0n Becoming a Transformational Leaderl What is and What t{ot?
By: Joselina T, Ed"D.
At the end of this Module, the learner should be able to:
o compdre transformational and transactional leadership
o identifu the factors that contribute to becoming a transformative leader
o participate actively in the discussion
o write a pledge/commitment on becoming a transformative leader.
learn?
ffi What INTRODUCTION:
Kaot T[e idea transformational leadership was first developed by James Mccregor
of
Burns in 1978. Transformational leadership, according'to lrim, can be seen when "
leaders and followers make eaclr other to advance to a higher level of moral and
motivation." Through the strength of their visiorr and personality, transformational leaders
know? are able to inspire followers to change expectations, perceptions and motivations to
work towards common goals.
Transformational leadership is based on leaders shifting the values, beliefs, and
needs of tlreir followers in three important ways: (a) increasing followers' awareness of
the importince of their task and the importance of performing them well; (b) making
followers aware of their needs for personal growth, development, and accomplishment;
and (c) irrspirirrg followers to transcend their own self-interests for the good of the
organization'r,
researcher Bernard M. Bass expa.ded upon Burns' original ideas to
develop what is today referred to as Bass' Transformational Leadership Theory.
According to, Bass, transformational leadership can be defined based on the impact that
it lras ori followers. Transforrnatiorral leaders, Bass suggested. gamer trust, respect and
adrniration frour their followers. Bernard Bass has developed an approach that focuses
on both transformational and transactiorral leadership. Recent research has focused on
differentiating transformational leaders from transactional leaders. The more traditional
transactional leadership involves leaders-follower exchanges necessary for achieving
agreed-upon performance goals between leaders and followers. These exchanges involve
four dimensions: contingent reward, management by exception (active), management by
exception (passive), and laissez faire.
Considering Bass' theory transformational leadership then can be described as a
type of leadership style that leads to positive changes irr those who follow. Transforma-
tional teaders are generally energetic, enthusiastic and passionate. Not only are these
leaders concerned and involved in the process; they are also focused on\helping every
member of the group succeed as well.
Bass exemplifies the f,our components of transfonnationar readership
Components Description
Transformational leaders not only challenge
Intellectual Stimulation
the status quo; they also encourage creativity
among followers. The leader encor.ages foltoweri
to explore new ways of doing things and new
opportunities to learn.
Transformational leadership also involves
offering support and encouragemenr to individual
followers. In order to foster supportive
Individualized Consideration relatiorrships, transformational leaders keep lines of
communication operr so that followers feel free to
share ideas and so tlrat leaders can offer direct
recognition of eaclr follower,s unique conributions.'
Transformational leaders hare a ckar vision
that they are able to articulate to folb*€rs- These
Inspirhtional Motivation leaders are also able to help folburcrs experience
the same passion and motivation to fulfill these
goals.
The transformational leders seryes as a
role rnodel for followers. Because follor*ers trust
Idealized Influence and respect the leader. they emuhe tlrc hader and
interrralize his or her ideals-
t
'T'
THE THREE GOALS OF TRANSFORMATIONAL LEADBRSHIP
(Leithwood,l999)
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l. Hetping sfaff develop ancl maintain a collaborative, professional school culture.
This means staff members often talk, observe, critique, and plan together. Norms
of collective responsibility and continuolrs improvement encodrage them to teaclr
eaclr other how to teach better. Transformational leaders involve staff in
collaborative goals setting, reduce teacher isolation, use bureaucratic mechanisms to
support cirltural changes, share leadership with others by delegating power, and
actively communicate tlre sehool's norms and beliefs.
2. Fostering teacher developmenl. One of Leithwood's studies suggests that teachers
motivation for development is enhanced when they internalize goals for
professional growth. This process, Leitlrwobd found, is facilitated when they are
strongly committed to a school mission. When the leader gives the staff a role in
solving nonroutine school improvement .problerns. they should make sure goals are
explicit and ambitious but not unrealistic.
3. Help)ng teachers solve problem more effbctivel.t. Transfennational leadership is
valued by some, says Leithwood, because it stimulates teaclrers to ,engage in new
activities and put forth that "extra effort". Leithwood found that transformational
leaders use practices primarily to help staff members work smafter, not harder.
"These leaders shared a genuine belief that tlreir staff nrembers as a group could
develop a better solution than the principal could alone"
Instructional leadership encompasses hierarchies and top-down leadership, where
the leader is supposed to know the best forrn of instruction and closely monitors
teachers' apd students' work. One of tlre problems with this says Mary Poplitt (1992),
is that great administrators aren't always great classroom leaders and vice versa. Another
difficulty is that this form of leadership concentrates on the growth of students but
rarely looks at the growth of teachers. Since she believes that education now calls on
administrators to be "the seryants of collective vision," as well as "editors, cheerleaders,
problem solvers, and resource finders," instructional leadership, she declares, has out-
lived its usefulness.
Transactional leadership is sometimes called bartering. lt is based on an
exchange of services (from a teaclrer, for instance) for various kinds of rewards (such
as a salary) that the leader controls, at least in part.
Transactional leadership is often viewed as being complementary with
transformational leadership. Thornas Sergiovanni (1990) considers transformational
leadership a first stage and central to getting day-to-day routines carried out. However,
Leithwood says it doesn't stirnulate improvement. Mitchell and Tucker add that
transactional leadership works only when both leaders and followers understand and are
in agreement about which tasks are important. Leithwood (1994) conceptualizes
transformatiorral leadership along eight dimensions: (a) building school vision,
(b) establishing school goals, (c) providing intellectual stimulation (d) offering
individualized support, (e) modeling best practiees and importarrt organizational values,
(f) demonsrating high performance expectations (g) creating a productive school culture,
(g) developing structures to foster participation in school decisions. Leithwood's (1998)
research suggests that there is some empirical support for the essentially normative
transformational leadership model. He reports on seven quantitative studies and
conduces that "transfrrrmatiorral. leadership practices, considered as h composite construc!
had significant direct and indirect effects. on progress witlr school-restructuring initiatives
and teacher-perceived student outcomes'.
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Here are specific ideas, culled from several sources on transformational leader-
ship (Sagor, Leithwood; Leithwood and Jantzi, Poplin):
o Visit eaph classroom every day; assist in classrooms; encourage teachers
to visit one another's classes.
o Involve the whole staff in deliberating on school goals, beliefs, and
visions at the beginning of the year.
o Help teachers work smarter by actively seeking different interpretations
and checking out assumptions; place individual problems in the larger
perspective of the whole school; avoid commitment to preconceived
solutions; clari$, and summarize at key poirrts during meetings, and keep
the group on task bLrt do not impose your own perspective"
o Use action research teams or school improvement teams as a way of
sharing power. Cive everyone responsibilities and involve staff in gover-
nance functions. For those not participating, ask them to be in charge of
a committee.
o Find the good things tlrat are happening and publicly recogrize the work
of staff and students who have contributed to school improvement. Write
private notes to teachers expressing appreciation for special efforts.
. . Survey the staff often about their wants and needs. Be receptive to
teachers' attitudes and philosophies. Use active listening and strcw people
you truly care about them.
o Let teachers experiment with new ideas. Share and discuss research with
them. Propose questions for people to think about.
o Bring workshops to your school where it's comfortable for staff to
participate. Get teachers to share their talents with one anodter. Give a
workshop yourself and share information with staff on conferences that
you attend.
o When hiring new staff, let them know you want them actile\ involved
in school decision-making; hire teaclrers with a cornmitrnent to collabora-
tion. Give teachers the option to transfer if they can't rtftoll-r commit
themselves to the school's purposes.
o Have high expectations for teachers and students, but domt expect 100
. percent if you aren't also willing to give the same. Tell teachers you
want tlrem to be the best teachers they possibly can be-
o Use bureaucratic mechanisms to support teachers, such as fuing money
for a project or providing time for collaborative planming dming the
workday. Protect teachers from the problems of .limited timr- ex&ssive
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paperwork, and demands from other agencies.
Wha
. Let teachers know they are responsible for all students" rm id drcir own Inq
classes.
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Applying this to student learning and development, transformrid leadership rern(
has a very strong link with transformative education. If transformalfumt lcedership
anchors on people transformation, transformative education focuses sn frilFds leaming
transformation. lt aims to transform student'as lifelong learners who le furctionally
literate capable of undoing misconceptions. Studerrts or leanrers who & d qs from
engaging with metacognitive activities. Educational leaders who utt m cnploy this
could:
Lower the affective filter that circles around the lcrrig crriurment.
This is very much connected with the social regald frr hlfrg domain.
Utilize differentiation. Design respectful tasks th* ;iU tG grited for
various kind of learner. This gives much considerri: t fncrsity of
learner domain.
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Apply the Greatest Rulqs of Responsibility (CRR) paradigm. The
curriculum and subject matter domain could best be carried on if the
fusion of concepts,.old and new, is guided by the teacher at first. To
illustrate:
We do it
Learner Teacher
We wish we could provide a blueprint for the ways society will change, and
what those changes will mean for cufriculum, assessments and other aspects of our
profession. Such prediction, unfortunately, are impossible. All we can do is to ponder
future prospects, work for possibilities, and apply appropriate leadership style.
Transformational leaders possess various character traits. Complete the sentence by
filling out the blanks with adjectives/words that best delcribe a transformational leader.
Transformational leaders are:
