Mentoring experiences as professional development for leaders in environmental education : the cascade of influence

Environmental education is a field which has only come of age since the late nineteen sixties. While its content and practice have been widely debated and researched, its leadership has been minimally studied and, therefore, is only partially understood. The role of mentoring in the development of leaders has been alluded to, but has attracted scant research. Therefore, this study explores the importance of mentoring during the personal and professional development of leaders in environmental education. Four major research questions were investigated. Firstly, have leaders been men to red during their involvement with environmental education? Secondly, when and how has that mentoring taken place? Thirdly, what was the personal and professional effectiveness of the mentoring relationship? Fourthly, is there any continuation of the mentoring process which might be appropriate for professional development within the field of environmental education? Leaders were solicited from a broad field of environmental educators including teachers, administrators, academics, natural resource personnel, business and community persons. They had to be recognized as active leaders across several environmental education networks. The research elicited qualitative and quantitative survey data from fifty seven persons in Queensland, Australia and Colorado, USA. Seventeen semi-structured interviews were subsequently conducted with selected leaders who had nominated their mentors. This led to a further thirteen 'linked interviews' with some of the mentors' mentors and new mentorees. The interview data is presented as four cases reflecting pairs, triads, chains and webs of relationships- a major finding of the research process. The analysis of the data from the interviews and the surveys was conducted according to a grounded theory approach and was facilitated by NUD.IST, a computer program for non-numerical text analysis. The findings of the study revealed many variations on the classical mentoring patterns found in the literature. Gender and age were not seen as mportant factors, as there were examples of contemporaries in age, older men to younger women, older women to younger men, and women to women. Personal compatibility, professional respect and philosophical congruence were critical. Mentoring was initiated from early, mid and late career stages with the average length of the relationship being fourteen years. There was seldom an example of the mentoree using the mentor for hierarchical career climbing, although frequent career changes were made. However, leadership actions were found to increase after the intervention of a mentoring relationship. Three major categories of informal mentoring were revealed - perceived,acknowledged and deliberate. Further analysis led to the evolution of the core concept, a 'cascade of influence'. The major finding of this study was that this sample of leaders, mentors and new mentorees moved from the perception of having been mentored to the acknowledgment of these relationships and an affirmation of their efficacy for both personal and professional growth. Hence, the participants were more likely to continue future mentoring, not as a serendipitous happening, but through a deliberate choice. Heightened awareness and more frequent 'cascading' of mentoring have positive implications for the professional development of future leaders in environmental education in both formal and informal settings. Effective mentoring in environmental education does not seek to create 'clones' of the mentors, but rather to foster the development of autonomous mentorees who share a philosophical grounding. It is a deliberate invitation to 'join the clan'.

Leading with moral purpose : insights from community leaders

Leadership has been described as having a moral purpose. This paper argues that theoretical insights from ethical leadership theory and empowerment theory are useful for understanding the work of community leaders. Community leaders tend to be people who are known mainly to their immediate community, work in a voluntary capacity and are committed to a particular goal or cause. The paper begins by referring to Starratt’s (1996) framework that comprises three inter-related ethics: an ethic of care, critique and justice, each of which is said to constitute ethical leadership. It then explores insights from empowerment theory since it is argued that it has some strong connections to ethical leadership. Central to both perspectives is the notion of relationships and ‘power to’ where power is shared and where people work together for change. Based on interviews with nine grassroots voluntary community leaders, this paper contributes to the limited research in the community leadership field by understanding more fully their values, beliefs and leadership practices. It is argued that the insights of ethical leadership and empowerment theory are highly relevant to explain their work and practice. The paper concludes by discussing some implications for leaders in educational settings.

High-stakes national testing: it's global, it's here to stay, and graduating teachers need to know about it

My oldest daughter recently secured a position as a Science/Geography teacher in a P-12 Catholic College in regional Queensland. This paper looks at the teaching world into which she has graduated. Specifically, the paper will outline and discuss findings from a survey of graduating early childhood student teachers in relation to their knowledge and skills of the current regime of high-stakes testing in Australia. The paper argues that understanding accountability and possessing skills to scrutinise test data are essential for the new teacher as s/he enters a profession in which governments world-wide are demanding a return for their investment in education. The paper will examine literature on accountability and surveillance in the form of high-stakes testing from global, school and classroom perspectives. It makes the claim that it is imperative for beginning teachers to be able to interpret high-stakes test data and considers the skills required to do this. The paper also draws on local research to comment on the readiness of graduates to meet this comparatively new professional demand.

Reflections from Senior Women Academics

The Tiddas Showin’ Up, Talkin’ Up and Puttin’ Up: Indigenous Women and Educational Leadership project was led by Flinders University in partnership with the Australian Catholic University through the Indigenous Higher Education Centres located in Adelaide (Yunggorendi First Nations Centre) and Brisbane (Weemala Indigenous Unit) (Bunda and White 2009). At the beginning of the project, two levels of governance were established: a Circle of Senior Indigenous Women from the higher education sector, and a Steering Committee of Senior Executive Women from partner universities. The Circle of Senior Indigenous Women included experts in the fields of learning and teaching, scholarship, administration and management, and community engagement. The Circle’s members were: • Professor Wendy Brady, Charles Darwin University • Dr Jackie Huggins, University of Queensland • Ms Angela Leitch, Education Queensland • Professor Aileen Moreton-Robinson, Queensland University of Technology • Dr Bronwyn Fredericks, Queensland University of Technology and Monash University The Steering Committee members were: • Professor Gabrielle McMullen, Australian Catholic University • Professor Marie Emmit, Australian Catholic University • Professor Faith Trent, Flinders University • Dr Jane Robbins, Flinders University The two levels of governance provided advice to the project leaders throughout the project. Three of these women share their reflections in this paper.

External management of curriculum change

At a time of rapid curriculum reform, some schools are turning to external change agents for assistance, but what's the best way to initiate such an approach?

Strategies to engage academics in assuring graduate attributes

Assurance of learning (AoL) is a predominant feature in both quality assurance and quality enhancement in higher education. The process may be used for program development, and to inform external accreditation and evaluation bodies. However, there is an obvious challenge in trying to get academic staff to buy into the benefits of the AoL process. This project conducted an audit across 25 Australian Business Schools. The majority of those interviewed stated that academic staff considered AoL to be extra work and viewed the process as a box ticking exercise for external bodies rather than sound educational practice. A change management process is required to promote the necessary cultural change to embed AoL into practice. This paper showcases some of the educational leadership strategies that have been successfully implemented across Australia to foster staff engagement in the AoL process. These include: strong senior management commitment and leadership demonstrating a constant and high level drive for staff engagement until AoL becomes an institutional norm; developing leadership and champions among unit and program level staff, to share practices and promote the benefits that come from engaging in the process; providing professional development opportunities to discuss and resolve difficulties and tensions around AoL; demonstrating success and effectiveness by selling staff on the evidence that AoL makes a difference; and making the process inclusive with academics collaborating in the development and implementation of the process.

An exploratory study of ethical dilemmas faced by academic leaders in three Australian universities

Being an academic in universities today is characterised by change and increasing complexity in response to a multitude of factors impacting on the university sector. Among the consequences of such changes are that many academics, and academic leaders in particular, are subjected to both increasing stress and scrutiny in many of the decisions they make. Some of these decisions require critical choices that involve contestation of values (including personal, professional, institutional, and community), resulting in ethical dilemmas for the decisionmakers. This article reports on an exploratory study into ethical dilemmas faced by middle-level academic leaders, drawing on the results of an on-line survey distributed to relevant academics in three universities in Australia. Here, middle-level academic leaders are defined as those holding course coordination roles, locating them between senior university staff and other academics on the one hand, and students on the other hand. As a consequence, these diverse groups of staff and students potentially have an array of conflicting interests in, and expectations on, middle-level academics’ decision-making processes. The findings of the study are clear: ethical dilemmas are evident, and commonly so, for many middle-level academic leaders. While exploratory in nature, the findings of this study suggest that much more attention to ethics and ethical dilemmas is needed in our universities.

Learning about being effective mentors : professional learning communities and mentoring

This study aimed to explore experienced mentors’ understandings about professional learning communities (PLCs), mentoring and leadership. This research analyses audio-taped transcripts and written responses from 27 experienced mentors who operate in varied roles (e.g., university academics, school executives, teachers, learning support personnel). Findings indicated that PLCs can provide professional renewal for existing teachers and that mentoring within PLCs can further advance knowledge about effective practices. PLCs can include other staff members and key stakeholders (e.g., preservice teachers, teacher aides) who can contribute to the learning within the group. Mentoring and PLCs can be cost-effective strategic levers for advancing professional knowledge.

Why we should not cut P.E.

Thinking of cutting physical education? Think again. Even as we bemoan children's sedentary lifestyles, we often sacrifice school-based physical education in the name of providing more time for academics. In 2006, only 3.8 percent of elementary schools, 7.9 percent of middle schools, and 2.1 percent of high schools offered students daily physical education or its equivalent for the entire school year (Lee, Burgeson, Fulton, & Spain, 2007). We believe this marked reduction in school-based physical activity risks students' health and can't be justified on educational or ethical grounds. We'll get to the educational grounds in a moment. As to ethical reasons for keeping physical activity part of our young people's school days, consider the fact that childhood obesity is now one of the most serious health issues facing U.S. children (Ogden et al., 2006). School-based physical education programs engage students in regular physical activity and help them acquire skills and habits necessary to pursue an active lifestyle. Such programs are directly relevant to preventing obesity. Yet they are increasingly on the chopping block.

Managing Ethical Dilemmas

This chapter reviews almost a decade of research and writing undertaken by the authors into ethical dilemmas faced by leaders in a number of different operational contexts, including schools, universities and the public sector. The importance of this body of work is emphasised by one of our research participants who argued that ethical dilemmas were the 'bread and butter' of what leaders do. The chapter comprises four main sections. The first section overviews key theoretical aspects as background to the chapter, including relevant discussions about ethics and ethical decision-making. The second section synthesises the research findings from our work in the three contexts noted above, drawing out a set of learnings that contribute to better understandings of the nature, complexities and challenges of ethical dilemmas. This section is followed by a discussion of an explanatory conceptual model of ethical dilemmas that was developed initially from the literature and confirmed by our research. The model reminds us of some of the critical issues at play in ethical dilemmas, and some of the consequences and implications for organisational culture building they can generate. By way of a short scenario, the final section provides a theory-to-practice illustration of an ethical dilemma in action. A set of recommendations, drawn from the ideas of school leaders who have worked with this and similar dilemmas, is offered as a way forward to better understanding and resolution of such dilemmas so prevalent in our schools today.

Making space to learn : leading collaborative classroom design

Design principles for learning spaces for 21st century learning emphasise flexibility and collaboration. Yet it is rare in Australian schools for school leaders to invite students and teachers to collaborate in the design process or to prepare them for the transition into innovative physical learning spaces that are often designed to challenge and change existing learning habits. This article presents a qualitative case study of how one primary school leader led a successful transition for a teacher and her students by inviting them to design their future physical learning space and reconstruct their pedagogic relationships. This article analyses her leadership practices drawing from literature in the learning space, student voice and leadership fields to consider the benefits and challenges experienced by the collaborators when making space to learn.

How can principals enhance teacher job satisfaction and work commitment?

Teachers leave the teaching profession at different stages throughout their careers. When mid-career teachers leave the profession, there is a potential loss of experienced, quality staff. Increasingly principals have the responsibility for recruiting and keeping quality staff, which translates to responsibility for arresting the attrition rate. This paper reports on an ongoing study that investigates how school leadership may affect teacher job satisfaction in order to understand how principals can enhance teacher work commitment. This paper uses the domains of leadership identified in Education Queensland’s Leadership Matters Framework (2008) to compare school leaders’ and teachers’ perceptions about mid-career teachers’ leaving the profession. Five current principals and five ex-teachers participated in semi-structured, qualitative, individual interviews about which leadership practices impact on teacher work commitment. The ideas identified by each cohort were coded through a content analysis. The five domains of leadership (i.e., personal, relational, intellectual, organisational and educational leadership) provided an analytical framework. Both participant groups indicated relational leadership practices as the strongest influence on teacher work commitment. The relational skills, such as valuing staff, being approachable, being consistent with staff interactions, having good interpersonal skills and developing staff strengths, were noted to have specific impacts on teachers’ work commitment. There were significant differences between the groups, with the ex-teachers rating the personal leadership practices as the second most important practice that can influence teacher work commitment. In contrast, the principals felt that the organisational and education leadership practices were of next importance for teacher work commitment. The findings have implications for principal leadership professional learning. Improving relational skills may help school leaders to increase teacher work. Teacher attrition is a serious concern to many education jurisdictions and by understanding reasons for decline in commitment, jurisdictions can redress the negative impact of leadership practices and keep teachers committed and in the profession. However, further research needs to incorporate more participants through a quantitative study to validate connections with the qualitative findings presented in this current study.

Mentors’ and mentees’ views about desirable attributes and practices for preservice teachers

Universities provide preservice teachers (mentees) with directions on how to engage within their school placements, yet mentees have ongoing concerns about how to interact with their mentors. What are desirable attributes and practices for preservice teachers in their roles as mentees? This qualitative study gathers data from primary and secondary Australian teachers (n=25) through extended response questionnaire and audio-recorded focus group discussions, and preservice teachers (n=10) using audio-recorded interviews at the conclusion of their four-week practicum. Findings indicated that mentors had clear views on desirable attributes (e.g., enthusiasm, commitment, resilience) and practices (e.g., planning, preparation, building a teaching repertoire) for mentees; whereas mentees had varying views on identifying such attributes and practices and did not refer to: content knowledge, differentiation, and knowing school and university policies. This showed that mentees need more guidance for focusing on specific attributes and practices to benefit the mentoring relationship and their teaching development.

Personally significant learning: The challenge

The article explores the importance for young individuals to have a powerful disposition to be self-managing learners after completing their schooling. It presents several propositions which aim to unlearn the best educational experience a school principal can give for young people and their teachers. The use of digital technologies is mentioned.