I sit here at midnight Thursday morning and am strangely energized to work on this journal. Strange due to the fact that tonight I may be able to go to bed at a decent hour, or at least I would hope to think so. I have come to realize just how much of a life-changing event being a part of the 2007 Summer Principal’s Academy Cohort will be. I understand the difficulties my colleagues face when working on our multitude of readings, case write-ups, reflections, etc…, but I am not quite sure if my colleagues understand the immense change I have already felt within myself. Coming from another state is one aspect of my change, but if everyone understood the single-mindedness of the area I come from they would see just how much everyday is an eye-opening experience for me. Just sitting on the side of the street at a local café sipping my iced chai tea latté has been an experience. I feel so green when it comes to the city, but what is most exciting is that same naïve mind of mine is now taking the shape of a principal. Who would have thought?
A few days ago we were asked to take off our teacher hats and put on our principal hats. Boy, did I think that would be a difficult mindset to take on. Although our case write-ups show a neophyte’s beginning signs of clarity to a principal’s decision making policies, I look around the room and am amazed at how easy it was to take that “teacher hat” off and how my colleagues have embraced the principal role. In just a few days, our lingo has become that of what it was not before this weekend… transformational learning, transformational forms of leadership versus transactional forms of leadership, adaptive and technical challenges, and teacher buy-in, and the Educational Leadership Constituent Council… the list goes on and on. These terms now roll off the tip of our tongues as we stand proudly proving with every example why we were chosen for this cohort. I must stop and reflect… I am so lucky! So lucky to be part of an innovative program that teaches ideals of fostering not only learning in students but learning for adults. So lucky to have group members that in only three days have supported my learning in more ways than my colleagues I have worked with for years. So lucky to have mentors in our professors and teaching assistants who truly take our best interest at heart. So lucky to be me!
After having time to reflect on my ELCC assignment, I continue to see the development of my three leadership strengths: fostering academic rigor and holistic development in others, applying best practices for adult learning, and by my Leaderhips test results I see that I am a balanced transformational/transactional leader. I can definitely see how using both strategies could help me run a successful school. The scores I produced for my LAI show that I am slightly more of a transformational leader with great roots in transactional learning. I would have to say that my weaknesses stem from deciphering when I wear my transactional hat versus my transformational hat. As I’ve stated before, Texas and Brownsville for that matter root themselves in curriculum and objective based teaching that most administrators do not like to deviate. I can see that creating change in a stagnant environment can have its limitations when using the leadership styles. As a transactional leader, I know that the results of my student’s test scores will determine if I keep the role of principal at that particular school; I also understand that without transformational change, that which is working at a certain level can work more efficiently and successfully.
Where do we as aspiring principals know when to evoke the right leadership style? A difficult question which I am not sure can be answered. I am also starting to realize that most of these strategies need to be handled on an individual basis.
I understand the ramifications of the Mildred experiment, but what I want to discuss the practicality of of the cases we discuss in class. I would also like to see with theory discussed in class, where can we see modeling of these particular teachers. How can we reach out to teachers who no long have buy-in to the student’s abilities and achievement capabilities? How can we make all students succeed? I have heard much discussion from my cohort colleagues about difficulties with veteran teachers… this theory disheartened me. I, myself, consider myself to be a veteran teacher and am always open to new ideas. I believe that as new administrators we must foster our veteran teachers for they are the ones who have been there through thick and thin, and they need someone who shares in their proposed mission. I’ve heard many a teacher state, “Principals come and go. We are the ones that hold the students together.” I will one up these people. Teachers come and go, but I hope to be the one that holds the teachers banded together and ready for growth. There is one way to convince the teachers to climb aboard. Be an advocate for change; be a facilitator for growth; be a beacon to their learning… I live by the theory that I will be remembered for what I did and not how I did it.
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