And formulating adequate academic standards for the school
Table of Contents
Part-I
Introduction
Instructional leadership
The idea of instructional leadership was not prominent until the 1980s, this was to the time where the first concrete model was first introduced. The research which is most famously cited for the instructional leadership model was developed by Hallinger and Murphy in 1985. According to that model instructional leadership can be defined with three components is defining the school mission that needs principal in order to communicate and frame the schools' objectives; according to the instructional program that suggests that principal is needed in coordinating the curriculum, for evaluating the instruction as well as for supervision and monitoring the progress of the students. Finally, the principal is required for promoting a positive climate that induces school learning. This process would involve principal efforts to provide the incentive to the teachers, promoting professional development, and formulating adequate academic standards for the school. In these simpler words, it would be right to say that the concept of instructional leadership provides more emphasis towards the role of the school principal in supporting the learning activities and also for developing the capacity of the teachers. According to the evidence that has been accumulated over the years it has been revealed that principles of instructional leadership could potentially help these schools in improving their learning and teaching process. Education in China has received a lot of attention after the success of the Shanghai PISA (Program for international student assessment). Chinese principle widely considered as instructional leaders, in the recently published World Bank report it was entitled ‘how Shanghai does’ it, one of the major insights which are drawn from the success of Shanghai was the importance of using criteria for recruitment and appraisal when it comes to school principals. As in Shanghai, they have established a principal review scheme that has six major performance criteria that cover teaching as well as instruction. Moreover, the principal of Shanghai schools is known for prioritizing instructional improvements and leadership-based practice. one of the instances would be of the principal tends to observe between 30 to 50 classes per term and after that providing in-depth feedback for the teachers about the classroom performance. According to Spillane and Louis, claimed that without an understanding of the knowledge that is necessary for the teacher to teach that is the knowledge about the content, curricular knowledge, general pedagogical knowledge, knowledge of learners, and content specified knowledge, the leaders will not be able to efficiently perform the vital functions such as monitoring the instruction as well as supporting the development of the teachers. Therefore, in order to perform these functions, the leaders need to have content knowledge about the subject. Some of the prominent capabilities of instructional leaders would be the ability to build a good relationship, the ability to motivate teachers, loyalty, and influencing the strategies of teachers.
According to another finding, it was revealed that the school does have an effect on the type of instructional leadership that is exercised by the school principals, as suggested above the social and economic status of the school also influences the requirement and the exercise when it comes to instructional leadership.
This provides immense knowledge about the importance of effective principal as it plays a key role as the finding of this theory reveals that instructional leadership directly influence the quality of a school's outcome as it directly aligned with this school structure (i.e., academic standards, curriculum, and time allocation) with the mission building of the school. Therefore with the analysis, it will help the educational system in understanding that in order to achieve the desired outcomes for the learners as well as the for the success of the schools, it is important to give extra focus towards selecting the efficient principal which is cable enough to influence them in coordinating the curriculum, for evaluating the instruction as well as for supervision and monitoring the progress of the students.
According to Leithwood’s research suggested that transformation leadership practices tend to have a direct and indirect impact when it comes to school restructuring initiatives as well as it also impacts how teachers perceive the outcome received by the students. The transformational model is considered to be a comprehensive approach that is inclined towards taking a normative approach towards the school leadership that primarily focuses on the process. The leader is responsible for influencing the school outcomes rather than focusing on the direction of the outcome. According to Burn’s theory of leadership, the author has distinguished between the two major types of relationships that is leader and followers. The first type of leader has been characterized as transactional leadership which is a non-binding relationship, temporal, and is inclined towards utilitarianism that takes place for exchanging valued things. The second type has been identified as transforming leadership which involves addressing the main concern but this relationship between leader and follower endures the Moral purpose, that underlies in their needs, wants, value and in the aspiration of the followers. the author further emphasized that transforming leadership is inclined towards embracing the relationship which could be considered to be mutually supportive and also promotes motivational engagement that takes place between the follower and the leader. Where the central power links towards attaining the common goal however it should be more worthy than the purpose. Many of these scholars have also emphasized the rule of transformational leadership with the notion of promise, empowerment, liberation, courage, activism, that could potentially evoke the image of the educational leaders who are responsible for school and the educational system, which are operating under the dominant bureaucratic framework in the current scenario. According to Freire who claimed that the educational system is not the ultimate lever when it comes to social transformation however without it, the transformation cannot occur. Therefore, many of the authors have linked transformative leaders with wider social contexts.
From the above conclusion drawn, it would be right to say that for the educational system and for the success of the school it is important to have an efficient principal and at the same time it is important to have transformational leaders so that they can align the goals of the education system by influencing the teacher perspective. According to Caldwell and Spinks who have argued that for this school it is important to have transformation leadership, as transformation leaders are known for succeeding in attaining the commitment from the followers and hence it becomes easier for the schools to accomplish the higher level of virtual and moral imperative. From the powerful capacity perspective, transformational leadership needs a system for a successful transition for managing the school. That is why it has important for the educational system to understand that to deliver the best outcomes to the learns is by providing adequate structure so that the transformational leaders can successfully manage the schools.
Part -II
Gibbs Reflective Cycle:
Evaluate:
With this topic I have learned the important of implementing educational leadership in educational institution in order to provide better knowledge to the students as well as help the teachers utilize their full potential. This lesson has changed my way of thinking as like most of the people I did not understood the importance of a leader in the educational institute and the factors that are responsibility in order to successfully implement educational leadership. But now I understand the important of a leader and how to delegate responsibilities to the teachers so that they can fully utilize their skills and potential. I also learned different leadership models that have their different significance. These models help us understand different leadership roles and their importance in the educational institution. In order for the educational institution to work efficiently it is very important to implement these models and help the teachers gain more competency in their field.
Conclusion:
With my understanding of education leadership from the learning of the lessons I can conclude that education leadership is very crucial in order to create a strong environment for all the educational bodies which means utilizing each and every person’s energy in achieving educational goals. Moreover, I understood the important education leadership models which helps us understand different aspects of leadership and different responsibilities of the educational bodies in an institution. I can also conclude that parent and teachers play a huge role in creating a strong educational structure for the students thus it is the responsibility of a leader to create opportunities for the teachers to improve their skills in their field of knowledge and encourage engagement of parent with the institution to make themselves aware about their children’s talents and interests. I as a leader in my future practice experience will implement all the educational leadership models and use them as the tool to create a better and strong place for the students and teachers to grow themselves.