TLs are expected to engage in debate on educational issues and to ensure that their programs are responsive to the needs of learners
in the school community (ALIA-ASLA, 2004). This entails having a growth mindset that sees the discourse of education and learning as one that is in constant development, working towards improved outcomes for all.
Yet, as Oberg (2011) has discussed, Conservatism remains a political force that often seems in opposition with these standards. Drawing on Hargreaves’ (2009) earlier research, she too concludes that “Conservatism avoids the social and political issues of social equity and social cohesion, and makes us blind to the structures and practices that reinforce inequities and divisiveness in schools, and that make learning difficult for many students, especially those who are already disadvantaged.” Anyone who has taught over the past decade may be overly familiar with such moral myopia and the devastating realities that happen when small changes are ignored in favor of “educational agendas”.
I believe that one of the moral duties of the TL is to appropriate the idea of Conservatism from what is more accurately described as Neoliberalism. Hargreaves’ exploration of the pedagogical difference in Finland’s celebrated “Fourth Way” personally resonates with me, as a teacher who has often felt “driven relentlessly” by literacy reform, while recognizing the increasing neglect given to aspects of educational policy, such as the general capabilities of intercultural understanding and recognition of Indigenous peoples cultural traditions and histories. Feeling like a “final delivery” point for the controlled agenda of the state reached a point of exhaustion for me during the pandemic, when an enormous amount of social responsibility was offloaded on to teachers. The consequences of this lack of respect and good faith are still yet to be fully felt, as the profession sees a mass exodus of expert teachers who expect more.
To have one’s motivations “vacuum(ed) up … into a vortex of change that is defined by short-term political agendas and the special interests with which they are often aligned” can be truly demoralizing (Hargreaves, 2009). The Finnish model, rather, “brings together government policy, professional involvement, and public engagement around an inspiring social and educational vision of prosperity, opportunity, and creativity in a world of greater inclusiveness, security, and humanity” (Hargreaves & Shirley, 2012, p. 71). To effectively build “powerful, responsible, and lively professional communities in an increasingly self-regulating but not self-absorbed or self-seeking profession’’ (Hargreaves & Shirley, 2012, p. 107). TLs must understand their position in regard to “change”.
I believe it would benefit most leaders in education to take the time to reflect on their own motivations for transformation. Hargreaves (2009) asks us to consider first: ‘How can this innovation (such as the collaborative school library program), which is intended to improve teaching and learning, contribute to making a difference for all of the young people in the school, or will it make a difference only for those already advantaged – such as the college-bound, the native speakers of English, or those students whose families can afford 24/7/365 access to new and emerging technologies?’
The Fourth Way works through a more collaborative and distributed model of leadership, empowering professional conversations and change by trusting in teacher autonomy and relying on their expertise and immediate social knowledge of the communities they serve to inform practice. Reflecting on Oberg’s (2011) suggestions, one can understand how much diplomacy is needed to achieve meaningful change in a political climate where Principals and educational leaders are often bound to agendas which do not necessarily accommodate the space for respectful dialogue that acknowledges the nuances of institutional change and the impact it can have on the culture and future identity of a community.
References
Australian Library and Information Association & Australian School Library Association [ALIA-ASLA]. (2004). Standards of professional excellence for teacher librarians. https://read.alia.org.au/file/647/download?token=6T4ajv0c
Hargreaves, A. (2009). Presentism, individualism, and conservatism: the legacy of Dan Lortie’s schoolteacher: A sociological study. Curriculum Inquiry, 40(1), 143–154.
Hargreaves, A., & Shirley, D. (2012). The fourth way. In M. Preedy, N. Bennett, & C. Wise (Eds.), Educational leadership: Context, strategy and collaboration (pp. 283-289). SAGE Publications Ltd. https://dx.
Oberg, D. (2011). Teacher librarians as cultural change agents. SCIS Connections, 79(4), 1-4.