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Date Posted: 20:02:20 02/01/06 Wed
Author: Benjamin Lupo
Subject: Leadership and the Classroom

We were talking in MUS 115 about skills and attitudes that a music educator should have. Leadership, and the ability to lead a group or groups of people to accomplish goals was mentioned. I agree that leadership is an important quality, but I think that especially for a music educator, pure leadership isn't necessesarily a good thing, and should be mixed with another trait. We, as music educators, should be servant leaders.

I know that this sounds like an oxymoron, but bear with me for a second. If you have great people skills, it isn't too hard to lead people. The servanthood comes in realizing that you are working with your students in order to help them achieve their best, as individuals and as parts of ensembles. You lead your students to accomplish something that benefits them, again, collectively and individually.

Whether or not I have expressed this thought as a cogent and well-reasoned statement or not is arguable. What do yall think? Is raw leadership a desirable quality in a music teacher?

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Replies:

[> Re: Leadership and the Classroom -- Cory Ridge, 08:32:26 02/02/06 Thu [1]

Ben, I would agree that pure leadership is not good for students best interests some times. They need to be able to form their own learning through experiences and problems. However I do believe there are times where we need to be more than just servant leaders. In ensembles and performing groups there is a line that when crossed should be where the students need to be lead and instructed on how to proceed with certain songs. We have to remember that students in high school or even college will not have as much knowledge about music and its history. They also will not have as much experience as us performing in that kind of a setting. So in that respect I would say we need to be less servant leaders and more pure leaders. We as music educators need to set the tone of the piece and make sure all of our goals for the semester are met for that piece and others.


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[> [> Re: Leadership and the Classroom -- Benjamin Lupo, 09:19:07 02/02/06 Thu [1]

Cory, I agree 100% that as directors, will likely know more about how to make ensembles under our direction sound their best. I also agree 100% that the students need to be instructed and lead as to how to make music. What I'm suggesting, is that as educators, we have to constantly be in a mindset that reminds us we are working for the advancement of our students and their achievement as opposed that that of our own careers or simply because it is where we want them to go. I just didn't state it very well :)... (oh the joys of a 12AM posting)


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[> [> [> Re: Leadership and the Classroom -- Derek, 10:49:25 02/04/06 Sat [1]

Luppo -

I think you're dead on, just be careful not to think of raw leadership as being seperate from servant leadership. Pure leadership does, in fact, involve both types of leading. I have a feeling, though, you're scared of being too controlling.

The key is to remember that leadership itself is extremely complex and the best way to visualize it (at least for me) is to break it down into two different concepts that are equally important: Autoritative Leadership and Servant Leadership. As you said, the secret is to be in a mindset that compliments our students and not us. Servant leaders typically persuade people rather than control people, but that doesn't mean controlling is necessarily a bad thing.

In either case, leaders strive to reach a common goal. Sometimes you just have to pull out all the stops to get there, so don't be suprised if you have to be more controlling at first. Leadership requires people to be both, it's just that we'd prefer not be.


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[> Re: Leadership and the Classroom -- Lindsay, 14:01:35 02/05/06 Sun [1]

I heard a quote once that I think applies well to this topic: "A great leader is one who make others want what he wants them to want."

I think Derek has a good point, that leadership embodies both the Authoritarian and the Servant. I think I would add another to the list: the Teacher. A great leader leads by example, and by taking strong authority and serving the people, he or she can teach others how to lead, and therefore be the ultimate students. As teachers, we cannot forget that our job is to pass knowledge on to our students. We cannot gain their trust without authority, and we cannot gain their love without serving them, but we cannot pass on the knowledge without teaching it to them. Allow your students the chance to show what they know and to make decisions that are important. Give them the information they need to make the correct deicisions, and give them the receptive environment to do so, and I think you'll be surprised at how much of a leader you've become when you allow your students to take responsibility. :)


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