IS THERE AN EMERGING LEADERSHIP CRISIS IN SCHOOL EDUCATION?

Yes. It is not apparent. It is real.

This does not in anyway mean there is absence of leadership presently. But there is an impending crisis for leadership with the dynamics of change that seems to be haunting the corridors of school education. The present sytem of professional inputs to development of educational leadership that would safely and successfully carry the present designs to international platforms is inadequate and without focus.

The concepts of educational leadership and the challenges and skills involved in management of change are not a part of the professional curriculum that is presently available. It is important to address these issues so that we are able to have a generation of educational leaders who are academically sound, technologically competent, and pedagogically sensitive and have the skills of managing a team, and are able to provide them a direction and leadership. The kind of leadership they would provide should in turn help generating a school of leaders who would lead the change in the future.

It is interesting to note that a range of competent people from different disciplines of learning are willing to enter the corridors of school education  but unfortunately the prescription of desired qualifications restrict either selection or admission of these persons to the portals of school leadership. Hence there is a need for revisiting the designs of the philosophy of school leadership and make it more contemporary, contexual, forward looking and proactive. The idea of inducting younger generation to the leadeship portals needs active consideration.

Given the fact that there are over 200,000 secondary schools spread across the country and there is a need for an equal number of schools in about a decade, speaks about the volume of competent leaders the country would need shortly.

 Some suggestions:

1. The school leadership has to be identified as professional leaders and not as corporate or private owners of the organization. Such leadership needs to be made professionally accountable.

2. There is an urgent of need of establishing Institutes of Educational leadership in the models of IIMs to refocus the designs for the future.

3. Training and re-training of the prospective leaders to challenging modules and case studies of educational management are required.

4. Government might consider recognizing specialized Leadership Training centers for school education from Private sector or work it out on a P-P-P model.

5. Leadership training institutes both at the national and state levels need to be considered. (The present engagement of the academic bodies at either level are entirely outdated and are not current)

6.The concept of e-governance of educational management and leadership along with effective stakeholder reach and participation needs to be worked out.

7. Comprehensive leadership curricula covering a wide range of issues like – personnel management, technology management, conflict management,crisis management, change management safety management and information management and the like needs to be drafted.

8. Periodic leadership development programs for the existing leaders has to be mandatory and facilitating to empower their actual needs.