Innovative Leadership
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In order for schools
to be characterized by innovative educators and engaged, motivated students, the
leaders must too be innovative. Thankfully, a more collaborative and empowering
form of educational leadership is slowly replacing the notion of ‘top-down’
leadership whereby leaders are solitary decision-makers. In “Transformative
Leadership in Education” (2013), Lodewijk Van Oord stresses that “leadership
[should be] seen as the dynamic interaction between various groups and
individuals within (or even between) organizations. A ‘leader’ is an agent who
engages in transformative practices that lead to a change in social
relationships” (pg. 422). Van Oord further argues that “leadership is the
action of gathering knowledge from different points of view, the careful
critique and evaluation of this knowledge, followed by a shared decision-making
process aimed at human development and emancipation. Leadership is seen as a
critical, philosophical process” (pg. 423). The innovative educational leader,
then, is an individual committed to the continual growth of the school who authentically
engages all stakeholders in the creation of the institution’s vision while
being the catalyst for innovative change.
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