If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader—John Quincy Adams. Effective school leaders possess a complex set of knowledge, skills, and standards. Education is about determining how to learn and helping those around you to discover their own visions and potential. It is the responsibility of an effective leader to be a catalyst of change and a source of inspiration and encouragement. Personal Story Even at a young age, I had a love for teaching and always knew that would be my profession. Making school desks out of sticks and mud while giving my Baby Alive her assignments is a fond and cherished memory I have dating back to my early childhood. At 4 years old, I pushed my mom to allow me to start school a year early because my brother was starting first grade, and I didn’t want to be left out. After being with the same twenty students for eight years, I entered middle school along with nearly 400 other students. Middle school became a turning point in my life, and I knew I had to depend on myself if I wanted to achieve my goals. I kept my grades up and continued to excel in my honors classes. Throughout my high school years, many teachers inspired me and others disappointed me. It was because of this that I decided I wanted to be the teacher that gives students the desire to achieve and not the teacher that loves to humiliate. It wasn’t until my senior year in high school that I knew English would be my field of expertise thanks to my senior English teacher. She was a teacher that set high expectations, demanded excellent work, and never gave up on me when I thought I couldn’t do it. Receiving an A in her class was the highlight of my high school career! Than... ... middle of paper ... ...ing seems so overwhelming, but exciting at the same time. Following the suggestions in the reading and watching the videos of successful principals is both stressful and encouraging. When I start something, I want to be the best at it. It’s nice to see this can be accomplished through hard work and surrounding yourself with the best support system possible. As a teacher, I had a tendency to think principals have too much time on their hands, when in reality, it’s the complete opposite. Just because they aren’t in a classroom full of students all day doesn’t mean they’re not just as busy as the rest of us—most of the time—more! I have gained a new respect for the amount of time and energy it takes to be an effective principal, and hope I can be as successful and caring as the principals I have had the opportunity to work for during my 18-year teaching career.
Standard 1 of the Florida Principal Leadership Standards (2011) describe the priority of the school leader as, “effective school leaders demonstrate that the student learning is their top priority through leadership actions that build and support a learning organization focus on student success”. Our number one priority and focus is and always should be our students. They are the reason behind our professions. It is the faculty the ones who should be supported by the administrators. The leaders should celebrate their success, encourage them, support their assertive instructional decisions, and motivate them each day to create the right conditions for learning. The principals must plan to project growth the most accurate possible, employing all the help that they could get for this challenging task. Students should not be affected because qualified teachers are not available. Strategic schools use the resources at had to relocate, and alleviate the human resources problems.
Frank, V. V. (2009, September). Framework for Improvement: Effective School Leadership Translates into Increased Student Learning. The Learning Principal: National Staff Development Council , pp. 2, 6-7.
Two years ago School District 74 organized a series of leadership workshops designed to strengthen the leadership performance of school administration and teaching staff. Participants were encouraged to think of themselves as leaders and to identify situations in which they were or could be leaders. The idea seemed to be not only that our school system will be improved through the development of strong leadership (on its own an important recognition), but also that anyone (and everyone) can be a leader in his or her own position within the system. This is a ridiculous idea. If leadership is approached as the only label that designates personal merit or importance, then the implication is that followers are less capable, less thoughtful and less important than leaders. If everyone is a leader, then the idea of leadership quickly loses its meaning; leadership implies followership, and without followers leaders could never lead effectively. Past emphasis on leadership has largely ignored the reciprocal relationship between leadership and followership. The purpose of this paper is to briefly discuss followership, and to acknowledge its importance to organizations, especially school systems.
As a public school superintendent and educational leader, one is routinely required to wear many hats and take on numerous responsibilities. These responsibilities can be separated into the two categories of management and educational leadership. Educational leader responsibilities range from curriculum development, staff evaluations and professional development. Managing a school system include budgeting, facility referendum implementation and communicating to all of the stakeholders of the school district.
Principals must provide instructional leadership to facilitate and promote active learning experiences for all students because effective instructional leadership is not something principals achieve by following a checklist or tasks or a step by step program. It can be taught and be learned. (David M.Quinn 2002)
An educational leader promotes the success of every student by advocating, nurturing, and sustaining a school culture and instructional program conductive to student learning and staff professional growth.
I spent the whole night reading about the differences teachers make on student’s lives and how their hard work pays off in the eyes and minds of their students. The more I divulged in the books, the more I pictured myself leading the future of our community. From that day on, I was determined that teaching was going to be how I was going to spend the rest of life. I never knew that all I needed was for someone to see something in me as a student to affect my whole future and how I can possibly have that effect on future generations.
As a visiting international educator, I have had the opportunity to work with several great school principals, dedicated teachers, terrific students, optimistic parents, and caring school community. Similarly, I have worked with the total opposite of the described individuals. Nonetheless, each teaching experiences gained from working with these individuals have helped to shaped who I am today both personally and professionally. Some experiences have been wonderful, part of the reason why I aspire to be a principal, while other experiences have challenged me to question my role as teacher and as an aspiring principal. I choose to speak of latter as I reflect on Tschannen-Moran’s (2004) book entitled, Trust matters: Leadership for successful
Building Leadership Capacity in Schools by Linda Lambert touched on a number of key ideas. Lambert provided examples from different schools, principals, and her experiences on obtaining and sustaining leadership capacity while developing her character. Lambert points out that to build leadership capacity in schools there should be participation by parents, students, and staff. Also these are the same characteristic as to becoming a great character in society. In this paper I will talk about the staff and there level of participation. Lambert points out that conversation with individuals about their roles as a leader should take place as individuals take on the task of leadership and character development. One key element in the text was the level of participation and degree of skillfulness for leadership capacity while trying to discover your character. Another element in the text that I found key was to break the dependency relationships on staff and the principal. As we work toward building leadership capacity and charcter, it will take time and time is a big factor on building leadership capacity because there are not enough hours in the day to get everything done that we would like to do without strategically planning leadership meetings.
As an education major at State College, I’ve decided to become a teacher for several reasons. As I progressed through elementary, middle, and high school, many of my teachers were great role models for me. This has inspired me to become a role model for someone in the near future. My love for science and math has also influenced my desire to teach and make a difference in a child’s life. I want to teach students the subjects that I love so much. I want the feeling that I helped a child accomplish or learn something they couldn’t understand. One of the main reasons I want to become an educator is because I feel education has really lost teachers who truly love teaching and those who truly love teaching and those who have the desire to make a difference. I feel I can really help make a difference in the education world and bring back the love to teach.
To begin out of the countless professions one has to chose from in the world today I have chosen to become a teacher. I have chosen to become a teacher because I myself am a product of some whom I consider to be the best teachers in the world. As a child in North Carolina I was inspired by a wonderful woman named Mrs. Hollyfield. Mrs. Hollyfield taught me that no star was too far out of reach, if I put my mind to accomplishing my goal I could make it. Mrs. Hollyfield inspired me to be the best I could be at anything I wanted to be. As I have grown I have had other important teachers, some whom I am surrounded by daily whom inspire me to set out to accomplish my dreams. These wonderful inspiring people in my life have led me to the decision of becoming a teacher.
Do you remember the teacher that inspired you to do your best? Or maybe the teacher who believed in you when the rest of the world had turned against you? Teachers have a way of touching students’ lives, whether in a large or very minute way. I can think of numerous times that a teacher made a difference in my life. I am so appreciative of them, and I want to do for other students what many of my teachers have done for me. That is why, after I obtain, both, my Bachelor and Master degrees, I plan to enter the teaching profession.
At seven years old, I was dressed in my brand new Punky Brewster sneakers, had my seventy count marker set, and new backpack; I was ready for the second grade! I will never forget the nerves of the first day of school, the smell of a brand new box of crayons, or my teacher. It was in that very moment that I knew what I was meant to do for the rest of my life. I wanted to be an elementary school teacher. Fast-forward almost thirty years; my life has taken many unexpected turns along the way. I have been married and divorced. I have become a mom to three amazingly annoying monsters. I have moved from the warm comforts of Texas to the frozen tundra called New York. One thing has remained constant throughout my life, fulfilling a life long dream.
As mentioned before, leadership styles take an important role in running a school. Unfortunately, many principals have not yet defined their leadership style and struggle to administrate their school. They are responsible not only of teachers and students, but of every employee in the school. They have the power to control all the resources available to improve and meet academic goals. Despite their power, principals need to identify appropriate leadership styles to succeed as
When I was growing up, I remember attending elementary school, learning a new language seems to be difficult at first, but I was able to learn the English language because of the dedication of one of my teachers. Now, as I reflect on this experience, it is obvious that she was dedicated and enjoyed teaching her students to be successful. I know today that she made a difference in my life as I navigated through my education experience and high school years to present.