3 :2 Spring/Summer 200 6

Leadership in Education :A Look Back

TEACHING & LEARNINGin which we live call upon us t ogive maximum development toevery individual at every level .

Edition's Note:

I close this issue by including a narticle first published in 1962 by theRoyal Bank Letters . This articleinfluenced me in many ways duringmy 36 year career and I am positiv e

that it must have had some influenc eas the various reports, commissions,policies and directions evolved sincethen. Simply put the content of thi sletter was and is a reminder to me o fwhat the mandate and responsibilitie sare for those involved in education .Although dates and references areobviously out of sync much remainsapplicable to all those interested inleadership in education . I appreciatethat the Royal Bank of Canada firs tchose to publish this manuscript andthat they provided permission t oreprint this letter . RC

No one may be able to forecas tthe developments in Canadianeducation, but there is evidenceat conferences and meetings that

we are convinced of the need toadjust ourselves to new ideas .

Every community faces practica lproblems involving shortage o fschool accommodation, shortag eof teachers, and shortage o fmoney . In addition, there ar epressures for changes in the sub -jects we teach and in methods o fteaching. We are becoming in-creasingly aware of the need, i fwe are to fulfill our boast of equal -ity of education, for special atten -tion to backward and handi-capped and brilliant children .

The effectiveness of any schoo ldepends upon getting the proper

answers to several questions :

what is the job to be done? What

resources can be made available ?What co — operation can b eachieved between those wh oplan, those who support, an dthose who control the school ?

On another level of thought ,there is one question: how are we,in a country that is well off mate-

rially and has no longer to strug-gle with the elemental effort t olive, to find a focus in educationthat will lend form, purpose an dorder to our lives ?

We need leaders who will hel pus to find the answers. This lead-ership is not a monopoly of min-isters of education, chairmen ofschool boards and presiding of-ficers of this and that organiza-tion. It is a function also of super -intendents, principals, teachersand ratepayers .

Merely being elected to offic eor being posted to a job does no tmake a man a good leader . He isnot simply a person who walks infront of people who know where

they are going . Success in leader-

ship depends upon vision of whatshould be, and the ability to get

others to follow toward that goal .

There are open questions i neducation, just as there are openends in science . Many of these

problems are not the result of ou rfailure in years past, but of the

scientific, mechanical and social

successes which have come upo nus recently . We have to abandonthe easy thought that we could besatisfied to educate a few peopleexceedingly well and all our peo -

ple somewhat less well . The times

Education and societyNo nation can expect to be ig-

norant and free, but ignoranc emeans something different fromwhat it did a few years ago . Mat-ters which in years gone byseemed to be the business of onl ya few persons are now recognized

by an increasing number of Ca-nadians as being their business

also .

This is so because, after retreat -

ing for centuries, despotism is on

the march again . Harsh, obscure

and powerful forces are at wor kunder the surface . Intelligent citi-

zenship does not consist in hav-ing a simple faith in democracy .It calls for a thorough knowledgeof political principles and institu-tions, of history and economics .It requires ability to read, to un-derstand, and to test the logic ofarguments far more complicate dthan any that have hitherto been

addressed to the public at large .

Thirteen years ago Georg e

Orwell published his terrifying

novel 1984. In it the Party of the

Big Brother invented the means o fenslaving men's minds . It beganby obliterating history, setting allmen adrift in a world where pastexperience became meaningless .Then it attacked language, debas-ing speech until it could no longerbe the vehicle of independentthought . It reached its peak whe nit assailed logic and mathematics,bringing its victims not only tosay, but actually to believe, tha ttwo plus two equals five .

It is false to believe that in aworld of revolution we must berevolutionary in education . When

so much is dissolving around u s

Royal Bank Letters 1962

25

TEACHING & LEARNING

we need to cling firmly to suc hhigher standards as we can pre-serve. We may criticize and re-form, but without such standardswe have nothing against which tojudge the merit of our response tonew situations.

We are equally in error if welay the blame for our crisis in edu-cation, particularly our scienc eeducation at the moment, onpropaganda, scientists, the nu -clear bomb, or some foreign coun -try. The crisis is caused by man -kind's breath—taking break -through into a new technologicalera. Look around in Canada : weare well up in the ranks of thoseexperimenting with nuclear en-ergy; we are participating, in asmall way, in the exploration o fouter space; our medical scientistsare among world leaders in theirstudies of brain functioning andin work on the living cell . Thesepoint to changes in our lives s ostartling as to test to the utmos tour adaptive capacities and ourstability .

Education is constructive

We cannot build greatness ineducation by talking about theneed of education for survival .We must appeal to higher motivesthan fear. We should hold fast thi sideal: that in our homes, ou rschools, our universities and i ntheir social environment, our chil-dren shall be educated to live withothers, to attain their highest in -dividual success and happiness ,and to prepare themselves for citi -zenship in a world society .

We cannot be content with thetrappings of life, for civilizatio nis higher than telephones andelectric lights, automobiles an dtelevision sets . The inventions o fman have revolutionized the con-

ditions of life and have become,

even for people in far off land swho do not yet benefit by them,the false symbols of civilization :as du No-(1y calls them in HumanDestiny: the pagan idols of mod-ern times .

Under these circumstance sthere is the greatest possible nee dfor people who will lead us in theeducation path we should tread .

Among the organization sworking year in and year out i nleadership is the Canadian Edu -cation Association, organized in1891 . During these seventy— oneyears the Association has spon-sored interprovincial co—opera-

tion in education; given leader -ship in every area of education ,practical and ideal ; brought to-gether professional people fo rstudies in leadership ; andthrough its publication CanadianEducation (now Canadian Educa -tion and Research Digest) in -formed and stimulated th ethought of all Canadians inter-ested in the subject .

Another illustration of forwardlooking is the Canadian Confer-ence on Education, sponsored bysixty national organizations . Thefirst Conference was conceived i n1956 by the Canadian Teachers 'Federation and others in order togive wider public understandingof Canada's educational needsand problems, to assure an ex-

change of ideas between the pub-lic and those responsible for thedirection and encouragement ofeducation .

Why go to school ?

The test of our system of edu-

cation is whether it has helpe dchildren to become fully devel-

oped human beings . We are fail -

ing in our purpose if childre nmerely go to school to walk the

3 :2 Spring/Summer 200 6

treadmill of vocational prepara-tion .

The late Canon Cody once de -fined education in this way : "The

process by which persons growand are enabled to live signifi-

cantly ." And Prince Philip put itin these words: " . . . training th e

intellect, actively developingcharacter, and providing a prac-tical preparation for life . "

Education is not a process offilling up pupils' heads with fact s

and formulae . Upon graduatingfrom any educational institution

a youth should know three vita ltruths: where he is; where he is

going; and what he had best dounder these circumstances . Themost precious gift education ha sgiven him is the ability to solve

new problems by using the accu-mulated intellectual power of the

race .

If, then, we are not to become a

nation of docile minds giving car -bon copy opinions we need t o

provide a broad, liberal educa-tion. Spurning the thought of theeternal verities as essentials o f

education, the last Kaiser de-clared: "Our business is to edu-

cate young Germans, not youngGreeks and Romans ." He spok ethe language of nationalistic des-

potism, not that of liberal democ -racy .

Some people believe, even to -day after world—wide examples

of the scourge of such thinking,

that a liberal education is unreal-istic in what has become a tech-

nological race for survival . Butthere is evident a reaction againstpreoccupation with techniques

divorced from humanizing influ-ences. As Leon Lortie, Director of

Extension of the University ofMontreal, said to the Nationa l

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TEACHING & LEARNING3 :2 Spring/Summer 200 6

Conference of Canadian Univer-sities in 1956: "Along with othe r

Canadian institutions of highe rlearning, the French speakin guniversities are expressing th eopinion that we do not only nee dscientists, engineers and econo-

mists but well educated peoplewho, whatever may be their lan-guage or their religion, will beexcellent Canadian citizens . "

The liberal subjects are no tchunks of frozen fact; they are th e

powerful tools and engines bywhich a man discovers and han-dles facts. They sharpen his per-

ceptions, cultivate his powers o fanalysis, and teach him to fosterthe habit of holding a valuabl e

point of view. We need to makeliberal education not merel y

something we have a right to an dare ready to defend against des -pots, but something we give

freely to our young people .

This is not to say that scienc eshould be ignored. It would beabsurd to argue that a man coul dbe considered liberally educate dtoday without some comprehen-

sion of the role of science in ou rlives .

We have to live at the level o four times, but we need to knowthe steps by which we arrived atthis level. We need to know aboutthe whole of life, including some-

thing of where we are going.

Education of the liberal sort isopposed to dogmatism, to assur-

ance, to closed—mindedness, tosmugness, to intolerance of oth-ers' opinions . It attempts to de-velop the ability to use the scien -

tific method of enquiry so thatstudents may learn to weigh is -

sues and arrive at logical conclu -

sions on the basis of sound an dreliable evidence .

Need for leadership

Everyone in Canada has a prac -tical stake in the leadership givento our education . We need to cre -ate in groups of people a sense o fmutual endeavour, carefully di-rected toward the aim we have .The function of leadership is t obring out the best efforts in thesegroups, and to unite their effort sin a common purpose .

Certain principles of leadershipapply to all sorts of leaders - indi -viduals and groups, professional

and lay, official and voluntary .These include, but are not madeup exclusively of, intelligence ,initiative, courage, and knowl-edge about human nature. Thepersonality of the leader does notconsist in the possession of anumber of independent qualities ,but in the fusion of desirable trait sin face of a social situation .

The leader is called upon towork earnestly. His preparationmust be suitable to the greatnes sof the enterprise and the hopes o fhis followers. Much of the bum -bling waste of time that blots the

history of our co—operative ef-forts can be laid to people wh othought they could negotiat ecomplex problems without doin gtheir homework first .

Leaders are careful to involv ekey people in their work . Whenpeople share in analyzing a prob-lem they are more likely to initi-

ate or support action than if the yhave been merely told about it .They like to be heard and recog-nized. They become suspicious ofthe proposals of anyone whoseems to claim a monopoly of in-spiration and wisdom .

The leader must be adaptable,willing to discard some of hi s

ideas in favour of commendabl enew suggestions . He will be

aware of the value of compro-mise. Only after he has failed towin by persuasion should he re-sort to enticing or coercing, andonly then in the case of vital is -sues .

Who are leaders ?The heart of the educationa l

system is the teacher. Our idealsfor our children can be realizedonly if we have well—informed,well — taught, enthusiastic anddedicated teachers .

Members of the profession ,conscious of their social respon-sibility, can be leaders of the high-est importance toward a bette reducated Canada . If a pupil' smind catches fire it is almost in-variably a teacher who sets th e

spark.

Society has a grave responsibil-

ity to teachers . It owes them pres-

tige, suitable payment as non —competitors in a competitiv eeconomy, good working condi-tions as to environment an dequipment, protected integrity ,and the opportunity to reachhigher satisfaction by constantlybroadening their horizons .

The teaching profession needsdedicated men and women t owhom pay is not an overridin gconsideration, but, said th eRockefeller Report on Educatio nthree years ago : "until we payteachers at least as well as th emiddle echelon of executives w ecannot expect the profession t oattract its full share of the avail -able range of talents . "

It goes without saying that th eprincipal is a leader of paramountimportance within a school sys-tem. He can exercise powerful in-fluence among pupils, teachers

and parents, based on their com-mon interest . If he has a vision of

27

TEACHING & LEARNING 3 :2 Spring/Summer 200 6running of the school out of thehands of the trustees and the prin-cipal . On the other hand, warn sDr. S. R. Laycock in The Parents'Responsibility, it should not de -generate into a ladies aid to pro -vide luxuries or needed supplie sthrough the running of whistdrives and dances . Its purpose i sto co — operate with the school au -thorities so as to assist in the rais -ing of pupils to be mentall yhealthy and well—rounded citi-zens .

greatness, a glimpse of the ideal ,he is in strategic position to com-municate it in such a way as t oinspire teachers to do their best .

The community, through it sappointed representatives ,should see to it that the schoolprincipal is not so loaded withmanagement work and teachin gduties that his contribution i nleading teachers and pupils be -comes dwarfed .

Skill in leadership is lookedupon as one of the most impor-

tant ingredients of administrativesuccess, and the office of schoolsuperintendent is a keystone inthe local leadership arch .

The superintendent or inspec-tor who has the ideal of improv-ing instruction will not be contentmerely to audit or review thefunctioning of the schools . He willhelp principals and teachers touncover weaknesses and assis tthem to build strengths .

While showing strong initia-tive in guiding the activities of theschool groups, he will establishsuch relationships among his sub-ordinates and between himsel fand his subordinates as to makethem sharers in responsibility andaccomplishment .

Every community should, bydisplaying constructive interest ineducation, persuade its best avail-able citizens to take office as trus -tees. To serve as school trustee isto make a substantial social con-tribution, because on the schoo lboard rests the obligation to pro -vide what is necessary in the wayof education .

The community will be espe-cially proud of leadership by trus-tees whose current policies reflec tunusual foresight and vigilance It

is a compliment indeed whenratepayers say : "Our school trus-

tees saw this situation coming,and when it arrived we wereready for it . "

Moving out from the school ,past professional teachers and of-ficial boards, we reach the par-ents, and find that they, too, areleaders in education . They teachlanguage, manners, food habits ,self — control, religion, work hab-its, cleanliness, and a host of otherthings basic to living . They canblock or impede the school, but i fthey give constructive leadershi pthey can facilitate and support theschool .

Parents must not abdicate theirown responsibilities so as to relyupon outside agencies to discoverqualities which can best be devel -oped at home . They need to mo-tivate their children to use all theirpotential capacity to learn, and toguide them toward making thebest use of their talent . A childwill not strive for excellence un-less his parents believe that excel -

lence is desirable .

Group leadershi p

We have in Canada many as-sociations devoted to the im-provement of our educationa lprocesses . Parents are actingwisely when they ally themselve swith a group of likeable people al lpassionately concerned in thi sjoint enterprise .

The Home and School move-ment has made a significant con-tribution to education by con-stantly striving to develop paren-tal interest in improving educa-tional opportunities for their chil-dren. In many cases it has beeninstrumental in achieving note-worthy advances in school cur-riculum and facilities .

A Home and School Associa-tion is not designed to take the

The Association must be con-tinually studying if it is to be ofservice to the school . Group dis -cussion is a useful tool in plan-ning a course of action, but let i tbe discussion of how to do thing snow and not heady talk about adistant Utopia . As Dr. SamuelJohnson said : "While you are con -sidering which of two things youshould teach your child first, an -other boy has learned them both . "

The Home and School Associa -tion is not a platform from whicheducators acquaint parents withpolicies, but an assembly for theexchange of ideas having as thei rpurpose the provision of the besteducation that parents and teach -ers can imagine .

Other groups with major inter -est in education include the I. O.D. E., which has offered scholar -ships in post—graduate studie ssince 1919; the National Councilof Women, which has as one edu-cational aim to support the bettertraining of teachers and provisionof remuneration commensuratewith the importance of their serv -ices; and the Federated Women' sInstitutes, speaking for the ruralwomen in Canada, which has sinceits inception in 1897 been con-cerned with all levels of education.

It is evident, then, that we areconscious of the need for wide-

TEACHING & LEARNING3 :2 Spring/Summer 200 6spread leadership in education .The progress of civilization i smade up of details in which ever yperson is involved . Leadershipstems from the people, and ex -presses itself through a lively,pressing, urgent public demandfor excellence .

Public interest like this need ssomething to sustain it . Informa-tion must be broadcast fully andfreely so that the people can dis-cuss facts and determine policie sin an enlightened way .

In 1959, a survey was under-taken in a major Canadian city t odetermine the extent of knowl-edge about the school system pos-sessed by citizens. The score sranged from zero to 71 per cent,with an average of 38 per cent .Said the thesis written by E . R .Coffin: "The survey showed con-clusively that the public is ill —informed with respect to schoolmatters . "

The schools have everything t ogain by being frank and helpfulin catering to the desire of thecommunity for information.

This does not mean publicity ,which is merely telling peopl eabout things - perhaps how goodyou are, or how good your plans

and actions are. Nothing could bemore dangerous in leadership ,whether in education or business,than to think of this sort of thin gas public relations .

What is to be sought is under -standing, which gives and re-ceives. It provides the informa-tion on which proposals and act smay be judged, and it invites thejudgment .

On looking forwardThere is no philosophy of edu-

cation with a lifetime guarantee .Education cannot be standardizedthis year, no matter how hard w etry, and left to run itself like anautomatic machine . In the courseof the next half century - the life -time of children now in ourschools - there can be little ques-tion that the spread of technologyand the waves of political changewill alter the aspect of the world .There could be nothing more dis-astrous than that we should edu-cate our children for a way of life

that does not exist ,

As Thornton Wilder put it, ou r

young people are being preparedfor a world in which "every goodand excellent thing . . . stands mo-ment by moment on the razor —

edge of danger and must be foughtfor ."

This puts us all in positions o f

leadership. There is not an hour inthe education of our young peo-ple that is not trembling with des-tinies, and we are the leaders inpreparing for those destinies .

We must define our purpos eclearly, and it should not be a pal -try compromise with expediency .It should not give in to the panicof immediacy .

How are we to judge the effec-tiveness of our leadership? Onlyby seeing clearly the gap betweenwhat is and what might be . Thereis a philosophy which gives us th estandard of value by which t ojudge. It is a very simple one, towhich Sir Richard Livingstone hasgiven the name: "The Philosophyof the First — rate . "

Permission to reprint the Royal Ban kLetter, Leadership in Education Vol45 #2, 1962, was graciously given byKaren Collins, Senior Writer ,Corporate Communications, RB CFinancial Group. Readers intereste din current issues of the RBC lette rshould visit www.rbc .com/community/letters

Call for papersThis is a call for papers, articles, books and or web

site reviews, and practical applied research of interes tto professionals and others interested in the critical is -sues and concerns selected as an issue topic by theEditorial Board of the Brock Golden Horseshoe Edu -cational Consortium.

The Editorial Advisory Board has approved the themesfor the next three issues of Teaching and Learning .

Fall 2006, Volume 3 :3 Dealing with Stress in School sand School Communitie s

Winter 2006, Volume 4 :1 Boys and Literac y

Spring summer 2007, Volume 4 :2 Action Research:Student Sucess sr

Submissions will be received on or before the following dates :

Volume 3 :3 September 30, 2006

Volume 4 :1 January 15, 200 7

Volume 4 :2 March 30, 2007

Submissions should be sent to Dr. R. Chodzinski, edi-tor, Teaching and Learning . c/ o Nancy Schoeberle, Admin-istrative Assistant, Brock University, Hamilton Campus ,1842 King Street East Hamilton, Ontario, L8K 1V7 emai lNancy .Schoeberle@brocku.ca. All manuscripts must b eproof read, limited to 2500 -3000 words in MicrosoftWord Format. All references must checked and accu-rate . Quotes or other printable material that requir eauthority to reprint must be approved before an articl eis submitted .

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