13th year teacher)

Taylor (2005) when citing UK teachers on the features of good leadership and good schools, their responses included the fact that the Head (principal) ‘ensured that his staff were involved in decision-making processes and that their opinions were valued’.

Good leaders are able to manipulate the physical resources at their disposal to ensure that the staff has the opportunity to be collegiate, collaborative, research oriented and initiate teaching practices, which will improve student’s social and academic outcomes.

Often when teachers’ work or tour schools which have inclusive democratic decision-making protocols and environments, they refer to the positive and tangible culture or climate of the school permeating throughout the corridors and classrooms. A culture, which is not only advantageous to the teachers and the work they undertake, but through this benefit to teachers, students are exposed to better teaching and learning practices.

With the inclusiveness of staff in decisions, the leader is able to monitor and guide discussions and agreements entered into between staff and link it back to the values and annual targets of the school. Taylor (2005) noted that ‘this democratic style of management appeared, in some institutions at least, to have reinforced the sense in which the whole staff were working towards the same goal’.

Saphier et al (2006) claims that the ‘team is the window on the soul of the school’ after all. When teams don’t work, we know the school is not progressing because we never know in which direction individuals are heading. However, when teams are functioning well at a whole school level, we are all clear about the role we play and the importance of collaboration in the overall process.

It is not through coercion that the leader drives and mediates the discussions, but rather through the sharing of information, which will assist all to make better-informed decisions. The leader acts as the lead-learner in the organisation and ensures that teachers have the benefit of that learning in staff meetings where joint decisions are being made about the best teaching and learning of students.

Glatter and others’ (2003) summation is that good leaders who allow the inclusiveness of staff and others in the decision making process through the creation of safe environments to do so, is ‘creating a climate where truth is heard’ and where this truth and transparency is driving trust amongst all those concerned to fulfil the intended vision of the school through agreed upon school wide methods.

Crowther (2005) reporting on a joint US and Canadian study on leadership found that the ‘work of leaders in schools and across school regions is second – among school-related factors – to the curriculum and teaching work that goes on in the classroom.’ Thus, the importance of creating school environments, which are inclusive of voices from all teachers is paramount, so as to ensure that the intended curriculum is enacted in the classroom as prearranged.

Johnson et al. (2005) likens the leaders role as the one who ‘will do whatever is necessary to provide teachers with the training, materials, guidance, support, or other resources they need to educate their students to attain high academic standards. Teachers must feel that their individual and collective success is of critical importance to their leaders’.

Good leaders articulate and show their appreciation for the effort, time and dedication of not only teachers, but parents and students as well. The leadership group needs to do this on a regular basis in a systematic manner to increase synergy.

In the next section I will be discussing knowledgeable leadership and skills sharing of the leader, and it is my opinion that it is paramount that leaders have well (empirically) researched frameworks for working through the involvedness of the principalship. Principals need to have at their disposal the how to of continually improving their school and the understanding of what this entails.

Teachers want leaders who know what they are doing in terms of steering the school in the right direction and that they are doing it with a values base synonymous with the school and school community’s.

Components of Michael Fullan’s ‘Five Components of Change Leadership’ and his ‘8 Forces for Leaders of Change’ (below) seems to clearly express what knowledgeable leadership entails to create the ‘followership’ by staff, students and the wider school community and to work on continuous improvement of the school, and in doing so, act in a morally and ethically sound manner.

As Elliot (1999) professes:

‘True leadership, like true learning, is transformational. As we learn better ways of doing, we are constantly discovering things about ourselves. As we become better leaders, it becomes essential that we reflect on how we work with others, the complex skills required for collegiality and our own willingness to be open to change as we learn and lead.’

For this reason, leadership being transformational and ever learning, I have included Fullan’s ‘change leadership’ theorems here, as his work does not only exemplify ‘change leadership’ theory, but overall what a good leader must know about leadership and how to lead for success.

For the next two leader attributes, knowledgeable about leadership and knowledgeable in how to pass on skills, I will apply the theorems from Fullan to identify these as two key features of a good leader and effective leadership.

KNOWLEDGE ABOUT LEADERSHIP. Evans (2005), when quoting Barth (1988), identifies another approach to leadership as being described as shared or participatory leadership which knowledgeable leaders exercise to create successful schools. It is suggested that this, ‘leadership style features high involvement by all in decision-making, each person in the institution feels free and responsible to participate fully and power shifts according to the expertise and competence of the members of the group.’

Some respondents viewed this as a leader who:

‘Has an extensive understanding and knowledge of a number of teaching issues and how a school operates.’ (6th year teacher)

‘(They) respect, encourage and acknowledge the potential, skills and talents of all staff members.’ (20th year teacher)

‘A good leader should not feel they need to 'do everything', rather, they should recognise others' skills and interests and delegate appropriately.’ (2nd year teacher)

This means that good leaders who are knowledgeable in the field of leadership know when not to lead and how to let others lead without being dismissive or imperious in their delegation of meaningful school tasks.

The subheadings that follow encompass knowledgeable leadership and being able to pass on that leadership knowledge to others.

MORAL PURPOSE.. Fullan (2005:54) describes this as the ‘overriding principle of having the knowledge about the why of change. …and the need to improve ‘society through improving educational systems and thus the learning of all citizens’.

This would mean at a leadership level, acting with the intent of ensuring positive influence for all members of the school community, not just the teachers and students, but parents as well. This could be the linking of literacy and numeracy strategies or programs to the community authentically, resulting in benefit to students and the community with a greater subsistence of connectedness.

UNDERSTANDING CHANGE. Knowledgeable leadership is ensuring that the process of leadership is not about school development through a checklist procedure within a hierarchical system, but rather the sharing of the complexity of leadership with all school community members through the articulation of where they want to be, as an organisation of and for learning.

There are six ways of thinking about this process of leadership for change as described by Fullan (2004:4); ‘the goal is not to innovate the most; not enough just having the best ideas; appreciate earlier difficulties when innovating; redefine resistance as a potential positive force; reculturing and the understanding that change is complex’.

Fullan (2005:55) states that ‘the change process is about establishing the condition for continuos improvement in order to persist and overcome inevitable barriers to reform’.

Leadership need not abandon initiatives, but rather evaluate why the stagnation has happened and perhaps change crucial aspects to move forward once again.

BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS. Fullan (2004:4) adds that ‘leaders must be consummate relationship builders with diverse people and groups, especially with people different from themselves’. In building relationships, leadership should not base good relationships on the level of accord to ‘chain of command’ leadership initiatives and coercion, but rather on value and respect.

This type of behaviour builds bridges for much needed collaboration and connectedness, which are two key indicators to the success of leadership.
Beatty (2005) forms the opinion that ‘hierarchical stratifications and silos of specialisations are anathema to the creation of dynamic learning communities’. Knowledgeable leadership is breaking down the walls to these silos to affect change at a whole school level.

MAKING COHERENCE. Fullan (2005:5) sheds light on coherence making by viewing ‘effective leaders as those who tolerate enough ambiguity to keep the creative juices flowing, but along the way they seek coherence’. These leaders understand that if they express to members that they have an idea in mind for change and the path is mapped out already, the creativity of the organisation as a whole will not be at its peak and therefore lateral thinking on problematic issues will not occur. New ideas and ways of dong things will not be forthcoming.

DEVELOPING CULTURES OF EVALUATION. Knowledgeable leadership is about not falling into the trap of undertaking programs due to external pressure, ‘once off’ professional development that win people over emotionally or programs which seem to focus on the same aspects for change within similar contextual settings, but on further analysis only partly correlated.

It is key that leadership insist on constant evaluation of where they are in terms of where they want to be, and where they have come from. Celebrating success is important as a means to show the capability of collective endeavour, but there is a need to be mindful of programs, which are not making the educational gains as they once did.

Fullan (2005:56) argues that ‘a culture of evaluation must be coupled with a culture of learning for schools to sort out promising from not-so-promising ideas and especially to deepen the meaning of what is learned’.

FOCUSING ON LEADERSHIP FOR CHANGE. Good leaders and leadership know that they have to focus on more than one style of leadership. It is for that reason that good leaders foster an understanding of leadership theory and the pragmatics of leadership. In addition, identifying the appropriateness of letting others lead, to determine which leadership process is most appropriate at an individual, staff and community level to enact, support and sustain change.

The leadership group is clear about the notion of distributed or lateral leadership. Fullan (2005:57) says that the ‘main mark of a (good) school leader at the end of his or her tenure is not just that individual’s impact on student achievement, but rather how many leaders are left behind who can go even further’.

Therefore it is as necessary to factor in succession of leadership, as it is to lead oneself. Building up the capacity of others to lead will allow the sustainability of change and capture the road of change when one leader leaves or is redirected.

However, when stating this it is important that teachers want to lead and that they have the resources and support from leadership when they do so. This cannot be stressed enough. At times teachers have been encouraged to lead, only to be micromanaged and ‘railroaded’ when the process of leading or the nature of ideas for change have not been aligned with historical school methods enlisted for change.

When looking at change theory and methodologies it is important to understand the educational, political and cultural terrain you are trying to change, but to not discourage new ideas and thinking because of what as always been done in the school historically. Otherwise ‘we are going to get what we have always got, if we do what we have always done’.

Knowledgeable leadership is to know the environment you work in and how to respect its nuances and improve it simultaneously.

So, as long as members understand the symbolic and cultural values of the school and its community, lateral thinking on leadership frameworks and working should be supported and explored.

KNOWLEGEABLE IN HOW TO PASS ON SKILLS. Respondents stated that it was not enough for the leader to be knowledgeable about leadership or leadership theory itself, but rather to know how to pass on those skills to empower others in the school to become better leaders as well. Listed below are some responses to this attribute of a good leader:

‘Teaches and encourages the younger members of staff.’ (13th year teacher)

‘They are a mentor figure before an authority figure; that is they will try to lead others along the best path to get the best out of them.’ (1st year teacher)

‘(They have the) ability to help others manage change.’ (5th year teacher)

‘They must have knowledge of what (content) they are leading and insist that their team share this knowledge.’ (20th year teacher)

CREATING AND SHARING KNOWLEDGE. Without relationship building and fostering a community of learning, knowledge creation and sharing will not be possible. Knowledgeable leadership knows how and why to build the relationships among staff, parents, students and leadership and show that these relationships are valued. They know this will need to happen before people will exert energy and time, to exact change through creating knowledge and sharing their findings.

BUILDING CAPACITY. Fullan (2005:55) views ‘capacity building as a collective phenomenon. Whole schools, districts and systems must increase their capacity as groups.’ He goes on to state, ‘building group capacity is difficult because it involves working together in new ways’.

Knowledgeable leadership practice is to put in place organisational structures and protocols, which foster dialogue and safe environments, which allow the challenging of ideas. There also needs to be a consensus that evidence based decision-making is at the forefront of change initiatives and that evidence collection is of an ongoing nature through collaborative practices.

DEVELOPING CULTURES FOR LEARNING. Johnson (2005:47) discloses that in ‘successful schools regular time was set aside for teachers to come together, examine student work, discuss pedagogical problems, and help each other identify solutions that would lead to better achievement’.

Teachers need to be given the flexibility, time as well as resources to guarantee that learning is a continuos process for themselves as well as their students. Leaders thus play a role in ensuring that teachers are given the opportunity to work on pedagogical issues collaboratively, over a period of time so that they do not make injudicious decisions for improvement based on standardised testing measures alone.

Fullan (2005:57) acknowledges that ‘learning from others widens the pool of ideas and also enhances a greater ‘we-we’ identity beyond one school’. It is therefore imperative that leaders provide the ‘reengineering of organisational processes’ (Davies, 2002) to allow for deeper teacher learning to take place so that better understanding can be gained to make more informed decisions about the direction which yields the greatest student achievement in a sustained manner.

Saphier (2006) concludes that ‘schools with strong cultures produce more teaching expertise and better decision making by more teachers more of the time’.

A strong culture within the school means that the decisions made therein are carried out as intended, and if problems arise there is an understanding that dialogue and constructive critique is welcomed and supported.

Evans (2005) contends that leaders who are knowledgeable in the how of passing on a variety of skills in learning and teaching are transformational leaders. She claims that ‘transformational leadership occurs when leaders broaden and elevate the interests of their employees, generate awareness and acceptance of the purposes and mission of the group and steer their employees to look beyond their own self-interest for the good of the group’.

Thus, leaders who are knowledgeable about leadership and know how to pass on the skills of leading are transformational. They are always looking for ways to change the school for the better and support all to learn new and better ways of doing along the way.

EXCELLENT COMMUNICATOR. This applies to the leader being able to articulate their values and vision for the organisation to a range of people - bureaucrats, parents, teachers, students, business leaders and the wider community, with transparency and meticulousness.

Davies & Davies (2005), talk about good leaders having ‘strategic conversations’ with the staff. This type of communication was articulated by one leader in their study as the staff and leadership ‘constantly talking. Large groups, small groups, individuals, a constant feast of two-way conversations bringing people in line with where we are going.’

When identifying qualities of a good leader a survey respondent stated that, ‘Of course their are logistical matters such as administration and so on, and the ability to run a meeting and keep everyone on task, and it's also important that a leader keeps the lines of communication open at all times between the team and those above’.

Leaders with excellent communication skills also know how to mediate discussions and ensure that all parties are able to understand and connect to what is being deliberated. They realise that the interactions between staff is what builds the relationships, and that good relationships are what is most important in creating effective schools. For that reason they construct agreements on conduct, which is acceptable and encouraged within these interactions.

Leaders who are excellent communicators are in affect building culture within their schools, and are displaying their own and their schools’ character, beliefs and values through the choice of their words and the demeanour in deliverance of those words.

A survey respondent stated that, ‘I think it’s important for a leader to have a solid values base on which to make judgements, rather than 'off the cuff'. (They) need to be strategic, rather than ad hoc.’ (13th year teacher)

Sergiovanni (2000) states that such leaders ‘create a sense of us (that) transform them from a collection of individuals to a collectivity with shared interests.’ This he concludes is a hallmark of effectiveness and improvement in and of schools.

INSPIRATIONAL. When respondents indicated that a good leader is someone who is inspirational, they were talking about someone with excellent interpersonal skills and able to take people on an educational path that they can picture through the leaders’ articulation building appealing imagery.

McDonald (1999), talks about the inspirational leader being able to ‘draw others into leadership’, with the values and beliefs that they express and act out on a daily basis. These leaders not only talk the rhetoric of leadership, but they show people how to take the steps to achieve personal and professional goals, and through this they continually gather support for organisation initiatives.

These people are not ‘heroes’, ‘super charismatic’ or ‘superhuman’ (Sergiovanni, 2000; Mackay, 2006; Thomas, 2003) but rather they have ideas, which people want to adopt and which hold some connection to their own morals and educational philosophy.

Sergiovanni (2000) describes it through scenario:

‘Imagine a leader whom you personally admire because of her or his ability to handle people well. But you do not agree with this person’s goals. Compare this leader with another you may not even like very much but whose ideas make sense to you. …If you chose the second person in the two depictions of inspirational leaders then it appears that admiration, imitation, style, and affection may be less important to followership than agreement on ideas, values, and goals.’

The second type of inspirational leadership would result in followers completing what has been set out to do to improve the school, because they have a strong association with the leader’s ideas and values. However, if the leader was inspirational because they were charismatic and had fantastic interpersonal skills and non-agreeable ideas, you might find that followers will waiver in their dedication or commitment to complete set tasks when the leader’s charisma wears thin.

Below respondents do not mention the charisma of the leader as a driving force for their followership, but rather what the leader does in the act of leading others and how they do it.

‘I believe a good leader is someone who inspires others through their creativity.’ (2nd year teacher)

‘To instil loyalty they must show loyalty to others, to foster integrity and conscientiousness, their word must be reliable and their work ethic evident to all.’ (5th year teacher)

‘They must have a vision about where they want the team to go and inspire the team that this will be good for all of them.’ (20th year teacher)

Taylor et al (2005) adds:

‘Mythology has grown up around the notion of the ‘hero head’ who battles to succeed against everybody else in the school, but those who are most likely to succeed will have the backing of others in the school’s leadership team. Good leadership can be driven by an inspiring individual. But that alone is not enough; it also requires teamwork’.

So, inspirational individualistic leaders are not enough, they have to inspire others to want to work together for the good of the entire school. They need to inspire teamwork and collegiality and demonstrate this in the way they work with the senior management team and others.

APPROACHABLE. Good leaders are approachable and they have a disposition, which is not off putting, in the sense that you don’t feel you are being a hindrance or a burden on their time.

When talking to respondents about this particular choice when defining a good leader, they stated that you get the sense that the leader is someone who cares about the team they lead, they are accessible and easy to talk to, they are friendly, always has time for other people and they are not a control freak or a big fish in a small pond.

As leaders are in control of organisational structures they are the ones who can manipulate this setting to ensure that approachability and accessibility are at the head of school function. They understand that the learning and collaborative conversations needs to happen between teachers and teachers, teachers and administration and teachers and students to provide a greater network of efficacy.

Thus, they foster in much needed time in school schedules, through deferment or prioritisation of tasks, to ensure that they and other senior administrators are available for consultation on issues of importance to individuals and the entire staff.

Gold et al (2003) looked at approachability of the leader as a key factor in ‘teams that are strong, but consulting, respectful and listening. They (leaders) managed to be separate enough to lead the school, but accessible enough to know how the school community wanted to be led.’

The approachable leader knows that being accessible is an important component of knowing how the school is functioning and in which direction it is heading. The level of approachability of the leader determines how much they will know or be in tune with what their teachers are doing and how they are doing it.

Being approachable allows people to be open and honest about their level of understanding of teaching initiatives within the school, how they are faring and what support they require to fulfil school priorities. They instil a level of trust in the leader to be their confidant and mentor in this regard.

This links closely to Sergiovanni’s (2005) idea of ‘relational trust’, in that those relationships that are not based on trust will actually impede school effectiveness, success and the credibility of the leader. I believe trust is closely related to approachability, as individuals will not approach the leader if they have a sense that what has been discussed between the two parties will become common knowledge amongst all staff.

Barth (2006) claims that, ‘a precondition for doing anything to strengthen our practice and improve a school is the existence of a collegial culture in which professionals talk about practice, share their craft knowledge, and observe and root for the success of one another.’ The school leader in this respect has to be the leader of collegiality. They need to be seen to be available and approachable to discuss issues, which will improve the teaching of teachers and the learning outcomes of all students.

MAKES HARD DECISIONS. Teachers want a leader who is fair, receptive and open in discussion and one who is willing to take various viewpoints into consideration prior to making a decision, but in the end they want the leader to make the tough decisions.

In my experience these types of decisions might relate, but not exclusively, to areas such as hiring, re-hiring or firing staff, budgetary issues, issues of discipline (student, teacher or parent) and the educational course the school will pursue over the coming years in recognising its vision and goals.

Teachers will want to be part of the consultative process in the deliberations of this magnitude, but in essence they do not want to be holding the ‘smoking gun’ during the procedure of evaluation. They want the leader to be strong and forthright in making the ‘tough calls’ and act as the barrier between themselves and the wider school community.

A UK study review by Gold and others (2003) on this very matter drew out responses from participants such as, ‘the head and the deputy head are the school leadership… the senior management team is important, ultimately the head teacher is the boss, he makes the final decisions, he is responsible … it’s on his shoulders’. The review regarded the tracing of decisions as being much easier when this was the case and even though the principal worked in consultation with others it is he who takes the final responsibility.

Respondents from this writer’s survey regarded this component as a key factor in the making of a good leader by claiming that good leaders:

‘Make the hard decisions, regardless of the objectors.’

‘They know when to be sympathetic, and when to take the hard line.’

‘Are able to recognise when it is appropriate to make unpopular decisions or bring someone to task.’

‘They still remember how and why it may be necessary to drag someone over the coals (as it were).’

‘The leader has to be seen as the guardian of collegiality and best pedagogical practice within the school and bring anyone in to line that does not live up to the agreed upon organisational expectations and standards.’

ROLE MODEL. Good leaders are role models and act the way they would like others to behave in the school and the wider school community. They bring with them a deep-seated values base, which they act out in every decision they make within the school. They’re well aware of the political nature of schools and the varied stakeholders (district, state, federal) but stay true to their moral and ethical character.

Feedback from teachers declared that:

‘A good leader needs to be flexible and adaptive and be open-minded in order to 'lead by example' or model to others in terms of what is expected of colleagues.’ (2nd year teacher)

‘I think a good leader is someone who leads by example.’ (3rd year teacher)

‘A leader must be someone who people want to follow, otherwise they are just somebody standing by himself or herself and wondering where everybody else is!’ (3rd year teacher)

‘They demonstrate ongoing growth in their own professional development.’ (20th year teacher)

Thomas (2003) when looking at leaders who took their organisations from good to great, states that they:

‘…were not charismatic, self-centred types. They all possessed one outstanding quality- they had a fierce, even stoic, resolve toward life. Their first ambition was for the institution, not for themselves. They kept up an intense focus on the core purpose of the institution, and they were determined to do whatever it took to make the institution great.’

Leaders who exemplify this facet of leadership, lead from the front and set the standard for their colleagues. However, this does not mean they steamroll others, but rather convince through actions that others espouse to.

Great role models do not do things because they feel others are watching them, on the contrary, they do it because they believe it is the right thing to do and it aligns with their values and the vision of the organisation. They do not expect kudos for things done well, but rather hope for the organisation to be a better place for all.

A study by Barnett et al. (2005) regarding what type of school leadership satisfies teachers revealed that ‘an important satisfier was the modelling role the principal played in the daily life of the school. Several staff felt that because the principal was seen associating with them in daily school life, following the principals’ lead was an easy and satisfying thing to do’.

Therefore, teachers value the fact that the principal stays close to the ‘coalface’ to understand what types of complexities are present for teachers in the pursuit of student academic excellence and overall school success.

Teachers are more readily able to identify with the leader (an important feature in role modelling) when they have a feeling that they are working side by side on a regular basis. And in identifying with the leader, are more willing to adopt teaching and learning guidelines or initiatives set out by them.

Gold et al. (2003) when reflecting on several case studies of outstanding school leaders referred to the status of leadership ‘not being assumed, but rather is more often conferred by followers when they perceive their values being fulfilled in the outlooks and actions of those occupying positions of leadership responsibility’.

Teachers will follow leaders, not because they have the status of leader, but rather on review of how leaders behave in their role in getting the agreed values and goals of the school and its members achieved.

Conclusion

Over the review of the literature and the comparison to survey respondents as to what makes a good leader and effective leadership, my findings revealed four key areas, which stood out for me as pertaining to good leaders, leading and leadership, which are all separate entities in my opinion.

It seems that a good leader not only has to have a certain amount of fundamental qualities prior to taking up a leadership role, but also has to be able to enact those qualities in a high and consistent manner in the process of leading.

People want to be led but only when that leader encapsulates the ‘values, beliefs, shared ideas, shared purpose, needs and interests’ of all members of the school community (Sergiovanni, 2000). The leader will then be entrusted to guide the school down a path, which has been democratically and mutually agreed upon as the most ethical and collectively just way to reach its goals and vision.

Being a good leader means you are knowledgeable about various leadership styles and frameworks, which can be called to mind to support or create effective and sustainable organisational change. You are able to articulate the why and the how of the need to lead in a given way and you identify potential leaders through distributing leadership, but remain constant in building capacity and collegiality throughout the entire establishment.

You do not have to have a mountain of a personality to be a great leader, but you have to have good ideas and methods of making those ideas materialise. Sergiovanni (op. cit.) contends that leadership is ‘more cognitive than interpersonal’ and therefore you will build your authority for leadership practice through followership based on ‘goals, purposes, values and commitments’.

To close I believe that leadership can be learnt, but that the person will have to have a sound values base prior to undertaking the process of leading and the conviction to stay true to those values throughout the complexities of school leadership practice.

References
Barnett, A., et al. (2005) “What Type of School Leadership Satisfies Teachers? A Mixed Method Approach to Teachers’ Perceptions of Satisfaction” SELF Research Centre, University of Western Sydney, Australia
Barth, R.S., (2006) “Improving Relationships Within the Schoolhouse” Educational Leadership, March, 63, 6; pp. 8-13
Beatty, B., (2005) “Emotional Leadership” in Davies, B., ed., (2005) “The Essentials of School Leadership”. London: Paul Chapman Publishing
Crowther, F., (2005) “Leadership Matters” Teacher; May, 2005; pp. 8-11
Davies, B., (2002) “Rethinking schools and school leadership for the twenty-first century: changes and challenges” The International Journal of Educational Management; 16, 4/5; ABI/INFORM Global, pg. 196.
Davies, B., et al, (2005) “Strategic Leadership” in Davies, B., ed., (2005) “The Essentials of School Leadership”. London: Paul Chapman Publishing
Elliot, J., (1999) “Good leaders are…” Learning Matters; 4, 2; pg.20
Evans, B., et al (2005) “Leadership Approaches In Schools” Queensland University of Technology.
Excerpts from Survey (What makes a good leader and effective leadership) administered to 12 teachers at North Fitzroy Primary School, Summer, 2006
Fullan, M., (2004), “Leading in a Culture of Change: Personal Action Guide and Workbook” San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Fullan, M., et al, (2005) “8 Forces for Leaders of Change”, Journal of Staff Development; Fall; 26, 4; pg. 54, ProQuest Education Journals.
Geist, J.R., et al, (2004) “Cultivating a Culture of Trust: Enabling School Structure, Teacher Professionalism, and Academic Press” Leading & Managing; Autumn/Winter; 10, 1; pp.1-18
Glatter, R., et al, (2003) “Best Practice in Educational Leadership and Management – Can we identify it and learn from it?” Educational Management & Administration, 31, 3; pp. 231-243
Gold, A., et al (2003) “Principled principals? Values-Driven Leadership: Evidence from Ten Case Studies of ‘Outstanding’ School Leaders”, Educational Management & Administration, 31, 2; pp. 127-138.
Gronn, P., (1996) “From Transactions to Transformations – A New World Order in the Study of Leadership”, Educational Management & Administration, 24, 1; pp. 7-30
Heifetz, R., et al (2002) “Leadership on the Line” Boston: Harvard Business School Press.
Johnson, J., et al, (2005) “Preparing Educational Leaders to Close Achievement Gaps” Theory into Practice; Winter; 44, 1; pg. 45, ProQuest Education Journals.
McDonald, M., (1999) “Nurturing Leaders”, Learning Matters, 4, 2; pp. 4-9
Mackay, K., (2006) “Ask for a superhuman school leader? Receive a succession crisis”, Teacher; April, 2006; pp. 48-49
Moller, J., (2005) “Framing Successful School Leadership as a Moral and Democratic Enterprise”, Education Research and Perspectives, 32, 2; pp. 43-56
Peterson, K., et al, (2001) “Transforming school leadership” Leadership, 30, 3; pg. 8
Saphier, J., et al, (2006) “3 Strands form Strong School Leadership” Journal of Staff Development; Spring; 27, 2; pg. 51, ProQuest Education Journals.
Sergiovanni, T.J., (2000) “The Lifeworld of Leadership: Creating culture, community, and personal meaning in our schools” San Francisco: Jossey-Bass
Sergiovanni, T.J., (2005) “The Virtues of Leadership” The Educational Forum- Sustaining Educational Leadership; Winter; 69, 2; pp. 112-123
Taylor, C., et al, (2005) “Excellence in Education: The making of great schools” London: David Fulton Publishers.
The Encarta World English Dictionary Online (accompanies DE&T Macintosh laptop)
Thomas, G.W., (2003) “In times of turmoil great leaders emerge”, Leadership, May/June, 32, 5; pp.8-10.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Mr Wayne Samuels is Head of House (Adamson) and Head of Learning Technologies (PYP) at Wesley College (St Kilda Road campus), in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.