SEAHO Report - Spring 2019 - 26

SEAHO Feature Articles
They are the ones that knowingly or unknowingly, control the system. Or at least, they should be. Far too
often educational leaders will set up processes that we believe to be in the best interest of our students without
gathering the proper input, only to find out later that it is indeed the opposite of what they needed. During my
time on the west coast, I saw various policies and resources for our students go to waste because the access was
not ideal. But when the idea came around to implement these resources, there was little to no feedback from
the students' perspective, as to whether they would prefer one location over the other. We chose a location
that we thought would be central but instead moved things farther away from our students. A student's role is
critical in their own education. Much of what we do depends on the interpretation of the information from the
student. Many of them may or may not be ready for the various instructional methods that we offer within our
educational system. We have to think outside of the academic piece to ensure that students are ready. I believe
that we have to take a closer look at their background, family, social setting, peers, structure, class size, student
to administrator ratio in order to set up proper systems to support students. We should also assess the students
on a regular basis, but not use the standardized tests all of the time. There are other ways to gather information
that is needed besides the rudimentary fill in the blank or check the correct answer. We must then use this data
to set goals, manage resources, and become intentional with the structure that we set.
Next, the role of the teacher, administrator, and other support staff within an educational system are very
important roles. If you were to think of the different components of a mechanical pencil and take each one of
them apart, you will have your eraser, lead, grip, and body. Each of these can be used on some level in their
own respect, some will be more effective than others, but all will be very hard to use independently. Within
my philosophy of education, I see all of the teachers, administrators and other support staff as these individual
pieces. We each have a particular role that we can play, and when we are aligned within the same vision and
come together with the same purpose of helping our students achieve more, we become more functional as
a group. The student then sees us as their tool to be successful. They do not have to worry about the pencil
working properly, they just need to write. When educational leaders within a system take this worry away from
the student, they allow the student to focus on their education and write their own story. Along with being this
instrument that students can utilize, it is the educational leader's responsibility is to educate themselves on the
changing times and the needs of the students. Find ways to connect, find ways to support, inside and outside of
the classroom. The changing demographics of the student population should cause educational leaders to make
the world their classroom, do not be restricted by the four walls. The diversity of our classrooms is changing,
and with that we need to educate ourselves on what it means to be an advocate for justice, acknowledge
differences, advise outside of the norm, become innovative with our leadership style, and not only accept but
champion diversity. We must also ensure that we are competent and do not minimize others by doing things
that we are used to doing. Make sure that you as an educational leader are prepared for what you need to do.
Families play an extremely important role in the education of their child within our system. In every way
possible, we should try to make sure that they are involved. In order to do this, educational leaders need
to understand the families' schedules and commitments, explain the needs and importance of having them
involved. We need to find ways to relate to them, find values, and create similar and sustainable solutions. My
educational philosophy revolves around a notion of building and creating systems that will assist in the strategic
structuring of support success. We need to be okay with build a system that works for them. In my time at a
university in California, I volunteered at local elementary schools. The school struggled with commitment
from parents and families around mandatory meetings assemblies. We found out that by simply altering the
way in which we thought those meetings had to be run, or specifically when they needed to be run, we were
able to meet the demanding needs of our family's schedules. Who wants to meet at 6:00am? When that is the
only option that will feasibly work for a family that has other commitments, it becomes appreciative and they
understand that you are willing to make sacrifices for their child's well-being as well. Adapting new methods
SEAHO Report Spring 2019

SEAHO Report - Spring 2019

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