The Reflective Leader

Image found at:  https://www.aihr.com/blog/people-management-skills/

THEN…

Sitting here and being a reflective teacher librarian in training, I think to myself: what did I know about leadership before I began this subject? All that I really linked was my knowledge that most I leaders knew held certain attributes and aspirations and that’s why they’ve become a leader. I also felt that teachers by nature are leaders as they are distinctively progressive thinkers.

I think to inspirational people who I recognise as leaders and they are people like:

• Princess Diana
• Mohammed Ali
• Malala Yousafzai
• Steve Job
• Mother Teresa
• Cathy Freeman
• Oprah
• Winston Churchill
• Albert Einstein

When I look at this list, I ponder the thoughts: What did these people possess, that made them achieve such greatness in life? What did/do they have that others don’t? And can you learn these attributes or is it innate?

Words that come to my mind when I think of leaders are innovative, change makers, persuasive, strong, influential, driven, future-focused, observant, strategic, responsible, creative, communicator, flexible, visionary, inspirational, integrity, knowledgeable, disciplined and dependable.

NOW…..

Working and living in the 21st century brings with it many exciting opportunities. But with globilastion, the world as we knew it came to a dramatic halt due to the pandemic. Living in uncertain times with a feeling of how am I go to teach online, conduct my studies, homeschool my young children and still be a Mum and wife while attending to family emergencies, were all questions that loomed over me. I have surprised myself in my ability to progressively run with the rapid changes that have occurred in the past 4 months of lockdown. The most influential early management theories: classical management and scientific management were used throughout the planning and execution of this situation. In a usual school scenario that is stable, the staff would be consulted more and have input but emergency teams were formed led by the executives and teams had to quickly formulate plans. “Strengths and weaknesses are inherant in both of these theories,” (Bales, 2021, Module 2, p. 4) however, it was thankful that it worked due to the capacity of the staff members. Complex changes in educational systems require strategic planning. Many factors such as the global economy and society, cross- cultural issues, technological changes, access to technology and the ever-evolving information landscape have wide-spread ramifications for teachers to lead change in a 21st century educational setting. Teacher librarians have to manage from the middle and influence change incrementally. When implementing change, all teaching staff have to be bought on the journey.

THE ROLE OF THE TEACHER LIBRARIAN

Continuous investigative, reflective and evaluative practices are at the cornerstone of being a Teacher librarian. TL’s are leaders/pioneers within a school and should not work in solidarity but more so in partnership with individual teachers and groups of teachers to work towards a common goal: creating learners that can interrogate a topic and critically analyse the source in which the information comes from. Young people need to understand that they should not just take someone else’s word that information they seek, is the truth. The TL’s role is to teach not just why this is important, but how to do this. Positive and collegial relationships with staff throughout the school where progressive thinking can be shared through co-planning, sharing models to make searching for information more realistic and not as intimidating. The TL

HOW WILL MY NEW KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING INFORM MY FUTURE PRACTICE?

Going forward, I feel more confident in my ability to manage and lead change for agendas that are asked of me and ones that I initiate. Now knowing of the different styles of leadership, I have an understanding that in different situations, different styles will need to be adopted.

As a lifelong learner myself, I am committed to being a champion for change and will adopt strategies and newly acquired skills to develop initiatives that foster the love and creativity of learning in future generations.