Learning together about leadership

School Administrator, Nov, 2002 by David Rideout

The average age for principals in Livingstone Range School Division in southern Alberta, Canada, is 51. Consequently many current administrators will be retiring during the next two to five years.

To ensure new leaders were prepared for the challenge, the school board identified leadership development as a priority in its strategic plan and encouraged me to develop a program for administrator preparation. Last year I designed such a program, Leading Education and Developing Schools, or LEADS, which was carried out in partnership with the University of Lethbridge.

The 10-month program blended leadership theory and practice and was delivered through a variety of instructional strategies, including monthly three-hour seminars after school, online journal reviews, job shadowing, role-playing interviews, website activities, book reviews and participation at a major education conference.

About half of the 18 participants--all of them teachers and administrators in our school division--enrolled in the program for university credit toward a master's degree in education; the other half took part as a professional development activity.

Initially I struggled with the possible conflict between my simultaneous role as superintendent and professor. Because the class members were school district employees, I wondered whether they would hesitate to critically analyze and discuss current challenges in education and their impact on our schools. I was afraid my presence might inhibit a free exchange of ideas, given that some of those issues could arise from school board decisions or management actions.

However, I eventually concluded the benefits would far outweigh any disadvantages. I was a relatively new superintendent, having come to the school division only the previous year, and this opportunity would help me connect with leaders and potential leaders in the system. At the same time, the teaching role let me share my beliefs about learning through the classroom activities.

Fears Become Reality

Unfortunately, in the middle of the year my biggest fear about conflicting roles emerged. The districts' teachers, some of whom were students in the LEADS program, went on a three-week strike. Since the school division sponsored the program, the teachers' union advised members they should not attend any LEADS sessions during the job action.

Prior to the walkout we had an honest classroom discussion about the labor issues, careful to respect the positions of the parties to the dispute. Interestingly, one student was a member of the teachers' negotiating committee and he actually appreciated our discussions.

Alternatively, we could have argued that this was a university course offered outside school hours and therefore not governed by the labor disruption. However, given the local sensitivities, the students and I decided as a group to avoid classes during the strike. Instead, everyone would proceed with independent learning activities, such as online journal article reviews or job-shadowing experiences.

This compromise arrangement essentially eased the conflict between my two roles. Classes resumed at the end of the strike, and it seemed that our professional relationship was probably stronger because of how we dealt with the conflict.

In retrospect, I probably learned as much from this program as the teachers did. The responsibility of applying educational theory to practice forced me to reflect on the nature of my leadership. It also forced me to go deeper into the current research literature, which I probably would not have done in the bustle of my daily demands as a superintendent.

Another benefit of the experience was the connection it gave with the university community. The school division is continuing to work with it to explore ways of expanding graduate programs so coursework can be delivered in more nontraditional ways.

Sphere of Influence

Several of the participants told me they used some of the content and strategies they learned in the LEADS program with their own classes. A number asked for a LEADS II program for 2002-2003, which has been set up and is filled to capacity with a waiting list. It also seems there may be sufficient demand to offer the initial LEADS I program to a new group the following year.

Some of the students now are moving into a full master's program, and several members successfully competed for administrative positions at the end of the program. So the benefits already are being realized within the school division.

I will continue as the instructor for the LEADS program because it presents such a powerful opportunity to influence the leaders of today and tomorrow in our school district.

David Rideout is superintendent of the Livingstone Range School Division, P.O. Box 1959, Claresholm, Alberta, Canada T0L 0T0. E-mail: rideoutd@lrsd.ab.ca