Leadership skills requisite in facing challenges

By Daisy R. Gonzales

ESHT III

Most school leadership preparation and training programmes are likely to be out step with the challenges facing school leaders today. In many cases, the existing preparation and training programmes, along with the models of leadership they espouse, will require a radical re-think and significant modification to remain relevant for aspiring and practicing school leaders. New programmes will be required that fully and adequately encompass the leadership skills, practices and actions suited to the current, and potentially on-going situation.

Another could be the self-care and consideration must be the priority and concern for all school leaders. Leading a school through the changes and challenges will require school leaders who put their own health and well being first, so that they will be able to help others. Increasingly, school leaders are managing the emotional responses of others to this crisis including anxiety, frustration loss and anger. Consequently, self-care must be a priority for those leading school at all levels.

School leaders will need to be discerning therefore, about the digital products they choose and to be careful about striking a balance between technology and pedagogy in their school (Hargreaves 2020). Ultimately, pedagogy is the key to effective learning and while technology has a part to play, it is the human dimension of effective teaching that makes the difference. Hence, moving forward, school leaders will increasingly need to be technologically savvy and well informed. Challenges has generated huge commercial opportunities with a pressure to buy technological solutions to contemporary problems. This could be the indicator of great and effective leader who turn negativity into positive output.