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The role of leadership in developing quality educators
Iu, Jordana;
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2015
http://hdl.handle.net/10722/223650
The author retains all proprietary rights, (such as patent rights)

and the right to use in future works.
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THE!ROLE!OF!LEADERSHIP!IN!DEVELOPING!
QUALITY!EDUCATORS!
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by!
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Jordana!Iu!
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A!dissertation!submitted!to!the!Faculty!of!Education!
University!of!Hong!Kong!
In!partial!fulfillment!of!the!requirements!for!the!degree!of!!
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Master!in!Education!
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Department!of!Education!
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University!of!Hong!Kong!
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August!2015!
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Acknowledgements.
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Thank!you!very!much!to!all!the!participants!in!this!research.!A!huge!appreciation!
and! thanks! to! Dr.! Anatoly! Oleksiyenko,! who! had! been! extremely! patient! in!
guiding!me!towards!the!completion!of!this!work,!answering!all!my!queries!and!in!
reviewing!my!work.!Thank!you!to!Stephen!Dare,!Head!of!School!for!Hong!Kong!
Academy,! who! spent! a! generous! amount! of! time! in! making! me! understand! the!
theories!of!management!practices,!as!well!as!the!underlying!reason!behind!these!
practices.! Thank! you! to! Christopher! Coyle,! Principal! for! ESF! Wu! kai! Sha!
Kindergarten,! who! have! been! extremely! helpful! in! explaining! the! types! of!
management! practice! needed! to! ensure! quality! early! childhood! education! can!
come!into!play.!Michel!Sealy,!my!boss!and!one!of!my!respondents,!has!been!very!
supportive! in! guiding! me! to! view! management! from! an! entirely! different!
perspective.!Thank!you!to!the!leadership!team!of!Hong!Kong!Academy,!Douglas!
Musco! and! Kristel! Saleem! for! your! inputs.! Helen! Thomson! and! Sheila! Forsythe!
from! ESF! Wu! Kai! Sha! have! been! extremely! helpful! to! make! me! understand!
management! practice! from! the! point! of! view! of! a! member! in! the! management!
support!group.!Ina!LesterKSmith!and!Jane!Pakingan!have!opened!my!eyes!to!the!
challenges! the! educational! industry! for! young! children! is! facing.! This! paper!
would!not!be!possible!without!your!valuable!inputs.!!
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The!Role!of!Leadership!in!Developing!Quality!Educators!
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ACKNOLWEDGEMENT.
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TABLE.OF.CONTENTS.
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ABSTRACT.
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CHAPTER!ONE:!INTRODUCTION!
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1.1.
Background!of!the!Study!
1.2.
Significance!and!Purpose!of!the!Study!
1.3.
Method!of!the!Study!
1.4.
Definitions!
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CHAPTER!TWO:!THEORETICAL!FRAMEWORK!OF!THE!STUDY!
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2.1
A!View!on!Leadership!
2.1.1 Instructional!Leadership!
2.1.2 Distributive!Leadership!
2.1.3 Illustration!on!instructional!and!distributive!leadership!
2.1.4 Leadership!Approaches!
2.2
A!View!on!Motivation!
2.2.1 Maslows!Hierarchy!of!Needs!
2.2.2 The!CarrotKandKStick!Approach!
2.2.3 MotivationKHygiene!Theory!
2.3
A!View!on!Relationships!
2.4
The!Approaches!on!Leadership!
2.5
The!Wallace!Foundations!Five!Practices!on!Leadership!
2.5.1 Shaping!a!Vision!
2.5.2 Creating!a!Climate!Hospitable!to!Education!
2.5.3 Cultivating!Leadership!on!Others!
2.5.4 Improving!Instruction!to!Enable!Teachers!to!Teach!at!Their!
Best!
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2.5.5 Managing! People,! Data! and! Processes! to! Foster! School!
Improvement!
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CHAPTER!THREE:!RESEARCH!METHODOLOGY!
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3.1.!
Research!Method!
3.2.!
Data!Gathering!
3.3!
Research!Questions!
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CHAPTER!FOUR:!THE!LAKEWOOD!CASE!STUDY!!A!SCHOOLS!STORY!
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CHAPTER!FIVE:!ANALYSIS!AND!CONCLUSION!
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5.1!
An!Analysis!on!Maintaining!Relationships!
5.2!
A!Talk!on!Leadership!Style!
5.3!
General!Challenges!of!a!Leader!and!Troubleshooting!
5.4!
Matters!on!Motivation!and!Professional!Development!
5.5!
The!Wallace!Foundations!Five!Practices!of!Leadership!
5.5.1! Shaping!a!Vision!
5.5.2! Creating!a!Climate!Hospitable!to!Education!
5.5.3! Cultivating! Leadership! on! Others! to! Realize! the! School!
Vision!
5.5.4! Improving!Instruction!to!Enable!Teachers!to!Teach!at!Their!
Best!
5.5.5! Managing! People,! Data! and! Processes! to! Foster! School!
Improvement!
5.6!
Conclusion!
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REFERENCES!
FIGURES!AND!TABLES!IN!THE!STUDY!
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Abstract!of!dissertation!entitled!
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The.Role.of.Leadership.in.Developing.Quality.
Educators.
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Submitted!by:!
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Jordana.Iu.
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for!the!degree!of!Master!of!Education!
at!The!University!of!Hong!Kong!
in!August!2015!
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There!is!a!growing!need!to!understand!the!role!of!leadership!in!schools!in!order!
for!leaders!in!the!education!industry!to!gain!a!deeper!realization!of!their!role!as!a!
mentor!and!guide!to!cultivate!the!new!generation!of!good!quality!teachers.!!
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A! discussion! on! various! depiction! of! education! leadership! from! different! angle!
will!be!laid!out,!as!supported!by!available!literature!reviews!such!as!journals!and!
articles.! Is! leadership! really! essential! for! developing! quality! teachers! or! is! it! a!
mere!tool!to!ensure!that!the!school!is!running!smoothly?!The!need,!purpose!and!
significance!for!this!study!will!also!be!presented.!Different!literature!reviews!will!
be! needed! to! identify! the! significance! of! this! study.! In! Chapter! 4,! the! author!
presented! the! Lakewood! Case! Study,! which! is! the! story! of! a! school! in! Hong!
Kong.! The! story! will! clearly! display! the! effect! of! mismanagement! on! teachers!
motivation!and!quality!of!instruction.!!
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The! participants! in! this! study! have! helped! greatly! in! making! this! research!
meaningful!and!they!have!generously!shared!their!management!practice!to!make!
this!paper!possible.!The!last!chapter!of!this!paper!will!present!an!analysis!of!their!
viewpoints,! their! leadership! practice,! their! understanding,! agreement! and!
disagreement! to! the! theories! of! leadership! practice! presented! in! the! articles!
published!by!the!Wallace!Foundation.!!
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This! paper! intend! to! open! the! eyes! of! practicing! teachers,! teacher! who! aim! to!
hold!leadership!positions!and!current!principals!on!the!importance!of!leadership!
to!cultivate!and!nurture!teachers!in!order!for!the!whole!school!to!move!forward!
towards!a!common!goal.!!
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Declaration.
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I! declare! that! this! thesis! represents! my! own! work,! except! where! due!
acknowledgement! is! made,! and! that! it! has! not! been! previously! included! in! a!
thesis,! dissertation! or! report! submitted! to! this! University! or! to! any! other!
institution!for!a!degrees,!diploma!or!other!qualifications!
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Signed.!
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Jordana!Iu!
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Chapter.One.
An.Introduction.
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This! dissertation! paper! aims! to! investigate! the! link! between! leadership! and!
teachers! motivation! towards! their! work.! ! The! question! on! whether! a! school!
teachers!dedication!towards!the!teaching!profession!should!be!solely!relied!on!
the!amount!of!workshops!given!to!them!or!whether!it!has!a!direct!impact!on!the!
type!of!leadership!within!the!school!should!be!further!examined.!!
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It! is! of! general! understanding! that! teaching! quality! has! a! lot! to! do! with! a!
teachers!job!satisfaction!and!his!or!her!continuous!dedication!in!the!profession!
of!educating!the!young.!The!Wallace!Foundation!has!published!numerous!articles!
on!education!leadership!and!its!five!practices!to!effective!school!leadership!will!
be! used! as! the! central! point! for! discussion! to! support! various! analyses! in!
education!leadership.!!
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The! diversity! in! culture! and! personalities! makes! managing! a! team! difficult.!
Motivating! teachers! and! unleashing! potential! in! them! has! always! been! a!
challenge.!It!is!a!fact!that!good!leadership!improves!both!teacher!motivation!and!
work! setting! (The! Wallace! Foundation,! 2013).! It! should! be! noted! that! there! is!
one! common! denominator! among! teachers! despite! their! differences,! that! is! the!
need!to!be!recognized,!valued!and!feel!important.!!
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When!people!hear!the!words!principal,!head!of!school!or!school!supervisor,!
the!first!image!that!comes!to!mind!is!someone!who!stays!in!the!confines!of!his!or!
her! office! concentrating! on! administrative! tasks! and! building! up! enrollment!
numbers.! Little! do! the! words! teacher! development! or! teacher! mentor! come!
to!mind.!!
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Dewey! Hensley,! a! former! principal! and! now! an! assistant! commissioner! in!
Kentuckys! Department! of! education,! reminds! people! that! when! the! word!
principal!was!first!used!in!connection!with!school!leadership!in!the!1800s,!it!
was!an!adjective!in!front!of!another!word,!teacher!(Pierce,!1935).!The!original!
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principal! was! concerned! with! instruction! above! all! (Mendels,! 2012).! (Pierce,!
1935)!
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This! view! on! principalship,! one! that! should! center! on! instruction! instead! of!
building! management! or! administrative! matters,! has! gained! currency! in! recent!
years!(Mendels,!p.!54).!Therefore,!principals!play!a!very!important!role!in!school!
improvement!and!developing!quality!teachers.!
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The!focus!of!school!improvement!is!not!merely!administrative.!The!emphasis!of!
school!operation!is!to!provide!quality!education!and!in!order!to!do!so,!teaching!
quality!must!be!consistent,!if!not!continuously!improving.!Good!teaching!quality!
comes! with! low! turnover! rate,! passionate! teachers! and! a! collaborative! team!
where!everyone!is!willing!to!put!their!ideas!on!the!table.!!
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1.1 .Background.of.the.Study.
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The! researcher! is! an! educator! for! the! past! 14! years! in! various! educational!
institutions.! She! has! served! as! a! class! teacher,! EnglishKasKaKSecondKLanguage!
(ESL)!teacher,!academic!supervisor!and!mentor!teacher!in!different!international!
schools.! Experience! shows! that! teachers! are! continuously! craving! for!
professional!development,!but!frustration!sets!in!when!opportunities!to!improve!
oneself! were! not! sufficient.! When! teachers! feel! that! they! are! not! learning!
something!new,!they!become!demotivated!and!this!would!lead!to!them!looking!
for!new!job!somewhere!else.!Principals!are!either!swamped!with!administrative!
duties,! or! simply! think! that! workshop! is! the! equivalent! of! professional!
development.!!
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!Research! has! shown! that! effective! education! leadership! makes! a! difference! in!
improving! learning! (Leithwood,! Louis,! Anderson,! &! Wahlstrom,! 2004).! In!
relation! to! this! claim,! it! should! be! noted! that! teachers! play! a! vital! role! in!
providing! quality! education! to! the! students! and! this! belief! is! applicable! from!
early!childhood!to!tertiary!education.!However,!without!effective!leaders,!most!of!
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the! goals! of! educational! improvement! will! be! very! difficult! to! achieve! (The!
Wallace!Foundation,!2013).!!
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Education! leaders,! such! as! principals! and! head! teachers,! should! work!
collaboratively!with!teachers!in!order!for!teamwork!to!occur.!There!is!a!need!to!
make!teachers!to!view!themselves!as!part!of!a!team,!instead!of!an!individual!who!
works! in! isolation! within! the! confines! of! his! or! her! classroom.! Education!
research!shows!that!most!school!variables,!considered!separately,!have!at!most!
small! effects! on! learning.! The! real! payoff! comes! when! individual! variables!
combine! to! reach! critical! mass.! Creating! the! conditions! under! which! that! can!
occur!is!the!job!of!the!principal!(The!Wallace!Foundation,!2013,!p.!4).!!
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The!Wallace!Foundation!is!an!organization!that!has!supported!efforts!to!improve!
leaderships! in! schools! through! various! researches! and! projects.! Wallace! has!
conducted!more!than!70!research!reports!and!publications!regarding!leadership.!
In!a!report!reviewing!these!previous!reports!and!publications,!Wallace!has!found!
that!five!practices!in!particular!seems!central!to!effective!school!leadership!(The!
Wallace!Foundation,!2012):!!
1. Shaping!a!vision!of!academic!success!for!all!students,!one!based!on!high!
standards;!
2. Creating! a! climate! hospitable! to! education! in! order! that! safety,! a!
cooperative!spirit,!and!other!foundations!of!fruitful!interaction!prevail;!
3. Cultivating! leadership! in! others! so! that! teachers! assume! their! part! in!
realizing!the!schools!vision;!
4. Improving! instruction! to! enable! teachers! to! teach! at! their! best! and!
students!to!learn!at!their!utmost;!
5. Managing! people,! data! and! processes! to! foster! school! improvement.!
(Mendels!,!2012)!
Julie! Biddle,! author! of! 3! Rs! of! Leadership,! talked! about! building! effective!
leadership!through!relationships,!reciprocal!learning!and!reflection.!She!made!a!
comparison! between! the! old! factory! model! of! management! and! the! current!
approaches! of! school! management.! Her! book! explained! in! detail! how! different!
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structures! such! as! peer! learning,! coKlearning,! mentoring,! group! meetings! and!
creating! a! professional! learning! community! could! help! develop! quality!
teachers.!Biddle!also!discussed!in!detail!the!role!of!leadership!in!making!teachers!
participate!willingly!in!these!programs!as!a!team!of!passionate!educators.!!
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As! a! teacher! mentor! in! an! early! childhood! organization,! I! have! first! hand!
experience! in! developing! teachers! and! its! challenges.! I! have! tried! to! seek! help!
from! the! upper! management! when! difficulties! of! various! kinds! occur! and! have!
received!an!assortment!of!response!from!them.!I!have!seen!how!leadership!can!
affect! professional! development! and! how! certain! organizational! cultures! can!
affect!teaching!quality!and!teachers!satisfaction!towards!their!jobs.!I!would!like!
to! relate! my! previous! experiences! in! different! schools! in! this! study,! while!
combining! the! opinions! of! experienced! leaders! in! the! international! education!
industry!and!try!to!conclude!in!the!end!how!leadership!can!affect!the!creation!of!
a!passionate!teaching!team.!!
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1.2 .Significance.and.Purpose.for.the.Study.
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As! the! education! industry! puts! more! and! more! emphasis! on! professional!
development! to! develop! quality! teaching! within! the! classroom,! teachers! are!
beginning! to! become! more! aware! of! their! needs! to! improve! themselves.!
However,! the! notion! that! leadership! is! linked! to! professional! development!
seemed!neglected.!!
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The! purpose! of! this! study! is! to! investigate! and! confirm! that! leadership! is!
essentially! linked! to! professional! development,! and! that! leadership! plays! a! key!
role!in!developing!quality!teachers!through!creation!of!a!better!working!climate,!
professional!working!culture,!motivation!and!professional!development.!!
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There! is! a! need! to! understand! different! leadership! approaches! in! order! to!
further!examine!the!role!of!leadership!in!developing!quality!teachers.!A!study!by!
the! University! of! Washington! employed! a! musical! metaphor! to! classify! three!
different!approaches!by!leaders!in!the!education!industry:!
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1. OneKman!bands!is!someone!who!decides!to!do!it!all!themselves!
2. Jazz!combo!is!a!principal!who!is!inclined!to!delegate!responsibilities!
3. Orchestral! leaders! are! principals! who! believed! in! sharing! leadership!
throughout!the!school!(The!Wallace!Foundation,!2013,!p.!6)!
The!intention!of!this!research!is!to!emphasize!the!importance!of!leadership!in!the!
education!industry,!not!as!a!tool!to!ensure!that!a!school!is!running!smoothly!and!
errorKfree,!but!as!the!key!to!quality!education!by!developing!and!cultivating!the!
potential!of!teachers!in!their!school.!However,!leadership!should!not!be!seen!as!
equivalent!to!professional!development.!Rather,!it!should!be!seen!as!the!crucial!
component! behind! a! working! culture! that! holds! dedicated! professionals!
together.!!
1.3 .Method.of.the.Study.
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This! study! employed! the! qualitative! method.! Data! were! gathered! primarily!
through!interviews!with!leaders!in!the!international!education!industry.!!Three!
major! international! schools! were! invited! to! participate! in! this! research.! Three!
members!of!the!leadership!team!were!interviewed!from!each!school;!interviews!
were! mostly! conducted! in! person,! written! interviews! were! done! with! the!
participants!who!cannot!be!present!in!person.!Follow!up!communications!were!
all!conducted!via!email,!for!clarification!purposes.!Due!to!the!request!of!some!of!
the!participants!to!keep!their!names!confidential,!the!participants!will!be!named!
in!codes,!as!well!as!the!names!of!the!school.!!
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The!interviews!consisted!of!14!questions,!focused!predominantly!on!the!type!of!
leadership! they! practiced,! types! of! professional! development! or! support! they!
provide! their! team! members,! the! kind! of! relationship! and! culture! they! aim! to!
maintain!or!already!maintaining!in!their!schools!and!their!views!on!leadership!in!
relation!to!their!role!in!developing!quality!educators!in!their!schools.!Ideas!and!
suggestions!were!discussed!during!the!interviews,!mostly!regarding!on!how!they!
view! and! practice! professional! development! in! their! respective! schools.! The!
ideas!and!findings!will!be!presented!in!this!paper.!!
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Extensive! literature! reviews! had! been! done! to! gather! information! related! to!
motivation,! leadership,! relationship! between! teachers! and! leaders! and! the!
classification!of!leaders.!The!author!has!presented!the!Wallace!five!practices!to!
effective! leadership! to! support! the! need! to! the! theories! presented! in! chapter!
two.!!!
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1.4 .Definitions.
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The!following!are!the!key!terms!used!for!the!purpose!of!this!study:!
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Leadership!is!described!as!the!ability!to!enlist,!mobilize,!and!motivate!others!to!
apply!their!ability!and!resources!to!a!given!cause.!(Bono!and!Judge,!2003)!
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Instructional.Leadership!ensures!that!all!students!have!ongoing!access!to!high!
quality! teaching! and! learning! to! achieve! curriculum! outcomes.! Instructional!
leaders! focus! on! improving! the! effectiveness! of! instruction! to! increase! the!
achievement!of!all!students.!They!create!a!schoolKwide!inclusive!culture!of!high!
expectations! for! achievement! and! for! rigor,! relevance! and! respect! in! the!
classroom.! These! leaders! are! knowledgeable! and! deeply! involved! in! the!
implementation! of! the! instructional! program! of! the! school.! (Leadership!
Academy,!2015).!
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Distributed. Leadership! is! a! leadership! practice,! which! involves! leadership!
sharing!throughout!the!organization!in!which!the!leadership!responsibilities!are!
shared!within!those!with!related!skills!and!expertise.!(Spillane!et!al.,!2004).!!It!is!
a! system! on! collection! of! interaction! between! components! which! includes! the!
leader,!followers!and!situation!which!needs!to!be!understood!together!(Spillane,!
2005).!!
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Transformational.Leadership!is!a!type!of!leadership!that!enlists!and!motivates!
the!followers!to!identify!with!the!leader!and!to!develop!an!affinity!for!collective!
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goals! and! visions.! (Eyal! and! Roth,! 2011).! It! inspires! individuals! to! exceed! their!
expected!behavior!(Yuki,!1998).!
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Motivation!is!the!internal!and!external!stimulants!that!determines!the!behavior!
and!the!priority!of!a!person!(Eres,!2011,!Munn,!1968).!!
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Intrinsic. motivation!is!a!type!of!motivation!where!individuals!form!a!sense!of!
pride!or!accomplishment!in!the!result.!(Brown,!2008)!
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Extrinsic. motivation!is!a!type!of!motivation!that!derived!from!the!desire!for!a!
reward!(Brown,!2008)!
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Culture! in! the! context! of! a! school! setting! refers! to! the! beliefs,! perceptions,!
relationships,! attitudes,! and! written! and! unwritten! rules! that! shape! and!
influence!every!aspect!of!how!a!school!functions,!but!the!term!also!encompasses!
more!concrete!issues!such!as!the!physical!and!emotional!safety!of!students,!the!
orderliness! of! classrooms! and! public! spaces,! or! the! degree! to! which! a! school!
embraces! and! celebrates! racial,! ethnic,! linguistic,! or! cultural! diversity! (The!
Glossary!of!Education!Reform,!2013).!
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Chapter.Two.
Theoretical.Framework.of.the.Study.
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In! order! to! understand! how! important! leadership! is! in! developing! quality!
educators,! several! theories! will! be! extensively! discussed! in! this! chapter.! The!
researcher! will! first! review! the! concept! of! leadership! and! discuss! what!
leadership!means!in!the!educational!setting.!!
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The! words! instructional! leadership! and! distributive! leadership! came! up!
countless! times! during! the! interviews! with! school! leaders.! These! concepts! will!
be!explained!in!this!chapter!and!the!usefulness!of!these!theories!will!come!into!
light.! An! illustration! will! show! how! a! combination! of! instructional! and!
distributive! leadership,! along! with! trust,! can! help! improve! the! behavior! of!
teachers!and!student!learning.!!
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Motivation! plays! a! very! important! aspect! in! improving! general! quality! of! a!
school.!Knowing!what!teachers!need!gives!leaders!a!chance!to!plan!ahead!more!
effectively!in!the!areas!of!manpower!distribution,!policymaking!and!professional!
development.!However,!it!should!be!noted!that!no!two!teams!are!alike!since!we!
are!working!with!people!of!varying!personalities.!Therefore,!no!single!theory!on!
motivation!will!be!a!perfect!fit.!Three!theories!will!be!discussed!in!this!chapter.!
We!will!take!a!closer!look!into!Maslows!Hierarchy!of!Needs,!Carrots!and!Sticks!
Approach!and!MotivationKHygiene!Theory.!!
!
In! order! for! instructional! and! distributive! leadership! to! work! handKinKhand!
effectively,!motivation!is!not!the!only!aspect!that!comes!into!play.!Building!good!
relationships!amongst!teachers!plays!an!incredibly!important!role!in!order!for!a!
leader! to! be! able! to! motivate! and! work! efficiently! with! his! or! her! team.! Julie!
Biddles! 3! Rs! of! Leadership,! a! publication! by! the! National! Association! of!
Education! for! Young! Children,! have! extensively! elaborated! the! significance! of!
good!relationship,!mostly!in!the!areas!of!communication,!time!management!and!
ability!to!handle!conflicts!agreeably.!!
14!
The!Wallace!Foundation!is!an!organization!that!conducts!researches!to!improve!
education! leadership.! In! order! to! see! the! significance! of! all! the! theories!
mentioned! above! in! leadership! practice,! the! researcher! is! going! to! discuss! the!
Five! Practices! on! Leadership,! a! theory! formulated! by! the! Wallace! Foundation!
in! one! of! its! major! research! journals.! These! five! practices! consolidated! the!
theories! on! instructional! leadership,! distributive! leadership,! motivation! and!
relationships!in!order!to!help!leaders!to!lead!more!effectively.!!
!
2.1.A.view.on.Leadership.
.
Leadership! is! never! a! simple! concept! to! understand,! mostly! in! the! education!
setting.!My!experiences!as!a!class!teacher,!a!teacher!mentor!and!as!someone!who!
works! alongside! principals! as! an! assistant! had! shown! me! various! pictures! of!
leadership! in! a! school.! Leaders,! whether! they! are! called! principals,! head! of!
schools,!possess!the!primary!responsibility!of!running!a!school.!However,!is!this!
responsibility!confined!solely!to!the!context!of!administrative!work?!!
!
Leadership!is!described!as!the!ability!to!enlist,!mobilize,!and!motivate!others!to!
apply! their! abilities! and! resources! to! a! given! course.! It! illuminates! the! ways! in!
which! individuals! can! influence! others! and! persuade! them! to! devote! their!
utmost!efforts!to!tasks!that!promote!their!goals!(Bono!and!Judge,!2003).!In!view!
of! this! definition! of! leadership,! leaders! in! the! educational! context! bear! the!
responsibility! to! motivate! teachers! towards! quality! education.! Various!
researches! on! educational! leadership! extensively! discussed! different! types! of!
leadership! practices,! in! order! for! current! leaders! to! become! a! leader! who! can!
inspire!the!teachers.!There!is!no!hard!and!fast!rule!to!leading!a!team!of!teachers!
and!guiding!them!to!be!the!quality!teachers!one!wants!them!to!be.!!
!
Dewey!Hensley,!assistant!commissioner!in!Kentuckys!Department!of!Education,!
likes! to! remind! people! that! when! the! word! principal! was! first! used! in!
connection!to!school!leadership!in!the!1800s,!it!was!an!adjective!in!front!of!the!
word!teacher.!(Pierce,!1935).!The!original!principal,!according!to!Hensley,!was!
concerned!with!instruction!above!all.!(Mendels,!2012).!!
15!
!
Hensley! further! stresses! that! todays! best! principals! know! what! a! good! an!
effective!instruction!looks!like!so!they!can!provide!feedback!to!guide!teachers.!In!
other! words,! the! focus! of! educational! governance! is! leaning! towards! the!
direction!of!instructional!leadership.!!
!
2.1.1.Instructional.Leadership.
!
An!online!article!by!Leadership!Academy!has!described!instructional!leadership!
in! a! very! simple! and! clear! manner.! According! to! this! article,! instructional!
leadership!ensures!that!all!students!have!ongoing!access!to!high!quality!teaching!
and! learning! to! achieve! curriculum! outcomes.! Instructional! leaders! focus! on!
improving! the! effectiveness! of! instruction! to! increase! the! achievement! of! all!
students.! They! create! a! schoolKwide! inclusive! culture! of! high! expectations! for!
achievement!and!for!rigor,!relevance!and!respect!in!the!classroom.!These!leaders!
are! knowledgeable! and! deeply! involved! in! the! implementation! of! the!
instructional!program!of!the!school.!(Leadership!Academy,!2015).!
!
Bearing!this!definition!in!mind,!it!is!clear!that!leaders!in!educational!institutions!
carry!not!only!administrative!and!general!management!responsibilities,!but!also!
instructional!responsibilities.!To!develop!quality!teachers,!school!leaders!should!
be!knowledgeable!and!equipped!to!guide!teachers!towards!the!schools!mission!
and! goal.! They! should! be! deeply! involved! in! the! implementation! of! the!
instructional!programs!of!the!school.!!
!
Does! this! mean! leaders! should! have! all! the! answers! to! teachers! queries?! Does!
this! mean! all! leaders! in! a! school! should! act! as! a! knowKitKall,! a! walking!
compilation! of! knowledge! for! the! teachers! to! explore?! Does! this! mean! that! a!
principal!should!be!a!perfect!teacher!himself!before!one!can!assume!the!role!of!a!
school!leader?!Not!necessarily.!!
!
Todays! school! leaders,! primarily! heads! of! schools! or! principals,! bear! a! huge!
responsibility!on!their!shoulders.!They!are!the!primary!personKinKcharge!of!the!
16!
administrative! matters! at! school,! they! have! budgeting! matters! to! take! care! of,!
annual! and! monthly! targets! to! meet,! and! that! does! not! yet! include! meeting! the!
needs!of!teachers.!!
In! line! with! the! above! statement,! this! has! been! further! supported! by! Michael!
Fullan!in!2003,!who!states!that:!
!
Let!me!state!at!the!outset!that!you!cannot!do!this!without!a!dedicated,!highly!
competent!teaching!force!and!you!cannot!get!teachers!working!like!this!
without!leaders!at!all!levels!guiding!and!supporting!the!process.!The!principals!
role!is!pivotal!in!this!equation!(Fullan,!2003)!
!
In!order!for!a!leader!to!be!able!to!exercise!instructional!leadership,!cooperation!
from! all! levels! should! occur.! However,! this! leads! to! the! question:! How! are! we!
going!to!build!a!dedicated,!competent!teaching!force?!!
!
It! should! be! noted! that! the! role! of! the! principal! is! instrumental! in! encouraging!
collaboration! among! faculty! members.! When! teachers! feel! more! competent! in!
their!job,!their!positive!feeling!about!their!role!also!improve.!(Alessandro,!Castro,!
Ray! and! Vereline,! 2004).! Leadership! style! and! its! effect! on! teacher! motivation!
suggest!the!traits!of!the!leader!are!important!to!group!effectiveness!(Gallmeier,!
1992).! In! order! to! build! a! competent! teaching! force! and! for! instructional!
leadership!to!be!effective,!collaborative!work!needs!to!occur.!!
!
This,!is!where!distributive!leadership!come!into!play.!!
!
2.1.2.Distributive.Leadership.
!
Distributed! leadership! is! defined! as! a! leadership! practice,! which! involves!
leadership! sharing! throughout! the! organization! in! which! the! leadership!
responsibilities! are! shared! within! those! with! related! skills! and! expertise.!
(Spillane! et! al.,! 2004).! It! speaks! of! leadership! expansion! beyond! formal!
administrative! posts.! Distributed! leadership! represents! one! of! the! most!
17!
influential! ideas! to! emerge! in! the! field! of! educational! leadership! in! the! past!
decade!(Hallinger!and!Heck,!2009).!!
!
A!distributed!perspective!on!leadership!does!not!suggest!a!changed!role!for!the!
principal.!The!shift!is!moved!from!the!one!making!the!decisions!to!someone!who!
develop! leadership! capacity! and! capability! of! others! within! a! school! (Harris,!
2012).! Distributive! leadership! requires! the! leader! to! relinquish! some! of! their!
power! and! authority,! to! oversee! the! work! of! others! rather! than! being! the! one!
solely! in! control.! Interaction! is! a! critical! part! of! leadership! practice! from! the!
distributed! perspective.! It! is! very! important! for! leaders! to! communicate!
effectively! and! form! good! relationships! with! teachers! in! order! for! distributed!
leadership!to!come!into!play.!!
!
According!to!Leithwood!(2009),!purposeful!or!planned!leadership!distribution!is!
more! likely! to! impact! positively! on! school! development! and! change.! This!
planned!distribution!cannot!take!place!without!the!principal.!!
!
However,! Fitzgerald! and! Gunter! (2006)! argued! that! distributed! leadership! is!
merely! a! way! for! principals! to! encourage! teachers! to! do! more! work,! a! way! of!
reinforcing!standardization!!practices,!an!old!managerialism!in!a!contemporary!
guise.!!
!
It!is!of!my!opinion!that!distributed!leadership!is!about!collaboration!and!working!
as! team.! It! is! about! using! the! strength! of! a! team! member! to! support! the!
weaknesses! of! the! others.! While! it! is! agreeable! that! distributed! leadership! will!
entail! additional! work! on! the! part! of! the! teachers,! it! can! be! argued! that! it! is!
impossible! for! a! principal! to! solely! assume! the! responsibility! of! developing!
teaching!quality.!Developing!teaching!quality!and!increasing!motivation!requires!
a!collaborative!effort!from!all!members!of!the!team.!!
!
2.1.3.Illustration.on.instructional.and.distributed.leadership.
!
18!
19!
The!common!goal!in!any!school!is!to!provide!quality!education!to!the!students.!In!
order!for!this!to!happen,!teachers!need!to!be!equipped!and!continuously!learning!
to!benefit!student!learning.!It!is!important!for!principals!to!actively!collaborate!
with! teacher! leaders.! An! illustration! from! Learning( from( Leadership( Project(
(2010)!shows!the!effects!of!principal!leadership!behaviors!on!teachers!and!how!
it!affects!student!learning:!
!
Instructional!
Leadership!
!
!
!
!
!
Trust!
Professional!
Community!
Focused!
Instruction!
Student!
Learning!
!
Shared!
Leadership!
!
!
!
Figure!1:!Effects!of!Principals!Leadership!Behaviors!on!Teacher!and!Student!
Learning!(Source:!Learning!from!Leadership!Project,!2010)!
!
From!the!illustration!above,!it!is!shown!that!instructional!leadership!and!shared!
leadership! work! handKinKhand! in! order! to! create! a! professional! community! of!
learners.! It! should! be! noted! that! this! combination! would! not! occur! without! the!
element!of!trust.!Leaders!should!be!able!to!relinquish!some!of!their!authority!and!
trust! the! team! members! for! shared! leadership! to! be! successful.! Shared!
leadership!should!be!carefully!planned,!taking!into!account!the!strength!of!each!
member!to!use!it!to!benefit!the!entire!team.!As!the!team!members!were!trusted!
and! tasked! with! responsibilities! in! areas! they! are! strong! at,! they! become!
motivated!and!empowered!to!share!their!knowledge.!An!exchange!of!knowledge!
sharing! happens! at! this! point,! hence! the! building! of! a! professional! community!
where! everybody! learns! from! everybody.! Instruction! becomes! more! focused!
towards!student!learning.!!
!
2.1.4.Leadership.Approaches.
!
The!question!on!whether!instructional!leadership!and!distributed!leadership!are!
feasible! in! a! workplace! lies! greatly! on! the! principals! leadership! approach.!
Principals! in! schools! use! various! approaches! on! leadership! to! motivate! and!
cultivate!teachers!to!be!successful!in!their!endeavor.!!A!study!by!the!University!of!
Washington!employed!a!musical!metaphor!to!classify!three!different!approaches!
by!leaders!in!the!education!industry:!
!
1. OneKman!bands!is!someone!who!decides!to!do!it!all!themselves!
2. Jazz!combo!is!a!principal!who!is!inclined!to!delegate!responsibilities!
3. Orchestral! leaders! are! principals! who! believed! in! sharing! leadership!
throughout!the!school!(The!Wallace!Foundation,!2003)!
From!the!above!classification,!orchestral!leaders!are!those!that!work!closest!to!
the!style!of!distributed!leadership.!It!should!be!noted,!however,!that!despite!the!
existence! of! varying! range! of! leadership! patterns,! the! principal! remains! the!
central!source!of!leadership!influence.!!
During! the! interviews! conducted! with! school! leaders,! the! interviewees! were!
asked! to! reflect! on! their! leadership! approaches! and! identify! their! approaches!
based! on! the! aboveKmentioned! categories.! Whilst! it! is! true! that! principals! have!
various!approaches!on!leadership,!none!of!them!admitted!to!using!just!a!single!
approach.! Their! approaches! were! extensively! discussed! during! the! interviews!
and! they! have! enlightened! the! researcher! by! providing! examples! on! what!
situations!would!require!what!approach.!!
.
2.2.A.View.on.Motivation.
.
Motivation!is!defined!as!the!internal!and!external!stimulants!that!determine!the!
behavior!and!the!priority!of!a!person!(Munn,!1968).!It!is!the!force!that!causes!an!
20!
individual! to! act! in! a! certain! manner! or! to! be! oriented! towards! it! (Gibson,!
Ivancevich!and!Donnelly,!1988).!!
In! order! to! investigate! further! on! the! role! of! leadership! in! developing! quality!
teachers,! there! is! a! need! to! understand! what! motivates! them.! It! is! essential! for!
leaders!to!know!the!different!types!of!motivation!and!how!to!use!this!knowledge!
towards!the!goal!of!developing!quality!educators.!!
Teachers! can! be! motivated! intrinsically! or! extrinsically.! ! Intrinsic! motivation! is!
defined! as! a! type! of! motivation! where! individuals! form! a! sense! of! pride! or!
accomplishment! in! the! result,! while! extrinsic! motivation! refers! to! stimulus!
derived!from!the!desire!for!a!reward!(Brown,!2008)!
!
It!is!important!to!understand!the!theories!on!motivation!to!know!how!intrinsic!
and! extrinsic! motivation! applies! in! the! work! setting.! By! understanding! the!
theories! on! motivation,! education! leaders! will! have! a! better! appreciation! on!
factors!that!motivate!a!teacher,!hence!making!them!a!better!quality!educator!in!
the!long!run.!!
!
2.2.1.Maslows.Hierarchy.of.Needs..
!
Abraham!Maslow!formulated!one!of!the!most!popular!philosophies!that!focused!
on!motivation.!Maslow!(1943)!focused!on!five!motivational!needs,!where!when!
one! need! is! fulfilled,! the! person! will! go! on! and! seek! the! next! one.! Maslows!
Hierarchy! of! Needs! is! characterized! in! the! form! of! a! pyramid,! where! the! more!
basic!needs!are!at!the!bottom,!and!growth!needs!on!top.!!
21!
22!
SelfK
Actualization!
Esteem!
Love/belonging!
Safety!
Physiological!
!
Figure!2:!Maslows!Hierarchy!of!Needs!(Maslow,!1943)!
!
Relating!the!above!motivation!model!into!the!educational!setting,!teachers!need!
to! be! motivated! extrinsically! (i.e.! satisfactory! compensation! or! job! stability)!
before!they!can!be!motivated!intrinsically!(job!satisfaction,!job!dedication).!As!a!
result,!in!order!to!have!dedicated!teachers,!leaders!need!to!prioritize!the!review!
on! compensation! and! benefits! package! to! ensure! that! teachers! are! sufficiently!
compensated,!as!this!can!affect!gravely!employment!turnover.!It!should!be!noted!
that!compensation!is!not!the!only!physiological!need!in!an!education!setting.!The!
need!to!learn!more!in!order!to!feel!more!competent!is!also!a!factor!that!needed!
consideration.! Numerous! researches! have! proven! that! lack! of! professional!
development!opportunities!in!a!school!decreases!a!teachers!job!satisfaction!and!
hence!becomes!one!of!the!main!causes!of!teacher!turnover.!!!
!
2.2.2.The.CarrotWandWStick.Approach.
!
The!CarrotKandKStick!approach!focuses!mainly!on!extrinsic!factors.!The!idea!is!to!
use!rewards!and!penalties!to!achieve!desired!results.!In!the!past,!in!order!to!keep!
the!donkey!moving!forward,!a!carrot!is!dangled!in!front!of!it!with!a!stick.!Since!
the! donkey! wants! the! carrot,! it! will! continue! to! move! forward.! Under! this!
approach,!the!carrot!is!the!reward!or!incentive!and!the!stick!is!the!punishment.!
This!approach!worked!well!for!typical!routinary!and!unchallenging!tasks!in!the!
20th! century.! ! This! also! works! if! the! incentive! is! great! and! the! punishment! is!
severe.! It! should! be! noted! though,! since! employees! are! working! because! of! the!
consequences! laid! in! front! of! them! by! the! carrot! and! sticks,! they! will! revert!
back!to!the!way!they!were!once!the!carrot!or!the!stick!is!taken!away.!These!
traditional! motivators! reduce! creativity! and! foster! shortKterm! thinking! at! the!
expense!of!longKterm!results!!(McMahon,!2014).!!
!
Leaders!in!the!education!setting!need!to!think!beyond!the!carrot!and!stick.!In!
the! education! industry,! carrot! would! be! equivalent! to! pay! rise! or! good!
performance! assessment;! while! a! stick! would! be! point! deduction! in!
performance!appraisal!or!the!lack!of!pay!rise!due!to!unsatisfactory!performance.!
When!teachers!perform!under!the!fear!of!the!stick,!their!creativity!decreases.!
On!the!other!hand,!if!a!carrot!is!offered!every!time!a!teacher!is!asked!to!do!a!
task,! the! motivation! will! be! purely! based! on! the! incentive! and! this! will! cause! a!
decline! in! their! natural! dedication! to! the! profession.! Once! the! carrot! is! being!
taken!away,!for!instance!lack!of!pay!rise!or!extra!pay!for!extra!work,!the!teachers!
will!no!longer!be!motivated!to!work.!!
!
2.2.3.MotivationWHygiene.Theory.
Frederick!Herzberg!developed!this!model!in!1959!and!is!also!known!as!the!TwoK
Factory! Theory.! Through! series! of! interviews,! Herzberg! found! that! the! factors!
causing!job!satisfaction!were!different!from!factors!that!cause!dissatisfaction.!He!
calls! the! satisfiers! motivators! and! what! causes! dissatisfaction! are! called!
hygiene!factors.!Since!they!are!different,!they!should!not!be!treated!as!opposite!
of!one!another.!In!order!to!remove!job!satisfaction!in!a!work!environment,!there!
is!a!need!eliminate!the!hygiene!factors.!On!the!other!hand,!as!job!dissatisfaction!
decreases,! there! is! a! need! to! increase! job! satisfaction.! This,! according! to!
Herzberg,! can! be! done! through! improving! the! motivating! factors.! (Herzberg!
Motivators,!2014)!
According!to!the!TwoKFactory!Theory!there!are!four!possible!combinations:[8]!
23!
1. High!Hygiene!+!High!Motivation:!The!ideal!situation!where!employees!are!
highly!motivated!and!have!few!complaints.!
2. High!Hygiene!+!Low!Motivation:!Employees!have!few!complaints!but!are!
not!highly!motivated.!The!job!is!viewed!as!a!paycheck.!
3. Low!Hygiene!+!High!Motivation:!Employees!are!motivated!but!have!a!lot!
of!complaints.!A!situation!where!the!job!is!exciting!and!challenging!but!
salaries!and!work!conditions!are!not!up!to!par.!
4. Low!Hygiene!+!Low!Motivation:!This!is!the!worst!situation!where!
employees!are!not!motivated!and!have!many!complaints.!(Summary!of!
Herzberg!Motivation,!2014)!
!
As!we!compare!the!three!theories!on!motivation!presented!above,!it!is!clear!that!
each! theory! has! its! own! salient! distinction.! As! the! Carrot! and! Stick! approach!
tends! to! decrease! creativity! and! has! been! proven! by! numerous! researches! as!
highly!ineffective!in!an!environment!where!creativity!needs!to!be!nurtured!and!
fostered,! education! leaders! need! to! look! beyond! rewards! and! punishments! in!
motivating!teachers.!!
It! is! extremely! important! to! motivate! teachers! in! order! to! achieve! quality!
education.! A! decrease! in! motivation! would! mean! teachers! would! not! have! the!
stimulus!to!improve!themselves.!When!there!is!no!motivation!to!further!improve!
themselves,!quality!teaching!cannot!happen.!Hence,!it!can!be!said!that!a!decrease!
in!motivation!can!directly!affect!student!learning.!!
Another!factor!that!affects!the!environment!of!a!school!is!the!relationship!within!
the! professional! community.! Relationship! between! teachers! and! leaders,!
teachers! and! parents,! teachers! and! teachers,! school! and! the! community,! lastly!
teachers! and! students,! determines! the! teachers! dedication! and! motivation!
towards! the! profession! in! the! long! term.! Positive! relationship! within! the!
workplace! fosters! communication! and! selfKesteem,! while! negative! relationship!
does! otherwise.! Education! leaders! play! a! vital! role! in! this! aspect! towards!
developing!quality!educators.!!
24!
2.3.A.View.on.Relationships.
.
Donaldson! (2001)! says! that! the! heartbeat! of! leadership! is! a! relationship,! not! a!
person! or! a! process.! Building! healthy! and! powerful! relationships! is! an!
intentional! process.! If! an! educational! institution! does! not! actively! nurture! the!
relationship! between! its! stakeholders! ! encouraging! both! personal! and!
professional! responsibility! and! accountability! ! then! reciprocal! learning! and!
reflective! practice! will! be! hard! to! establish! (Biddle,! 2012).! ! It! can! be! said,!
therefore,!that!leadership!is!not!about!control!or!power,!status,!or!position!and!is!
not!tied!to!roles!and!responsibilities.!Leadership!is!tied!to!practice!(Sergiovanni,!
2007).! Leadership! is! about! building! relationships! to! create! a! learning!
community.!!
!
Nurturing! the! act! of! being! in! relationship! is! challenging.! According! to! Biddle!
(2012),! the! key! ingredients! to! do! so! are! communication,! time,! the! ability! to!
handle! conflict! agreeably,! trust! and! respect.! Communication! is! essential.!
Communicating!and!sharing!information!clearly,!openly,!and!often,!can!cut!down!
misunderstandings!and!faulty!assumptions.!!
!
In!the!1930s!the!idea!of!leadership!has!been!linked!with!the!industrial!paradigm.!
This! paradigm! is! based! on! a! factory! model! and! it! is! linear! and! bureaucratic.!
Decisions!are!made!from!the!top!and!passed!down!to!workers.!It!is!managementK
oriented,!tightly!linked!to!a!single!leader,!stresses!goal!achievement!and!is!driven!
by!quantitative!data!(Biddle!2012).!!
!
In!a!school,!the!factory!model!is!very!common.!Teachers!usually!work!things!out!
on! their! own! in! isolation.! They! confine! themselves! in! the! four! walls! of! the!
classroom! and! due! to! lack! of! time! or! a! tight! schedule,! communication! rarely!
occurs.!!!
!
In!the!factory!model,!teachers!are!isolated!(Lortie,!1975)!in!their!classroom!and!
are! told! what! to! teach! and! how! to! teach! it.! This! often! leads! to! employee!
dissatisfaction!and!disillusionment!with!his!or!her!job!and!eventually!results!to!
25!
high! personnel! turnover! (Biddle,! 2012).! Maintaining! good! quality! education! is!
going!to!be!a!challenge!in!schools!with!high!personnel!turnover!rate!since!new!
teachers!need!time!to!adjust!to!their!new!environment!and!to!learn!how!to!adapt!
to! the! cultures! of! their! new! school.! The! ability! to! keep! a! team! of! teachers! for!
longer! periods! of! time! means! lower! turnover! rate,! better! relationship! among!
staff!and!management,!and!the!creation!of!a!professional!environment!that!will!
enable!education!leaders!to!continuously!help!teachers!to!excel.!The!presence!of!
all! three! leads! to! quality! student! learning! and! a! better! working! environment.!
However,! keeping! teachers! continuously! satisfied! with! their! job! and! their!
working! environment! can! be! a! challenging! task.! There! is! a! need! to! create! a!
healthy! school! environment! with! supportive! and! responsive! attitude! and! a!
sense!by!teachers!that!they!are!part!of!a!community!of!professionals!focused!on!
good!instructions!(The!Wallace!Foundation,!2013,!p.!8)!
!
The!challenge!is!for!education!leaders!to!change!the!viewpoint!of!teachers.!The!
task!is!to!create!a!community!of!learning!professionals,!where!teachers!help!each!
other! in! building! each! others! strengths.! In! the! forthcoming! discussion! on!
professional! development,! it! will! be! stressed! that! professional! development! is!
not!equivalent!to!workshops,!seminars!and!conferences.!Activities!such!as!peer!
learning,! staff! meetings! and! mentorship! also! form! part! of! professional!
development.! These! activities! will! be! impossible! if! relationship! is! not! nurtured!
within!a!school.!!
!
Biddles!key!ingredients!in!nurturing!relationships!are!very!practical!and!useful.!
Communication,! time,! the! ability! to! handle! conflict! agreeably,! trust! and! respect!
are! all! very! important! to! create! a! community! of! learners! within! a! school.! I!
strongly!agree!to!her!statement!members!who!dont!work!together,!much!less!
trust! and! respect! one! another,! cannot! become! organizations! filled! with!
purposeful! conversation! and! ongoing! communication.! Cooperative! and!
collaborative! relationships! among! all! stakeholders! in! a! school! must! be! seen! as!
the! essential! means! by! which! goals! are! identified! and! achieved! (Copple! &!
Bredekamp,!2009).!!
!
26!
Being! in! relationship! with! colleagues! call! for! valuing! vulnerability! more! than!
power,!being!comfortable!with!uncertainty,!and!relinquishing!the!idea!that!there!
is!one!right!answer.!Structures,!such!as!focused!study!groups!or!team!planning!
that! bring! people! together! in! smaller! groups! help! new! people! feel! a! sense! of!
belonging! (LewinKBenham,! 2006).! Time,! however,! can! be! an! issue! in! this! case!
due!to!the!nature!of!a!schools!operation.!Leaders!in!a!school!should!allot!time!for!
meetings,! in! addition! to! the! regular! staff! meetings.! Manpower! allotment! and!
schedules! should! be! carefully! planned! to! give! way! to! communication! and!
professional!development.!When!being!in!relationship!is!valued,!time!is!available!
for!listening,!caring,!accepting!and!being!with!others!(Biddle,!2012).!!
!
Carter! (2010)! documented! one! innovative! professional! development! approach.!
The!organization!involved!did!not!find!it!feasible!and!productive!to!bring!all!the!
teachers! together! for! training.! Instead,! they! invented! napinars! or! webKbased!
training!that!took!place!during!naptime.!The!napinars!were!preceded!by!reading!
assignments!and!followed!up!with!action!plans.!This!has!eliminated!some!of!the!
isolation.!!
!
Not!all!schools!have!nap!times.!However,!the!idea!of!webKbased!learning!can!be!
adopted! in! schools! where! teachers! cannot! be! free! at! the! same! time.!
Communication!can!occur!on!various!forums!where!teachers!and!teacher!leaders!
can!share!and!exchange!ideas.!A!blog!space!can!be!created!for!teachers!to!share!
ideas! they! find! interesting.! In! the! era! of! modern! technology,! it! is! definitely!
possible!to!use!innovative!modern!ways!to!facilitate!learning!within!the!school.!
Though! the! teachers! are! not! communicating! faceKtoKface,! they! are! still! learning!
from!each!other!and!communication!is!still!happening!virtually.!!
!
2.4.The.Wallace.Foundations.Five.Practices.on.Leadership.
!
To! tie! in! all! the! theories! on! leadership! and! motivation! mentioned! above,! the!
researcher!found!it!very!useful!to!present!Wallace!Foundations!Five!Practices!
on!Leadership:!!
!
27!
1. Shaping!a!vision!of!academic!success!for!all!students,!one!based!on!high!
standards;!
2. Creating! a! climate! hospitable! to! education! in! order! that! safety,! a!
cooperative!spirit,!and!other!foundations!of!fruitful!interaction!prevail;!
3. Cultivating!leadership!in!others!so!that!teachers!and!other!adults!assume!
their!part!in!realizing!the!school!vision;!
4. Improving! instruction! to! enable! teachers! to! teach! at! their! best! and!
students!to!learn!at!their!utmost;!and!!
5. Managing!people,!data!and!processes!to!foster!school!improvement.!(The!
Wallace!Foundation,!2012)!
!
2.5.1.Shaping.a.Vision.
!
Effective! leadership! begins! with! the! development! of! a! school! wide! vision! of!
commitment! to! high! standards! and! the! success! of! all! students.! (Porter! et.! Al,!
2008)!It!is!very!important!for!school!leaders!to!help!spell!out!the!vision!and!get!
all!others!to!be!on!board!with!it,!towards!a!common!goal.!It!is!essential!to!be!firm!
in! what! we! believe! in! and! let! the! team! understand! that! such! vision! is! nonK
negotiable.!!
!
Based!on!my!previous!experiences,!as!illustrated!in!the!case!study!in!Chapter!3,!
lack!of!a!firm!goal!or!vision!calls!for!failure.!The!lack!of!direction,!goal!or!vision!
makes!the!teaching!team!feels!that!what!they!do!is!insignificant,!that!they!are!a!
mere! tool! to! transfer! knowledge! and! get! the! school! running! on! its! ordinary!
course.! A! clear! vision! will! make! teachers! feel! significant,! it! will! make! teachers!
understand!that!what!they!do!is!important!and!they!will!strive!to!improve!for!the!
benefit!of!the!children!under!their!care.! It!should!be!noted!that!setting!a!vision!
without!collaboration!with!teachers!is!equivalent!to!having!no!vision!at!all.!It!is!
important!to!work!with!teachers!to!reach!that!common!goal!we!have!set!for!the!
school.!
!
Having!said!that,!a!mere!vision!is!not!enough!to!keep!the!teachers!going.!It!is!also!
important!to!create!a!climate!hospitable!to!education.!!
28!
!
2.5.2.Creating.a.Climate.Hospitable.to.Education.
.
Effective!principals!ensure!that!their!schools!allow!both!adult!and!children!to!put!
learning!at!the!center!of!their!daily!activities.!It!is!characterized!by!basic!safety!
and! orderliness,! as! well! as! a! supportive! and! responsive! attitude! toward! the!
children! and! a! sense! by! teachers! that! they! are! part! of! a! community! of!
professionals!focused!on!good!instructions.!(Goldring,!et.al,!2007)!
!
Teacher! pessimism! is! a! significant! barrier! to! creating! a! hospitable! climate.!
Teachers!often!regard!themselves!as!hardworking!martyrs!in!a!hopeless!cause!
(Portin,!Knapp!et.!Al.,!2008)!!
!
The!effective!school!leader!should!find!ways!to!combat!this!teacher!pessimism.!
He!or!she!should!find!ways!to!deal!with!teacher!isolation!and!resistance.!There!is!
a! need! to! create! a! culture! of! sharing! and! a! community! of! professional! learners!
who! can! build! each! others! strengths.! The! school! leader! can! look! into! various!
ways! of! developing! professional! development,! not! just! through! workshops! but!
by!way!of!peer!observation,!curriculum!meetings!where!teachers!can!sit!together!
and!share!ideas.!Teachers!who!are!strong!in!certain!areas!can!be!encouraged!to!
get!involved!by!way!of!informal!leadership!responsibilities.!!
!
Opening! the! doors! to! parents! can! also! help! create! a! hospitable! climate.! By!
involving! parents! into! school! activities,! teachers! will! begin! to! create! better!
relationships! with! them! and! communication! will! flow! openly.! If! there! is! open!
communication! between! teachers! and! parents,! teachers! can! collaborate! with!
parents! in! a! more! amenable! way.! In! a! school,! relationship! in! various! forms! is!
very!important!for!longKterm!success.!!
!
!
!
!
!
29!
2.5.3.Cultivating.Leadership.in.others.
.
It!is!a!known!fact!that!it!is!almost!impossible!for!school!leaders!to!take!control!of!
everything!in!school.!Collaboration!is!key!and!this!is!why!distributive!leadership!
has!become!a!very!popular!leadership!practice!amongst!schools.!!
!
Distributed!leadership!is!a!leadership!practice!which!involves!leadership!sharing!
throughout!the!organization!in!which!the!leadership!responsibilities!are!shared!
within!those!with!related!skills!and!expertise!(Spillane,!2004).!A!strong!learning!
community! is! developed! when! a! head! teacher! learns! to! let! go! the! controlling!
steps! and! assists! the! teachers! to! take! part! in! developing! the! leadership!
throughout!the!school!(McLaughlin!&!Talbert,!2006).!When!leadership!is!spread!
throughout! the! school,! teachers! begin! to! work! collaboratively! in! building! each!
others!strengths!and!a!more!harmonious!professional!environment!can!be!made!
possible.!!
!
It! should! be! noted! that! some! teachers! do! not! like! to! get! involved! in! decisionK
making!process!because!they!are!not!motivated!and!they!find!school!meetings!a!
waste! of! time.! In! distributed! leadership! practice,! though! not! everyone! makes!
decision,! everyone! who! has! the! expertise! were! given! an! opportunity! to!
contribute! to! the! decisionKmaking! process.! According! to! Sadariah! (2001),! the!
distributed! leadership! practiced! by! the! head! teachers! could! orientate! the!
teachers!to!change!the!values!and!attitudes!towards!commitment!of!educational!
mission! and! vision.! In! addition,! teachers! have! the! opportunity! to! enhance! and!
increase! their! leadership! ability! in! preparing! themselves! to! become! future!
quality!school!leaders!(Wahab,!Hamid,!Zainal,!&!Rafik,!2013).!!
!
2.5.4.Improving.Instruction.to.Enable.Teachers.to.Teach.at.their.Best.
.
Improving! instruction! doesnt! mean! the! principal! or! head! teacher! dictating! to!
teachers!in!clear!terms!what!they!want!them!to!do.!It!means!providing!teachers!
with!the!support!that!is!needed!in!order!for!them!to!become!better!teachers.!!
!
30!
Effective! school! leaders,! in! this! sense,! will! work! persistently! to! improve! the!
quality! of! instruction.! They! encourage! continual! professional! learning.! They!
encourage! learning! within! the! school! among! peers.! Open! communication! with!
teachers,! being! visible! at! all! times,! close! monitoring! of! teachers! work! in! the!
classroom!are!very!important!to!help!improve!instruction.!Close!monitoring!does!
not!entail!holding!a!clipboard!and!a!checklist,!but!a!simple!visit!in!the!morning!to!
talk! to! teachers! and! find! out! what! is! going! on! in! each! classroom.! Close!
monitoring!can!also!be!done!through!roundabouts,!where!the!head!teacher!or!
principal! will! visit! classrooms! for! a! short! period! of! time! at! times! of! the! day,! to!
find!out!how!the!classes!are!going.!According!to!Dewey!Hensley!(2013),!it!is!very!
effective! for! school! leaders! to! visit! the! classroom,! and! then! leave! behind! notes!
for!teachers,!sharing!gold!nuggets!of!exemplary!practices,!things!to!think!about!
and!next!steps!for!improvement.!!
!
2.5.5.Managing.People,.Data.and.Processes.to.Foster.School.Improvement.
!
Managing,! in! its! general! concept,! is! a! very! challenging! task! for! school! leaders.!
The! main! challenging! is! to! get! the! job! done,! while! making! good! use! of! all!
available!resources!at!hand.!!
!
It!is!important!to!know!that!school!improvement!does!not!happen!overnight.!A!
rule!of!thumb!is!that!a!principal!should!be!in!place!about!five!to!seven!years!in!
order!to!have!a!beneficial!impact!on!a!school.!It!is!found!in!researches!that!higher!
turnover! was! associated! with! lower! student! performance,! apparently! because!
turnover! takes! a! toll! on! the! overall! climate! of! the! school! (Seashore! Louis,!
Leithwood,!et!al.,!2010).!Schools!experiencing!rapid!principal!turnover,!are!often!
reported! to! suffer! from! lack! of! shared! purpose,! cynicism! among! staff! about!
principal!commitment,!and!an!inability!to!maintain!a!schoolKimprovement!focus!
long! enough! to! actually! accomplish! any! meaningful! change! (Seashore! Louis,!
Leithwood,!et!al,!p.!165K166.!
!
!
!
31!
!
Chapter.3.
Research.Methodology.
!
3.1.Research.Method.
!
Qualitative!research!is!characterized!by!its!aims,!which!relate!to!understanding!
some! aspect! of! social! life,! and! its! methods,! which! generate! words,! rather! than!
numbers! for! data! analysis! (Patton! &! Cochran,! 2002).! On! the! other! hand,!
quantitative! research! is! based! on! the! quantitative! measurements! of! some!
characteristics.!It!is!applicable!to!phenomena!that!can!be!expressed!in!terms!of!
qualities!(Kothari!&!Garg,!2014).!!
!
To! understand! the! role! of! leadership! in! developing! quality! teachers,! there! is! a!
need!to!engage!in!conversations!with!principals!in!order!to!find!out!more!about!
their! leadership! practice,! the! challenges! they! occur! each! day! and! how! they!
confront!problems!that!needed!to!be!solved.!Therefore,!this!research!applied!the!
qualitative!research!method.!!
!
3.2.Data.Gathering.
!
Data! were! gathered! primarily! through! interviews! with! selected! leaders! in! the!
international! education! industry.! ! Three! major! international! schools! were!
invited! to! participate! in! this! research.! Three! members! of! the! leadership! team!
were! interviewed! from! each! school;! interviews! were! mostly! conducted! in!
person,! written! interviews! were! done! with! the! participants! who! cannot! be!
present!in!person.!Follow!up!communications!were!all!conducted!via!email,!for!
clarification! purposes.! Due! to! the! request! of! some! of! the! participants! to! keep!
their!names!confidential,!the!participants!will!be!named!in!pseudonyms,!as!well!
as!the!names!of!the!school.!!
!
32!
33!
The!interviews!consisted!of!14!questions,!focused!predominantly!on!the!type!of!
leadership! they! practiced,! types! of! professional! development! or! support! they!
provide! their! team! members,! the! kind! of! relationship! and! culture! they! aim! to!
maintain!or!already!maintaining!in!their!schools!and!their!views!on!leadership!in!
relation!to!their!role!in!developing!quality!educators!in!their!schools.!Ideas!and!
suggestions!were!discussed!during!the!interviews,!mostly!regarding!on!how!they!
view!and!practice!professional!development!in!their!respective!schools.!!
.
Participants.Profile.
!
INTERNATIONAL!SCHOOL!A!(Table!3.1)!
NAME.
POSITION.
YEARS.IN.CURRENT.POSITION.
Mr..Falcon.
Head!of!School!
21!
Mr..Jay.
Secondary!Principal!
4!
Ms..Puffin.
Director!for!Learning!Support!
12!
INTERNATIONAL!SCHOOL!B!(Table!3.2)!
NAME.
POSITION.
Mr..Warbler.
Principal!
5!
Ms..Sparrow.
Curriculum!Coordinator!
8!
Ms..Loon.
Coordinator!for!Learner!Support!
3!
!
INERNATIONAL!SCHOOL!C!(Table!3.3)!
NAME.
POSITION.
Ms..Lark.
Deputy!General!Manager!
15!
Ms..Longspur.
Curriculum!Coordinator!
3!
Ms..Mallard.
Lead!Teacher!
5!
!
3.3.Research.Questions.
.
In!relation!to!the!research!topic!The!Role!of!Leadership!in!Developing!Quality!
Educators,!this!study!aims!to!answer!the!research!question:!
!
What!is!the!Role!of!Leadership!in!Developing!Quality!Educators?!
!
The!following!are!the!interview!questions!formulated!to!seek!answers!to!the!
above!main!research!question:!
!
Interview.Questions.for.School.Leaders.
.
Daily!functions!and!relationship!with!staff!
.
1. Can! you! give! me! a! general! overview! of! what! your! function! is! as! the!
schools!(insert!position!here)?!How!does!your!ordinary!day!look!like?!
2. As! the! schools! (insert! position! here),! how! often! do! you! interact! with!
teachers?!How!much!do!you!know!about!the!teachers!in!your!school?!
!
Leadership!style!
!
3. My!research!is!about!how!leadership!can!develop!quality!early!childhood!
teachers.! Ive! read! a! journal! that! classified! leadership! into! three!
categories.!Namely!One!man!band!who!is!someone!who!decides!to!do!it!
all!themselves,!Jazz!combo!who!is!someone!who!is!inclined!to!delegate!
responsibilities! and! Orchestral! leaders! who! are! people! that! believe! in!
sharing!leadership!throughout!the!school.!!
a. How!do!you!view!yourself!as!a!manager!and!why?!
b. How!do!you!think!the!teachers!think!about!it?!!
!
Challenges!as!a!leader!
!
4. How! good/bad! is! the! general! turnover! rate! at! your! school! and! why! do!
teachers! leave?! Is! there! anything! a! manager! who! is! inKcharge! of! the!
schools!financial!and!administrative!matters!can!do!to!avoid!this?!
5. What! are! the! problems! you! encounter! with! teachers! and! how! do! you!
overcome!these!problems?!Do!you!do!it!alone?!
!
!
34!
!
Professional!development!
!
6. As!a!(insert!position!here),!what!are!your!views!on!teachers!professional!
development?! What! kind! of! professional! development! do! you! have! at!
school?!!
7. Do! you! play! a! part! in! deciding! what! professional! development! your!
teachers!should!have?!
8. How! much! budget! does! the! school! allot! for! professional! development?!
(amount!or!annual!budget!percentage)!
9. As!a!(insert!position!here),!how!do!you!encourage!teachers!to!act!as!part!
of!a!team?!!
10. What!do!you!think!is!the!most!important!role!you!play!as!far!as!teaching!
and!pedagogy!is!concerned?!
11. If!given!a!chance!to!decide,!what!type!of!professional!development!would!
best!suit!teachers!in!your!point!of!view?!
!
General!view!on!education!as!a!leader!
!
12. How!will!you!define!leadership!in!the!educational!setting?!
13. In!your!point!of!view!as!an!experienced!business!manager,!what!does!the!
word!quality!means!when!referring!to!early!childhood!education?!When!
referring!to!early!childhood!educators?!!
14. It! is! very! evident! that! business! managers,! education! managers! and!
teachers!will!always!view!quality!education!from!different!points!of!view.!
For!instance,!business!managers!will!always!have!to!consider!the!cost!and!
return! on! investment! before! deciding! on! any! matter;! whilst! education!
managers/teachers! will! always! decide! on! what! is! most! beneficial! to!
children,! sometimes! not! taking! the! aspect! of! financial! burdens! into!
consideration.!What!do!you!think!can!be!done!to!ironKout!this!problem?!!
!
!
!
35!
The!interview!questions!were!broken!down!to!five!subKquestions!in!order!to!
analyze!the!data!gathered!from!the!interview.!The!questions!were!as!follows:!
!
1. What!role!does!leadership!play!when!developing!quality!teachers?!
2. How!can!a!member!of!the!leadership!team!inspire!teachers!and!cultivate!
leadership!into!them?!
3. Is!it!possible!for!leadership,!if!practice!has!been!proven!to!be!effective,!to!
reduce!teachers!turnover!rate?!
4. What!kind!of!support!should!education!leaders!provide!teachers!to!help!
them!become!better!educators?!
5. Is!the!Wallace!Foundations!Five!Practices!to!Effective!Leadership!a!
practical!approach!to!implement!in!reality?!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
36!
Chapter.4.
The.Lakewood.Case.Study..A.Schools.Story.
!
To! further! support! the! importance! of! the! theories! mentioned! in! Chapter! 2! in! a!
more! practical! approach,! an! actual! case! study! that! clearly! illustrates! the! link!
between! leadership,! motivation! and! relationship! will! be! presented! in! this!
research! paper.! The! case! study! clearly! demonstrates! how! leadership! can! affect!
the!quality!of!teaching!among!the!teaching!team.!The!name!of!the!school,!as!well!
as!the!name!of!the!people!involved,!has!been!changed!to!maintain!anonymity.!!
!
SETTING!THE!SCENE!
!
Lakewood! Group! of! Schools! begun! in! 1979.! Lakewood! aims! to! provide! quality!
international!early!childhood!education!in!Hong!Kong!by!operating!preKschools!
for!children!aged!0!to!6.!Over!the!years,!it!has!expanded!to!15!campuses,!with!the!
most!recent!campus!in!Caine!Road,!which!is!large!enough!to!accommodate!up!to!
800!enrollees.!It!adapts!the!UKs!Early!Years!Foundation!Stage!Curriculum!with!
three! Montessori! and! twelve! Traditional! education! campuses.! Starting! out! as! a!
family! owned! business,! Lakewood! kept! its! familyKtype! culture! across! all! the!
schools,!where!the!campus!management!team!and!teachers!support!each!other!
not! only! professionally,! but! also! personally! when! needed.! Teachers! can! always!
expect!the!Head!Office!to!lend!a!helping!hand!when!needed,!mostly!in!terms!of!
unexpected! financial! difficulties.! Policies! within! the! school! are! also! made! very!
flexible,! and! teachers! are! given! opportunities! to! voice! out! their! opinions! and!
suggestions! on! policy! changes.! On! special! circumstances,! teachers! are! given!
special! considerations.! For! instance,! teachers! who! are! undergoing! professional!
development,!such!as!Masters!or!Postgraduate!programs,!are!given!the!privilege!
to! leave! early! on! a! regular! basis.! Also,! at! the! beginning! of! each! school! year,!
teachers!are!given!a!chance!to!express!their!preferred!classes!to!take!and!which!
classes!they!are!not!comfortable!with!and!the!reason!for!such.!More!often!than!
not,!teachers!are!given!the!class!they!are!most!comfortable!with!to!teach.!As!part!
37!
of! Lakewoods! management! policy,! a! happy! teaching! team! equivalent! to! an!
efficient!teaching!team.!!
!
Lakewood!Group!of!Schools!is!an!equal!opportunity!employer.!The!Group!hires!
teachers! who! are! both! experienced! and! inexperienced.! The! salary! scale! is! also!
the!same!for!both!local!and!expat!hire,!the!only!difference!is!that!teachers!hired!
overseas!are!reimbursed!for!their!airfare!and!moving!costs.!Across!the!group,!60!
percent! of! its! teaching! team! is! from! the! UK.! The! remaining! 40! percent!
comprising! of! a! combination! of! various! races! such! as! Indian,! Malaysian,! South!
African,! American,! Chinese! born! or! educated! overseas! and! Filipinos.! Most!
teachers! possess! a! Qualified! Kindergarten! Teacher! status! recognized! in! Hong!
Kong,! the! others! are! pursuing! their! qualification! status! through! various!
accreditation! courses,! such! as! the! Postgraduate! Diploma! in! Education! program!
that!is!being!offered!by!The!University!of!Hong!Kong.!!
!
Lakewood! Group! adapts! a! very! unique! management! style! in! its! campuses.! All!
Heads!of!School!are!not!educators;!all!of!them!are!very!experienced!in!business!
management.! The! Head! of! School! of! every! campus! work! handKinKhand! with! a!
Lead! Teacher,! who! is! an! experienced! educator! in! early! years! education.! This!
style! has! been! working! very! well! in! keeping! the! balance! between! the! business!
and! education! aspect! of! the! school.! The! Head! of! Schools! main! focus! is! the!
administrative!aspect!and!business!operation!of!the!school.!The!Lead!Teacher!is!
tasked!to!lead,!mentor!and!support!the!teaching!team!in!every!possible!way.!The!
two! members! of! the! campus! management! team! meet! to! communicate! matters!
related! to! the! dayKtoKday! operation! of! the! school,! issues! that! needed!
collaborative! effort! to! deal! with! and! matters! that! needed! to! communicate! to!
teachers.! Matters! that! have! been! discussed! and! resolved! or! pending! issues! are!
consolidated! in! one! report! to! be! sent! to! the! General! Manager! every! Friday!
evening.!
!
Over! the! years,! Lakewood! Group! of! Schools! managed! to! maintain! its! employee!
turnover!rate!to!a!low!ten!percent!per!school!year.!Teachers!leave!due!to!various!
reasons,! most! of! them! leave! because! they! have! to! go! back! to! their! home!
38!
countries.! It! also! maintained! its! No! Firing! policy! as! much! as! possible.!
Termination! of! employment! and! extension! of! probationary! status! are! almost!
unheard! of! within! the! group,! as! the! management! team! tries! its! best! to! provide!
needed!support!to!teachers!who!are!having!difficulty,!such!as!class!observations!
in! other! campuses,! meeting! with! various! Lead! Teachers! across! the! group! to!
discuss! solutions! to! their! problems! or! reading! materials! that! will! help! them!
improve! their! quality! of! work.! In! most! cases,! teachers! who! are! experiencing!
difficulty! in! teaching! young! children! show! great! improvement! within! a! year.! A!
lot!of!these!teachers!have!become!mentor!teachers!and!Lead!Teachers!after!a!few!
years.!!
!
THE!PROBLEM!SCHOOL:!CHANGES!IN!LEADERSHIP!TEAM!
!
In! 2008,! Lakewood! Group! of! School! has! decided! to! expand! to! the! New!
Territories!area.!After!deliberation!with!teachers!and!Heads!of!Schools,!Sai!Kung!
came! up! as! a! promising! location! due! to! the! fact! that! the! location! will! give!
children!an!opportunity!to!experience!the!beauty!of!nature.!The!Sai!Kung!campus!
was! built! and! became! operational! in! 2009! being! the! only! campus! that! has! an!
outdoor! play! area! for! children! to! play! and! do! gardening.! The! Sai! Kung! campus!
has!a!total!of!seven!classrooms,!three!designed!for!children!under!three!years!of!
age,!three!for!children!aged!3!to!5!and!one!classroom!for!preparation!for!primary!
for!children!aged!5!to!6.!The!classroom!designed!for!the!oldest!group!of!children!
was! equipped! with! an! interactive! whiteboard! and! furniture! designed! to! allow!
freedom!to!access!all!materials.!The!school!is!also!equipped!with!a!large!soft!play!
area! for! infants! and! a! large! indoor! play! area.! The! school! is! expected! to!
accommodate!up!to!250!children.!
!
The!Sai!Kung!campus!was!first!lead!by!Ms.!Puffin,!who!was!transferred!from!the!
Caine!Road!campus!to!settle!this!newly!established!campus.!The!school!started!
with! a! team! of! eight! teachers! and! one! school! helper,! three! teachers! for! under!
threes! classes,! four! teachers! for! preKschool,! one! Mandarin! teacher.! Ms! Puffin!
kept!the!original!school!culture!in!this!new!campus,!where!teachers!were!given!
the! flexibility! to! operate! creatively! for! as! long! as! the! Early! Years! Foundation!
39!
Stage! curriculum! is! strictly! followed.! The! teachers! were! supported! and! guided!
under!the!care!of!newly!appointed!Lead!Teacher!Ms.!Wren.!On!its!first!year,!the!
school! accumulated! a! total! of! 80! enrollees.! In! 2009,! turnover! rate! for! the! Sai!
Kung!campus!was!zero.!!
!
The!schools!reputation!has!been!spread!out!in!the!Sai!Kung!area!within!a!year!
and!gained!popularity!amongst!expatriates.!The!school!started!to!grow!in!2010!
with! its! enrollment! rising! up! to! 150! children.! Unfortunately,! Ms.! Puffin! left! in!
April! 2011! after! giving! birth! to! a! new! baby! and! has! decided! to! take! up!
motherhood! fulltime.! Ms.! Wren! left! on! the! same! year! due! to! a! better! teaching!
opportunity!in!Dubai.!
!
Ms.! Heron! took! over! as! Head! of! School! in! April! 2011.! Ms.! Finch! has! been!
appointed! as! the! new! Lead! Teacher.! Ms.! Heron! was! from! Ireland,! with! over! 8!
years!of!management!experience!in!the!trading!industry.!She!possesses!a!TESOL!
certificate!but!is!not!an!early!childhood!educator.!She!was!hired!on!the!ground!of!
her!positive!outlook!and!idealistic!views!on!early!childhood!education.!Ms.!Finch!
is! from! Scotland! and! she! is! an! educator! with! over! 30! years! of! teaching!
experience! in! lower! primary! education.! Ms.! Finch! proved! to! be! a! very! effective!
lead! teacher! and! was! very! willing! to! share! her! classroom! management!
experiences!and!teaching!ideas.!She!is!also!very!handsKon!and!takes!the!lead!in!
doing! everything! at! school.! Under! her! care,! the! teachers! became! very!
collaborative!and!a!very!close!relationship!was!built!in!the!team.!!
!
Due! to! the! fact! that! Ms.! Finch! is! not! an! early! childhood! educator,! she! worked!
hand!in!hand!with!Ms.!Peregrine,!who!is!the!most!senior!teacher!in!the!Sai!Kung!
campus.! Ms.! Peregrine! was! offered! the! lead! teacher! position! when! Ms.! Wren!
resigned!but!refused!to!take!on!the!role!since!she!feels!she!is!not!ready!to!take!on!
a! leadership! role.! However,! she! agreed! to! support! the! newly! appointed! Lead!
Teacher!if!needed.!Ms.!Peregrine!is!the!schools!creative!brain!and!took!charge!of!
all! creative! matters! of! the! school! since! the! school! became! operational.! Her!
creativity! and! knowledge! in! early! childhood! education! blended! very! well! with!
Ms.! Finchs! rich! teaching! experience.! The! two! of! them! provided! inKhouse!
40!
workshops! to! teachers! on! different! aspects! of! education,! shared! reading!
materials!to!teachers!to!provide!them!with!new!ideas!and!created!a!very!warm!
culture!within!the!school.!!
!
However,!if!things!were!working!very!well!with!Ms.!Finch!and!Ms.!Peregrine,!it!
was! the! opposite! with! Ms.! Heron.! Ms.! Heron! was! unaware! of! the! fact! that!
teachers! need! appreciation! and! support! from! her! and! she! is! very! emotional!
when! dealing! with! issues.! She! uses! language! that! can! be! offensive! to! teachers!
and! is! very! rude! at! times.! Ms.! Finch! and! Ms.! Heron! sat! together! and! talked! it!
through!and!it!had!been!sorted!out!for!a!short!while.!!
!
The! relationship! between! the! teachers! and! Ms.! Heron! became! worse! when! the!
team!has!grown.!In!the!year!2012,!the!Sai!Kung!campus!has!grown!to!a!team!of!
16!teaching!staff.!Due!to!the!diversity!in!culture!and!personalities,!conflict!often!
happen! at! school.! Ms.! Heron! started! to! expect! the! teachers! to! inform! her! of!
everything! that! is! happening! and! communication! with! parents! was! to! be! made!
through!her.!She!also!stays!outside!and!peeks!into!the!classroom!and!this!made!
the! teachers! feel! that! they! are! being! spied! on.! Her! communication! style! made!
teachers! very! uncomfortable,! some! teachers! have! experienced! being! insulted!
and!yelled!at!behind!closed!doors.!She!refused!to!listen!to!the!advice!of!Ms.!Finch!
to!give!teachers!some!room!to!breathe!while!working.!She!started!to!show!signs!
of!being!a!micro!manager!and!has!to!take!credit!for!everything!that!the!teachers!
have! done! for! the! school.! This! made! the! teachers! extremely! unhappy.! The!
problem!was!forwarded!to!the!Lakewood!Head!Office!through!Ms.!Finch!and!the!
schools! General! Manager! met! with! the! entire! teaching! team! individually! to!
investigate!the!problem.!Since!Ms.!Heron!was!verbally!warned!previously!of!her!
behavior,!she!was!given!a!final!written!warning!this!time.!Under!the!lead!of!Ms.!
Heron,!the!school!turnover!rate!rose!from!zero!to!25!percent.!
!
Things!became!better!and!then!worse!in!two!months,!Ms.!Heron!was!terminated!
and! was! replaced! by! Ms.! Albatross! in! June! 2013.! Ms.! Finch! left! for! a! better!
teaching! opportunity! with! the! English! School! Foundation! and! was! replaced! by!
Ms.! Crow.! Again,! Ms.! Peregrine! was! offered! the! position! but! refused.! This! time,!
41!
she! also! refused! to! train! Ms.! Crow! as! she! believes! that! Ms.! Crow! needs! no!
guidance!from!her.!!
!
Ms.! Albatross! was! Deputy! Supervisor! of! the! Caine! Road! campus! and! was!
promoted!to!become!Head!of!School!in!the!Sai!Kung!School.!She!displayed!a!very!
happy! and! positive! attitude! on! her! first! three! months! and! her! temporary!
appointment! was! made! permanent.! Ms.! Crow! has! been! a! teacher! in! the!
Lakewood!Group!for!four!years!and!has!nine!years!of!teaching!experience!in!the!
early!years.!!
!
Serious!problems!started!to!surface!on!the!third!change!of!management.!!
!
Ms.!Albatross!appears!to!be!an!extreme!micro!manager.!She!needs!everything!to!
be! reported! to! her! and! teachers! are! not! allowed! to! communicate! with! parents!
directly.!Parents!are!expected!to!drop!their!children!and!leave!after!saying!a!brief!
goodbye.!Teachers!are!being!called!to!the!office!for!very!menial!mistakes,!such!as!
forgetting! to! complete! the! class! register! on! time! or! using! a! red! pen! instead! of!
blue! on! the! class! register.! Teachers! are! constantly! being! criticized! for! their!
classroom!management,!without!considering!the!situations!of!each!class,!such!as!
the! presence! of! SEN! children.! Classes! are! overloaded! with! 28! children! to! 2!
teachers.!When!teachers!reminded!her!that!the!ratio!in!all!the!Lakewood!schools!
was!12!children!to!1!teacher,!the!teachers!were!told!to!grow!up!and!not!compare!
her! school! to! other! Lakewood! schools.! She! also! refused! to! provide! extra!
manpower! on! classes! with! difficult! children! or! children! with! special! education!
needs.!Teachers!were!never!praised!for!their!efforts!in!improving!the!school.!The!
duty!schedule!seemed!to!have!been!designed!to!prevent!communication!amongst!
the!teaching!team.!The!teachers!rarely!talk!to!each!other!as!Ms.!Albatross!would!
come! out! of! the! office! and! walk! past! whenever! she! hears! signs! of!
communication.! The! entire! teaching! team! received! very! low! scores! on! their!
individual! appraisal! at! the! end! of! the! school! year.! The! teachers! were! told! that!
they!displayed!very!negative!working!attitude!and!it!is!not!good!for!the!school.!
Furthermore,! the! teachers! were! also! told! that! she! simply! expects! a! yes! for! a!
42!
reply! when! she! asks! them! to! do! something! and! her! authority! must! never! be!
questioned.!
!
To!the!surprise!of!the!senior!teachers,!Ms.!Albatross!also!gradually!changed!the!
policies! of! the! school! and! the! teachers! were! told! that! while! they! are! in! the! Sai!
Kung! campus,! they! have! to! follow! her! rules.! Whenever! teachers! are! off! on! sick!
leave,! Ms.! Albatross! would! reshuffle! the! teachers! so! no! outside! cover! teacher!
would! be! needed.! Teachers! who! are! undergoing! professional! development! are!
no! longer! allowed! to! leave! early,! unless! they! make! up! their! time! by! doing!
overtime!on!some!days.!Despite!the!fact!that!they!make!up!for!lost!time,!the!fact!
that! they! left! early! has! became! a! reason! for! point! deduction! in! the! endKofKyear!
individual!appraisal.!As!per!the!Groups!policy,!teachers!are!allowed!to!spend!up!
to! 100! HKD! to! buy! materials! for! their! class! without! need! of! approval! from! the!
Head! of! School.! Ms.! Albatross! informed! the! teachers! that! such! no! longer! apply.!
Mobile!phones!are!also!banned!from!8am!to!5pm.!!
!
Ms.!Crow!was!never!helpful.!She!never!provides!support!to!teachers.!She!simply!
smiled!whenever!teachers!come!to!her!and!asked!for!help.!She!assigned!most!of!
her!tasks!to!teachers,!such!as!setting!up!the!play!area!to!make!it!suitable!to!the!
months! theme,! checking! the! theme! box! materials! if! they! were! up! to! date! or!
making!sure!that!the!library!system!is!in!place.!She!is!constantly!in!Ms.!Albatross!
office! to! help! her! with! administrative! work.! Lead! teachers! in! the! Lakewood!
Group!are!also!class!teachers!in!the!morning,!but!Ms.!Crow!leaves!her!class!to!her!
partner! teacher! after! all! the! children! have! arrived.! Ms.! Crow! was! never! able! to!
answer! questions! that! teachers! asked! her! and! she! displays! a! grave! lack! of!
knowledge!in!leading!a!teaching!team.!She!also!shows!poor!communication!skills!
and!teachers!have!turned!to!Ms.!Peregrine!whenever!they!experienced!difficulty.!!
Ms.! Peregrine! took! the! lead! to! report! the! matter! to! Head! Office! and! she! was!
officially!appointed!as!Mentor!Teacher!in!the!Sai!Kung!PreKschool.!The!Sai!Kung!
campus!is!the!only!campus!with!a!Mentor!Teacher.!
!
43!
In!June!2014,!the!school!has!grown!to!240!enrollees,!with!19!teachers!and!two!
school! helpers.! By! the! end! of! June! 2014,! 40! percent! of! the! teaching! team! has!
resigned,!both!school!helpers!left!the!school!for!better!jobs.!!
!
On!the!same!year,!the!Repulse!Bay!campus!was!closed!down!due!to!issues!on!the!
lease! contract! and! teachers! from! that! campus! has! been! reassigned! to! all!
campuses!across!the!group.!!
!
On! July! 2014,! new! teachers! were! hired.! Two! very! experienced! teachers! were!
hired! from! overseas;! three! other! teachers! were! hired! locally.! The! school! also!
hired!two!teaching!assistants;!Ms.!Crow!monopolized!one!of!them!as!she!claims!
that! she! needs! a! permanent! teaching! assistant! in! her! class.! The! other! teaching!
assistant!was!shared!amongst!the!other!18!teachers!in!the!school.!An!additional!
Mandarin! teacher! was! hired! as! well.! The! Mandarin! teacher,! Ms.! Magpie,! was! a!
new! graduate! with! no! teaching! experience.! Two! senior! teachers! from! the!
Repulse!Bay!campus!was!transferred!to!Sai!Kung.!!
!
The!teaching!assistants!are!not!qualified!teachers,!yet!the!one!in!Ms.!Crows!class!
was!expected!to!teach!and!manage!the!class!instead!of!just!providing!support!to!
the! class! teachers.! Ms.! Crows! teaching! assistant! was! constantly! called! into! the!
office! for! not! being! able! to! perform! properly.! She! was! criticized! for! not! being!
able! to! manage! the! class! and! teach! the! children.! Her! probation! period! was!
extended!for!another!month.!!
!
Ms.!Magpie!was!also!called!constantly!to!the!office!for!her!inability!to!perform!up!
to! par.! She! was! criticized! for! her! poor! teaching! skills,! poor! creativity! in! class!
displays!and!poor!class!management.!When!Ms.!Magpie!asked!for!support,!such!
as! a! visit! to! other! Lakewood! campus! to! seek! ideas! from! fellow! Mandarin!
teachers,!she!was!told!outright!that!the!school!provides!no!such!support!and!she!
is!not!allowed!to!leave!the!classroom!to!visit!other!schools.!Ms.!Crow!aggravated!
the! situation! by! reporting! to! Ms.! Albatross! how! poor! Ms.! Magpie! is! in! terms! of!
time! management.! Her! probation! period! was! also! extended.! Ms.! Albatross!
reported!the!matter!to!Head!Office,!concealing!the!fact!that!Ms.!Magpie!asked!for!
44!
training! and! support,! and! the! groups! curriculum! coordinator! came! to! observe!
the! class.! The! Curriculum! Coordinator! confirmed! Ms.! Magpies! poor! class!
management.!Her!employment!was!terminated!on!11th!December!2014.!!
!
As!of!19th!December!2014,!both!newly!transferred!senior!teachers!have!tendered!
their! resignation.! Ms.! Peregrine! has! requested! for! a! transfer! to! a! different!
campus,! the! senior! Mandarin! teacher! has! submitted! her! resignation! and! two!
senior!playgroup!teachers!have!expressed!their!intention!to!leave!after!the!end!
of! the! school! year.! One! of! the! school! helpers! has! resigned! to! immediate! effect.!
That! leaves! the! Sai! Kung! PreKschool! with! no! senior! teachers,! apart! from! Ms.!
Crow.!!
!
When! Ms.! Peregrines! transfer! has! been! approved! and! officially! announced,!
teachers! started! to! worry.! They! rose! questions! on! who! will! takeover! Ms.!
Peregrines! classes! and! duties,! as! those! duties! were! supposed! to! be! lead!
teachers! duties.! The! situation! in! the! Sai! Kung! School! has! worsen,! and! the!
teachers!no!longer!listen!to!the!Ms.!Crow.!Ms.!Crow!continues!to!perform!poorly,!
new! teachers! were! not! supported! and! guided! properly,! parents! of! children! in!
Playgroup!classes!have!started!to!pull!their!children!out!gradually.!!
!
The!teachers!feel!that!the!issue!can!no!longer!be!neglected.!They!feel!that!Head!
Office!needs!to!be!informed!of!the!matter.!The!teachers!met!outside!of!school!to!
devise!a!plan,!listed!down!their!concerns!and!have!decided!to!contact!Ms.!Lark,!
Lakewoods!Deputy!General!Manager,!to!seek!solution!to!the!problem.!However,!
nobody!wanted!to!be!presented!as!team!leader!for!fear!of!negative!consequences!
from!Ms.!Albatross.!A!common!email!account!was!therefore!devised!as!means!to!
communicate! with! Ms.! Lark.! All! email! communications! were! agreed! to! be!
anonymous.!
!
Despite! the! anonymity! of! the! emails,! Ms.! Lark! had! been! very! accommodating.!
She! has! decided! to! meet! with! the! team! immediately! and! the! meeting! was!
scheduled!in!the!Mandarin!Oriental!on!the!second!Wednesday!of!February.!!
!
45!
The! members! of! the! team! arrived! to! meet! with! Ms.! Lark! and! everybody! took!
turns! to! speak,! with! Ms.! Peregrine! taking! the! lead! to! read! out! the! concerns! of!
those! who! did! not! make! it! to! the! meeting.! Ms.! Lark! patiently! listened! and!
promised! to! help! sort! out! the! problem! by! talking! to! Ms.! Albatross.! Ms.! Lark!
arrived! unannounced! the! following! Monday! and! had! a! short! meeting! with! Ms.!
Crow,! details! of! the! conversation! were! unknown.! She! then! met! with! Ms.!
Albatross!and!the!meeting!lasted!two!hours.!!
!
After! the! meeting! with! Ms.! Albatross,! her! management! approach! began! to!
change.!She!spends!more!time!focusing!on!general!administrative!duties!and!Ms.!
Crow! was! made! to! deal! with! all! pedagogical! issues! and! concerns.! Teachers!
started! to! communicate! with! parents! more! openly! and! parent! meetings! are! no!
held! by! teachers! with! no! interference! by! Ms.! Albatross! or! Ms.! Crow.! Teachers!
were! given! more! freedom! to! manage! their! classes.! Ms.! Albatross! started! to!
communicate! with! teachers! in! a! more! polite! and! relaxed! manner.! The!
relationship!between!Ms.!Albatross!and!majority!of!the!teaching!team!members!
has! started! to! improve.! Ms.! Peregrine! continued! to! report! the! progress! to! Ms.!
Lark!on!a!regular!basis.!However,!not!everyone!in!the!teaching!team!was!pleased,!
as!expected.!Ms.!Peregrine!advised!the!teachers!to!give!Ms.!Albatross!some!time,!
as!she!is!evidently!trying!her!best!to!work!with!the!teachers.!!
!
As! Ms.! Crow! started! to! completely! overtake! responsibilities! on! pedagogy,! real!
issues! started! to! surface.! Ms.! Crow! displays! problems! in! communicating! with!
teachers,!constantly!interrupting!classes!on!matters!that!are!not!urgent,!urgent!
matters!were!not!communicated!to!teachers!at!all.!New!teachers!were!made!to!
teach!classes!without!proper!briefing!or!training,!they!had!no!idea!of!what!was!
expected! of! them! to! do.! All! teachers! were! loaded! with! unnecessary! duties! and!
Ms.! Crow! is! constantly! spared! from! all! the! duties! at! school! for! being! Lead!
Teacher.! Events! at! schools! were! utterly! disorganized! and! schedules! of! events!
were!not!communicated!properly!to!the!staff!members.!During!events!at!school,!
staff! members! appeared! lost! and! unable! to! communicate! to! volunteer! parents!
the! sequence! of! events.! Ms.! Peregrine! continues! to! be! the! contact! point! of! the!
teaching! team! when! they! encounter! issues! with! parents,! teaching! and! class!
46!
management.! Ms.! Peregrine! have! advised! the! teachers! to! seek! Ms.! Crows! help!
and! this! have! not! proven! to! be! helpful,! for! Ms.! Crow! was! not! able! to! provide!
answers!to!the!questions!presented!upon!her.!!
!
The!teachers!were!extremely!unhappy!at!this!point.!Two!more!teachers!resigned,!
two!teachers!requested!for!transfer!for!the!new!term,!Ms.!Peregrine!is!officially!
assigned!to!the!new!Kennedy!Town!campus!effective!July!2015.!!
!
THE!LAST!STRAW:!THE!FINAL!RESOLUTION!
!
Only! four! teachers! from! the! original! team! of! 17! remained.! The! teachers! who!
were! leaving! and! transferring! have! decided! that! the! problem! is! devoid! of! any!
solution.!The!remaining!four!teachers!have!once!again,!tried!to!talk!to!Ms.!Lark.!
One!of!the!teachers!talked!to!Ms.!Lark!in!person!and!laid!out!the!entire!situation!
to!her!when!she!visited!last!14th!May!(Thursday).!Ms.!Lark!advised!the!teacher!to!
talk!to!Ms.!Albatross!directly!and!after!meeting!with!the!other!teachers,!she!did!
so!on19th!May!(Tuesday).!
!
However,! prior! to! the! 19th! May! meeting,! Ms.! Lark! had! already! phoned! Ms.!
Albatross!and!the!conversation!lasted!for!more!than!an!hour!(18th!May,!Monday!
afternoon).! The! school! receptionist! had! informed! the! teachers! of! the! private!
phone! meeting! to! avoid! interruption.! ! ! Once! again,! nobody! was! aware! of! what!
transpired! during! the! said! meeting.! Ms.! Crow! was! asked! to! step! down! as! Lead!
Teacher!on!the!same!day,!with!immediate!effect.!!
!
The!teacher!who!talked!to!Ms.!Albatross!of!the!issues!concerning!Ms.!Crow!was!
advised!that!Ms.!Crow!has!already!stepped!down!as!Lead!Teacher,!and!will!cease!
to!be!Lead!Teacher!as!soon!as!a!replacement!has!been!appointed.!!
!
Ms.! Albatross! met! with! Ms.! Peregrine! on! Wednesday,! 20th! May! and! offered! her!
the!Lead!Teacher!position,!at!the!same!time!requesting!her!to!think!about!staying!
in!the!school!instead!of!transferring!to!the!new!campus.!Ms.!Peregrine,!who!was!
looking!forward!to!transferring!to!the!new!campus,!asked!for!time!to!decide!on!
47!
the! matter.! She! sought! advise! from! friends! who! were! working! within! the!
Lakewood! Group! on! what! to! do.! She! met! with! the! Head! of! School! of! the! new!
Kennedy!Town!School!and!Lead!Teachers!from!other!schools.!All!of!them!advised!
her! to! stay! and! take! on! the! offer;! they! also! provided! suggestions! on! how! to!
improve!the!situation!of!the!problem!school.!!
!
On!22nd!May,!Friday,!Ms.!Peregrine!met!with!Ms.!Albatross!once!again.!She!laid!
out! her! vision! for! the! school,! matters! she! wanted! to! deal! with! according! to!
priority,!she!also!requested!for!more!time,!assistance!and!resources!to!help!her!
organize! the! school.! Ms.! Albatross,! after! considering! the! requests! made! by! Ms.!
Peregrine!and!the!visions!she!had!for!the!staff,!have!agreed!with!no!dispute.!!
!
Ms.!Peregrine!will!officially!take!on!her!new!role!as!the!Lead!Teacher!for!the!Sai!
Kung!School!effective!July!2015,!which!is!the!beginning!of!summer!term.!She!has!
presented!to!the!Lakewood!Head!Office!her!vision!to!provide!more!pedagogical!
support! to! the! team! through! class! observations,! internal! trainings! and!
workshops,! creating! a! new! library,! creating! more! learning! stations! for! children!
to! explore! and! more! time! for! teachers! to! plan,! rather! than! performing!
unnecessary! duties.! It! has! been! agreed! to! rethink! the! setKup! of! the! school! in!
order! to! take! away! unnecessary! duties,! such! as! morning! playroom! set! up! and!
afternoon!tidying!up.!Furthermore,!it!has!also!been!agreed!that!teachers!will!be!
given! an! opportunity! to! take! lead! by! taking! turns! to! take! charge! in! organizing!
events!at!school,!under!Ms.!Peregrine!supervision.!Ms.!Peregrine!strongly!believe!
that! distributing! leadership! throughout! the! school! will! create! a! more!
collaborative! environment,! as! the! teachers! will! be! able! to! display! their! own!
potential! in! certain! areas! and! an! opportunity! to! learn! from! each! other! will!
openly!occur.!!
!
To! Illustrate,! the! following! are! Ms.! Peregrines! top! 12! proposed! actions! to! help!
the!team!move!forward,!not!necessarily!in!chronological!order:!
!
48!
1. Create!an!inventory!of!books,!set!up!a!school!library,!improve!the!schools!
visual! environment! to! emphasize! the! importance! of! literacy! to! young!
children;!
2. Unnecessary!duties!to!be!removed;!
3. Spread! leadership! throughout! the! team! by! providing! them! with!
meaningful!assignments!to!give!all!teachers!a!chance!to!be!recognised,!all!
projects!will!be!guided!by!Ms.!Peregrine.!!
4. Curriculum!Meeting!sessions!will!be!conducted!every!month!!One!month!
for! brainstorming! of! ideas! and! one! month! for! workshops,! to! be! done!
alternately;!
5. Manpower! planning! and! duties! to! be! arranged! to! give! way! to! one!
afternoon! each! week! preparation! time,! teaching! assistants! will! be! fully!
utilized!for!the!benefit!of!the!entire!team;!
6. Purchase!more!story!books!for!children!and!resource!books!for!teachers,!
to!be!done!gradually!over!the!span!of!two!years;!
7. Regular!peer!observation!will!be!scheduled;!
8. Ms.! Peregrine! will! gather! good! ideas! from! each! classroom,! on! a! regular!
basis,!to!share!on!a!private!blog!for!teachers;!
9. Ms.!Peregrine!will!gather!information!from!each!teacher!to!find!out!his!or!
her! strengths! and! areas! they! want! to! work! on! (years! personal! target).!
The! latter! will! be! used! as! topics! for! workshops! on! the! curriculum!
meetings;!
10. Ms.! Peregrine! to! provide! support! on! the! teachers! personal! target! and!
training!of!new!teachers;!
11. Teachers,!working!in!pairs,!will!be!given!one!school!event!each!to!manage.!
Ms.! Peregrine! to! take! responsibility! on! supervising! the! execution! of!
logistics!for!each!event.!Ms.!Peregrine!to!take!charge!two!of!the!schools!
biggest!events:!Open!Day!and!Christmas!Concert;!
12. At!the!end!of!the!school!year,!teachers!will!take!turns!to!share!what!they!
have! learned! based! on! their! personal! target! (area! they! wanted! to! work!
on).!
!
49!
The!Lakewood!Case!Study!is!not!a!success!story,!but!an!illustration!of!how!poor!
leadership;! lack! of! collaboration! and! miscommunication! can! affect! quality! of!
teaching! and! the! general! atmosphere! of! a! school.! The! schools! willingness! to!
listen! to! the! grievances! of! the! teachers! and! its! decision! to! replace! the! current!
Head! Teacher! is! an! indication! of! a! promising! positive! change.! Ms.! Peregrine!
made!it!clear!to!the!team!that!she!cannot!create!positive!change!on!her!own,!that!
the! support! of! the! teaching! staff! is! extremely! important.! The! teachers,! upon!
hearing!this,!have!realized!the!fact!that!they!indeed!play!a!very!important!role!in!
the! school! and! nothing! will! be! possible! without! their! help.! With! the! moving!
forward!positively!vision!in!mind,!everybody!has!offered!help!in!various!ways.!
The! team! members! who! previously! requested! for! a! transfer! have! withdrawn!
their! requests.! Though! a! few! of! the! team! members! might! think! that! it! is! still!
better!to!hire!an!outsider!to!takeover!the!Lead!Teacher!position,!majority!of!the!
team!members!are!now!happy!with!the!final!decision!and!are!looking!forward!to!
a!fresh!start!this!coming!school!year.!
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50!
.
Chapter.5.
Analysis.and.Conclusion.
!
!
Talking! to! the! principals! and! members! of! the! leadership! team! has! given! me! a!
broader! picture! of! what! educational! leadership! entails.! The! interviews! I! have!
conducted! made! me! realize! that! despite! the! difference! in! curriculum,! student!
expectation,!management!styles,!school!cultures!and!demands!from!parents,!one!
thing! remains! constant:! the! need! to! maintain! good! relationship! with! everyone!
involved!is!most!important!in!order!for!leadership!to!manage!successfully.!Good!
relationship! means! being! able! to! communicate! effectively! and! by! being! able! to!
communicate!effectively,!teachers,!parents!and!other!stakeholders!will!be!able!to!
work!collaboratively.!!
!
I! have! repeatedly! emphasized! the! importance! of! distributive! leadership! in! the!
previous!chapter.!However,!distributive!leadership!will!not!be!possible!if!there!is!
absence! of! good! relationship! within! the! school.! Good! relationship! within! the!
school! is! equivalent! to! a! happy! teaching! team.! Happy! teachers! are! more!
motivated! to! teach! and! motivated! teachers! go! out! of! their! way! to! develop!
themselves!to!become!better!teachers.!When!the!members!of!the!teaching!team!
are!on!the!same!track,!they!will!collaborate!with!each!other!to!help!support!each!
others! weaknesses.! Motivated! teachers! are! more! willing! to! take! charge! in!
different!aspect!of!school!activities.!Maintaining!good!relationship,!nonetheless,!
is!easier!said!than!done.!!
!
As!seen!in!the!Lakewood!Case!Study!in!Chapter!3,!the!teachers!were!extremely!
unhappy! and! quality! started! to! decline.! Nobody! cares! about! anything! since! the!
person! in! leadership! position! did! not! bother! to! take! the! lead.! Instead,! she!
distributed!her!duties!for!everyone!to!do!and!left!them!behind!to!do!it!with!no!
guidance!from!her.!This!is!another!classic!example!of!the!impact!of!leadership!on!
quality! teaching.! When! the! leader! does! not! make! an! effort! to! maintain! good!
51!
relationship! within! the! school,! teachers! will! start! to! confine! themselves! within!
the!four!corners!of!their!classroom!and!their!only!goal!is!to!get!the!job!done!and!
leave!after!working!hours.!!
!
5.1 An.Analysis.on.Maintaining.Relationship.
!
Leaders!are!not!just!those!individuals!with!leadership!degrees!or!leadership!
positions.! They! are! educators,! administrators,! parents! and! others! whose!
leadership!thinking!and!action!promote!meaningful!learning!(Biddle,!2012).!
People! in! leadership! position! work! with! different! types! of! people,! and! it! is!
their! duty! to! ensure! that! collaboration! occur! in! a! professional! learning!
environment.!!
!
Maintaining!a!harmonious!relationship!is!extremely!important!in!order!for!a!
team! to! move! towards! the! same! goal.! In! my! interview! with! leaders! of!
different! international! schools,! all! of! them! find! it! very! important! to! interact!
with!teachers!on!a!daily!basis.!!
!
Mr.! Warbler! of! School! B! thinks! that! their! successful! school! survey! the! past!
year!is!due!to!the!fact!that!he!is!around!the!school!at!all!times!where!people!
get!to!know!him!and!can!talk!to!him.!In!addition!to!that,!he!made!sure!that!the!
parents! have! plenty! of! opportunities! to! be! involved! in! their! childrens!
learning!and!in!the!general!life!of!the!school.!He!maintains!that!having!a!sense!
of! community! is! extremely! important.! It! is! essential! to! bring! into! play! the!
sense!of!community!in!the!school!and!that!everybody!has!a!role!for!learning!
in!the!school.!He!also!manages!to!maintain!a!good!relationship!with!teachers.!
As!much!as!he!tries!to!be!involved!in!planning!and!other!pedagogical!aspects!
of!the!school,!he!understands!that!teachers!need!professional!freedom!to!get!
on!with!things.!He!talks!about!learning!of!the!children!with!them,!and!on!the!
quality! of! their! teaching! and! learning.! Making! teachers! know! that! he!
appreciates!what!they!do!and!they!have!value!is!very!important!in!his!school.!!
!
52!
Mr.! Falcon! of! School! A! interacts! with! teachers! according! to! their! needs.! He!
understands!that!some!teachers!need!a!lot!of!attention,!whilst!others!prefer!
less! interactional! validation! by! anybody! in! leadership.! His! main! role! is! to!
work! with! people! and! he! thinks! being! able! to! communicate! and! to! enjoy!
being! around! people! of! many! ages! from! different! backgrounds! and! with!
many! diverse! needs! means! one! have! to! be! versatile! and! try! to! match! the!
needs! of! one! person! with! the! type! of! conversational! and! interaction! he! has!
with! them.! As! the! school! grows,! he! finds! it! a! challenge! for! one! person! to!
interact!with!everyone!and!he!now!sees!it!as!a!collaborative!piece.!In!School!
A,!people!in!the!leadership!team!put!themselves!in!various!roles!to!create!a!
more!open!environment.!For!instance,!Mr.!Jay!who!is!Principal!for!Secondary!
department! takes! on! arrival! and! dismissal! duties! voluntarily! to! make!
students!and!parents!feel!welcome.!Small!talks!on!various!daily!aspects!of!a!
students!life!also!happen!at!this!time!of!the!day.!!
!
Due! to! the! size! of! the! school,! members! of! the! leadership! team! in! School! A!
may!not!see!everybody!on!a!daily!basis.!However,!they!try!to!ensure!people!
that! are! in! need! and! people! that! do! actually! have! the! need! to! come! in! and!
meet! with! them,! or! anybody! in! leadership.! It! is! important! to! make! teachers!
feel! that! leadership! is! accessible,! and! they! have! put! mechanisms! in! place! to!
ensure! that! leaders! have! their! ears! to! the! ground! and! they! can! support!
wherever!necessary.!!
!
School! C! is! slightly! different,! but! leaders! in! this! school! find! it! extremely!
important! for! interaction! to! occur! within! schools.! School! C! operates! 10!
schools! across! Hong! Kong! and! there! is! a! Head! Office! that! manages! the!
general! administrative! aspect! of! the! operations.! Ms.! Lark,! Deputy! General!
Manager! of! School! C,! visits! one! of! the! schools! each! day! and! meet! with! the!
Head! of! School.! She! interacts! with! teachers! during! this! visit! and! makes!
herself! available! for! concerns! that! needed! to! be! addressed.! Creating! good!
relationships!within!the!school!campus!is!the!job!of!the!Head!of!School!and!
Lead! Teacher,! who! works! handKinKhand! to! ensure! that! the! school! runs!
smoothly! in! all! aspect.! Ms.! Mallard,! who! is! lead! teacher! in! one! of! the!
53!
campuses,!maintains!that!constant!interaction!is!very!important!to!know!the!
needs! of! each! teacher.! It! is! very! important! to! be! visible! in! order! to! make!
teachers!feel!that!she!is!approachable!when!need!arises.!!
.
5.2 A.Talk.on.Leadership.Style.
.
A! research! conducted! by! the! University! of! Washington! classified! leadership!
into!three!categories.!Namely,!One!Man!Band!who!is!someone!who!decides!
to!it!all!him!or!herself,!Jazz!Combo!is!someone!who!is!inclined!to!delegate!
responsibilities! and! Orchestral! Leaders! who! are! leaders! that! believe! in!
sharing! responsibilities! throughout! the! school.! The! leaders! were! asked! to!
compare!their!leadership!style!to!the!aboveKmentioned!categories.!!
!
All!leaders!responded!that!it!is!almost!impossible!for!a!leader!to!use!only!one!
approach!of!leadership.!As!education!leaders,!it!is!important!for!them!to!act!
according!to!what!the!situation!requires.!!
!
Mr.! Falcon,! Head! of! School! in! School! A! mentioned! that! leadership! is! very!
much! dependent! upon! the! group! that! the! leader! is! working! with,! the! tasks!
that!are!involved!and!also!the!mood!of!that!particular!group.!There!is!a!need!
to! employ! all! three.! Some! things! need! to! be! collaborative! in! nature,! other!
things!need!somebody!to!make!a!decision!and!make!sure!that!things!actually!
get! done.! Otherwise! what! you! get! is! paralysis! by! analysis! and! it! can! be!
extremely! frustrating! because! time! has! been! put! into! things! and! nothing!
seems!to!happen!and!nobody!gets!anywhere.!Both!Mr.!Jay!and!Ms.!Puffin!have!
confirmed! this! statement! in! separate! interviews.! In! fact,! School! A! uses! all!
three!to!different!degrees.!It!is!impossible!to!involve!everybody!all!the!time.!
However,!when!leaders!do!engage!people,!you!have!to!let!them!know!at!what!
capacity!and!what!they!will!be!able!to!do!as!a!consequence.!!Ms.!Puffin!added!
that! it! is! important! to! be! aware! of! what! is! going! on,! provide! support! and!
guidance! when! necessary! and! empower! those! around! you! with! the! most!
necessary!information!to!make!the!best!decision.!!
!
54!
Mr.!Warbler,!Principal!of!School!B,!states!that!the!best!way!to!improve!people!
and!improve!their!practice!in!the!school!is!to!give!your!staff!an!opportunity!to!
engage! to! work! through! their! own! motivation.! In! fact,! it! is! more! than!
orchestrating! because! the! leader! still! needs! to! be! involved.! A! leader! cannot!
step! back.! He! or! she! needs! to! provide! support! to! individual! in! different!
measures! as! they! move! on.! According! to! Warbler,! context! and! situation!
change!from!year!to!year!and!an!effective!leader!needs!to!draw!upon!all!those!
skills! in! order! to! be! effective.! However,! experience! told! Mr.! Warbler! that! a!
leader! needs! to! be! careful! and! not! be! over! involved! and! too! collaborative.!
Otherwise,!teachers!may!think!it!is!all!about!him!and!his!ideas,!not!about!the!
team.! ! Ms.! Loon! added! that! the! leadership! approach! depends! on! what! the!
situation! requires.! As! the! schools! Support! for! Learners! Coordinator,!
collaborative! work! is! called! for! in! order! to! ensure! that! students! receive! the!
needed!support.!She!uses!peoples!strengths!but!tends!to!do!things!herself!as!
well.! Ms.! Sparrow,! Curriculum! Coordinator! of! School! B,! believes! that! it!
depends!on!the!context!of!the!school.!In!a!crisis!people!often!look!for!a!strong!
leader!so!instructional!leadership!tends!to!work!well.!Essentially,!she!added,!
leadership! is! about! being! influential,! and! it! is! also! about! engaging! others! to!
carry! development! projects! forward.! A! leader! cannot! achieve! much! alone,!
and!if!people!dont!believe!in!the!value!of!the!action,!it!will!fall!over!as!soon!as!
one!key!person!has!left,!so!that!is!not!creating!sustainable!change.!!
!
School!C!strongly!believes!in!sharing!as!part!of!the!school!culture.!To!achieve!
this,! collaboration! is! expected! at! all! levels.! It! is! crucial! to! share! ideas! and!
opinions! as! this! will! lead! to! continuous! improvement! across! the! group! of!
schools.! However,! Ms.! Mallard,! Lead! Teacher,! clarified! that! it! strongly!
depends!on!the!situation.!As!Lead!Teacher,!there!are!decisions!that!needed!to!
be!made!alone!and!involving!the!entire!team!in!all!decision!making!process!
will!only!create!chaos.!There!is!a!need!therefore!to!apply!all!three!approaches!
based! on! the! need! called! upon.! There! are! times! that! a! leader! need! to! be!
autocratic! and! make! decisions,! and! times! one! need! to! be! linear! and! consult!
other! teachers! or! managers.! In! School! C,! good! leadership! is! all! about! being!
flexible.!!
55!
5.3 General.Challenges.of.a.Leader.and.Troubleshooting.
.
It! is! part! of! the! job! of! a! leader! to! support! and! help! provide! solutions! when!
conflict! occurs.! In! fact,! conflict! resolution! is! one! of! the! most! difficult!
challenges!a!leader!faces!everyday.!!
!
Leaders!in!School!A!explained!that!conflict!can!be!healthy!if!well!managed.!It!
helps!to!have!a!strong!sense!of!trust!in!the!people.!Conflict!can!be!extremely!
helpful! in! supporting! change! to! make! everybody! looks! at! things! from!
different!perspective!and!to!enable!the!team!to!come!up!with!ideas!that!have!
considered!different!viewpoints.!!
!
Where!conflict!becomes!challenging!though,!is!when!it!becomes!personalized!
instead! of! issueKbased.! In! this! case,! it! requires! leaders! to! be! skilled! in! the!
types! of! conversations! in! which! they! can! help! people! to! work! through! the!
problems.!One!of!the!most!important!roles!of!the!leadership!team!in!School!A!
is! to! try! to! ensure! that! there! is! high! level! of! trust! so! that! everything! can!
thrive,! that! conversations! do! not! become! too! personal,! that! there! arent!
hidden!agendas!on!things.!Solving!problems!for!the!team!members!is!not!the!
solution.!It!is!important!to!make!the!problems!faced!a!learning!opportunity,!
giving!them!(team!members)!a!chance!to!speak!with!somebody!and!making!
them!feel!that!they!can!go!ahead!and!solve!the!problems!amongst!themselves.!
This!is!the!same!method!that!is!being!used!on!students!when!problems!arise.!
The! way! conversations! go! is! to! get! to! the! point! on! how! one! can! solve! this!
because!there!is!a!great!chance!the!next!time!conflict!comes!or!the!next!time!
there! is! a! difficult! situation,! they! have! a! better! skillset.! In! the! case! of!
problems!within!the!teaching!team,!it!is!strongly!encouraged!to!reach!out!to!
their!colleagues,!as!well!as!to!the!different!members!of!the!leadership!team.!
The!entire!team!works!together!to!address!the!challenges.!!
!
School!B!finds!that!conflict!arises!when!there!is!lack!of!communication.!Due!
to!the!demands!of!the!task!on!teachers!as!educators!to!young!children,!time!is!
often! not! enough! for! all! team! members! to! communicate.! Since! the! school!
56!
actively!supports!children!with!different!learning!abilities,!communication!is!
essential!to!ensure!that!the!children!are!progressing!as!quickly!as!he!might.!
One!way!to!address!the!problem!is!to!set!up!student!support!groups.!Time!is!
allocated!in!the!schedule!to!give!way!to!meetings!where!the!teachers,!support!
for!learning!coordinator,!the!psychologist,!the!therapist!and!the!parents!are!
all! around! the! table! at! the! same! time.! These! meetings! aim! to! agree! on! the!
next!steps!so!they!can!move!on.!The!school!has!also!mandated!some!meetings!
at! the! end! of! the! day! for! teachers! and! education! assistants! to! ensure! that!
communication!can!happen.!!
!
Just! like! School! A,! another! area! of! conflict! is! when! teachers! have! different!
opinions.! Since! teachers! are! given! the! opportunity! to! make! their! own!
decisions! as! professionals,! conflict! can! arise! due! to! opinion! differences.! In!
this! case,! teachers! are! encouraged! to! talk! it! through! and! come! up! with! an!
amenable!plan!of!action.!!
!
School!C!has!posted!an!interesting!reply!in!terms!of!challenges!leaders!faced!
in!this!school.!According!to!Ms.!Lark,!Deputy!General!Manager,!the!problems!
are! of! misinformation,! assumption,! negativity,! immaturity,! wanting! to! do!
things! their! own! way,! a! lack! of! empathy! for! the! companys! policies,!
procedures!and!objectives.!School!Heads!are!the!first!point!of!contact!when!
conflict! arises! and! problems! are! expected! to! be! solved! inKhouse! across! the!
different! campuses.! If! conflict! cannot! be! solved,! then! Ms.! Lark! comes! in! to!
help!discuss!and!come!up!with!a!solution!to!the!problem.!!
!
The! problem! in! School! C! is! evidently! caused! by! miscommunication.! When!
messages,!such!as!policies!or!expectations,!are!not!clearly!delivered,!then!this!
causes! confusion! amongst! the! team! members.! During! the! interview! with!
various!school!leaders!in!this!school,!it!has!been!repeatedly!mentioned!that!
an! employee! handbook! does! not! exist! in! School! C.! All! policies! were!
communicated!through!emails!and!memorandum,!and!it!is!possible!for!new!
teachers!not!to!be!aware!of!some!policies!previously!issued.!It!is!the!job!of!the!
Lead! Teacher! to! remind! teachers! of! these! policies.! In! terms! of! assumption,!
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negativity,!immaturity!and!wanting!to!do!things!their!own!way,!Ms.!Longspur!
suggested! that! having! a! strong! head! for! the! teaching! team! in! each! school!
could! solve! this! problem.! Someone! who! is! skilled! in! communicating! with!
various!types!of!people,!experienced!in!training!teachers!and!supporting!the!
various! needs! of! teachers! can! help! move! the! team! forward.! Ms.! Mallard,!
whos! been! a! teacher! for! over! 20! years! in! School! C,! states! that! School! C!
adapts! the! British! Early! Years! Foundation! Stage! Curriculum! and! the!
documents!containing!the!general!milestones!of!children!can!be!confusing!to!
new!teachers.!It!is!advisable!to!clearly!categorize!the!skillsets!on!different!age!
groups,!so!teachers!have!a!clear!basis!when!teaching!children!and!to!ensure!
that!differentiation!occurs!across!all!levels.!This!problem!has!been!dealt!with!
and!the!Lead!Teachers!are!working!collaboratively!on!this!at!the!moment.!!
!
5.4 Matters.on.Motivation.and.Professional.Development.
.
A!lengthy!discussion!has!been!made!in!Chapter!2!on!the!areas!of!motivation.!
Maslows! Hierarchy! of! Needs,! the! Carrot! and! Stick! Theory! and! Herzbergs!
MotivationKHygiene!Theory!were!discussed!in!detail.!!
!
Motivation! plays! a! big! part! in! ensuring! a! team! of! effective! and! efficient!
teachers.! Teachers! have! a! strong! need! to! stay! updated! in! order! to! improve!
their! craft! and! part! of! the! job! of! a! school! leader! is! to! meet! this! need! of!
teachers.!!
!
School!A!looks!at!professional!development!from!two!perspectives,!external!
and! jobKembedded.! Job! embedded! consists! of! those! that! go! on! a! dayKtoKday!
basis,! learning! from! colleagues,! looking! at! students! work! samples.! Too! Mr.!
Falcon,! this! is! the! most! powerful! professional! development! a! school! can!
provide.! In! School! A,! the! school! closes! on! Wednesday! afternoons! for! jobK
embedded! professional! development.! It! allows! teachers! to! engage! in!
professional! discussions,! looking! in! the! bookwork! or! do! teamKbuilding!
exercise.! Talks! about! assessments,! how! the! team! plan! learning! experiences!
for!the!students!also!happen!on!Wednesdays.!Teachers!are!also!encouraged!
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to!go!out!and!do!courses,!in!Hong!Kong!or!abroad.!To!Mr.!Falcon,!professional!
development! is! not! an! entitlement! but! a! means! to! serve! the! needs! of! the!
school!in!developing!the!best!program!for!the!students.!The!schools!mission!
statement!also!clearly!talks!about!being!a!lead!education!school.!Teachers!are!
aware!that!they!do!not!just!take!from!the!community;!they!also!put!back!to!it.!
School! A! provides! workshops,! write! articles! and! work! in! partnerships! with!
other!schools.!The!school!strongly!believes!that!their!role!as!a!school!is!to!use!
the!voice!and!experience!they!have!to!give!something!back!to!the!community.!
This! sense! of! community! is! strongly! embedded! in! their! practice! as! a! school!
and!this!motivates!the!teachers!to!move!forward!as!a!team.!!
!
Apart! from! jobKembedded! professional! development,! the! school! also! has! a!
strategic!plan.!The!plan!was!constructed!with!the!board!and!it!determines!the!
direction!of!the!school!for!the!next!five!years.!This!strategic!plan!is!published!
and! open! for! teachers! to! read,! to! be! informed! of! the! direction! the! school! is!
moving! towards! to.! School! A! also! provide! teachers! opportunities! to! attend!
workshops! and! conferences,! for! instance,! two! teachers! were! sent! to! the!
Technology!Conference!out!of!Hong!Kong!this!year.!Teachers!who!were!sent!
out! to! attend! conferences! will! share! their! knowledge! to! the! team! through! a!
workshop.! Teachers! are! allowed! to! come! forward! whenever! they! see! onK
going!courses.!There!is!an!application!process!where!teachers!are!required!to!
say!what!they!expect!to!get!out!of!it,!how!they!are!going!to!use!that,!how!it!fits!
the! mission! and! goals! of! the! school! and! a! funding! rubric! will! be! used! to!
determine!the!extent!on!the!school!is!going!to!support!the!request.!!
!
To!Mr.!Falcon,!human!beings!naturally!work!in!groups!and!thats!how!weve!
been! conditioned! to! do! for! thousands! of! years.! People! are! conditioned! to!
work! collaboratively! and! that! is! how! the! success! of! human! race! is! based!
upon.!The!challenge!of!a!leader!is!to!make!sure!that!this!becomes!a!positive!
experience.! The! school! provides! a! lot! of! time! for! teachers! to! communicate!
and!learn!from!each!other.!!
!
59!
Mr.! Warbler! in! School! B! recognizes! the! teachers! need! to! learn! and! he!
personally!believes!that!learning!is!a!continuum.!Teachers!need!to!have!some!
real!focus!and!experience!in!working!with!young!children!in!an!educational!
context.! To! him,! the! best! way! to! improve! people! is! to! give! his! staff! an!
opportunity! to! engage! to! work! through! their! own! motivations.! To! support!
teachers,!School!B!has!different!educational!themes!for!staff!meetings,!which!
is!working!towards!the!schools!professional!development!plan.!The!themes!
are! all! focused! on! learning! and! teaching! and! school! improvement.! Staff!
meetings,!according!to!Mr.!Warbler,!are!more!than!a!staff!meeting.!It!is!their!
professional!development!opportunity!to!talk!about!their!practice.!They!also!
find!time!to!include!collaborative!planning!time!in!the!schedule!in!order!for!
teachers!to!sit!down!and!plan!together.!It!means!that!the!teachers!are!moving!
towards!the!same!general!direction.!It!also!means!that!the!teachers!are!able!
to! share! resources! and! support! each! other! in! building! the! program.! The!
teachers! themselves! chair! the! meetings! so! the! teachers! are! given! a! level! of!
autonomy.! School! B! also! has! a! general! budget! in! professional! development.!
They! provide! workshops! on! CPD! days! and! also! send! teachers! overseas! for!
workshops.!!
!
The! task! to! plan! professional! development! falls! on! the! shoulders! of! Ms.!
Longspur!and!Lead!Teachers!in!School!C.!Lead!Teachers!gather!information!
from!teachers!at!the!beginning!of!each!year!and!they!meet!together!to!discuss!
the!findings.!Based!on!the!feedback!from!the!teachers,!Lead!Teachers!and!Ms.!
Longspur! decide! collaboratively! on! the! workshops! that! the! school! will!
provide! the! teachers! throughout! the! year.! School! C! has! 3! to! 4! professional!
development!days!each!school!year!to!provide!teachers!workshops,!seminars!
or! attend! conferences.! According! to! Ms.! Mallard,! Lead! Teachers! takes! the!
primary! responsibility! in! keeping! the! teachers! motivated! within! their!
assigned!school!through!various!programs.!In!School!C,!Lead!Teachers!try!to!
find!out!the!needs!of!the!teachers!through!constant!communication!and!plan!
activities! to! allow! collaborative! work! throughout! the! schools.! Regular!
Curriculum!Planning!sessions!were!conducted!and!chaired!by!Lead!Teachers!
to! share! ideas! and! resources.! Some! schools! have! themed! Curriculum!
60!
Planning! Meetings! so! teachers! can! have! the! opportunity! to! chair! these!
meetings!and!share!their!knowledge!on!a!particular!area!to!fellow!teachers.!
Just! like! Ms.! Longspur,! Lead! Teachers! need! to! be! constantly! ahead! of! the!
educational! trends! through! research! and! conferences.! They! need! to! be! the!
knowledgeable! to! support! the! various! needs! of! teachers.! Some! campuses!
provide!rewards!for!the!best!display!board!of!the!month!and!best!curriculum!
plan!of!the!month.!They!also!plan!a!night!out!every!month!to!allow!teachers!
to!socialize!in!an!environment!outside!of!the!workplace!so!everyone!can!get!
to!know!each!other!better.!!
!
5.5 The.Wallace.Foundations.Five.Practices.of.Leadership.
.
After! the! interviews! with! the! leaders! in! various! schools,! I! found! that! the!
Wallace!Foundations!Five!Practices!of!Leadership!has!been!strongly!applied!
in!all!three!schools!in!various!ways.!
!
5.5.1 Shaping.a.vision..
.
As! previously! stated! in! Chapter! 2,! effective! leadership! begins! with! the!
development! of! a! school! wide! vision! of! commitment! to! high! standards! and!
the!success!of!all!students.!(Porter!et.!Al,!2008)!It!is!very!important!for!school!
leaders!to!help!spell!out!the!vision!and!get!all!others!to!be!on!board!with!it,!
towards!a!common!goal.!It!is!essential!to!be!firm!in!what!we!believe!in!and!let!
the!team!understand!that!such!vision!is!nonKnegotiable.!!
!
A! vision! need! not! be! written! at! all! times,! but! it! is! very! important! create! a!
culture! that! enables! the! teachers! to! achieve! the! vision.! For! instance,! to!
develop! a! collaborative! and! professional! learning! environment,! there! is! a!
need!for!school!leaders!to!include!planning!time!for!teachers!to!sit!down!and!
communicate.! The! vision! of! a! sense! of! community! can! be! achieved! by!
conducting! programs! that! allow! teachers! to! work! collaboratively! with! the!
society,! or! open! the! schools! doors! to! allow! parents! to! work! handKinKhand!
with!the!school.!!
61!
!
5.5.2 Creating.a.climate.hospitable.to.education..
!
According! to! Mendels! (2012),! effective! principals! shape! school! buildings!
characterized!by!safety!and!orderliness,!but!also!see!to!it!that!schools!create!
an!atmosphere!in!which!students!feel!supported!and!responded!to.!The!feel!is!
nonbureaucratic,! and! teacher! form! part! of! a! professional! community! that! is!
deeply! rooted! in! academic! and! social! learning! goals! of! the! schools!
(Goldring,!Porter,!et!al.!,!2007).!School!leaders!need!to!ensure!that!teachers!
work!collaboratively!and!help!each!other!to!improve!instructional!practices.!!
!
All!school!leaders!interviewed!recognized!this!as!essential!for!their!schools!
success.! Staff! meetings,! Curriculum! Planning! Sessions,! Wednesday!
Curriculum!Afternoons!were!examples!of!actions!taken!by!the!three!schools!
to!ensure!a!collaborative!working!environment!within!their!schools.!!
!
5.5.3 Cultivating.Leadership.in.others.to.realize.the.school.vision.
.
Effective!principals!recognize!the!fact!that!they!cannot!do!it!alone.!Hence!the!
OneKMan! Band! concept! does! not! apply! in! most! cases! when! managing!
teachers.!They!make!good!use!of!their!skills!and!knowledge!on!the!teachers!
and! encourage! capable! adults! to! step! into! leadership! roles! and!
responsibilities!(Mendels,!2012).!!
!
Distributive!Leadership!has!been!used!repetitively!in!all!three!schools!under!
various! circumstances.! Teachers! were! provided! an! opportunity! to! chair!
meetings! to! share! knowledge,! they! were! given! a! chance! to! lead! various!
activities;! they! were! also! given! an! opportunity! to! work! collaboratively! with!
the! community! to! share! their! knowledge! and! experiences.! All! these! are!
effective! practices! where! teachers! were! provided! a! level! of! autonomy!
towards!their!work.!!
!
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Mr.!Warbler!emphasized!on!the!fact!that!leadership!means!enabling!teachers!
to! take! on! leadership,! both! in! their! classroom! and! across! the! whole! school.!
Mr.! Falcon! talked! about! Michael! Fullen! during! the! interview,! he! said! that!
Fullen! talks! about! the! sense! of! hope,! of! optimism! and! enthusiasm.! These!
three! attributes,! according! to! Falcon,! are! incredibly! important! to! cultivate!
leadership!in!teachers.!!
!
5.5.4 Improving.instruction.to.enable.teachers.to.teach.at.their.best.
.
Effective! leaders! emphasize! researchKbased! strategies! to! improve! teaching!
and! learning! and! initial! discussions! about! instructional! approaches,! both! in!
teams!and!with!individual!teachers.!They!pursue!these!strategies!despite!the!
preference!of!many!teachers!to!be!left!alone!(The!Wallace!Foundation,!2012).!
!
To! enable! teachers! to! teach! at! their! best,! professional! development! is!
extremely! important.! Professional! development! makes! teaches! feel! that! the!
school! recognizes! what! they! do! is! important! and! the! school! understand! the!
teachers! need! to! learn! more! to! improve! their! craft.! During! the! discussions,!
leaders! from! all! three! schools! have! put! strong! emphasis! on! the! need! for!
professional!development,!whether!in!the!form!of!workshops,!conferences!or!
jobKembedded!in!daily!activities.!The!need!to!work!collaboratively!has!been!
stressed! in! order! for! teachers! to! help! each! other! to! improve! instructional!
practices.!!
!
5.5.5 Managing. people,. data. and. processes. to. foster. school.
improvement.
.
Effective! leaders! hire! well! and! know! how! to! retain! high! performers.! They!
also! know! how! to! give! their! teachers! the! support! needed.! According! to! a!
research! by! Stanford! University,! the! number! one! reason! for! teachers!
decisions! about! whether! to! stay! in! a! school! is! the! quality! of! administrative!
support! and! it! is! the! leader! who! must! develop! this! organization! (DarlingK
Hamond,!2007).!!
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During! the! interview,! I! asked! the! leaders! to! define! leadership.! Ms.! Sparrow!
outlined! the! goals! needed! to! achieved! by! a! leader! to! enable! quality!
instruction!and!quality!learning!in!children:!!
1. Ensuring! children! are! safe,! nurtured,! have! a! sense! of! belonging! and! are!
viewed!as!competent!and!at!the!heart!of!the!curriculum;!
2. Having!a!clear!vision!and!upKtoKdate!pedagogy!that!is!well!articulated!to!
the!whole!community;!
3. Recruiting! well! qualified,! highly! competent! teachers! who! have! the!
personal!attributes!to!work!effectively!with!children!and!in!teams;!
4. Building! relationships! and! engaging! with! families! to! build! a! community!
and!support!children;!
5. Ensuring! that! high! quality! learning! and! teaching! is! happening! for! all!
children!including!those!who!need!additional!support;!
6. Providing! structures! and! resources! to! enable! to! school! to! operate!
smoothly!and!teachers!to!work!effectively;!and!
7. Being!an!advocate!for!children!and!contributing!to!the!wider!educational!
community.!
!
Other!leaders!defined!it!in!different!ways!of!their!own.!Leadership,!according!
to! Mr.! Warbler,! is! about! enabling! teachers! to! do! their! jobs! as! effectively! as!
possible.! Enabling! them! to! meet! the! needs! of! the! children! and! enabling!
teachers!to!take!on!leadership,!both!in!their!classroom!and!across!the!whole!
school.!To!Mr.!Falcon!and!Mr.!Jay,!the!basis!of!good!leadership!is!about!moral!
purpose.! It! is! about! hope,! optimism! and! enthusiasm.! They! also! believe! in!
focusing!on!improving!instruction!through!various!methods.!Ms.!Lark!defines!
it! as! leading! by! example,! providing! guidance,! support! and! to! inspire.! Ms.!
Puffin! states! that! leadership! in! education! encompasses! a! balance! of! taking!
into! consideration! the! input! from! those! you! are! leading! as! well! as! a! clear!
understanding! of! the! big! picture! and! the! mission! and! vision! of! the!
organization! to! make! a! decision.! She! further! states! that! a! leader! needs! to!
have!the!ability!to!inspire,!motivate!and!support!current!and!new!initiatives.!
Ms.! Loon! believes! that! leadership! is! showing! respect! for! your! staff,! while!
leading!from!the!front!and!allowing!your!staff!to!develop!their!own!ideas.!Ms.!
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Longspur! believes! that! leadership! is! organizing! people! to! work! together!
towards!a!common!goal.!Lastly,!Ms.!Mallard!gave!me!three!words!that!clearly!
define!leadership!from!her!point!of!view:!guidance,!mentorship!and!building!
relationships.!!
!
While!all!these!leaders!used!different!vocabularies!to!define!leadership,!their!
aim! remains! the! same:! to! build! an! open,! supportive! and! collaborative!
learning!environment!to!enable!quality!education!for!students.!!
!
5.6 Conclusion!
!
In! the! education! industry,! leaders! are! not! isolated! in! the! office! to! focus! on!
administrative!tasks,!just!like!teachers!are!not!isolated!in!the!four!corners!of!
their! classroom! to! teach.! After! interviewing! the! principals,! it! is! clear! that!
there!is!no!single!word!that!can!answer!the!main!research!question:!what!is!
the!role!of!leadership!in!developing!quality!educators?!
!
The!most!recent!issue!of!Young!Children!(Bloom!&!Abel,!2015)!has!published!
a!very!clear!illustration!to!answer!this!question.!
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Figure!3:!The!Administrators!Influence!(McCormick!Center!for!Early!Childhood!
Leadership,!National!Louis!University)!
!
Strong! Leadership! is! a! vital! element! in! any! educational! organization,! be! it! an!
early!childhood!organization,!a!primary!school!or!a!secondary!school.!Leaders!in!
school!have!one!role:!to!manage.!However,!managing!a!school!and!making!sure!it!
becomes!successful!is!a!collaborative!effort.!Leaders!in!educational!settings!work!
handKinKhand! with! teachers.! They! are! a! mentor,! a! friend! and! a! wall! to! lean! on.!
Leaders!need!to!know!their!staff!and!understand!their!daily!operations!to!know!
what! they! need.! Leaders! or! principals! can! only! provide! support! after! knowing!
what!teachers!really!need.!In!a!school,!decisions!are!made!collaboratively!most!of!
the!time.!While!the!leader!takes!the!lead!in!improving!instructional!practice,!they!
do!not!take!the!role!of!a!problem!solver.!Since!learning!is!a!continuum,!leaders!
need! to! possess! the! communication! skills! to! help! teachers! understand! that!
conflict! is! part! of! the! learning! process! and! empower! them! to! solve! their!
problems! collaboratively! with! their! peers.! Collaborative! effort! is! extremely!
important,!as!teachers!are!more!likely!to!stay!if!they!see!themselves!as!part!of!a!
team! supported! by! leadership.! A! balanced! vision! is! very! important! in! order! to!
see!things!from!different!angles.!Leaders!should!be!able!to!give!open,!honest!and!
regular! feedback! and! demonstrate! respect! for! teachers! skills,! experiences! and!
worth.!!
!
Motivation!in!a!school!need!not!be!in!the!form!of!a!carrot!or!a!stick,! but! in! the!
form! of! a! culture! that! emphasizes! the! importance! of! the! teaching! profession.!
Teachers!are!motivated!when!they!feel!appreciated!and!important,!and!they!will!
continue! to! improve! to! be! a! better! educator! through! various! professional!
development! practices.! Lastly,! it! is! essential! for! leaders! to! encourage! open!
communication! and! collaboration,! and! put! it! into! practice! in! order! for! quality!
education!to!happen.!!
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References.
!
!
Alessandro,!S.,!Castro,!M.,!Ray,!S.,!&!Vereline,!C.!(2004).!An(Examination(of(Leadership(
and(TEacher(Motivation.!St.!John's!University,!Education.!
!
Biddle,! J.! K.! (2012).! The( Three( R's( of( Leadership:( Building( Effective( Early( Childhood(
Programs( Through( Relationships,( Reciprocal( Learning( and( Reflection.! Ypsilanti,!
Michigan:!HighScope!Press.!
!
Bloom,! P.! J.,! &! Abel,! M.! B.! (2015,! May).! Expanding! the! Lens! K! Leadership! as! an!
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TABLES.AND.FIGURES.
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Figure!1:!Effects!of!Principal's!Leadership!on!Teachers!and!Student!Learning!
Figure!2:!Maslow's!Hierarchy!of!Needs!
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Table!3.1:!International!School!A!Participant's!Profile!
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Table!3.2:!International!School!B!Participant's!Profile!
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Table!3.3:!International!School!C!Participant's!Profile!
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Figure!3:!The!Administrators!Influence!
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71!

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