tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3297339528199658886.post1469575675831483350..comments2023-08-04T05:52:20.805-05:00Comments on LeadershipTheory and Behavior: Teacher as a LeaderProfessor Robbinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05888371487484973438noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3297339528199658886.post-14378890730251542502009-09-23T15:55:52.539-05:002009-09-23T15:55:52.539-05:00Wow, what an insightful point you make Shilpa! As ...Wow, what an insightful point you make Shilpa! As a former teacher and a current tutor, I see this influence that teachers can have over their students. The one thing I would venture to stray from your point is view is where you say "a teacher who is not emotionally empathetic...leaves him emotionally untouched". I think it may be possible that a non-empathetic teacher could actually influence a child moreso than an empathetic one--the difference is non-empathetic would be a negative impact. Children are constantly watching, gathering information, and trying ever so hard to fit it into their schemas. Empathetic or not, the way a teacher acts to the child is registering. I only wish more teachers were aware of the non-academic influences that they can have over their children. There is such thing as self-fulfilling prophecies and they are made true in too many classrooms across this country.Cynthiahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07272741871193035599noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3297339528199658886.post-51480335222790849532009-09-23T13:25:07.711-05:002009-09-23T13:25:07.711-05:00Your post has reminded me of an experience I had i...Your post has reminded me of an experience I had in the first grade. At this point my mother was running a day care service out of our home. Because of this I had always been in a very educational setting with my mom constantly challenging me to learn something new. The summer before first grade I spend months perfecting how to sign my name in cursive. <br /><br />In the first week of classes I desperately wanted to show off to my new teacher that I knew how to sign, something the rest of the class would not learn for years. As soon as the teacher, Mrs. Partika, saw my signature she ripped the worksheet out of my hands and tore it into pieces while yelling at me for being different. I did not dare to use cursive again until the formal instruction in the fourth grade and still, even today, occasionally find myself struggling to remember the correct form for certain letters. <br /><br />While, at least in hindsight, I can fully appreciate that she may have wanted each student in the class to follow the same writing standards I can't help but think there are much better ways she could have gone about correcting me. Her harsh technique quickly turned me off of something I really loved. It also prevented me from ever attempting to go above and beyond in an educational context for many years. Mrs. Partika may not have realised the damage she was doing but, as someone in her position, she should have been able to recognise the power she held and how, with just a little empathy, she would have been able to stop me from using my cursive while still expressing that it was a valuable skill.Jayme Scallyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09219807436119097431noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3297339528199658886.post-57413765319792593932009-09-23T12:58:20.028-05:002009-09-23T12:58:20.028-05:00Teachers really do have a tremendous impact on how...Teachers really do have a tremendous impact on how a student thinks about him/herself. The leadership from both the teachers and the parents help to form the student's self-image and, like you said, it is important that both exercise empathy in the relationship. <br />It's easy for some teachers to forget to be empathetic toward students at times because they are human too, and sometimes may feel like they just aren't getting through to the student. For instance, my little brother was a trouble maker as a child. Teachers' initial impression of him were, "oh he's so cute!" but after a few weeks they were thinking more along the lines of "oh he's such a distraction!" As his older sister, I noticed those teachers who exercised empathy toward him, and my parents noticed too. Even George, my brother, seemed to make an attempt to behave for the teachers that were willing to forgive him. I did not recognize it as a leadership trait back then, but I see now that good leaders can develop good followers in part by smartly extending empathy to gain a sense of referent power. This is not meant to sound manipulative, because acquiring referent power is almost unintentional, but may occur when the student recognizes that the teacher-with the power to give detention or other punishment-is choosing to be empathetic instead.Alanna Kaltsashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06692447049826285058noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3297339528199658886.post-54818723757521298572009-09-23T12:49:37.246-05:002009-09-23T12:49:37.246-05:00What an interesting post! I think the teacher-stu...What an interesting post! I think the teacher-student relationship is a great analogy for leadership. I liked how you brought up the role of empathy and positive regard for the student. I think this can definitely be transfered to adults as well. No one wants to work for someone that doesn't believe in them or value their work. And on the flip side, I imagine that most people will be much more motivated to do a better job (like a student at school) if they are in a positive learning atmosphere.<br /><br />I also think that the role of communication between a teacher-student relationship is extremely important. The student relies on the teacher to assess their work and give feedback and the teacher relies on the student to apply and transfer what they have learned in class. I think this really goes back to some of the articles that we read for class today that talked about how leadership is made up of leaders and followers. <br /><br />You wouldn't be a very effective school if you only had a bunch of teachers.Laurahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03983901600286732539noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3297339528199658886.post-86904288790695279362009-09-23T12:48:58.661-05:002009-09-23T12:48:58.661-05:00I like how you emphasized empathy in leadership pr...I like how you emphasized empathy in leadership practices. <br /><br />At the schools I previously taught at, the main motto was "Rules without relationships create rebellion". It's not only students that need to feel that someone has a genuine interest in them before they can take a teacher/leader seriously. <br /><br />Also, I think you are right on about positive relationships and how it can empower students. I can't remember who told me, but he said that people with successful careers have had mentor(s) guiding them along. Who wouldn't benefit from that attention?Linda Nguyenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16412684461500604261noreply@blogger.com