My Philosophy of Educational Leadership -----Critical Element Paper #1 Presented to the Department of Educational Leadership And Postsecondary Education University

of Northern o!a -----n Partial "ulfillment #f the $e%uirements for the Advanced &tudies Certificate -----'y (ennifer L) Lau*hlin Colum+us Community &chools Colum+us (unction, A Novem+er -.1-----Dr) Nic/ Pace

* My philosophy of educational leadership is driven by my desire to overcome challenges and provide support and guidance to others to ensure their growth and success. Every position I have accepted during my twelve years of teaching and my professional development has helped me grow professionally and personally into the leader I am today. As I have entered into professional leadership positions, specifically in the past 4 years, colleagues have noted how I assist others to see different ways of accomplishing success. While encouraging and working along side others, we come up with pathways for us to get to the end result. eaders lead by

e!ample and my educational philosophy is no different. "he columns in which my philosophy stands on are based upon open honest communication, relationships, collaboration, and consistency. In the ne!t several pages I will discuss why and how these educational leadership #ualities need to be solidly built as we lead an educational system. $irst, leaders must communicate the vision, mission and goals to all stakeholders. A leader is one that guides people towards a common goal, but understands and values the variety of paths people can take to accomplish a successful result. %ommunication needs to be open and honest to all stakeholders &Mar'ano, Waters ( Mc)ulty, *++,-. A leader needs to consistently communicate with stakeholders where the organi'ation is at in regards to their goals and show the results of the collected evidence that leads them to the ne!t decision. "his is an integral part of the Iowa .tandards for .chool eaders /0.

3 %ommunicating the progression towards or away from a goal shows understanding of taking steps forward and backward and admitting mistakes made or successes along the way. Wilmore &*++*- agrees that mistakes happen, she states, 1A true steward of the vision is always there to encourage others and themselves to get back up when they fall down. $alling down and making mistakes, personally or professionally, only proves we are human,2 &p. *3-. A good leader communicates effectively and is willing to put oneself out there4 even when it re#uires them to admit they made a mistake. 5y taking ownership in decisions made and communicating those decisions, people will appreciate the efforts and be more apt to be a risk taker and push themselves to gain the results needed. Another critical element a principal needs to do is communicate to various stakeholders in a variety of venues. I.. /6 emphasi'es understanding the profile of the community and working with them to improve teaching and learning for all students. "his can be done through formal presentations to board members, leading professional development with a group of teachers, talking to students about educational topics, or informal chats to community members, parents, staff, and students. I have learned that getting to know people helps build the open lines of communication. .howing that we care about them both professionally and personally goes a long way. 7eople appreciate seeing the human side of us and can connect with our efforts and conversations. 8elationships built on respect and honesty is critical in having people want to work with one

4 another, rather than against each other. As my relationships are built and maintained with people they will view my leadership style as positive, encouraging, respectful, collaborative and the e!pectations of all will be high. As Whitaker &*+0*- states, 1"he difference between average and great principals lies in what they e!pect of themselves,2 &pg. *3-. I will not e!pect or ask anyone to do something that I am not willing or e!pecting of myself. "hey will see me working right along side them to move towards our vision, mission, and goals. I have worked right beside teachers and built relationships during our learning and implementation of Iowa %ore "raining we are implementing in our district. "his has shown teachers that I am willing to learn alongside them and be a part of the learning process. A leader needs to lead within the collaborative group, not outside of them. 7eople can not work alone in education, there is a great deal of lifting to do and one must use all the hands available to do the heavy work to improve the school &Murphy, *+00-. As an instructional leader one needs to show stakeholders the different pathways to success. As the old adage states one si'e does not fit all. eadership styles vary and paths of how to get to an end result can look different, but the key point is the end result must be the same. A #uality instructional leader is someone who is visible and willing to listen to all stakeholders and provide guidance along their pathway to getting to the end. If we are approachable and people are comfortable talking with us, we all benefit and will move forward a great deal faster, than if we are working

, in isolation. I have personally tried to be visible within the classrooms and meetings within the school, but also am involved in community groups and meetings. 9ne must be consistent in their ways of leadership and not sway on things based on the individuals coming to us. A #uality leader will support people differently, but their goal is still the same for all. "he relationships built early on with individuals will help people know and understand where we are all coming from. "his will ensure any fierce conversations that one must have will be out of respect and trying to assist people to a better end result. "he educational system should be based on learning for all and being an instructional leader to the organi'ation needs to show dedication and commitment to that learning. "he learning for staff, students, and parents needs to be meaningful, engaging and applicable. In I.. /4, it stresses sharing the responsibility of the student learning with parents and community, we as teachers and administration cannot educate the students alone. We are all learners of information and need to be engaged in the worthwhile problem:solving situations that will lend themselves to the real world. Wilmore &*++*- states, 1When learning is authentic and relevant, students will become engaged in the process; "hey are interested and connected, and they will learn2 &p. 3<-. 9ne needs to ask before teaching what will the learners take away from this information and how can they apply it to other situations not directly linked to the specific lesson. If one

6 can provide a detailed reflection to those #uestions, then the information needs to be taught. "his may re#uire various lessons connected together to get to the worthwhile problem:solving information, but showing that connected learning to the students is an integral part of the lessons. Informal and formal assessment of all learning needs to occur on a regular basis. "his data will help guide the communication and decisions that need to be made for the learning that will occur in the future. As an educational leader, the challenges that lie ahead of us are numerous, but together we can provide support and guidance to each other to build success. As my educational philosophy stands on the columns of open honest lines of communication, relationships, collaboration, and consistency, so does my leadership style. I embark on the challenges with various stakeholders in collaborating together to gain success and learning for all. As I continue to grow in my own leadership skills one thing will remain the same and that is one of continual learning and endless effort to create a positive learning environment.

< 8eferences Mar0ano, $), 1aters, 2), 3 McNulty, ') 4-..56) School leadership that works: From research to results) Ale7andria8 A&CD) Murphy, () 4-.116) Essential lessons for school leaders) 2housand #a/s, CA8 Cor!in 1hita/er, 2) 4-.1-6) What great principals do differently: 18 things that matter most) 4-nd ed)6) Larchmont, N98 Eye on Education) 1ilmore, E) 4-..-6) Principal leadership: Applying the new Educational Leadership onstituent ouncil !EL " standards) 2housand #a/s, CA8 Cor!in Press)