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Leadership without Control

The concept of leadership has changed from the early 20th century to the 21st century. Leadership is no longer limited to the top-down management style familiar during much of the 20th century. Professional educators have examined the successful styles of business management, and many organizations have adopted shared leadership as a management style. Shared leadership consists of the entire educational community participating in the development and attainment of goals.

Historical Evidence

Shared leadership emerged as an innovative managerial style to increase performance and profits in the business world. Examination of leadership theory and literature suggests that the origins of shared leadership, sometimes referred to as group or team leadership, is a managerial style that originated during World War II (Bass, 1990). McGregor's study (as cited in Bass, 1990), shows a direct correlation between sharing in the decision-making process and the effectiveness of workers because responsibility is voluntary. Numerous studies by social scientists following World War II are documented by Bass (1990), and they examine the design and benefits of group leadership.

Purpose

Tim Lucas, one of the authors of Schools that Learn (Senge et al., 2000), expressed the importance of change within school systems because other types of organizations have changed and evolved. He noted that schools are the hardest organizations to change and that shared leadership must be a driving force within learning organizations (personal communication, November 20, 2005). The implications of the No Child Left Behind Act, passed in 2002, have left the educational field scrambling to meet the new achievement standards determined by lawmakers. Educational organizations must change in order to meet the new demands and must abandon the old top-down management style in effect across most of our nation's schools. Shared leadership is a promising practice that can revolutionize school management (T. Lucas, personal communication, 2005).

Lambert is one of many who began applying the concept of shared leadership within school systems (2002). She emphasizes that the principal should not be the individual designing change because, when the principal leaves, the programs often fail shortly afterward. The entire community, therefore, should be involved in the program in order to sustain change and produce lasting results.

Individuals need a purpose for change, and the reason for shared leadership is to increase achievement and produce results. Lambert (2003) outlines several "purposes of leadership teams" (p. 15):

• To broaden the base of leadership in the school.
• To pay thoughtful attention to the development of a professional learning community.
• To model leadership for other members of the school community.
• To focus on student learning.

Design

One notable example of the design of shared leadership is examined in The Dance of Change: The Challenges to Sustaining Momentum in Learning Organizations (Senge et al., 1999). The book examines the challenges of initiating, sustaining, and redesigning change in learning institutions. Maira and Smith, contributors to the book, outline a design for changing the management style of an organization. They suggest that initially an executive council or group should be formed and meet in order to establish "the vision, purpose, values, and guiding principles" (p. 409) collectively, while ignoring any hierarchal titles each participant may hold. A considerable amount of work is needed to establish these "shared aspirations" but, by getting all of the participants to agree, the success rate increases for each goal. A member of the council would be given the responsibility for governing the body only to insure that the council remains focused on the established aspirations.

Once the aspirations are established, members of the council collaborate on specific tasks that must be completed. Maira and Smith (1999) encourage members to volunteer for tasks, thereby tapping into their specialties or comfort zones. The accountability of each member is evident when he or she commits to the assigned task. The responsibility of finding the resources to reach the shared aspirations and of forming subcouncils or networks with other members of the organization in order to achieve these tasks falls upon members who volunteer for specific tasks. Because individuals operate at their comfort levels, they will be more effective in achieving the aspiration.

The final components of shared leadership, according to Maira and Smith, include "permeable boundaries and multiple orientations" (1999, p. 413). Permeable boundaries allow constant, open communication between groups within the organization. The free flow of information, despite hierarchal titles, facilitates the governance of the process and achieves results. Simply defined, multiple orientations allow integration of new aspirations into the current system without creating new departments.

Another design centering on shared leadership involves a five-step process to promote and create an effective plan (Marzano, Waters, & McNulty, 2005). The first step is developing a school leadership team, designed by the principal and consisting of members who believe they can achieve change and have the appropriate knowledge of curriculum, instruction, and assessment. Second, the responsibility must be distributed among the members and must correlate with each member's expertise. The third step involves administrators and teachers answering a series of questions in a survey. Once the data are compiled, the leadership team will be able to identify areas that need to be changed. The fourth step involves ranking the magnitude of the data into first-order and second-order change. Once the magnitude is established, the fifth step involves management by the principal and the leadership team to promote positive change and behaviors within the entire professional staff. The design, when examined fully, lists specific leadership responsibilities, defines first- and second-order change, and provides the framework to improve school achievement.

Shared leadership must be structured so that individual participants feel comfortable expressing their ideas and concerns. Flexibility is also needed within the group. Participants must be open to change, and inquiry must transpire. Combinations of designs or models can be used, and many levels of shared leadership exist.

Working Models

Several working models are in effect throughout Canada and the United States, and they are roughly outlined in the work of Lambert (2002). For example, the Rhineland School System in Manitoba, Canada, was issued a mandated, standards-based curriculum. To improve acceptance by teachers, the assistant superintendent designed teams to implement the new initiative. Teachers were given the leadership ability to design the time, resources, and supports needed to implement the new standards effectively; therefore, they accepted the new mandates with less resistance. Similarly, the Hawthorne School in Kansas City, Kansas, has a "Vision Team." The team is directed by the principal; representatives from every department--chosen by other teachers--attend each meeting. The team examines data and devises a school improvement plan to "advocate, monitor, and implement the school improvement plan" (Lambert, 2002, p. 39).

Shared leadership need not be applied to an entire school system. It can easily be applied to part of the system in order to alleviate the amount of responsibility and demands that have emerged under a particular job title. According to Shared Leadership (2005), the department chairperson's role at St. Olaf College has become very demanding, which left the chair overwhelmed. (Each chairperson, appointed by the associate dean, serves for three years. In that capacity, the chair must teach, research, and perform administrative paperwork.) Most people within the department have served as chairperson over the years, and this common experience led to support of the new shared leadership model.

With the support of the associate dean, the chemistry department developed a triad of shared leadership (Shared Leadership, 2005). The triad includes a chairperson who is assisted by two associate chairs. Associate chairs are selected in opposite years from one another to promote continuity and stability within the department. The chairperson selects the associate chairs with approval from the faculty and the associate dean. Under this new model, "the department has a three-person leadership team: the department chair who handles the personnel issues and two associate chairs—one who focuses on resources and one who focuses on the curriculum" (Shared Leadership, 2005, p. 1).

Negative Attitudes

Every human being has experienced negative individuals at some point. Educators who are perceptive at meetings can almost guess who will roll his or her eyes or blurt out negative comments when presented with something new. Therefore, presentation of new ideas to staff should be thoughtful and should consider the negative attitudes in case they arise (Lambert, 2003).

When shared leadership is proposed or implemented, many teachers are reluctant to comply and may be more comfortable leaving decisions to the administration. According to Lambert (2003), the reason may be past experiences and disappointments during their teaching careers. Getting these individuals to accept the process is important to achieve goals, and winning the critics can best be achieved through discussion, staff development, and other communications where the individuals feel comfortable and respected.

Summary

Shared leadership is a new concept that has taken the management of many progressive schools to a higher level. Both administrators and educators are accountable for student achievement outcomes, and shared leadership provides ownership to these key players. Most educators have experienced various leadership positions over the years, and personal experience has afforded them the opportunity to share the responsibilities of an organization with the members involved. The shared leadership model has resulted in increased motivation and ownership and in the success of programs, because the stakeholders participate more actively when their ideas, beliefs, and opinions are heard.

When different models are examined, many forms of shared leadership emerge. The concept can be adjusted for use in an entire school system, an individual school, a department, or a small organization within the school. Every school system or district's staff development should focus on designing a plan for improvement that utilizes shared leadership. People participate more intensely when their thoughts and ideas are valued; therefore, administrators should look to teachers, parents, community leaders, and students for contributions to the school's vision and implementation. Given the opportunity to share in the responsibility of designing and implementing goals, participants will produce a vision that is destined to be attained.

References

Bass, B. M. (1990). Leadership and the distribution of power. In B. M. Bass, Bass & Stogdill's handbook of leadership (3rd ed., pp. 252-273). New York: The Free Press.

Lambert, L. (2002). A framework for shared leadership. Educational Leadership, 59(8), 37-40.

Lambert, L. (2003). Leadership capacity for lasting school improvement. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Maira, A., & Smith, B. (1999). Redesigning an airplane in midflight. In P. M. Senge, A. Kleiner, C. Roberts, G. Roth, R. Ross, B. Smith, The dance of change: The challenges of sustaining momentum in learning organizations (pp. 404-416). New York: Doubleday.

Marzano, R. J., Waters, T., & McNulty, B. A. (2005). A plan for effective school leadership. In R. J. Marzano, T. Waters, & B. A. McNulty (Eds.), School leadership that works: From research to results (pp. 98-122). Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Shared leadership makes chair's role more manageable. (2005). Academic Leader, 21(11), 1, 6. Retrieved November 10, 2005, from http://www.magnapubs.com/pub/magnapubs_al/21_11/

Senge, P. M., Kleiner, A., Roberts, C., Roth, G., Ross, R., & Smith, B. (1999). The dance of change: The challenges of sustaining momentum in learning organizations. New York: Doubleday.

Senge, P. M., Cambron-McCabe, N., Lucas, T., Smith, B., Dutton, J., & Kleiner, A. (2000). Schools that learn: A fifth discipline fieldbook for educators, parents, and everyone who cares about educators. New York: Doubleday.