Queen's University, Faculty of Education

Queen's University, Faculty of Education

Master of Education Program

EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP

EDUC 862 A, Summer 2010

Instructor:Ruth Rees, PhD Phone: 5333022

Office: B 201, McArthur Hall

Home phone: 5410632

Sessions:6 - 23 July, 8:30 -11:30 am (not Fridays) Room: A 234

Calendar Description:

(new)

This course provides an historical overview of theories of leadership within educational institutions and an evolution of the practices of leadership. Participants will examine the social and cultural construction of leadership, will gain an understanding of the range of roles and responsibilities that a leader has within an organization; will apply effectively selected leadership skills and processes; and will develop conceptual frameworks to understand behaviours within the organization. Various theories of the attributes of a leader (e.g., trait, transformational, distributive, inclusive) are explored.

Required books:

Krakauer, J. (1997). Into thin air. Toronto: Random House.

Northouse, P.G. (2010). Leadership. Theory and practice. 5nd ed. Thousand Oaks,

CA: Sage. [Available through the Campus Bookstore. 613 533 2955.]

Course Objectives:

This course focuses on the roles of leaders (both formal and informal) in organizations. Some of these leaders are managers, many are supervisors, but all in their own way set the tone/climate within the organization and all influence others. Thus, the primary emphasis in the course will be for the participants to examine critically the social construction of a leader and the concept of leadership as it has evolved historically in Western civilization; to understand the range of roles and responsibilities that a leader can and does have within an organization; to understand and apply effectively selected leadership skills and processes; to gain an understanding of the different cultures’ views of leading and leadership, and to develop some conceptual frameworks in order to understand behaviours within the organization.

The multiple aims of this course are:

1. To become critically aware of how leaders and leadership are and have been socially constructed.

2. To examine selected leadership factors contributing to effective working relationships among members of publicserving organizations.

3. To develop an awareness of the range and interdependence of leadership responsibilities.

4. To develop problemsolving skills, by integrating theory and practice.

5. To understand the evolution of leadership theory.

6. To gain some understanding of how different cultures impact leadership.

Method:

To accomplish these aims, both the content and process (learning about and applying the knowledge) about leadership will form the theoretical construct. Problemsolving, presentations (both in the written and oral forms) and cooperative participation (working individually and in a group) are the teaching-learning methods used in the course. Each topic addressed will focus on two aspects: one, the knowledge or skills that a leader should have; and two, appropriate ways of using or applying that knowledge. For example, participants will not just learn the theory of conflict, but will be asked to carry out scenarios where they must, as future leaders, manage conflict.

The approach followed in this course is premised on ProblemBased Learning that assumes:

1. The most common starting point or stimulus for learning is a problem.
2. The problems employed in the course are ones that participants are apt to face as professionals.
3. The knowledge that participants are expected to acquire during their professional training is organized around problems rather than disciplines.
4. Participants have a major responsibility for their own instruction and learning.
5. Most learning occurs within the context of interactive groups, rather than lectures.

Actual and fabricated examples will be used in in-class case studies. Candidates are expected to talk about their own organizational and leadership experiences in order to address contemporary and challenging issues confronting leaders of organizations and in particular, those in Education.

Responsibilities of participants:

All course participants are required to:

1. Carry out the two pre-course assignments.
2. Review the relevant literature.
3. Prepare for each session by carrying out the predetermined assignments and then demonstrate that preparation by contributing to inclass activities.
4. Participate proactively in class discussions, exercises, group, and individual assignments.
5. Investigate a topic and then lead a workshop on the application of theory to practice.
6. Attend all scheduled classes and group meetings.
7. Be respectful of all class members.

Those factors to be addressed in this course are stated below as specific topics, each with its own

objectives. These factors represent processes functioning within the organization by interaction between its members (employer and employees) within a particular context or situation. Emphasis in this course is placed on the leader's role.

Potential Individual Topics, from the perspective of: THE LEADERSHIP ROLE of:

Planning, Implementing, & sustaining change Communicating

Managing Conflict Managing crises

Decisionmaking Delegating

Being entrepreneurial Mentoring

Motivating others Publicizing one’s organization

Professional development Evaluating personnel

Recruiting and selecting personnel Managing stress (self & others)

Facilitating teams Other topics???

Other topics may be incorporated, depending on the participants' backgrounds and interests.

Assignments

1. There are two pre-course assignments on how leaders are portrayed in society, i.e., the social construction of a leader. The purpose is to gain some understanding of how leaders are portrayed in books and in the media, specifically in advertisements.

i)Each participant will review newspaper advertisements for leadership positions (not necessarily in Education) and come to the first class (Monday 5 July 2010) with:

a) TWO advertisements.

b)A list of desirable leadership attributes that you gleaned as a result of the ad.

Weight 5% toward your overall course grade.

ii)For the first class, each participant will read the book Into This Air, a book describing the 1996 Everest tragedy. Read it from the perspective of leadership: how it was/was not demonstrated and by whom, good and exemplary aspects of leadership as well as poor aspects, aspects of leadership that are cultural-specific, and lessons on leadership learned from this tragedy. We will be referring to aspects of this book throughout our summer course.

1. The e-leader. Read the article entitled Technology Standards for School Administrators located at Reflect on the impact (actual or projected) of IT upon you as a leader, manager, or an employer or student, and in both positive and negative ways. Write up this reflection (no more than one-half page, double-spaced) and provide one website that you have discovered (not a commercial website) that you think is useful for you and for others as a leader. Specify which of the five Standards this website relates to. To be submitted by email to the instructor by Wednesday 14 July 2010 before class. Weight 10%.

1. Oral Presentation on Leadership in a Different Culture. Chapter 14 in our textbook reminds the reader that what we’ve learned thus far is about leaders, leading, and leadership in North America. Now we have the opportunity to learn about leadership in another country.

Read the article by Hallinger and Leithwood entitled Culture and Educational Administration. Then find and read two articles on leadership in one other country. Present your findings to the class in a 15-minute presentation, supplemented by an electronic handout. Presentations will commence on Monday 19 July. Weight 25%.

1. Individual case study; final paper, application of theory to practice. Each person must write up a case study about an incident in which she or he either observed or was directly involved in, dealing with one of the topics listed above (Potential individual topics). Choose a topic and submit that in class on Monday 12 July 2010.

The paper should consist of the following parts:

• an introduction (outlining the purpose),
• the theory,
• a write-up of the case study or incident (no more than 5 of the 15 pages), a reflection on how the practice compared with the theory and what you learned from this all, and
• a summary and conclusion.

Remember that the practice of leadership has informed the theory of leadership. Based on your experience(s), would you suggest any changes to the theory of leadership? If so, what?

Maximum of 15 double-spaced word-processed pages. Weight 40%. Due date: TBD.

Follow APA guidelines for your writing, and use at least five (5) academic sources plus no more than three (3) websites as sources.

Grading:

From the assignments listed above and a "Participation" mark of 20 %, a grade will be assigned

based on the following:

Task Weight

Advertisements: Looking for leaders 5 %

E-leadership 10

Presentation: Leadership across cultures 25

Final case study 40

Participation(preparedness & contribution)20

Total 100 %

Course Schedule:

Week one:

5 JulyIntro, overview, introductions

Advertisements on ‘leaders wanted’

6 JulyChapter 2; intro to the library in Leadership research

7 JulyChapter 3: Skills Approach

8 JulyChapter 4: Style Approach

Week two:

12 JulyChapters 5 and 6: Situational Approach & Contingency Theory

Individual topics for final paper are due today.

13 July Chapter 7: Path-Goal Theory

14 JulyChapter 8: Leader-Member Exchange Theory

E-assignment due

15 JulyChapter 9: Transformational Theory

Week three:

Presentations on Leading and Leadership in other cultures.

19 JulyChapter 10: Authentic Leadership

20 JulyDistributed Leadership

21 JulyTransformative Leadership/Leadership for Social Justice

22 JulyConclusions and reflections on Leadership and Into thin air

Participants are advised to refer to the section in the Handbook for Graduate Students in

Education entitled Academic Standards for the alphabetical and numerical grading system used.

1