Educational Leadership Philosophy

When I reflect back at all these leaders I have worked with, I found that there was a direct

correlation between the style of leadership and my relationship with that administrator. My

educational philosophy revolves around two main qualities: leading by example and influencing

the life of another. As a leader, I believe there should be no distinction between your model and

your practice. During my undergraduate study to become a teacher, a professor shared this quote

with me which really resonated with me and has stuck with me since: “leadership is practiced not

so much in words as in attitude and in actions”. At the time, I interpreted that leadership to apply

to teachers. However, that fully applies to leadership of staff as well. I define integrity as actions

and words aligning. Without that, what do you have? Especially as a leader, you must be true to

your words or follow through on your words. The leaders I respect most are the ones that do not

lecture, but are right alongside the teachers, practicing what they are preaching. That is the type

of leader I desire to be.

In terms of influencing the life of another, I want to have the type of effectiveness that

not only makes others better as a result of my presence, but also makes a lasting impact in my

absence. I want to be a leader that coaches; not demands. I want to be a leader that creates unity

and does not have a “my way is the only way” attitude. I want to be a leader that accepts blame

instead of placing blame. I want to be a leader who listens, is supportive, and is present. Most

importantly, I want the environment I create to be a family. In Hebert’s book, The Boss of the

Whole School, she states, “making friends – developing a community of people who care for one

another – is a need unrelated to a person’s age” (41). Education is about relationships. It is the

relationship between student and teacher, teacher and teacher, as well as teacher and leader. I
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want my staff to have comradery – that feeling of trust and support that makes them feel safe, in

all aspects of their job.

My convictions come from frustrations I have experienced as a team member working

under other people. I have always found being in the dark about decisions to be the most

frustrating (no matter how good the decisions may have been). As such, staff involvement, from

feedback to transparent leadership, is very important to me as a leader. So, although I want to be

accountable and assertive, I also want to be receptive, humble, and approachable. The article

Why We Need to Rethink Teacher Leadership states, “leaders embrace vulnerability… being

open and genuine brings more opportunities and true friends” (Lamb-Sinclair, 2017). Humility is

fundamental as a leader because accepting and acknowledging weaknesses or flaws is actually a

strength. Both students and staff will see you as an actual human being that they can relate to and

that will open the door for more personable, relationships.

A leader has a numerous amount of responsibilities, all of which require making constant

decisions. We studied a quote earlier in this program that has really resonated with me: “School

principals are expected to be, first, a leader but also the manager of the school, and yet the

difference between these two roles is often not clearly understood by principals” (Hebert, 23).

This observation is so incredibly accurate. Sometimes, leaders spend so much of their day

managing situations, that less of their day is focused on leading and implementing change.

Furthermore, is that their fault? How does a leader prioritize their needs and responsibilities

against managing what staff, students, and parents also need from them?

Managing is what I call “putting out fires” - moving from situation to situation, solving

problems, and making sure everyone from students to staff is happy. I watch my current

principal, and mentor, do this on a daily basis. Whether it is supporting a teacher, a disciplinary
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action with students, or calming down a parent, there are constant situations that needs her

attention. This in itself keeps her busy all day long. Then, she still needs to find time to dedicate

to leading and implementing change. This is a responsibility I want to focus on as a leader. I

think the challenge will be the same I see for her: the amount of time in a day to prioritize all

needs.

Another important responsibility to me, as a leader, is not overwhelming the staff with

change. In a previous interview with my high school principal, Rabbi Noam Stein, he explained

that changing habits and patterns is a difficult thing and there needs to be time and patience for

it. He continued on to say that it is crucial to manage the change process, or it will not actually

happen. People need time to get use to new ideas, need things modeled, and the steps need to be

reflected upon. This belief is supported by Reeves in his book, Leading Change in Your School,

“the result of paralysis in the face of change is toxic and counterproductive” (2). I find staff

members to shut down when they have too much on their plate. Professional development is a

great example. Often, staff members leave with an “assignment” to complete by the next

meeting. Giving them a designated time to work on that, as simple as cancelling a lunch meeting

or offering to cover a class for an hour while they complete it, can make a world of difference

not only in the results you will receive but their openness to do the work. If you add on that extra

work without taking anything off their plate, staff often become overwhelmed and do not

complete the assignment as efficiently.

As of now, the leadership theory I resonate with the most is servant leadership. I gravitate

towards servant leadership because of three main qualities: humility, valuing people, and

listening. Servant leaders know leadership is not all about them. They do not promote

themselves; instead, they put other people first. Servant leaders are also committed to their
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followers; they value people for who they are, not just for what they give to an organization.

Lastly, servant leaders are willing to listen because they truly want to learn from other people;

they listen receptively and nonjudgmentally. Just as the term implies: servant leaders are here to

serve, not to be served.

That being said, through class discussions and research, there is one significant downfall

of being a servant leader: how draining it can be to continually serve others. In Chapter 7 of

“Becoming a School Principal”, there was a quote that hit the nail right on the head: “the

principal’s office sees a steady stream of people coming in to request something, share a worry,

or make a demand” (Fiarman, 133). I see most of the administrators in my school work close to

12-hour days, more school days than not. I believe that is because they are servant leaders and

are serving all parent, student, and staff needs, requests, concerns, and demands before calling it

a day. I would imagine that could only last for so long – how would one not burn out? So, while

I resonate with the characteristics of a servant leader the most, this is also a noteworthy aspect to

keep in mind moving forward.

References

Fiarman, S. E., & Elmore, R. F. (2015). Becoming a School Principal: Learning to Lead,

Leading to Learn. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Education Press.

Hebert, E. A. (2006). The Boss of the Whole School”: Effective Leadership in Action. New

York, NY: Teachers College Press.

Lamb-Sinclair, A. (2017, November 1). Why We Need to Rethink Teacher Leadership.

Retrieved November 20, 2017 from https://www.edweek.org/tm/articles/2017/11/01/

why-we-need-to-rethink-teacher-leadership.html.

Reeves, D. B. (2009). Leading change in your school: How to conquer myths, build

commitment, and get results. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and

Curriculum Development.