Management vs. Leadership

Management vs. Leadership

EDL 5400 The Principalship

I think a good place to begin in a class on the principalship is to examine some fundamentals when it

comes to leadership styles. For this assignment, I will provide two articles:

The first, Leadership: Perspectives from Practice, does well in explaining the concept/construct of

management versus leadership. The meanings of each, and the differences in each way to lead, have

been very influential in my education career as a high school teacher (14 years), middle and high school

assistant principal (3 years), high school principal (5 years), district assistant superintendent of

instruction and school turnaround (6 years), director of educator evaluation and professional

development at the Louisiana Department of Education (1 year), and now as an assistant professor at

Northwestern State University. The differences are, indeed, fundamental, a basis perhaps in how we

choose to lead, how we choose to attend to our daily work as leaders, and in how we can affect

change/improvement at scale and in a way that can influence the behaviors of the adults we work with

and increase the academic achievement of students. For this article, you should note – and you should

always look for this – the date it was published: 1995. That was quite a while ago. What is interesting

to me, is that when I read the article, it still sounds quite relevant and topical, which begs the question,

what has really changed in education over the past 20+ years? A goal of mine is to, at the very least,

provide opportunities for educational leaders to be exposed to ideas that will have influence. I hope this

is a good article for you to reflect on that possibility and to actually be effective through your leadership.

The second article, Do Leadership Styles Influence Organizational Health? A Study in Educational

Organizations, does well in explaining a couple more classics when it comes to identifying educational

leadership styles. These are transformational and transactional leadership. While this is a more recent

article, published in 2015, the two styles of leadership were identified in the research quite a while ago

and the concept/construct of transformational leadership has influenced the direction of educational

leaders in substantial numbers. I was first exposed to the idea of transformational leadership when I

pursued my Master’s Degree in educational leadership in the late 1990s, early 2000s. People still

research this style of leadership, and many of the researchers associated with the concept (Kenneth

Leithwood, for example), are rock stars in education circles (yes, they do exist!).

Having mentioned some fundamental ways to characterize and model leadership – management versus

leadership and transformational versus transactional – I am sure you have in the past or will in the

future, learn about many other styles of leadership that will ultimately influence how you lead. Having

you think about all of this is much of the goal of this paper/project.

Reading and Searching

Read, Leadership: Perspectives from Practice. As you do, please note the fundamental aspect of these

styles of leadership, how there are such distinct differences. Reflect on how you have perhaps had

experience with each type of leader and how those experiences impacted your work (positively or

negatively). I would also ask that you note the distinct types of leadership mentioned in the article. I

have listed some below. Also, I have included several types of leadership not mentioned in the article. I

have done this to help you search for articles on your own. Here are some noteworthy educational

leadership styles, but the list is not all-inclusive. Have you come across others in your studies?

• Transformational

• Transactional

• Bureaucratic vs. Professional Orientation

• Authentic

• Visionary

• Coaching

• Democratic

• Affiliative

• Authoritative

• Servant

• Ethical

• Emotional

Read, Do Leadership Styles Influence Organizational Health? A Study in Educational Organizations

(Feel free to skip the Methodology section (pp. 21-23) unless that sort of discussion about statistical

analysis interests you). As you read this article, please pay particular attention to the definitions of

transformational and transactional leadership and the discussion, conclusions, and suggestions sections

of the paper. I have listed below some of the ways each concept of leadership is characterized:

• Transformational

o Idealized influence

o Inspirational influence

o Intellectually inspirational influence

• Transactional

o Management by exceptions (active)

o Management by exceptions (passive)

o Laissez faire

Search for four other articles about educational leadership styles. Two of the articles may be about

management versus leadership and/or transformational versus transactional styles. The other two

articles need to be about at least one other type of educational leadership. It is always an innovative idea

to dig into what you find to make sure the content, the style, interests you. Be sure to use a reputable

source of information when searching for articles. My recommendation is to search for articles through

the NSU library, the ERIC database, or Google Scholar.

The Assignment

In the format of an expository paper (review 7th edition APA, recommended text and APA resources

posted in the Moodle shell), respond to the following:

Section One: Management versus Leadership

• When it comes to educational leadership, there may be managers and there may be leaders.

What does the research reveal about what it means to be each type of leader? Discuss in detail.

• What are the differences between being a manager and a leader? Discuss in detail.

• Is it necessary for every principal to be a manager and a leader, or can s/he focus on one type of

leadership? Justify your response with what the research literature states.

• Which type of leadership is preferred in an educational setting? Justify your response.

Section Two: Transformational versus Transactional

• When it comes to educational leadership, there may be transformational and there may be

transactional leaders. What does the research reveal about what it means to be each type of

leader? Discuss in detail.

• What are the differences between being a transformational and a transactional leader? Discuss in

detail.

• Which type of leadership is preferred in an educational setting? Justify your response.

Section Three: Other Leadership Style(s)

• What does the research reveal about the type(s) of leadership you chose to learn more about?

Discuss in detail.

• Compare (similarities and differences) the type(s) of leadership you have chosen to learn more

about to being a manager and to being a transformational leader. Discuss specific leadership

behaviors and how they would surface/become transparent in an educational setting.

Section Four: Leadership in Action

• Imagine this scenario… The school district has directed the principal of a school in his/her

second year as the leader to create a school improvement plan specifically designed to increase

student math scores. The district has made the decision to have each school in the district use a

standardized curriculum. In the past, schools and teachers could use any type of curriculum. Of

course, it will take a good deal of high-quality professional development in order to ensure

teachers are proficient with the curriculum content. At this school, there is an assistant principal,

and the principal has been thinking about the idea of the usefulness of having some sort of

Professional Learning Community on his/her campus. At the most recent Principals’ meeting,

the principal was told that the district expects “significant” improvement in next year’s math

scores.

• Discuss how the principal will respond to the scenario above from each of the perspectives that

follow. Be specific in describing the actions s/he would take and the leadership behaviors s/he

would utilize to work through this. Here are the perspectives from which to respond:

o Manager and/or transactional leadership style

o Leader and/or transformational leadership style

o The leadership style you chose to learn more about

Be sure that a reader of your response would be able to discern differences (and similarities if

they exist) among the leadership styles. Leadership versus

Management

Total Points for

Section

Content

Sections 1-3 Leadership

Styles

75

60-75 Thorough discussion of each leadership style (manager, leader,

transformative, transactional, at least one of student’s choice).

Insightful comparisons are made when called upon. Knowledge of

the subject matter is comprehensive, in-depth and ranges over at

least six specified sources of information. Proper APA format used.

Understanding is demonstrated through an outstanding ability to

grasp concepts and relate theory to practice. Writing skills include

excellent mechanics, sentence structure, and organization.

Application/analysis is demonstrated by grasping the inner

relationship of concepts and excellent use of all specified supporting

material.

45-59 Accounts for most aspects required in the paper (manager, leader,

transformative, transactional, at least one of student’s choice,

comparisons). References to the literature are made but include less

than six sources of information. APA format not completely

followed. Knowledge of the subject matter is relevant.

Understanding is demonstrated through a high level of ability to

conceptualize essential ideas and relate theory to practice. Writing

skills include significant mechanics, structure, and organization.

Application/analysis is demonstrated by the ability to analyze and

synthesize, independent analysis, and effective use of specified

supporting material.

0-58 Accounts for some aspects required in the paper. References are

made to some of the required sources of information. Poor APA

format. Knowledge of the subject matter is relevant but not

comprehensive. Understanding is demonstrated by some ability to

conceptualize essential ideas and relate theory to practice. Writing

skills include grammatical lapses, and emotional responses are used

in lieu of relevant points. Application/analysis is demonstrated

through informed commentary with some evidence of genuine

analysis and some use of specified supporting material.

Section 4 Leadership in

Action

25

20-25 Discusses principal’s response to the scenario from each of three

perspectives. Differences (and similarities if they exist) from each

perspective are insightful, justifiable, and reasonable. Synthesis of

material is excellent.

15-19 The reader experiences some difficulty in discerning differences in

the way each type of leader would respond. Some differences may

seem less justified and less distinct. Overall, synthesis of material is

good.

0-14 It is difficult to discern whether the writer fully understood the

concepts.