3.4 The Transformational Leadership Theory
3.4.2 The influence of the Transformational Theory in teacher development and empowerment
Warrilow, 2012). As has been reflected by the above principles, Transformational Leadership Theory deals mainly with leader and follower business for organisational transformation.
Therefore, following is the contribution of this theory to teacher development and
Transformational leaders have the capacity to promote alignment between people and school structures to ensure coordination throughout the organisation towards the set vision (Leithwood, 2007; Kouzes & Posner, 2010). The leader demonstrates optimism and encourages commitment by the teachers to a common vision. Thus, the school head has the capability to inspire the ECD teachers to use effective strategies for looking around for resources to furnish their ECD classrooms to improve teaching and learning. This influences the teachers towards activities like the improvising of teaching and learning media in order to avert the danger of teaching these children without media (Chikutuma & Mawere, 2012;
Smith, 2012). Teachers will perform beyond their normal schedules as a result of the leader‟s influence.
A transformational leader understands that the followers need to develop professionally and he/she pays attention to those concerns by providing circumstances where they should solve problems with new strategies (Hickman, 2010; Laine, et al., 2011). It is easy for ECD teachers to understand and accept the vision set by the school head as „theirs‟. Whether the school head engages with other things in other school departments, the ECD teachers and their TIC will remain and endure the determination to realise the vision. Usually the transformational school head is responsive to the circumstances and teachers become committed/accustomed to the circumstances to ensure that the set goals are achieved.
Teachers surpass their own self-interests and commit themselves to pursue the goals for a greater good for ECD learners. A group of inspired teachers can make a campaign for ECD teaching and learning materials in the local communities and families. Teachers with the backing of the transformational school head can create a big reserve of resources, especially with the knowledge that (as proved by literature in Section 2.6) ECD teaching and learning media can be made from locally available or recycled materials.
Modelling by the leader has many potential effects upon an organisation, since it is the foundation for leader influence. The leader models the way through personal examples and dedicated performance (Kouzes & Posner, 2010; Laine, et al., 2011). This propounds that the transformational school head is responsible for the environment and one way to influence it is to demonstrate his/her behaviour and commitment. The behaviour and commitment of the transformational school head can be easily emulated by the teachers. Behaviour demonstrated is better emulated than behaviour preached (Cranston, 2009). A transformational leader is
principled to lead by examples whenever the leader prototypes transformational leadership strategies; deputy heads and Teachers-in Charge (TICs) will also implement a Transformational leadership style. The same applies to when the leader prototypes effective leadership, deputy heads and Teachers-in-Charge (TICs) will follow suit (Leithwood, 2007;
Laine, et al., 2011). This demonstration of good character by the transformational school head has a coaching effect on the staff at large. School middle management can easily practise effective leadership styles emulated from the school head and improve the ECD department.
A transformational leader is the most knowledgeable in terms of skills and expertise in the organisation (Shields, 2011). The deputy head and TIC are also lower-level team leaders describing a form of coaching by the transformational school head. They are coached in duties which involve aspects of supervision and staff development. Deputy heads and TICs retain a certain percentage of their teaching time supervising ECD teachers and giving feedback after supervision. They take care of other teachers, leading, managing, „monitoring and evaluating their teaching‟, distributing resources and writing reports to the school head.
This indicates that there is much contribution provided by the middle management team to school improvement (Cranston, 2009).
Distributed leadership is believed to give autonomy to every individual to exercise leadership roles as contrary to preserving it for top individuals in the organisation (Myers, 2008; Laine, et al., 2011). This aspect of distributed leadership emphasises the generation of human and social capital within the organisation (Hargreaves, et al., 2010). There are many responsibilities that can be held by school deputy heads and TICs to support professional development and growth for teachers; for example, facilitating staff development programmes for the newly qualified teachers and para-professionals. New teachers are inducted and mentored by the TICs and deputy heads and qualified teachers need to up-grade their teaching skills through staff development programmes facilitated by the TIC and the deputy head. The deputy head and TIC can use training needs identification strategy, going around identifying developmental needs within the teachers then use that information to plan and implement programmes to capacity build teachers along such areas.
Transformational leaders stimulate the intellectual capabilities of teachers by encouraging them to deal with surfacing problems using new strategies (Warrilow, 2012). The transformational school head therefore gives autonomy to teachers to freely explore strategies that can be used to do away with surfacing problems in the organisation. However the leader is prepared to absorb both positive and negative outcomes from teachers since this is regarded as a learning process. This connotes that the school head creates an environment that is tolerant of mistakes in the school. The school head respects all the views that are proposed by the teachers, but constructively corrects while work is done amicably. Transformational leaders always have positive approaches to addressing team member contributions in decision-making. When the ECD teachers are given the obligation to make decisions that are later backed by the school head, they can even bring more new ideas into the school system.
Finally, a Transformational leader considers individual uniqueness among teachers; each teacher is treated as an important contributor in the school (Cranston, 2009; Warrilow, 2012).
In individualised consideration, challenges and professional development opportunities are provided by the leader through coaching in various areas where skills and knowledge are developed. The hallmark of the Transformational leadership theory is in the professional development and growth of the teachers (Fulton & Britton, 2011; Greer, 2012).
3.4.3 Efficacy of Invitational and Transformational leadership on resource demand