LEADERSHIP STUDY: PORTFOLIO ARTIFACT

Leadership Study Portfolio Artifact Katie Griesbaum Saginaw Valley State University

Leadership Study: Portfolio Artifact 1

LEADERSHIP STUDY: PORTFOLIO ARTIFACT

Throughout our class we have read and tal!ed about a wide range of theories in order to guide our understanding of e"cellent school leadership# The class was then given the assignment to survey ourself and two other school leaders on eleven different leadership traits# $ selected %ohn a former principal and seasoned teacher at Gesu &atholic School# 'y other interviewee was Steve an assistant band director at 'ilford (igh School# $ found that $ held very similar values to %ohn however when comparing our surveys with Steve)s only two traits matched in ran!ing# *ne recurring thought is different types of schools or school programs re+uire a specific type of leader# A school leader that does well in one school might not be a good fit for another school# After closely comparing the data my final ran!ings did not change much e"cept for some minor changes in the traits $ ran!ed beyond eight# The trait that %ohn and $ ran!ed first was ,establishing a shared mission or vision that defines student learning as the focus-. /$SLL& 01#This trait is important as %ohn stated ,(aving a vision or plan of where you want to be as a school allows for all to understand the goal and begin wor!ing toward the ob2ectives and ta!e steps to reach the goal#. 3ot only is having a vision good because the school !nows where it is going but it allows the staff to come together as a strong

LEADERSHIP STUDY: PORTFOLIO ARTIFACT unified front# This unity brings with it a set of clear e"pectations for administrators teachers students parents and staff# The trait ran!ed second ,creating a learning community culture where teachers collaborate-. /$SLL& 4 5 Pin!1 was a trait %ohn Steve and $ were able to agree on as important# As Steve e"plained the !ey

to collaboration is having a unified understanding /common vision1 and safe open lines of communication# &ollaboration is necessary to any successful vision or change process in a school# The collaboration allows teachers to ma!e suggestions and recommendations while also creating a partnership where teachers own and accept a change or a vision within a school# As described in the case study Principal %ohnson allowed collaboration which enabled the change in her science curriculum to be successful# This collaboration made it possible for her teachers to buy into the change /Green p# 671# The team effort of collaboration builds trust within the group and give teachers a sense of efficacy that what $ and doing matters# The leadership trait that %ohn and $ ran!ed third is ,being empathetic8 having the ability to understand emotional ma!e8up###. /Goleman1# As %ohn e"plained ,School is people students parents and faculty# A leader must ta!e the time to understand the ma!eup of the individuals he or she is wor!ing with#. 9hen school leaders show empathy to others it allows them to feel a sense of self8worth or pride# As a leader connects within a school and the surrounding community

LEADERSHIP STUDY: PORTFOLIO ARTIFACT he or she is able to form stronger relationships and is able to ma!e more informed decisions# The ne"t pair of leadership traits go together ,understand the change process-. /Green 0: 5 $nfluencers1 and ,engage in professional development initiatives to !eep staff energi;ed-. /Green p# 061# To truly grasp the change process one has to understand the

composition of buying into a change process# ,There are si" sources of influence that drive our behavior and anyone with the ability to ma!e a change is adept at employing these sources in combination. /Influencer p# <1# *nce a change has been decided it is important that professional developments and trainings are offered# *ffering professional development ties in to the first level on The Influencer Model personal ability= do $ the ability to ma!e this change> School leaders can help teachers feel they have the ability to successfully ma!e a change by offering training through professional development# Through further comparison of my data $ have gain a deeper understanding of the importance of having strong leadership values# $t is also important to note that not all schools are going to re+uire the same type of leader# ?or e"ample different leadership values maybe re+uired at a &atholic school versus a public school# Therefore a leader has to be willing to adapt and change to fulfill the needs of his or her school# Additionally a leader has to !now when his or her strengths might be put to better use in a different school setting#

LEADERSHIP STUDY: PORTFOLIO ARTIFACT

Leadership Study: Portfolio Artifact 1

All students are re+uired to conduct a study to learn about leadership in schools and the e"pectations of school leadership held by internal and e"ternal sta!eholders# 0# Prioriti;e these leadership behaviors and traits from 0800 as you see fit# ?or consistency as each one of you uses this table use the following +uestion@ If you were creating your ideal principalone who was focused on student learning, respected the demands on teachers, and determined to help you reach your professional potential how would you rank these traits:

LEADERSHIP STUDY: PORTFOLIO ARTIFACT

My rigin al !anks A"s !ank s #"s !anks My$ %inal !anks

&haracteristics 1 'most important

Astablishing a shared missionBvision that defines student learning as the focus of the school and gaining staff consensus on their role in reaching that missionBvision8 adapted from $SLL& 0 &reating a learning community culture where teachers collaborate to define essential learning points share presentation methods create common assessments create interventions for struggling students and enrichment for advanced students and interpret how data should alter instruction to improve student learning C adapted from $SLL& 4 5 Pin!)s autonomy mastery purpose 'anaging school operations to create efficient environments C adapted from $SLL& 7 Duilding effective in building interpersonal relationships with staff finds common ground C $SLL& < 5 Goleman 6 Leading with integrity and controlling hisBher disruptive impulsesC $SLL& 6 5 Goleman 4 $nfluencing the outside forces on schools C political social economic community C $SLL& : Angaging in professional development initiatives to !eep staff energi;ed informed and motivated to perform at high levels C &USL p# 06 Understanding the change process and having the ability to move the staff toward positive change for students C SEAD FG p# 0: Deing self8aware C capable of recogni;ing and understanding how hisBher emotions moods and drives affect staff C Goleman 0 Deing a self8motivator C (as a passion for wor! that goes beyond money or status C Goleman 7 &ollins Deing empathetic C has the ability to understand the emotional ma!e8up of people and treat each person accordingly C Goleman <

1 )

1 )

( 1

1 )

11 , + 1* ( . 0 /

1* , 11 + ( . 0 /

+ 1* . 11 / , ) 0

1* + , 11 ( . 0 /