Ideal Principal Project
According to Fullan (2001), the more complex society gets, the more sophisticated leadership must become. As society evolves, so must leadership. Leaders must be able to work under complicated and uncertain circumstances. At its core, I believe a great school has a strong leader. Great schools are like winning teams with leaders that have a clear, well-defined moral purpose, intimate knowledge of the skills of staff and students and an understanding of the change that will need to occur to achieve the desired outcome. All principals want their school to have successful students. Like the fans of teams who second-guess a coaching decision, teachers have wondered about the decisions of some by principals, which leads to resistance. It’s an easy thing to do, to coach from the stands, but the reality of the game is much more complicated. A principal’s job is a lonely one that demands a dynamic leader with a tough exterior yet is personable, resourceful and caring.
There are five main components to leadership that foster positive and effective change: moral purpose, understanding change, developing relationships, knowledge building, and coherence making.
Moral Purpose
Fullan (2011) defines moral purpose as ‘acting with the intention of making a positive difference in the lives of employees, customers, and society as a whole.’ He also states that leadership is needed for problems that do not have easy answers. Throughout this course, we looked at two documentaries that followed around three different principals. The principals in The Principal Story and in North Grand both had a moral purpose. In the end, the purpose was to make a difference in the lives and education of their students. According to Fullan, the most crucial part is what happens in the process of reaching the end.
Tresa Dunbar, principal of Nash Elementary, took interest in several different aspects in the middle of the process. First, she was concerned with student growth. She wanted to ensure
There are five main components to leadership that foster positive and effective change: moral purpose, understanding change, developing relationships, knowledge building, and coherence making.
Moral Purpose
Fullan (2011) defines moral purpose as ‘acting with the intention of making a positive difference in the lives of employees, customers, and society as a whole.’ He also states that leadership is needed for problems that do not have easy answers. Throughout this course, we looked at two documentaries that followed around three different principals. The principals in The Principal Story and in North Grand both had a moral purpose. In the end, the purpose was to make a difference in the lives and education of their students. According to Fullan, the most crucial part is what happens in the process of reaching the end.
Tresa Dunbar, principal of Nash Elementary, took interest in several different aspects in the middle of the process. First, she was concerned with student growth. She wanted to ensure
References: Fullan, M. (2001). Leading in a culture of change. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.