Qualities of a Good Educational Leader: Teachers, Students, Parents

Introduction

While some qualities of a good leader are consistent across groups, one of the interesting things about educational leadership is that different people may look for different attributes in a leader. This paper examines the attitudes of three teachers, three students, and three parents about what they believe makes a good educational leader. While there may be overlap between the different groups, there will probably also be differences, as teachers and parents frequently have conflicting ideas about what constitutes a quality education. Speaking with each group should therefore provide some insight into which qualities each group considers critical for good leadership.

Teacher Perspectives on Educational Leadership

Educational leaders — such as team leaders, principals, and administrators — lead teachers. In their professional capacity, they are responsible for setting the tone for the professionals who work under them. One would therefore anticipate that teachers' views on what makes a good educational leader would resemble what people generally think makes a good boss. This was indeed the case.

Of the three teachers interviewed, all three mentioned that a good educational leader must have effective communication skills. Moreover, they all went a step further and clarified that the leader needs strong written communication skills in particular, because poor written communication undermines confidence in the leader's own educational background. All three teachers also said that educational leaders need to be willing to back up teachers and stand behind their decisions, rather than automatically yielding to parental pressure when a dispute arises between a parent and a teacher. Two of the three teachers suggested that leaders need to be able to deal effectively with children. All three believed that leaders should have spent at least some time teaching in a classroom, so that education is more than theory to them. Finally, they believed that educational leaders should be willing to listen to teachers and gather feedback about which approaches are working — and which are not — in the classroom.

Student Perspectives on Educational Leadership

Students offered an interesting perspective on the qualities necessary in an educational leader. The students interviewed were all in high school, and the first thing the conversations revealed was that their concept of an educational leader was much narrower than that of the adults. The students spoke almost exclusively about principals and vice principals, and did not address leaders at any other administrative level. This made it clear that they did not really perceive those other educational leaders as leaders at all. Consequently, although none of the students mentioned it as a characteristic, visibility appears to be an important quality for students: they seem to need to see someone as actively involved in the day-to-day life of the school in order to recognize that person as a leader.

One of the characteristics the students did mention was fairness. Each of them described scenarios in which they felt their educational leaders had not treated them fairly. They perceived that some students received preferential treatment, citing parental involvement at school and student involvement in athletics as common reasons why a principal might favor certain students over others. They felt that this differential treatment was harmful not only to students who did not receive preferential treatment, but also to those who did. Another characteristic the students valued was simple kindness; they found it difficult to relate to leaders who were short or rude with them. In fact, they said that principals who seemed to dislike students made them less willing to attend school.

Conclusion

There was very little overlap in the qualities that the three groups identified as critical in an educational leader. Instead, each group focused primarily on the qualities that would enable the educational leader to interact more effectively with them. This suggests that an educational leader's effectiveness should not be assessed by any single group, but by a combination of perspectives drawn from all stakeholder groups. It also suggests that educational leaders need flexibility — the capacity to be effective with students, teachers, and parents simultaneously, despite the varying and sometimes competing demands each group places on them.