Leadership Attributes

Leadership Attributes

NZEI Te Riu Roa School Leadership Hui

Linda Bendickson

Leadership Model-

Student Centred leadership-leadership that makes a difference to equity and excellence of student outcomes.  Need to show a link to what you are doing and outcomes.  If you are a leader and see teachers who are reluctant to talk about outcomes, we have a problem.  

No impact, no leadership.

Features-

Academic Press~ Each child can learn to read and write because that is what we value as important.

Ethical~ Being ethical within your community

Distributed~ Anybody can display leadership. A strong positional leader will utilise the strength of others around.

Contextual~depending o where you are, you will have to display different behaviours.  

Judge by the impact we make, the job is contextual.

Essentials of leadership...contains...maintaining and building relationships to get to an end point.

Leadership Dimensions:

Goals and Expectations:  At the top due to its importance.  What is in peoples' heads.  They work because they motivate people.  Need to be a few simple things that people can keep in their heads.  Keep goals focussed on the students.  Keep your actions on the adults.  Check these every term.  Leaders make the strongest impact by being focussed.  Can be a lack of walking the talk. Use our resources to power our goals.

Resourcing Strategically:  As a leader, this is about what are the high yield things we will do?  Use artefacts for coherence.  The things that help you get coherence in the area.  

Ensuring Quality Teaching: Knowledgeable middle leaders.  Middle management drive the quality of teaching.  Knowing who you are making the difference for.  Graph tell and sell.  The conversations around this are what counts.

Leading Teacher Learning and Development: Your goal should drive your PD.  Be focussed and methodical.  When you are deciding what you want for your school, is good PD.

Ensuring an Orderly and Safe Environment: Covers everything.  A high performing school looks a certain way.  Academic learning time protected from interruptions.  Create educationally powerful connections.  Are we connected with families and communities?

Effective schools are cohesive...clear leadership, academic emphasis, shared goals, high expectations, consistency, parent support, student led.

There will always be challenges when working with people.  Easy to talk about, not so easy to do.  

Managing self

Getting the best from what you do, involves managing yourself first-then others.  Regardless of what job your are in, look after yourself.  Put your own mask on first.  Take time to nourish yourself before you nourish others.  

Promote awareness of the importance of :

*your personal wellbeing in order to be a good leader

*the need for clear role definition 

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