Leadership Lessons Learned

When I was an undergrad, I don't remember learning anything specifically about leadership. Almost 50-years of life experience including community involvement, marriage, parenthood, 20-years of schooling and 25-years in the workforce shaped my understanding of leadership. That definition will continue to evolve and change with every new experience, including this class. In that sense, my definition of leadership has been both altered and reinforced.

I am not a teacher per se, but I certainly have become more aware of the impact I can have as a school leader, and how the application of my leadership skills may have to change in response to the realities of the education environment. In most other fields, leaders can assess situations, gather information, analyze that information, make a decision, then communicate that decision to his various constituencies. This class has reaffirmed my observation that that strategy does not apply in the world of public education.

While the textbook laid out some useful strategies for teacher leaders, it also revealed the biggest obstacle to implementing systemic change in public schools - the entrenched establishment system and the power of the public teachers unions to influence school policy. The unions have created and continue to propagate a culture in which there is no incentive for teachers to lead with the intention of changing things. In fact, teachers who "rock the boat" are often criticized and ostracized. Examples of the prevailing mindset of teachers as "martyrs" are rampant in the text and serve little purpose except to perpetuate the stereotype many teachers try so diligently to shed. Here are just a few:

Pg. 23: "With the dearth of quality teachers available because of teacher turnover and the profession's meager pay..."
Pg. 25: "She could manipulate the situation by fomenting teachers' frustration in order to rally them against the administration, especially if she had an axe to grind."
Pg. 32: "Teachers are usually only required to work seven and a half hours a day, but we are all familiar with the reality of the job's demands."
Pg. 44: "A colleague was in a situation where she was asked to give an ineffective teacher-one who was simply punching the time card until he retired-advanced classes because it was assumed he would do less damage to those students. There is no easy answer to the predicament of what to do with such a teacher."
Pg. 61: "It's not that people don't want to give up their time; teachers are the most self-sacrificing professionals who exist."
Pg. 77: "Understandably, (administrators) can forget the most essential element to achievement: the well-being of the teacher. In the current frenzy of high-stakes testing and accountability, teachers are stressed, over-worked and underappreciated (sic)."
Pg. 86: "They provide some solace when we are forced outside our comfort zone and help us cope when faced with our daily Herculean tasks."

And by far the most egregious example:
Pg. 102: "The holidays are sharp reminders of just how little society values educators. Even though we may be comfortable with our salaries and the fact that we will never be wealthy, when we hear friends or relatives bragging about a Christmas bonus or bemoaning a smaller than normal year-end bonus, it is difficult to sympathize; no such reward system exists in schools."

I hate to break it to you Mr. Gabriel, but if you had bothered to do some research for this "text," you would have found that the vast majority of people do not get an annual bonus. Teachers often get token gifts from their students. They also get a week off from work at Christmas, another week off in the spring and 10-weeks off in the summer. That's something I have a hard time sympathizing with.

The text also makes several assertions and gives some advice that I just flat out disagree with. such as:
Pg. 29: "If you decide to match your practicum students with several different teachers, it might cross your mind to include a weak teacher in the mix so that they can learn what not to do." It might cross your mind, but don't do it!
Pg. 33: "Students crave structure, routine and discipline. They want to follow their leader just as a dog wants to follow the pack leader." No they don't. Students crave freedom and opportunity. They want a teacher who will help them learn.
Pg. 35: "...meet with your teachers beforehand to see what kind of person they believe the team needs." Bad idea. You will merely poison the interview process. Interview the candidate and find out what he/she can bring to the table.
Pg. 77: "There is very little we can do to get our teachers to act how we want or how they should. That is the job of an administrator. It is his role to bring the hammer down when necessary, not yours." If you are an effective team leader, it is never necessary to bring the hammer down. And there is something you could do to get them to shape up - fire them if they don't.
Pg. 79: "One of your myriad responsibilities as a leader is to make your supervisor look good." No, that's not your responsibility.
Pg. 126: "Few educators enter administration because they are eager to deal with discipline and irate parents; administration is appealing to them because they enjoy seeing good teaching and helping teachers grow." Be honest. Most administrators do it to make more money and do less work.

In my opinion, this is not a Master's level textbook. It is based almost entirely on the author's personal experience in one department chair position at one school. I expect a Master's level textbook to include researched, proven, documented information from a variety of reputable sources. This book has virtually none of that. Of the 18 people who reviewed this book on GoodReads.com, it got and average rating of 2.89 out of 5. That's 57.8% - clearly not a passing grade.

Having said that, I do agree with Gabriel's assertion about "improving education from within"? In fact, given the prevailing climate and the inherent challenges of changing things from the outside, improving education from within is the only approach that makes sense and has a reasonable chance of success. There are a few ideas and suggestions in the book that I would be comfortable and confident to present to the department leaders in my school as ways to affect improved academic achievement and teacher effectiveness.