To me the primary leader is Joe Clark in Lean on Me. The reason why I would say he is a leader because of the way he took charge of a broken school system. Mr. Clark set in his mind to fix it. The system that I’m referring to is the low privilege school system. The students who go to Eastside High are in low income area and with that the schools in those areas do not get the funding or respect that is needed. These schools are already known for low test scores or high drops and the expectations for them to fail is already there. So, for someone to come in and shake things up in an unusual way is very different and unexpected for the teachers and students there.
The only reason that Joe Clark becomes the principal at the school was that
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Our book defines effective leadership as a situation that occurs when a leader changes a follower’s behavior, resulting in both leader and follower feeling satisfied and effective (Landy and Conte 2016). The reason why I say this is because he came in with an agenda or a certain goal and he did it. Even though there was a lot of opposition at first, he prevailed forward. His ways may have seemed very radical, but he knew what his self-mission was, and he turned the teachers, students and even helped in the long run. For example, Samms was considered a typical child that didn’t want to do no better and just been getting by. But Joe made him hold himself accountable for his actions and showed him how they effect not only himself but others. Kaneesha Carter was consider a very smart student but came from typical low income single family. He helps her deal with her unemployed mother and when she’s gets pregnant, Mr. Clark is still by her side. With both situations he gives them hope and allows himself to be a positive figure to both. Let’s be honest they haven’t seen many strong educated African American male, so he represents to them …show more content…
Clark is self-assured, forceful, strong willed and very confident of the rightness of personal decisions. At times he demonstrates aggressive, overemotional behavior, with his high energy being directed at sweeping everything and everyone in his way. His strict and sometimes arbitrary rules were carried out by Clark in every circumstance making students too intimated to be testy let alone violent. He also manipulates and humiliates anyone who stands in his way of the changes he wants to make. Mr. Clark’s theory is “it’s his way or the highway” type of mentality. To me Mr. Clark is the furthest from a transformational leader. A transformational leader is defined by the behavior of inspirational political leaders who transform their followers by appealing to nobler motives such as justice, morality, and peace (Landy and Conte 2016). He came is with his mega phone yelling and declaring it was going to be his way or nothing else. If Mr. Clark was a transformational leader he would’ve analyzed the entire staff and students first. Then after that reach out to some of the different students to see what issues they had so he could up with a direct solution but not by humiliating or degrading others to make
Dr. Tanisha L. Heaston, principal of Treadwell Elementary talks to me about educational change. In my first meeting and interview with her, she displays many if not all the leadership benchmarks of a Change Master and Facilitator. Defined by McEwan (2003), a Change Master is a highly effective principal who is flexible and futuristic. A realistic leader who is able to both motivate and manage change in an organized, positive, and enduring fashion. As a Change Master, she uses a situational approach since every school community requires somewhat different skills. Dr. Heaston respects change resisters, procures resources for her school, and trusts her teams which aligns with ISLLC Standard Six.
Throughout the years of being a student at Council Rock, I have come to the realization of what a true leader is. A leader is not someone that just plans events, collects money, or shows up to meetings. Rather, this is someone that has a true connection with their peers, and has unmatched passion for what they do. With this, I can confidently say that since seventh grade, as a young adult, I have been shaped into an individual that fits these traits. Since that time, I have been involved in student government,
“Before you are a leader, success is all about growing yourself. When you become a leader, success is all about growing others” (Welch). Leadership is inspiring others to learn more, do more, and become more. Ineffective fail to possess certain characteristics which effective leaders do. Willingness to help others, selflessness, and strictness; these are the qualities of a both good and effective leader. Without these qualities, leadership would fail and being a leader would mean nothing.
...spects of what makes up an effective leader, it is clear that there cannot be one clear- cut and dry definition of what a leader is. A leader is a make up of many different attributes and qualities. An effective Leader encompasses all of the attributes which go along with facilitating ideas and allowing an organization to grow and flourish, as well as inspiring and motivating those he or she oversees to do the same. A Leader has the ability and almost the reflex action to surface when it is time for a difficult task to be accomplished or a difficult decision to be made. Leadership may be a type of management but a manager is not always a leader. “Leadership is the art of accomplishing more than the science of management says is possible.”
Leaders should exert a positive influence on the member’s school. A real leader strives to train and aid others to attain the same objective. No matter what power exists, you are ineffectual without the guidance of a leader. The NJHS is completely made up of leaders that will make their school a better place.
I believe to be a successful leader it is important to not just focus on one particular style, but to incorporate many. If you take a few high points from each style and learn to mesh them together you should have a better understanding of leadership as a whole. This class has taught me that being a leader is a lot more challenging than people may think. Leaders have to wear many different hats in many different situations. To become an effective leader you have to work at it. It may come easy to some, but to others it is a skill that is shaped and molded over time. Different experiences and situations help mold leaders into who they become. I hope to use the different styles we have learned about to mold me into an effective leader in today’s society.
The movie "lean on me" opens with a brief sequence demonstrating a man named Joe Clark beginning at a well-run Eastside High school in Patterson, NJ in the 1960s. Soon after he gets fired. It proceeds to 20 years later, with Clark pretty much cheerfully instructing in a decent school in a pleasant neighborhood. We get a redesigned take of Eastside High, which has turned into a generally minority secondary school, where roughness, medication managing and intimidation are unavoidable truths that apply to everyone. Zero learning happens with the whole school receiving very low scores on a basic skills test. John Avildsen, the executive, demonstrates the damnation of Eastside High with hallways resembling a cross between a jail uproar and a Hells' Angel rally. “Crazy” Joe as some called him seemed to be the
“..the transformational leader articulates the vision in a clear and appealing manner, explains how to attain the vision, acts confidently and optimistically, expresses confidence in the followers, emphasizes values with symbolic actions, leads by example, and empowers followers to achieve the vision (Yukl, 2002)
Transformational leadership describes a leader moving followers beyond immediate self-interests through idealized influence (charisma), inspiration motivation, intellectual stimulation, or individualized consideration. Transformational leaders are change agents. They influence the mission and objectives to make way for a brighter future for the organization. Followers are motivated to do more than is originally expected because of their feelings of trust and respect for the leader.
The leadership clinical preceptor that I have had the opportunity to work with throughout the semester considers herself to be a transformational leader (J. P., personal communication, March 23, 2014). The preceptor displays transformational leadership behavior characteristics such as showing charisma, inspiring and motivating the unit, viewing each employee as an individual (Yoder-Wise, 2011). For example, she makes an effort to get to know each employee individually by gaining knowledge about their personal lives such as likes, dislikes, hobbies, and family life front the point of hiring the employee (J. P., personal communication, March 23, 2014). She also promotes and encourages her unit employees to function as a team not as individuals (J. P., personal communication, March 23, 2014).
I see myself developing into this type of leader by working to create valuable and positive change and empowering others to become leaders that also create valuable and positive change that they believe in. I will empower others to gain a sense of identity and self to the mission, be a role model that inspires others, challenge others to take ownership of their work, and provide understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of others. To be a transformational leader I will need to display the ability to communicate clearly, listen, collaborate, empower, build strong healthy relationships, and provide others with intellectual stimulation.
Transformational leadership is one of the most popular leadership styles. According to Kendrick (2011), “Transformational leadership involves four factors: 1. idealized influence, 2. inspirational motivation, 3. intellectual stimulation, and 4. individual consideration.” These four factors make transformational leadership have an impact on followers. The goal of transformational leadership is to cause a positive change in individuals, help motivate them, and develop a leader within each individual.
Many Scholars characterize the core qualities and skills necessary for an effective leader. Useem defines leadership as “Creating a vision and translating that vision into actions”. Historically, an effective leader was assumed to be exceptionally knowledgeable, authoritative, and dominate. Those leaders applied the command and control method to lead an organization. With the passage of time, this definition has been changed. The modern definition of an effective leader is honest, courageous, trustworthy, inspirational, and result-oriented. Today’s leaders create shared values and vision, and empower others to achieve their targets.
Transformational leadership focuses on what the leader can accomplish instead of his personal characteristics and how his relationship with others. This leader “helps to bring about major, positive changes by moving group members beyond their self-interests and toward the good of the group, organization, or society (Dubrin, 2007, p. 84). The essence of this leader is to develop and transform people.
According Carpenter, Bauer, Erdogan, (2009), “an effective leader was defined as someone with the ability to influence and motivate others not only to perform work tasks but also to support the organization’s values and meet the organization’s goals” (p.70).