Educational Leadership Playbook

1. LaKeisha Weber
EDAD 5040 Organizational Leadership
Sr. Alicia Costa, S.S.F., Professor
April 24, 2014

4. Organizational leadership is comprised of many theories
and notions, all providing history and insight on the
progression, and occasional regression, of organizational
practices
When I am a school leader, my leadership team and I will
apply an abundance of theories to help with the
structuring of our school
 We will extract the concepts that are deemed necessary
for the creation of a purposeful, prosperous, balanced,
and motivating organization

5. • Luther Gulick and Max
Weber
• viewed leadership from
the top down
• characterized the roles
and responsibilities of
leaders and workers
• believed in the division of
work-related duties and
its effect on productivity.

6. • I do not agree with the perception that individuals at the top have
all of the answers and authority
• I believe in the division of duties within an organization taking
into account the human needs of workers.
• When I am a school leader, every staff member will be made
aware of their job expectations within the organization, and how
their job performance directly affects the success or failure of the
school’s mission.
• Employees will not be forced into positions that will fail to
empower them or that will expose their weaknesses.
• Positions should build on their leadership capacity.
• Employees need rewards that are equal to or greater than the
efforts they put forth; a philosophy developed by Chester
Bernard, a modern organizational theorist.

7. Culture and Climate Defines
an Organization

8. What I believe
The culture of a school
shapes the climate of the
organization
 the environment must be
favorable for the growth
and development
The school leader
cultivates the culture and
manages its success.
4 ways I will improve school
culture and climate
 open communication
 transparency
 positive working
relationships
 interdepartmental
collaboration.

9. Change is Certain

10. What I believe
Organizational change
can disrupt the culture
and climate of a school.
Finding ways to facilitate
change without ruining the
culture/climate is critical
for school leaders.
Kurt Lewin’s Three-Step
Change Model
Facilitate change with
reduced resistance
 Improved buy-in from
staff
 The 3 phases of the
model are;
• Unfreeze
• Movement
• Refreeze

11. Can’t we all just get
along? Yes, we can.

12. What I believe
An operative conflict
resolution plan is required
by the leadership team
when conflict arises
Conflict can be healthy
but can also fester into
greater problems
How school leaders
approach and resolve
conflict determines the
outcome
Tactic developed by
Deutsch, Coleman, & Marcus
(2006)
The conflict is reframed as
a mutual problem that
requires collaborative
problem solving
 Both parties must see how
they can both “win” when a
settlement is reached.
Secondly, follow the
norms of cooperative
behavior
 Behaviors that support
conflict resolution

13. Decision Making: Yes, no,
maybe so.

14. What I believe
 School leaders
make decisions
that have minimal
to large effects on
student
achievement
 As a principal, you
must be certain
whether or not the
decision being
made requires
staff input
Bridges (1967)
 Extracted many of his ideas from Barnard (1968)
 Stated that teachers only care about decisions if they lie
outside a teacher’s “zone of indifference”
 Zone of Indifference: when a person is most likely to follow
orders without question
 Teachers are less likely to care about the outcome, of
decisions within their zone of indifference.
 Using the ideas of Bridges, my team will determine
whether the decision making process directly affects the
job duties of the teacher (classroom practices, textbooks,
student data, etc.).
 Called, by Bridges, the “test of relevance”
 If the decision is relevant to their teaching practices, they are to
be involved
 Next is an examination of a teacher’s level of expertise.
If the decision is outside the expertise of a particular teacher, it
is unlikely that their decision will be weighty
 the decision will be made by myself or the leadership team

16. What I Believe
Motivating teachers is
important when
attempting to stabilize the
culture and climate of a
school
When motivation
diminishes, so does
teacher efficacy and
student achievement
Five Strategies to Improve
Teacher Motivation
 (1) provide instructional
support
 (2) encourage creativity in
lessons
 (3) provide professional
development training
opportunities in their
content area
 (4) reward hard work
 (5) consistently lead the
school in a way that
sustains the school’s
mission and vision.

17. • Barnard, Chester I. The Functions of the Executive.
Cambridge: Harvard UP, 1968. Print.
• Bridges, E. M. (1967). A model for shared decision
making in the school principalship. Educational
Administration Quarterly, 3(1), 49–61.
• Deutsch, M., Coleman, P. T., & Marcus, E. C. (2006). The
handbook of conflict resolution (pp. 23–33). New
York, NY: Wiley.
• French, J. P., & Raven, B. H. (1986). The bases of social
power. In D. Cartwright & A. F. Zander (Eds.)
• Owings, W. A., & Kaplan, L. S. (2012). Leadership and
organizational behavior in education: theory into
practice. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson.