Educational Leadership: Theories and Practices Essay

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Theories on educational leadership

Conflict theories of leadership, application of relevant theory.

The first article is by Howard Stevenson (2007) who focused on concerns of school principals amid continuing changes and innovations in the age of globalization. Principals feel the pressure and the changes which contrast their “professional educational values,” and they gain no support or aid from institutions they are serving.

This situation creates a dearth in principal supply, as many of them seek early retirement while the number of those who want to replace them has been reduced considerably. Despite the challenges and demands, principals have to update their educational leadership knowledge and must have a clear understanding of leadership values in education and morality, with a sure focus on leadership guided by beliefs.

Moral purpose does not just produce effective leadership but sustainable, effective leadership. Most parents and teachers expect much from their principals, for example, in expressing their plans and vision for the learning institution they were heading (Dempster & Logan as cited in Bush, 2011, p. 7).

Values-enhanced leadership questions school leaders’ knowledge to develop policies and programs in their schools that provide knowledge on social justice that also challenges social injustice. Stevenson (2007) addresses two issues: 1) how principals or school leaders provide importance and “operationalize” social justice in their institutions, and 2) how leaders promote social justice.

The second aim seeks to touch on aspects of national policy agendas and how these help school leaders in their dealings with a multi-ethnic population in schools.

In simple terms, the paper aimed to address the issue that when school leaders have the opportunity to promote social justice, do they also have the space to do it? The paper touches on important factors of race and ethnicity in English schools, issues which have been regarded as “difficult and problematic within English schools” (Swann, 1985, as cited in Stevenson, 2007, p. 770).

Traditionally, the academic community has long recognized the significance of moral purpose in educational leadership. Yet, the significant milestone is that there is a new thrust, or “re-assertion”, of the moral purpose of leadership at a time when new policies, which have been described as neo-liberal, seemed to have divested the school leader’s key role in education and reduced him/her to being a “crude” manager (Thrupp & Willmott, 2003, as cited in Stevenson, 2007, p. 770).

In the study by Day et al. (2000, as cited in Stevenson, 2007), those kinds of leaders were expert at taking hold of opportunities and aligning these with the objectives of the school.

This finding is supported by other researchers (Gold et al., 2003; Moore et al., 2002, as cited in Stevenson, 2007) who asserted that effective school leaders knew how to provide a level playing field in which personal and professional values could be maintained at the same time. But the pessimists in this theory argued that State power had been strengthened where school leaders do not anymore have space to exercise autonomy.

A second article is by Esther Sui-chu Ho (2009), which touches on the role of parents in the education of their children. In many parts of Europe and the United States, parents have been participating in the education of their children. This is true in many parts of the world, but in Asia, parents only want to get involved in children’s education at home (Ho, 2009, p. 102).

There were studies, however showing that school administrators and teachers were not amenable to having parents actively involved in children’s education. Parental involvement has several meanings, for it is not clear to what extent parents can get involved in the education of their children.

Most parents in Hong Kong would like to have active involvement and devote much of their time to school activities for their children. The extent of parents’ involvement would depend on school practices; meaning, principals, can motivate parents to actively participate in their children’s schooling.

Ho (2009) used Bourdieu’s theory of the social world which was described as a space with many dimensions and with crisscrossing factors composed of social institutions, and institutional forms are created like the family, hospital, school, etc. It is in this arena of overlapping concepts that people interact and stress themselves as a social animal.

How people interact is determined by what Bourdieu called habitus , which refers to the individual capital each human has, and the talent to deal with others on a particular field. Habitus is a system of moods or inclinations acquired through experience with social institutions and the environment around (Bourdieu, 1977 as cited in Ho, 2007, p. 103). It also refers to a principle influencing practices as defined by the situation or the environment.

It has often been said that education begins at home, and the home environment has a great influence on the child’s upbringing. Before a child is brought to the social world to acquire more experience, the child must first be strengthened by the social and moral values at home.

The home, with the presence of parents, siblings, and other people living in that home, is the first social influence the child acquires. In school, the principal and the teachers bring more influence. The school leaders influence what the child learned at home. Therefore the school environment and the home environment should be collaborative in bringing the child to that educational pedestal.

The third article by Bellmore, Nishina, You, and Ma (2011) talked about cultural diversity in schools. Cultural diversity provides distinct ethnic experience for youth but also presents problems about ethnic discrimination. In this article, the authors described how a sample of 1,072 high school students of different ethnic groups was affected by discrimination. The study involved a mix of ethnic groups, such as Latino, African American, Asian, and a minority of white students.

The study provided a detailed literature review of ethnic diversity across the United States. Youth experience “peer ethnic discrimination” when, as members of an ethnic group, they receive verbal or physical harassment from peers resulting in a negative experience that affects psychological health and academic performance of adolescents. This negative experience also results in lower self-esteem and depression among youth (Brody et al., as cited in Bellmore et al., 2011, p. 98).

Peer ethnic discrimination may result when there is strong hierarchical grouping in the school, and the youth feel a low peer status. As individuals strive for ethnic identities, negative connotations, or messages can become harmful.

In the study, both boys and girls reported peer discrimination, and Asian students had the highest level of peer discrimination. Peer discrimination was associated with psychological and academic problems of students, but students’ perceptions could change depending on their school experiences. Extra-curricular activities can help in ethnic-climate perceptions. School factors and community factors could also help in changing students’ perceptions.

Ethnic diversity in schools could provide opportunities for students to develop their relationships with other people but could also negatively affect them when they were subjected to peer discrimination.

Peer ethnic discrimination was more prevalent when there were only a few ethnic groups, or when one ethnic group was more powerful than the others in terms of number. It was also emphasized in this study that school context, with the guidance of principals and teachers, can modify the negative effect of peer discrimination and that this can also change over time.

The fourth peer-reviewed article was authored by William Place and Jane Clark Lindle (2006) who drew several theories about educational leadership’s key role in society and the educational institution. The authors differentiate the norms between scholars and practitioners in educational leadership. Professors now value the role of ideas and knowledge. Educational leadership studies should take an active critical perspective role. This article differentiates theory and practice.

Practitioners of educational leadership battle the daily challenges from their constituents and other stakeholders or non-stakeholders of their profession, for example, parents, politicians, students, teachers, and so on. Educational leadership provides a level playing field for scholars and practitioners to unite and help each other in knowledge creation.

In the university setting, professors were more concerned of salary and working conditions rather than the “pressure to publish,” or that the pressure for work was only related with the professor’s intent to remain in his/her job. The authors noted the conflict between administrators and professors but also recommended that education can bridge the gap between practitioners and scholars.

There should be a balance between theory and practice of administration. Practice, in this sense, includes administration and theory is for professors. Professors are in charge of research that can be included in the program for administration. In short, theory and practice should go together and must not part from each other. Educational leadership needs these two for its effective implementation.

Daniel McCollum and Lawrence Kajs’ (2007) article examine the importance of goal orientation in the field of educational leadership. The authors focused on graduate students who were candidates for “principalship” and were taking up courses to earn a certification for their qualification. These graduate students needed the motivation to be able to effectively practice educational leadership.

Goal orientation refers to student beliefs specific to their aims as principals, making goals very important to their practice. Goal orientations answer the question “why” in the activities of students, and this particular case, the graduate students.

Ames (1992, as cited in McCollum & Kajs, 2007, p. 46) provides a background of mastery goal orientation as the aspiration of a student to acquire the capability and enhance education using arduous learning. Mastery goal orientation can also be interchanged with the term “learning goal orientation.”

Students who want to master their field of knowledge put more innate importance of learning and are more inclined to develop techniques of learning with the use of a lot of information, for example using many examples of ideas. Considered mastery-oriented are those who accept challenging activities and devote more time to such activities.

On the other hand, considered performance-oriented are students who want to outperform others, and this creates a negative effect on them because they do not appreciate much the importance of learning (Butler, 1987, as cited in McCollum & Kajs, 2007, p. 47).

McCollum and Kajs (2007) found that motivational theory becomes a necessity of those studying and aspiring to be principals. Graduate students who are preparing to become leaders take efforts in mastering knowledge.

Theory on realistic groups

Conflict theory is about two groups of individuals who fight for a certain goal or motive. One of these theories was formulated by Carolyn and Musafir Sherif (Goldstein, 1994) who experimented on two groups of boys. The participants were not informed about the purpose and goal of the experiment. Later, the two groups competed against each other and displayed a certain behavior that increased tension and rivalry.

The question of how this theory guides practice can be answered by the way it guided the experiment. The experimenters hypothesized that the boys, who were separated from each other but shared the same facilities, would later on compete and the situation resulted in a fight with insults and hostilities committed each other.

The two groups were cohesive toward their group but hostile against the other group even if the members of the opposite group were their former friends. The experimenters were guided by their theory and predicted what would happen as they practiced their theory through the participants.

The social conflict

Relationship between labor and capitalist is guided by this theory. Conflicts can be avoided using this theory. The conflict arises between two different individuals with different motives, the worker and the owner of production or capitalist. The worker exists because of the meager salary he receives from the capitalist who is only after profit.

The capitalist is the moneyed class (the bourgeoisie) while the worker is the member of what Karl Marx termed as the proletariat. Conflict is always a part of these two types of people. Until now, harmony in labor is impossible to achieve, though there might be a temporary period of peace. There will always come a time that they are opposed to each other. ( Sociology guide: conflict theories , 2010)

Human needs theory

One of the most common causes of conflict is a human need. Wars and smaller conflicts are caused by human needs that are not provided. Quest for human needs influence people’s behaviors and actions. If basic needs are met, people avoid conflict and pursue other needs in the pyramid theory of needs.

Conflict theories applicable to educational leadership

The theory of social conflict applies to the theory of the principal and the administrator. While the principal is concerned with the values as part of education, the administrator is concerned with management. The social conflict is about the worker and the capitalist here likened to the administrator and the principal.

The study of Day et al. (2000, as cited in Stevenson, 2007) of schools with a diverse cultural population of students supported some previous works on the key feature of leadership in which the school principal is “clearly a pivotal individual in shaping the organizational culture” (Stevenson, p. 774).

Principals can provide a policy framework that links values with the policy of the school. In the study, the researchers found that the principals in the respondent schools were able to form out of institutional policies personal and institutional values. This concept links with moral responsibility.

Vasillopulos and Denney’s (2013) article touches on the moral responsibility of educational leaders and links this with Barnard’s theory of executive leadership wherein the school leader, or the principal can be effective in dealing with the problems of the school. In the practice of educational leadership, the principal must have a deep understanding of leadership.

Gomba (2012, as cited in Vasillopulos and Denney, 2013) made mention the concept of servant leadership, which is referring to Jesus. If principals then have the sacrifice the way Jesus had for his people, then schools will have an effective leader, and there will be a great transformation in that institution.

In her many years of teaching, Waddock (2010) applied her understanding of wisdom by way of moral imagination, understanding, and aesthetic sensibility. By attaining wisdom, a principal can expertly “see” and can diagnose systems, and see moral and responsibility implications.

School leaders must be strong in formulating their policies and values because of the existence of the business side of the educational institution they are working with. The whole subject is about “morals” and “markets,” which can be contradictory most of the time. Principals have to distinguish their policies, whether these are for the promotion of values or the business side of the institution.

In finding aesthetic experience into her long years of practice, Harris (2008) taught administrative studies by adding music to her teaching. In teaching several disciplines, a teacher must also feel the soul and the imaginations of her students. Outside the classroom, students have multidimensional lives that need to be explored by the teacher.

Harris added aesthetic presentation in her teaching, and the result was a different kind of bonding with her students who came from different ethnic backgrounds. The values-driven leader knows how to deal with the challenges of an external policy environment and relate it with the values and vision of the school.

Racism is a major challenge in America, especially in the school context. For principals and school administrators, this is a headache. Young African Americans who experience discrimination exhibit deviant character traits, violence, and mental health problems. In a study of racial discrimination in schools, parents and administrators relate their experience, but they also see a bright side of the problem through collaboration and having a sure focus on the problem. (Berkel et al., 2009)

The school environment and context are significant in understanding peer ethnic discrimination, especially in knowing why youth from one group is targeted by members of other groups. Positive effects on peer experiences were noted in schools with greater ethnic diversity, and the groups were represented almost equally; meaning, no particular group holds the majority. In schools with greater ethnic diversity, students felt safer and were less victimized by other group members.

Baber (2012) presented a study on African Americans who were enrolled in predominantly white institutions (PWI), though the study focused on the students’ first-year college experiences. Research on student experience and the transition is influenced by various factors, and school administrators have to help these students in their adjustment period.

Stevenson says that professional values related to social justice have been threatened by an educational system that prefers market value over human need. Other authors relate this to the commercialization of education wherein the school leader is reduced to a business manager. However, many effective leaders have retained their responsibility and strong devotion to their careers by holding on to their educational and professional values. There are times that the leader’s trust and integrity are undermined.

Baber, L. (2012). A qualitative inquiry on the multidimensional racial development among first-year African American college students attending a predominately white institution. The Journal of Negro Education, 81 (1), 67-81. Web.

Bellmore, A., Nishina, A., You, J., & Ma, T. (2011). School context protective factors against peer ethnic discrimination across the high school years. American Journal of Community Psychology 49 (1), 98-111. doi: 10.1007/s10464-011-9443-0

Berkel, C., Murry, V., Hurt, T., Chen, Y., Brody, G., & Simons, R.,…Gibbons, F. (2009). It takes a village: Protecting rural African American youth in the context of racism. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 38 (1), 175-188. doi: 10.1007/s10964-008-9346-z

Bush, T. (2011). Theories of educational leadership and management (4th edition). Thousand Oaks, California: Sage Publications Inc.

Goldstein, A. (1994). The ecology of aggression . New York: Plenum Press.

Harris, C. (2008). Exploring dimensions of critical awareness through aesthetic experience: Implications for the preparation of educational leaders. Journal of Educational Administration and Foundation , 19 (1), 55-80. Web.

Ho, S. (2009). Educational leadership for parental involvement in an Asian context: Insights from Bourdieu’s theory of practice. The School Community Journal, 19 (2), 101-122. Web.

McCollum, D. & Kajs, L. (2007). Applying goal orientation theory in an exploration of student motivations in the domain of educational leadership. Educational Research Quarterly , 31 (1), 45-59. Web.

Place, A. & Lindle, J. (2006). Present company excepted or accepted? Recognizing each other’s faces in educational leadership’s scholarship and practice. International Journal of Educational Management, 20 (3), 195-205. doi: 10.1108/09513540610654164

Sociology guide: conflict theories . (2010). Web.

Stevenson, H. (2007). A case study in leading schools for social justice: when morals and markets collide. Journal of Educational Administration, 45 (6), 769-781. doi: 10.1108/09578230710829937

Vasillopulos, C. & Denney, M. (2013). Moral responsibility: The missing element in educational leadership. Higher Education Studies, 3 (2), 74-85. doi: :10.5539/hes.v3n2p74

Waddock, S. (2010). Finding wisdom within – the role of seeing and reflective practice in developing moral imagination, aesthetic sensibility, and systems understanding. Journal of Business Ethics Education, 7 (1), 177-196. Web.

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Writing an Educational Leadership Philosophy Statement

Dr. natasha kenny, phd, & dr. carol berenson, phd, taylor institute for teaching and learning .

December 2016

We often support instructors in creating teaching philosophy statements, and various resources exist to support their development (e.g. Chism, 1998; Kenny, Jeffs, and Berenson, 2015; Schonwetter et al., 2002).  However, few resources are available to help faculty in preparing educational leadership philosophy statements.

We recently created a resource to help faculty preparing educational leadership philosophy statements as part of their nomination dossiers for institutional and national awards, such as the University of Calgary Teaching Award for Educational Leadership and the  3M National Teaching Fellowship .

Similar in format to a teaching philosophy statement, an educational leadership philosophy statement “clearly communicate[s] what our beliefs are about educational leadership, why we hold these beliefs and how we translate our beliefs into practice” (Berenson and Kenny, 2015).  An example structure for an educational leadership philosophy statement and guiding questions to help those preparing a statement are presented in Table 1 below.  While every statement will uniquely articulate the educational leadership beliefs and practices of each author, these questions provide a foundational guide for helping to support faculty in creating an educational leadership philosophy statement.

Dr. Ken MacMillan, 3M National Teaching Fellow, and the 2015 recipient of the UCalgary Award for Educational Leadership has shared an  example educational leadership philosophy statement here .

Philosophy statement components

Developing an educational leadership philosophy statement provides an opportunity for individuals to reflect on their own leadership beliefs and activities. This process also makes visible the many ways in which leadership is formally and informally enacted by individuals on our campus.

Beliefs about educational leadership

What are my beliefs about educational leadership in post-secondary education? Why do I hold these beliefs?   Who or what has most informed my leadership approaches? How have my beliefs been influenced by my experiences postsecondary educator and/or scholarly literature related to leadership? What difference do I hope to make as a leader? What does it mean to be a good leader in a post-secondary context?

Educational leadership activities and initiatives

What educational leadership activities, practices and initiatives have I implemented? How do these align with my beliefs? When have I felt most engaged and affirmed as an educational leader? What are my key strengths and skills as a leader? What am I most proud of? What sets me apart? What are some of my accomplishments as a post-secondary leader?

Impact and influence

What difference have I made, and how do I know? What has been the impact and influence of my educational leadership (on me, on students, on colleagues, on my department, on my faculty, on the institution and beyond)? What have others learned from my leadership approaches?

Future aspirations

How will I continue to develop, grow, and improve as a leader? What interests me most about teaching and learning in post-secondary education? What changes do I most hope to see and inspire? What are my future goals and aspirations as a leader in post-secondary education?

Guiding questions adapted from: Kearns, K.D. & Sullivan, C.S. (2011); Kenny, Jeffs & Berenson (2015); Stavros & Hinrichs (2011); Schonwetter et al. (2002); Seldin, P., Miller, J. E., & Seldin, C. A. (2010).

Related content

Sample teaching philosophy statements .

Read more >>

What Makes a Great Teaching Award Nomination Dossier? 

Berenson, C. & Kenny, N.A. (2016).  Preparing an Educational Leadership Philosophy Statement . Calgary, AB: Taylor Institute for Teaching and Learning.

Chism, Nancy. (1998). Developing a philosophy of teaching statement.  Essays on Teaching Excellence: Toward the Best in the Academy, 9,  1-3.  Retrieved from http://podnetwork.org/content/uploads/V9-N3-Chism.pdf

Kearns, K.D. and Sullivan, C.S. (2011). Resources and practices to help graduate students and postdoctoral fellows write statements of teaching philosophy.  Advances in Physiology Education , 35, 136-145.

Kenny, N.A., Jeffs, C., & Berenson, C. (2015).  Preparing a Teaching Philosophy Statement.  Calgary, AB: Taylor Institute for Teaching and Learning.

Schonwetter, D.J., Sokal, L., Friesen, M., & Taylor, L.K. (2002). Teaching philosophies reconsidered: A conceptual model for the development and evaluation of teaching philosophy statements.  International Journal for Academic Development,  7(1), 83-97

Seldin, P., Miller, J. E., & Seldin, C. A. (2010). The teaching portfolio: A practical guide to improved performance and promotion/tenure decisions. John Wiley & Sons.

Stavros, Jacqueline M, & Hinrichs, Gina. (2011). The Thin Book Of SOAR: Building Strengths-Based Strategy: Thin Book Publishing.

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Today the world has focused on leadership, because all the problems which emerge in the changing circumstances of the world are due to weak or poor leadership style. So, leadership plays a vital role in the lives of people. Similarly in the educational system, the role of head teacher as a leader has its critical importance. Current study is about the relationship between the leadership styles and job satisfaction level of higher Secondary School Teachers. For proficient management of an organization, human resources are its paramount essentials. competent leaders and subordinates give a lot to attain organizational goals. Positive relationship between teachers and head’s performance is necessary for raising educational principles (Khan et al. 2009). During the past decade, schools have undertaken fundamental changes in areas such as curriculum development, teaching techniques, teachers’ roles, and learning strategies. These changes have been brought about a shift in the philosophy that dominated the realm of educational leadership.

As Leithwood (1994) indicated, the form of instructional leadership corresponded well to the period of the 1980s and the 1990s because it met the opportunity of the public and the decision-makers’ expectations from the figure head. However, the changes undertaken during the 1990s could not be dealt with, when the head was functioning as an instructional leader. The concept of transformational leadership steadily moved to the center of the discussion as school heads were expected to bring the imaginative leadership to the institution’a task that was not taken care of, by instructional leaders. Leithwood and Jantzi (1990) showed that school heads that succeeded in their job have used a broad variety of mechanisms to motivate and activate their staff to bring about the changes in their school culture. A variety of leadership styles are used by the leaders but most frequently used styles are autocratic leadership style and democratic leadership style.

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Education Leadership Essays

Essay on education leadership, popular essay topics.

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Doctor of Education Leadership

EdLD students

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America needs transformative leaders in preK–12 education whose passion for education quality and equity is matched by a knowledge of learning and development, the organizational management skills to translate visionary ideas into practical success, and a firm grasp of the role of context and politics in shaping leadership. Graduates of the three-year, multidisciplinary Doctor of Education Leadership (Ed.L.D.) Program at the Harvard Graduate School of Education will be prepared to become those leaders.

The Ed.L.D Program — taught by faculty from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, the Harvard Business School, and the Harvard Kennedy School — will train you for system-level leadership positions in school systems, state and federal departments of education, and national nonprofit organizations. Ed.L.D. is a full-time, three-year program built on a cohort learning model. Cohorts consist of up to 25 students from diverse professional backgrounds (including district/charter management leaders, nonprofit directors, principals, teachers, and policy researchers) who progress through the program together.

All Ed.L.D. students receive a full tuition funding package plus stipends, work opportunities, and a paid third-year residency at a partner organization.

The Ed.L.D. Program prepares graduates to do work for the public good in the American public education sector, whether that be at the system or state level. Specifically, the program is designed to accelerate the progress graduates make toward achieving meaningful impact in influential roles and/or crossing boundaries in the following spaces in the public education sector:

  • PreK–12 district or CMO leadership roles : superintendent of schools, chief academic officer, and/or deputy superintendent
  • Foundation/philanthropy roles:  director, president and CEO, senior fellow
  • Education nonprofit roles : president or executive director of backbone or collective impact organizations which support preK–12 schools. Ed.L.D. graduates will lead education nonprofits that explicitly focus on improving outcomes and opportunities for children, families, and communities.
  • State or federal education leadership roles : commissioner or deputy commissioner roles. Could also include public education advocacy or education policy advisers to senior government officials.
  • Social Entrepreneurship and Innovation roles:  Founder, CEO, president

Curriculum Information

The Ed.L.D. curriculum is a balance of multidisciplinary coursework and practice-based learning. Core courses and electives are taught by recognized leaders from across Harvard’s graduate programs in fields like data-based education reform, organizational change and innovation, and effective leadership strategies for urban schools. You will develop and test your leadership skills through team projects and an immersive third-year residency.

All students in the cohort take the same classes in four foundational content areas: learning and teaching, leadership and organizational change, politics and policy, adult development, and leadership inside and out (including one-on-one executive coaching). Courses taken during the first-year focus on practice-based learning and serve as the framework of your first-year experience.

Sample HGSE Courses

  • Leading Change
  • How People Learn
  • Ed.L.D. Proseminar
  • Leadership, Entrepreneurship, and Learning
  • Race, Equity, and Leadership
  • Practicing Leadership Inside and Out
  • Sector Change
  • The Workplace Lab for System-Level Leaders

View  all courses  in the Academic Catalog.

Each cohort member works with program advisers to choose an individualized sequence of electives from any of the Harvard graduate schools. You will work closely with the program faculty and staff during your second year to determine the best match with a partner organization for your third-year residency. Matches are driven by mutual interest between the resident and the partner organization, and each student's career and learning goals and geographic preferences.

  • Second Year Practicing Leadership Inside and Out
  • Driving Change 
  • Education Sector Nonprofits
  • Negotiation Workshop
  • Coaching with Equity in Mind
  • Ethnic Studies and Education
  • Deeper Learning for All:  Designing a 21st Century School System
  • Institutional Change in School Organizations, Systems, and Sectors

You will take part in a 10-month paid residency at one of our partner organizations. There, you will work on a strategic project which synthesizes your experience and learning into a written Capstone project. You will stay connected to your Ed.L.D. cohort and HGSE through technology and by returning to Harvard periodically for intensive workshops.

Paid Residency 

Our partner organizations include school systems and departments of education, as well as some of the nation's most influential and dynamic nonprofit, mission-based for-profit, and philanthropic organizations.

You will be intentionally pushed out of your comfort zones and asked to work systemically and make a significant contribution to the partner organization. In addition, the residency will provide you with the professional mentoring, practical experiences, and network of connections they need to position themselves as future leaders in the education sector. 

Strategic Project 

You will define (with supervisors from your partner organization) a strategic project on which to focus. You will have the opportunity to lead one or two major efforts on behalf of the organization, such as the creation or implementation of current initiatives. The project allows you to practice and improve leadership skills, add important value to the mission and strategy of the partner organization, work systemically, and hold high-level accountability.

During the residency period, you will produce a written Capstone. The Capstone is a descriptive, analytic, and reflective account of your third-year leadership contributions to a strategic project within an Ed.L.D. partner organization. It is a demonstration of your ability to engage others, develop strategy to successfully address and diagnose challenges, work toward a vision and goals, and learn from the results.

Sample Topics

  • Accountability, Coherence, and Improvement: Leadership Reflection and Growth in the Los Angeles Unified School District
  • Leadership Development for Entrepreneurial Education Leaders Working to Build Public & Private Sector Support
  • Disrupting Teacher Preparation: Lessons in Collaboration and Innovation Across the Learning to Teach Community of Practice
  • Pursuing Educational Equality for English Language Learners

Sample Summaries 

  • Breaking Down Silos in a School District: Findings from an Ed.L.D. Project in Montgomery County
  • Expanding Students' Access to Meaningful STEM Learning Opportunities Through Strategic Community Partnerships
  • Developing a New Teacher Leadership and Compensation System in Iowa: A Consensus-Based Process
  • Finding Great Teachers for Blended-Learning Schools

GSE Theses and Dissertations from Digital Access to Scholarship at Harvard (DASH)

Program Faculty

Ed.L.D. students learn with renowned faculty from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, Harvard Business School, and Harvard Kennedy School. Faculty from the three schools share their individual expertise in the Ed.L.D. Program and work collaboratively to provide a challenging and coherent experience for students. Faculty who teach in the Ed.L.D. core curriculum and advise Ed.L.D. students include:

Faculty Director

Frank Barnes

Frank D. Barnes

Frank Barnes is faculty director of the Doctor of Education Leadership Program. He has over 30 years experience as an educator, researcher, and organizer. As a chief accountability officer, he led turnaround efforts for large public school districts, including Boston Public Schools and Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools.

Kathryn Parker Boudett

Kathryn Boudett

Ebony N. Bridwell-Mitchell

Ebony Bridwell Mitchell

Jennifer Perry Cheatham

Jennifer Cheatham

Elizabeth City

Elizabeth City

Candice Crawford-Zakian

essay on educational leadership

Marshall Ganz

HGSE shield on blue background

Adria D. Goodson

Deborah helsing.

essay on educational leadership

Monica C. Higgins

Monica Higgins

Deborah Jewell-Sherman

essay on educational leadership

Lisa Laskow Lahey

Lisa Lahey

Mary Grassa O'Neill

Mary Grassa O'Neill

Irvin Leon Scott

Irvin Scott

Catherine Snow

Catherine Snow

Michael L. Tushman

Martin west.

Martin West

Introduce Yourself

Tell us about yourself so that we can tailor our communication to best fit your interests and provide you with relevant information about our programs, events, and other opportunities to connect with us.

Program Highlights

Explore examples of the Doctor of Education Leadership experience and the impact its community is making on the field:

Brendon Chan with the Dalai Lama

Do We Need Happiness Teachers?

After a trip to meet with the Dalai Lama, an Ed.L.D. student says we do

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Statement of Purpose Educational Leadership Sample

EssayEdge > Blog > Statement of Purpose Educational Leadership Sample

Note: This essay appears unedited for instructional purposes. Essays edited by experienced graduate application essay editors are dramatically improved.

My purpose for seeking a Doctorate Degree in Educational Leadership is to expand my knowledge of theory and research methods as it pertains to education. I especially want to fine-tune my research skills as I feel that the importance of gaining research skills is imperative to becoming a lifelong learner and developing intellectual self-actualization as I prepare myself for a career in Education. I realize the importance of gaining credibility among my future colleagues and people that I will be serving in the field.

My view of Education is that of a reformist. I have a particular interest in the improvement of homeless individuals, single mothers and women of color. Because of my own experience with both homelessness and single motherhood, I know the feeling of helplessness as you are sinking deeper and deeper in desperation that you feel that you will never recover from it. I have seen how generations of these people have become prisoners by being illiterate and /or insufficiently educated around our city with little or no hope of getting free from their bondage. Although I have struggled hard to get myself out of this situation I refuse to forget.

I have strove to make a difference wherever I can. As volunteer at Christian Assistance Ministry I witnessed the overworked conditions that the social workers and volunteers faced. Worn from these conditions these dedicated workers had no respite from their daily work of feeding, clothing and providing funds for the homeless and families who have found themselves in a desperate situation. Although I had many job responsibilities at Christian Assistance Ministry the most common was that of interviewer where I assessed the clients situation and offered help either monetary or that of food and clothing. I soon found that intake and interview forms as well as information that was distributed to the patrons. I took it upon myself after approval from the Director to redo and modernize these forms and lists. Also I had initiated lists of other agencies that would assist clients find additional help that they needed in the Greater Houston Area. One of theses lists that I have generated has been used by City Public Service to refer customers that are in need of financial assistance to pay their utility bills. I had contacted each of the agencies personally to get up to date hours, addresses and contact names and numbers before adding them to the list. Many patrons of Christian Assistance Ministry were included in my project as I compiled lists of job hotlines, shelters and affordable housing options. This inclusion also gave many of the patrons a sense of community collaboration, as I would discuss information with them.

In my present job at SeaNet I felt that it was necessary to know what our clients, Small businesses Development Center and Small business administration Counselors felt about the services we were providing them since in the job we do we don’t have personal contact with them. With my directors approval I sent out surveys asking various questions about the service we provide and got an overwhelming response. This information was used in a quarterly report that is submitted to our funding agency in Washington DC. At SeaNet I am known as an individual that prides herself in thorough research techniques. I am often being asked to do research for special projects that are beyond our usual information requests. Most recently I have done research on the availability of renewable energy sources in South Texas. This research was for a consortium of various Universities in Texas, The Economic Development Center, Solar Energy and Brooks Air Force Base investigating who are examining the feasibility using various energy sources.

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I am also an advocate of 21st Century Learning Centers that would provide a safe refuge for the millions of latch-key children in this country that go home to an empty house on any given school day. Along with that thought are full service schools that would provide many of the health and social services so desperately needed in many school districts. I have and continue to research community programs that are available to school children and their families. I recently collaborated with three such agencies (Upward Bound, Peace Center, and Davis….) in Houston to present to my fellow classmates the importance and impact community collaboration makes on our schools in our city. I also provided information in the form of brochures and handouts about other such organizations that could assist in the needs of their own schools. I feel that it is imperative that every teacher, principle and administrative staff in all schools be aware of these resources in our community. After the presentation of these research topics for educational leadership many of my classmates who are teachers and administrators contacted several of the organizations that I had introduced them to in that hour presentation and have started programs within their schools.

Although I have not yet formally been employed in the educational work environment I have been a mentor for many students attending Davis Middle School as well as a tutor for several home-schooled children. During the years of my own children attending school, I was very involved in their schools both private and public and took on many organizational and leadership roles. I served on many boards and was very active in assisting instructors and administrators in the schools my children attended. Because of these 15 years of experience, I am very familiar with the diverse educational system in Houston.

I have helped develop leadership in others by serving as an example of how far you can go in education with dedication and hard work. By being a student I have been example to others who didn’t feel they could juggle school with work and raising a family. I have a very hard working and decisive character that has earned me a 4.0 GPA. I have never been one to do anything halfway but instead show the dedication and integrity it takes to finish a project to its fullest.

My short-term goals include: establishing a network of scholars and future administrators, participating in a rigorous intellectual process.

My short-term goals include taking full advantage of the Doctorate program to fine-tune and learn more about research and writing skills. I want to use and improve my knowledge in quantitative research using programs such as SPSS and Microcase, in tandem with qualitative researching techniques. I want to develop a clear and concise understanding of leadership and the education profession and how the two mesh as one while enjoying the opportunity to develop a network of scholars. To experience the community and closeness that my fellow cohort mates can provide enjoy the opportunity to brainstorm and discuss pressing issues in our schools today and how we/I/they plan on changing them for tomorrow. After researching many doctorate programs in the area I feel that Texas A&M is unique in the standpoint of wanting to create a bonding collaborative experience among all the Educational Leadership Students and especially among cohort mates. I feel that the young and innovative program suits the fresh outlook on Educational Leadership that I am in search of. I have seen the department of education blossom in the last 4 years that I have been involved with it. I can appreciate the effort and future seeking work that is going on in the department, everyone has the attitude of moving forward and evolving with the times. To me this is the true example of reform, there is no lip service in this program, and it is practicing what it preaches. I know that in the classes that I have taken there is open invitation for research and suggestions for improvement solicited. Although I have no trouble working independently on projects it is reassuring that there will be others to inspire the creative juices that comes from group interaction that this program invites. I will look forward to working with professors that I have worked with before and I am anxious to meet those I have not. There is camaraderie in the Education Department that I do not feel is quite like any other at Texas A&M.

My long-term goals take what I have learned in my master’s courses in combination with the doctorate courses that will well have prepared me to enter any job in Education. I intend to prepare much of the educational leadership research topics using the foundations for a higher level of research I have established at Texas A&M and be published and make a difference in how the underprivileged will be educated. I know that the preparation for that higher plane of achievement that has been instilled in me will serve me well in any Educational or Governmental Occupation I will find myself in. Above all I will be secure in my ability to someway participate in the nation’s urgent need to educate moor efficiently and comprehensively.

See this essay after the edit . Also, see the educational leadership goal statement examples in our blog.

If you plan to apply to a certain program, you must explain your connection to it and your motivation in your statement of purpose. This sample has good content but needs some improvements. However, you can use it as a template for writing your paper. Send the final version to our statement of purpose editing service: we’ll review your paper and correct mistakes.

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40 Philosophy of Education Examples, Plus How To Write Your Own

Learn how to define and share your teaching philosophy.

Short Philosophy of Education Examples Feature

These days, it’s become common for educators to be asked what their personal teaching philosophy is. Whether it’s for a job interview, a college class, or to share with your principal, crafting a philosophy of education can seem like a daunting task. So set aside some time to consider your own teaching philosophy (we’ll walk you through it), and be sure to look at philosophy of education examples from others (we’ve got those too!).

What is a philosophy of education?

Before we dive into the examples, it’s important to understand the purpose of a philosophy of education. This statement will provide an explanation of your teaching values and beliefs. Your teaching philosophy is ultimately a combination of the methods you studied in college and any professional experiences you’ve learned from since. It incorporates your own experiences (negative or positive) in education.

Many teachers have two versions of their teaching philosophy: a long form (a page or so of text) and a short form. The longer form is useful for job application cover letters or to include as part of your teacher portfolio. The short form distills the longer philosophy into a couple of succinct sentences that you can use to answer teacher job interview questions or even share with parents.

What’s the best teaching philosophy?

Here’s one key thing to remember: There’s no one right answer to “What’s your teaching philosophy?” Every teacher’s will be a little bit different, depending on their own teaching style, experiences, and expectations. And many teachers find that their philosophies change over time, as they learn and grow in their careers.

When someone asks for your philosophy of education, what they really want to know is that you’ve given thought to how you prepare lessons and interact with students in and out of the classroom. They’re interested in finding out what you expect from your students and from yourself, and how you’ll apply those expectations. And they want to hear examples of how you put your teaching philosophy into action.

What’s included in strong teaching philosophy examples?

Depending on who you ask, a philosophy of education statement can include a variety of values, beliefs, and information. As you build your own teaching philosophy statement, consider these aspects, and write down your answers to the questions.

Purpose of Education (Core Beliefs)

What do you believe is the purpose of teaching and learning? Why does education matter to today’s children? How will time spent in your classroom help prepare them for the future?

Use your answers to draft the opening statement of your philosophy of education, like these:

  • Education isn’t just about what students learn, but about learning how to learn.
  • A good education prepares students to be productive and empathetic members of society.
  • Teachers help students embrace new information and new ways of seeing the world around them.
  • A strong education with a focus on fundamentals ensures students can take on any challenges that come their way.
  • I believe education is key to empowering today’s youth, so they’ll feel confident in their future careers, relationships, and duties as members of their community.
  • Well-educated students are open-minded, welcoming the opinions of others and knowing how to evaluate information critically and carefully.

Teaching Style and Practices

Do you believe in student-led learning, or do you like to use the Socratic method instead? Is your classroom a place for quiet concentration or sociable collaboration? Do you focus on play-based learning, hands-on practice, debate and discussion, problem-solving, or project-based learning? All teachers use a mix of teaching practices and styles, of course, but there are some you’re likely more comfortable with than others. Possible examples:

  • I frequently use project-based learning in my classrooms because I believe it helps make learning more relevant to my students. When students work together to address real-world problems, they use their [subject] knowledge and skills and develop communication and critical thinking abilities too.
  • Play-based learning is a big part of my teaching philosophy. Kids who learn through play have more authentic experiences, exploring and discovering the world naturally in ways that make the process more engaging and likely to make a lasting impact.
  • In my classroom, technology is key. I believe in teaching students how to use today’s technology in responsible ways, embracing new possibilities and using technology as a tool, not a crutch.
  • While I believe in trying new teaching methods, I also find that traditional learning activities can still be effective. My teaching is mainly a mix of lecture, Socratic seminar, and small-group discussions.
  • I’m a big believer in formative assessment , taking every opportunity to measure my students’ understanding and progress. I use tools like exit tickets and Kahoot! quizzes, and watch my students closely to see if they’re engaged and on track.
  • Group work and discussions play a major role in my instructional style. Students who learn to work cooperatively at a young age are better equipped to succeed in school, in their future careers, and in their communities.

Students and Learning Styles

Why is it important to recognize all learning styles? How do you accommodate different learning styles in your classroom? What are your beliefs on diversity, equity, and inclusion? How do you ensure every student in your classroom receives the same opportunities to learn? How do you expect students to behave, and how do you measure success?

Sample teaching philosophy statements about students might sound like this:

  • Every student has their own unique talents, skills, challenges, and background. By getting to know my students as individuals, I can help them find the learning styles that work best for them, now and throughout their education.
  • I find that motivated students learn best. They’re more engaged in the classroom and more diligent when working alone. I work to motivate students by making learning relevant, meaningful, and enjoyable.
  • We must give every student equal opportunities to learn and grow. Not all students have the same support outside the classroom. So as a teacher, I try to help bridge gaps when I see them and give struggling students a chance to succeed academically.
  • I believe every student has their own story and deserves a chance to create and share it. I encourage my students to approach learning as individuals, and I know I’m succeeding when they show a real interest in showing up and learning more every day.
  • In my classroom, students take responsibility for their own success. I help them craft their own learning goals, then encourage them to evaluate their progress honestly and ask for help when they need it.
  • To me, the best classrooms are those that are the most diverse. Students learn to recognize and respect each other’s differences, celebrating what each brings to the community. They also have the opportunity to find common ground, sometimes in ways that surprise them.

How do I write my philosophy of education?

Think back to any essay you’ve ever written and follow a similar format. Write in the present tense; your philosophy isn’t aspirational, it’s something you already live and follow. This is true even if you’re applying for your first teaching job. Your philosophy is informed by your student teaching, internships, and other teaching experiences.

Lead with your core beliefs about teaching and learning. These beliefs should be reflected throughout the rest of your teaching philosophy statement.

Then, explain your teaching style and practices, being sure to include concrete examples of how you put those practices into action. Transition into your beliefs about students and learning styles, with more examples. Explain why you believe in these teaching and learning styles, and how you’ve seen them work in your experiences.

A long-form philosophy of education statement usually takes a few paragraphs (not generally more than a page or two). From that long-form philosophy, highlight a few key statements and phrases and use them to sum up your teaching philosophy in a couple of well-crafted sentences for your short-form teaching philosophy.

Still feeling overwhelmed? Try answering these three key questions:

  • Why do you teach?
  • What are your favorite, tried-and-true methods for teaching and learning?
  • How do you help students of all abilities and backgrounds learn?

If you can answer those three questions, you can write your teaching philosophy!

Short Philosophy of Education Examples

We asked real educators in the We Are Teachers HELPLINE group on Facebook to share their teaching philosophy examples in a few sentences . Here’s what they had to say:

I am always trying to turn my students into self-sufficient learners who use their resources to figure it out instead of resorting to just asking someone for the answers. —Amy J.

I am always trying to turn my students into self-sufficient learners who use their resources to figure it out instead of resorting to just asking someone for the answers. —Amy J.

My philosophy is that all students can learn. Good educators meet all students’ differentiated learning needs to help all students meet their maximum learning potential. —Lisa B.

I believe that all students are unique and need a teacher that caters to their individual needs in a safe and stimulating environment. I want to create a classroom where students can flourish and explore to reach their full potential. My goal is also to create a warm, loving environment, so students feel safe to take risks and express themselves. —Valerie T.

In my classroom, I like to focus on the student-teacher relationships/one-on-one interactions. Flexibility is a must, and I’ve learned that you do the best you can with the students you have for however long you have them in your class. —Elizabeth Y

I want to prepare my students to be able to get along without me and take ownership of their learning. I have implemented a growth mindset. —Kirk H.

My teaching philosophy is centered around seeing the whole student and allowing the student to use their whole self to direct their own learning. As a secondary teacher, I also believe strongly in exposing all students to the same core content of my subject so that they have equal opportunities for careers and other experiences dependent upon that content in the future. —Jacky B.

My teaching philosophy is centered around seeing the whole student and allowing the student to use their whole self to direct their own learning. As a secondary teacher, I also believe strongly in exposing all students to the same core content of my subject so that they have equal opportunities for careers and other experiences dependent upon that content in the future. —Jacky B.

All children learn best when learning is hands-on. This works for the high students and the low students too, even the ones in between. I teach by creating experiences, not giving information. —Jessica R.

As teachers, it’s our job to foster creativity. In order to do that, it’s important for me to embrace the mistakes of my students, create a learning environment that allows them to feel comfortable enough to take chances, and try new methods. —Chelsie L.

I believe that every child can learn and deserves the best, well-trained teacher possible who has high expectations for them. I differentiate all my lessons and include all learning modalities. —Amy S.

All students can learn and want to learn. It is my job to meet them where they are and move them forward. —Holli A.

I believe learning comes from making sense of chaos. My job is to design work that will allow students to process, explore, and discuss concepts to own the learning. I need to be part of the process to guide and challenge perceptions. —Shelly G.

I believe learning comes from making sense of chaos. My job is to design work that will allow students to process, explore, and discuss concepts to own the learning. I need to be part of the process to guide and challenge perceptions. —Shelly G.

I want my students to know that they are valued members of our classroom community, and I want to teach each of them what they need to continue to grow in my classroom. —Doreen G.

Teach to every child’s passion and encourage a joy for and love of education and school. —Iris B.

I believe in creating a classroom culture of learning through mistakes and overcoming obstacles through teamwork. —Jenn B.

It’s our job to introduce our kids to many, many different things and help them find what they excel in and what they don’t. Then nurture their excellence and help them figure out how to compensate for their problem areas. That way, they will become happy, successful adults. —Haley T.

Longer Philosophy of Education Examples

Looking for longer teaching philosophy examples? Check out these selections from experienced teachers of all ages and grades.

  • Learning To Wear the Big Shoes: One Step at a Time
  • Nellie Edge: My Kindergarten Teaching Philosophy
  • Faculty Focus: My Philosophy of Teaching
  • Robinson Elementary School: My Teaching Philosophy
  • David Orace Kelly: Philosophy of Education
  • Explorations in Higher Education: My Teaching Philosophy Statement
  • University of Washington Medical School Faculty Teaching Philosophy Statements

Do you have any philosophy of education examples? Share them in the We Are Teachers HELPLINE Group on Facebook!

Want more articles and tips like this be sure to subscribe to our newsletters to find out when they’re posted..

Many educators are being asked to define their teaching philosophy. Find real philosophy of education examples and tips for building yours.

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Master of Science

Educational Leadership Master's

Make an impact on the future of education by becoming a school principal.

Are you an experienced, licensed teacher eager to take on new challenges? Perhaps it’s time you prepared to lead an institution of your own. Becoming a principal or educational administrator with this online educational license program will prepare you to change the future of education and impact students, teachers, and communities alike.

This online master's degree program is designed to enhance your expertise in educational governance, finance, law, leadership, and strategic planning. The program will give you the skills you need to manage a modern educational institution, including overseeing teachers, developing and implementing curriculum standards, and improving how your staff helps students achieve established academic goals. You'll also learn about school administration, how to manage educational budgets, ensure proper security, and better interact with parents, the public, and district administrators.

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The Master's in Educational Leadership degree program (alternatively "Master's in Educational Administration") is aligned with National Educational Leadership Preparation (NELP) standards and Professional Standards for Educational Leaders (PSEL). Although it adheres to national educational standards, due to state-specific programming and licensure requirements,  this program is not accepted in Alabama, Connecticut, Georgia, Hawaii, Iowa, Kansas, and Minnesota.

60% of graduates finish within 

WGU lets you move more quickly through material you already know and advance as soon as you're ready. The result: You may finish faster.

*WGU Internal Data

Tuition per six-month term is

Tuition charged per term—rather than per credit—helps you control the ultimate cost of earning your degree online. Finish faster, pay less! 

Average salary increase

 Graduates of this program report an average salary increase of $12,314 after completing their WGU degree.

Ready to Start Your WGU Journey?

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Start Dates the 1st of Every Month

COURSES & COMPETENCIES

Educational leadership courses, curriculum that ensures you’ve mastered the skills you’ll need as a leader among students and staff..

Program consists of 13 courses

At WGU, we design our curriculum to be timely, relevant, and practical—all to help you show that you know your stuff.

This online Master of Education program provides the essential skills, knowledge, and field experience you need to successfully manage a modern educational institution, be it public or private. It will prepare you to be certified as a principal or educational administrator.

The WGU M.S. Educational Leadership program was designed (and is regularly updated) with input from the experts on our Education Program Council . These respected authorities know exactly what it takes for a graduate to lead a staff of educators, administrators, and support personnel in a modern educational setting.

This program comprises the following courses. You will typically complete them one at a time as you make your way through your program, working with your Program Mentor each term to build your personalized Degree Plan. You’ll work through each course as quickly as you can study and learn the material. As soon as you’re ready, you’ll pass the assessment, complete the course, and move on. This means that you can finish as many courses as you're able in a term at no additional cost.

Leadership of Curriculum Design and Instruction prepares candidates to evaluate and implement curricular programs and instructional methods observed at the school level. Candidates focus on the knowledge and skills needed to develop, align, and implement cohesive systems of curriculum, instruction, and assessment. Importance is placed on responding to student needs, embodying high expectations for student learning, aligning with academic and non-academic standards within and across grade levels, and promoting students' academic and non-academic success and social and emotional well-being. This course also explores the use of data from formative and summative assessments to make recommendations to improve instruction and promote student learning and well-being. Candidates are prepared to build a professional culture of trust and collaboration to ensure they are able to work with school personnel in creating curricular programs and instructional methods that are engaging, challenging, and relevant to student needs, experiences, and interests. This course is designed to be taken after successful completion of D632: Cultural Competency and Social-Emotional Learning.

Leadership Foundations and Ethics presents candidates with a variety of leadership theories and strategies used by PK–12 educational leaders to develop, sustain, and evaluate a coherent system of academic and social supports that meet the full range of students' needs. Foundational knowledge addresses the importance of developing mission, vision, and core values in collaboration with faculty, staff, and the school community to advocate for student success. The course also covers communication strategies, interpersonal skills, and using data to build community, influence school culture, and manage change for continuous improvement. In addition, candidates are introduced to the significance of following professional ethical codes and the importance of modeling and advocating ethical behavior with all stakeholders.

School Law prepares candidates to understand the appropriate application of laws, rights, policies, and regulations to promote student success. The course emphasizes the importance of understanding the history of and relationship between federal and state laws, legal decisions, local education policies, and practices at the local school level to ensure compliance. The course further focuses on understanding the legal rights and protections provided for all students, including those with disabilities, as well as school staff. It also addresses curriculum and instruction that help stakeholders understand the possible effects these rights may have on administrative decisions. Candidates are also provided the opportunity to demonstrate their capability to evaluate legal consequences of administrative decisions.

People and Talent in Educational Leadership prepares candidates to understand and implement practices used to recruit, hire, and prepare school personnel to provide students with an optimal learning environment. Various school professional development practices, such as professional learning communities, collaborative learning communities, beginning teacher induction, and mentor programs, will be covered. Additionally the course covers methods to evaluate school personnel appropriately based on data-driven decisions; providing realistic and actionable feedback to school personnel to continuously drive improvement; engaging all school personnel in the use and evaluation of competing school-wide initiatives; creating and sustaining a professional culture of engagement and commitment by developing workplace conditions that promote employee development, well-being, and professional growth; and continuously supporting school personnel to improve their instructional practices through ongoing professional development. The candidate will also reflect on leadership standards in order to develop a personal professional growth plan. A prerequisite for this course is D017: School Law.

School Financial Leadership focuses on financial policies, practices, and issues connected to PK–12 school operations. The course describes various sources of school funding, the impact these sources can have on managing school budgets, and the challenges connected to finances that are often encountered by school leaders to ensure equitable financial support for all students. Candidates learn how to analyze different types of school budgets and understand the principal's role in the budgetary process to ensure alignment to the school's mission, vision, and values. This course also identifies and explains various types of commonly used accounting regulations, rules, and professional ethical principles used to create, maintain, and evaluate school budgets to ensure the equitable and ethical use of financial resources. This course is designed to be taken after successful completion of D017: School Law.

Practicum in Educational Leadership - Focus on Professional Practices provides candidates with an authentic, real-world work experience as an educational leader in a K–12 school environment. This is the first of a two-part experience designed to take place under the leadership and supervision of a practicing school principal or assistant principal at an approved practicum school site (K–12). This course includes an emphasis on the application of knowledge and skills to areas directly or indirectly affecting students. Collaboration within the school and local community is a focal point for this course. The course also includes the completion of assigned administrative duties in a K–12 setting, as defined by the candidate's state of residence, under the supervision of the cooperating administrator of the candidate's approved practicum site. Prior to enrolling in this practicum course, the candidate must complete a minimum of 18 CUs.

Systems management and school operations instruct candidates on the operational aspects of school leadership that are essential to developing, monitoring, and evaluating school management, school systems, and services that address and support the needs of students and school personnel. Topics presented in this course include systems thinking; development, implementation, and evaluation of data-based strategic planning; and school improvement processes. Candidates will evaluate the use of appropriate operational technology and the development of communications systems that provide actionable information to internal and external stakeholders for use in classroom and school improvement and community engagement. Each of these topics emphasizes the importance of efficiently and effectively managing school resources to build, maintain, and evaluate a cohesive system of academic and organizational supports, services, extracurricular activities, and accommodations to meet the full range of needs for each student. Prerequisites for this course: Leadership Foundations and Ethics and School Law.

Practicum in Educational Leadership - Focus on Instruction and Operations provides candidates with an authentic, real-world work experience as an educational leader in a K–12 school environment. This is the second of a two-part experience designed to take place under the leadership and supervision of a practicing school principal or assistant principal at an approved practicum school site (K–12). This course includes an emphasis on the application of knowledge and skills to areas affecting school operations and school personnel. The course also includes the completion of assigned administrative duties in a K–12 setting, as defined by the candidate's state of residence, under the supervision of the cooperating administrator of the candidate's approved practicum site. Prior to enrolling in this practicum course, the candidate must complete a minimum of 18 CUs.

Educational Leadership Capstone serves as the culminating experience of this degree program, uniting content area knowledge with the execution of a problem-based learning project. Under the guidance of program faculty, candidates will apply their data literacy and research skills authentically and to topics appropriate to the candidate's degree program and future career goals. Projects will include action research or program evaluation and the qualitative or quantitative research methods necessitated by the project's purpose. Prerequisites include Data Literacy and Educational Inquiry, as well as all content area courses and field experiences prescribed in one's area of study. This course is designed to be taken after successful completion of all courses with the exception of Educational Inquiry, which may be taken concurrently.

Leading Inclusive Schools covers a variety of topics that directly affect students who have been assessed and determined to need additional support or services to ensure their academic success and well-being. The course prepares candidates to understand and comply with applicable laws, rights, policies, and regulations as appropriate to address matters of equity, fairness, and student marginalization based on culture and language, disability, or giftedness. These include types of special education classifications and their significance, working with English learners (ELs), working with gifted and talented students, and using Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) frameworks to ensure optimum learning environments for diverse learners. This course will guide candidates in building a strong repertoire of skills and knowledge related to exceptional students. It will help them ensure that each student has equitable access to effective teachers; learning opportunities; academic, social, and behavioral support; and other resources necessary for success. This course is designed to be taken after successful completion of the School Law course.

Cultural Competency and Social-Emotional Learning focuses on empowering educational leaders with the knowledge and skills necessary to foster cultural competency, deepen their understanding of diverse learner populations, and apply culturally responsive pedagogy. This course places a strong emphasis on promoting social justice, equity, and inclusivity within educational contexts. Students in this course will engage in immersive learning experiences aimed at equipping them with the capacity to lead social-emotional learning initiatives that cater to the social and emotional needs of all learners. The course also empowers students with advocacy strategies to influence positive change in local and global educational environments, ensuring that educational leaders are well prepared to navigate the challenges and opportunities of today's diverse educational landscape. This course is designed to be taken after successful completion of D019: Data Literacy and Evidence-Based Practices.

Data Literacy and Evidence-Based Practices focuses on the development of data literacy skills educators need to improve the learning and development opportunities of K–12 students. Candidates will practice identifying educational problems and data types, generating data, analyzing data, making inferences and drawing conclusions, and creating action plans within their educational settings. Candidates will also learn best practices for data literacy, including continuous improvement planning, approaches to professional learning communities, and instructional decision-making processes. This course has no prerequisites.

Educational Inquiry focuses on practical problem solving. This course teaches candidates to use scholarly literature to inform their own practice. It also teaches candidates to engage in their own action research processes, which empowers educators to recognize opportunities for improvement and to systematically implement and evaluate changes. This course prepares candidates to conduct research for the capstone. Prerequisites for this course: Data Literacy and Evidence-Based Practices.

Capstone Project

Special requirements for this program

WGU's online master's degree program in educational leadership requires the successful completion of a capstone project. You'll take what you've learned during your studies and apply it to a real-world situation, proposing a solution to an actual issue you're likely to face in a professional academic environment. 

Skills For Your Résumé

As part of this program, you will develop a range of valuable skills that employers are looking for. 

  • Presentations: Created tailored presentations that effectively address the unique needs and interests of specific audiences.
  • Budgeting: Skillfully evaluated funding requests for various activities, ensuring they align with pre-authorized budget expenditures, promoting financial responsibility.
  • Leadership: Established open lines of communication between leaders and team members, fostering a collaborative and productive work environment.
  • Educational Leadership: Collaborated with stakeholders to identify and establish educational goals for school improvement plans.
  • Ethical Standards And Conduct: Demonstrated the consistent use of responsible practices and principles, reflecting a commitment to ethical and professional conduct.
  • Operations: Successfully identified key personnel and processes within organizations, leading to streamlined operations and efficient decision-making processes.

“After years of putting off getting my master's degree, I finally decided that it was time. While working a full-time teaching job and having a husband and two toddlers at home, WGU's program allowed me the flexibility of working at my own pace. I was able to earn my Educational Leadership degree in an accelerated time frame with the support of my course instructors and mentor. WGU allowed me to achieve my goals, and I love them so much that I registered for a second master's!”

—Sylvia M.S. Educational Leadership

WGU vs. Traditional Universities Compare the Difference

Traditional Universities

TUITION STRUCTURE

Per credit hour

Flat rate per 6-month term

Schedule and wait days or even weeks to meet with one of many counselors

Simply email or call to connect with your designated Program Mentor who supports you from day one

Scheduled time

Whenever you feel ready

Professor led lectures at a certain time and place

Courses available anytime, from anywhere

TIME TO FINISH

Approximately 2 years, minimal acceleration options

As quickly as you can master the material, can finish programs in under 2 years

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You Aren't On Your Own

WGU has Program Mentors who work with you from the day you start, all the way through graduation. They help you chart your courses, answer your questions, and ensure you can go through your program. You're not alone when you choose an online degree at WGU.

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Flexibility You Need

Students choose WGU for their online degree program because of its flexibility. Whether you already have a full-time job, have responsibilities as a parent, or just have a busy schedule, WGU can work for you.

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Strong Alumni Network

When you enroll in an online master's degree program at WGU, you join an impressive network of teachers. Over 13,000 students graduated from the Teachers College in 2021 alone, taking their skills and impacting the educational system all around the United States.

Accredited, Respected, Recognized™

One important measure of a degree’s value is the reputation of the university where it was earned. When employers, industry leaders, and academic experts hold your alma mater in high esteem, you reap the benefits of that respect. WGU is a pioneer in reinventing higher education for the 21st century, and our quality has been recognized.

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COST & TIME

When We Say Affordable We Mean It

By charging per six-month term rather than per credit—and empowering students to accelerate through material they know well or learn quickly—WGU helps students control the ultimate cost of their degrees. The faster you complete your program, the less you pay for your degree.

A Master's Degree Is Within Reach

There is help available to make paying for school possible for you:

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The average student loan debt of WGU graduates in 2022 (among those who borrowed) was less than half* the national average.

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Most WGU students qualify for financial aid, and WGU is approved for federal financial aid and U.S. veterans benefits. 

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Many scholarship opportunities are available. Find out what you might be eligible for.  

* WGU undergraduate students have approximately half the debt at graduation compared to the national average, according to the Institute for College Access and Success (2022).

FLEXIBLE SCHEDULE

A Different Way to Learn: Degree Programs Designed to Fit Your Life—and All the Demands on Your Time

Professional responsibilities. Family obligations. Personal commitments. At WGU, we understand schedules are tight and often unpredictable for adult students. That’s why we offer a flexible, personalized approach to how education should be. No rigid class schedules. Just a solid, career-focused principal preparation program that meshes with your current lifestyle. You'll be challenged. You'll work hard. But if you commit yourself and put in the hours needed, WGU makes it possible for you to earn a highly respected degree as a busy working adult.

"My experience at WGU was excellent. My mentors and professors where there when I needed them. There ability to keep me on track and to answer questions in a timely matter allowed me to get my master's faster than I thought possible.”

—Jerry Nielson M.S. Educational Leadership

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CAREER OUTLOOK

Pave the Way to the Next Step in Your Career as an Educational Administrator

If you're a licensed classroom teacher with at least three years of experience under your belt, and you have a passion for positive influence in an academic setting, you are ready to advance in your career by becoming an instruction-based principal, vice principal, assistant principal or school administrator. As an educational leader, you'll have an opportunity to shape the school that you run by creating an inspiring and safe environment for educators and the students they teach.

With the deep, comprehensive education you'll receive at WGU, you will be ready to be certified and become a school principal. This position allows you to impact the overall learning environment of an institution and lead students toward a better academic future. Consider this program an investment in yourself, in your professional growth, and in the future of your students.

Return on Your Investment

On average, wgu graduates see an increase in income post-graduation.

Average income increase from all degrees in annual salary vs. pre-enrollment salary. Source:  2023 Harris Poll Survey  of 1,655 WGU graduates.

Survey was sent to a representative sample of WGU graduates from all colleges. Respondents received at least one WGU degree since 2017.

Employment of elementary, middle, and high school principals is projected to grow 5% from 2021 to 2031.

—U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

WGU Has Alumni Teaching Across the Country

Graduates of WGU's online Teachers College have found meaningful, rewarding teaching careers in classrooms at:

  • Inclusionary K–12 classrooms
  • Middle/junior high schools
  • High schools
  • Private and charter schools

Impressive Class of Graduates

Graduates of the WGU Teachers College include recipients of many professional honors, including:

  • Gates Millennium Scholars
  • Intel Grant for Mathematics and Technology
  • Claes Nobel Educator of Distinction Award
  • Milken Family Foundation National Educator Award
  • Association of Public Charter Schools Educator of the Year Award

Master of Education Admission Requirements

Prior to entry into the M.S. Educational Leadership degree program, you will be required to complete a candidate interview and provide the following:

  • Evidence of an undergraduate bachelor's degree from an accredited institution
  • Proof of a state issued, valid, and unexpired standard professional license
  • A resume showing three years of licensed professional experience in a P-12 setting (excluding probationary, temporary, and substitute teaching experience)
  • A confidential recommendation
  • Recent annual summative performance evaluation

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Get Your Enrollment Checklist

Download your step-by-step guide to enrollment.

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Get Your Questions Answered

Talk to an WGU Enrollment Counselor.

Transfer Credits

More About the M.S. in Educational Leadership

  • More About This Degree

What is a master's in educational leadership?

A master's degree in educational leadership is a graduate program that prepares you for certification as a school principal or administrator. It gives you important skills and credentials to understand how to run the school in an efficient way. 

How long does it take to earn a master's in educational leadership?

Typical master's of educational leadership programs take 2 years to complete, but at some schools you may be able to accelerate and finish faster. For example, most WGU educational leadership students finish in just 18 months or less.

What can you do with an educational leadership degree?

An educational leadership degree can prepare you to become a vice principal, assistant principal, principal, or other administrator in education.

What can I expect from an online master's in educational leadership program?

What are the types of educational leadership.

Most educational leaders fall into a few categories of leadership including: servant leaders, transactional leaders, emotional leaders, and transformational leaders.

What are the functions of educational leadership?

Educational leadership is implemented to ensure that the entire school and system runs smoothly. Educational leaders are in place to create effective and robust places of teaching and learning where students feel safe and welcome. They ensure that the business end of a school runs well, while also ensuring that students and teachers feel confident as individuals.

What is educational leadership theory?

Educational leadership theory evaluates the different approaches to running schools and classrooms in ways that are effective for students and teachers alike.

What is meant by educational leadership?

Educational leadership is a joint effort utilizing the talents and expertise of educators, students, policy makers and the public at large to enhance public K-12 educational quality and systems. These enhancements are typically executed through improvements to training regiments, pedagogy, epistemology, and developmental psychology. A degree in educational leadership will focus on helping current teachers advance their knowledge and skills, giving them greater opportunities to influence policy and move into education careers that impact the future of learning.

What are the key qualities of educational leadership?

There are many qualities that an educational leader should exhibit. Qualities such as positivity, honesty, deep reflection, authenticity, integrity, passion, inclusivity, and a strong focus on community building and collaboration on educational issues are key to being a transformational educational leader. In an educational leadership degree program, you will focus on developing and honing these skills.

Should I get an online masters degree, or a graduate certificate?

Understanding your post bachelor educational possibilities is crucial if you have a specific goal in mind. For some, a post-graduate certificate can fulfill the requirements that are needed to teach a specific course or courses, by fulfilling a state or national licensing requirement, but a certificate is what is considered a non-degree award. As a result, if you have career goals that include additional advancements for your career beyond the classroom, you may need to consider if a certificate will provide you the ability to pursue those goals. 

A master’s degree in education can open the doors to school leadership roles as a principal or assistant principal, and in some states is even sufficient to be considered for roles as part of the superintendency. This is not typically true of a graduate certificate. Check your state guidelines to see your specific state’s educational requirements for leadership roles. 

Does WGU offer financial aid?

WGU is approved to offer  federal student aid . You will need to apply using the FAFSA, which is used to determine your eligibility for aid. WGU’s FAFSA school code is 033394.

Are there scholarships available?

Scholarships are available for new WGU students and returning graduates.  This video shows more  about scholarship opportunities and how they can help you pay for school. Get information on:

  • How to apply
  • Eligibility requirements
  • Examples of scholarships
  • What happens after you apply
  • Other financial aid options

How does tuition work at WGU?

WGU's tuition is a flat rate that is charged every six months. You can take as many courses as you are able in that six-month term—with no extra cost. You simply pay for the term and do as much work as you can or want to during that time. This means that finishing faster helps you save money—a major benefit you won't find at most other schools. 

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Leadership in Education: Building Collaborative Teams & Driving Innovation

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Join us for an enlightening webinar on transformational leadership in education led by Superintendent of Oakwood Schools Dr. Neil Gupta.

Discover how transformational leadership drives broader, cultural change within the educational framework and aligns with the overarching goals of your institution.

In this webinar, participants will gain valuable insights into the fundamental principles of transformational leadership and its application in the educational sector.

Key takeaways include:

  • Understanding Transformational Leadership: Learn about the core elements that define transformational leadership and how it differs from other leadership styles.
  • Building Collaborative Teams: Learn about the importance of collaboration and how to build cohesive teams that work towards common goals.
  • Implementing Change: Discover strategies for fostering a culture of innovation and continuous improvement within your institution. 
  • Accessing the Right Tools: Learn how technology within a district can help foster teamwork among staff, driving student success.

essay on educational leadership

For all webinars broadcast by Education Week after August 1, 2019, Certificates of Completion are available to all registered live attendees who attend 53 minutes or more of this webinar. Educators can download a PDF certificate verifying 1 hour of Professional Development credit. As with all professional development hours delivered, Education Week recommends each educator verify ahead of the webinar broadcast that the content will qualify for professional development in your school, district, county, or state with your supervisor, human resources professional, and/or principal or superintendent’s office.

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Freshman requirements

  • Subject requirement (A-G)
  • GPA requirement
  • Admission by exception
  • English language proficiency
  • UC graduation requirements

Additional information for

  • California residents
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Transfer requirements

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Applying as a freshman

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Personal insight questions

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  • You will have 8 questions to choose from. You must respond to only 4 of the 8 questions.
  • Each response is limited to a maximum of 350 words.
  • Which questions you choose to answer is entirely up to you. However, you should select questions that are most relevant to your experience and that best reflect your individual circumstances.

Keep in mind

  • All questions are equal. All are given equal consideration in the application review process, which means there is no advantage or disadvantage to choosing certain questions over others.
  • There is no right or wrong way to answer these questions. It’s about getting to know your personality, background, interests and achievements in your own unique voice.  
  • Use the additional comments field if there are issues you'd like to address that you didn't have the opportunity to discuss elsewhere on the application. This shouldn't be an essay, but rather a place to note unusual circumstances or anything that might be unclear in other parts of the application. You may use the additional comments field to note extraordinary circumstances related to COVID-19, if necessary. 

Questions & guidance

Remember, the personal insight questions are just that—personal. Which means you should use our guidance for each question just as a suggestion in case you need help. The important thing is expressing who you are, what matters to you and what you want to share with UC. 

1. Describe an example of your leadership experience in which you have positively influenced others, helped resolve disputes or contributed to group efforts over time. Things to consider: A leadership role can mean more than just a title. It can mean being a mentor to others, acting as the person in charge of a specific task, or taking the lead role in organizing an event or project. Think about what you accomplished and what you learned from the experience. What were your responsibilities?

Did you lead a team? How did your experience change your perspective on leading others? Did you help to resolve an important dispute at your school, church, in your community or an organization? And your leadership role doesn't necessarily have to be limited to school activities. For example, do you help out or take care of your family? 2. Every person has a creative side, and it can be expressed in many ways: problem solving, original and innovative thinking, and artistically, to name a few. Describe how you express your creative side. Things to consider: What does creativity mean to you? Do you have a creative skill that is important to you? What have you been able to do with that skill? If you used creativity to solve a problem, what was your solution? What are the steps you took to solve the problem?

How does your creativity influence your decisions inside or outside the classroom? Does your creativity relate to your major or a future career? 3. What would you say is your greatest talent or skill? How have you developed and demonstrated that talent over time? Things to consider: If there is a talent or skill that you're proud of, this is the time to share it.You don't necessarily have to be recognized or have received awards for your talent (although if you did and you want to talk about it, feel free to do so). Why is this talent or skill meaningful to you?

Does the talent come naturally or have you worked hard to develop this skill or talent? Does your talent or skill allow you opportunities in or outside the classroom? If so, what are they and how do they fit into your schedule? 4. Describe how you have taken advantage of a significant educational opportunity or worked to overcome an educational barrier you have faced. Things to consider: An educational opportunity can be anything that has added value to your educational experience and better prepared you for college. For example, participation in an honors or academic enrichment program, or enrollment in an academy that's geared toward an occupation or a major, or taking advanced courses that interest you; just to name a few.

If you choose to write about educational barriers you've faced, how did you overcome or strive to overcome them? What personal characteristics or skills did you call on to overcome this challenge? How did overcoming this barrier help shape who you are today? 5. Describe the most significant challenge you have faced and the steps you have taken to overcome this challenge. How has this challenge affected your academic achievement? Things to consider: A challenge could be personal, or something you have faced in your community or school. Why was the challenge significant to you? This is a good opportunity to talk about any obstacles you've faced and what you've learned from the experience. Did you have support from someone else or did you handle it alone?

If you're currently working your way through a challenge, what are you doing now, and does that affect different aspects of your life? For example, ask yourself, How has my life changed at home, at my school, with my friends or with my family? 6. Think about an academic subject that inspires you. Describe how you have furthered this interest inside and/or outside of the classroom. Things to consider:  Many students have a passion for one specific academic subject area, something that they just can't get enough of. If that applies to you, what have you done to further that interest? Discuss how your interest in the subject developed and describe any experience you have had inside and outside the classroom such as volunteer work, internships, employment, summer programs, participation in student organizations and/or clubs and what you have gained from your involvement.

Has your interest in the subject influenced you in choosing a major and/or future career? Have you been able to pursue coursework at a higher level in this subject (honors, AP, IB, college or university work)? Are you inspired to pursue this subject further at UC, and how might you do that?

7. What have you done to make your school or your community a better place? Things to consider: Think of community as a term that can encompass a group, team or a place like your high school, hometown or home. You can define community as you see fit, just make sure you talk about your role in that community. Was there a problem that you wanted to fix in your community?

Why were you inspired to act? What did you learn from your effort? How did your actions benefit others, the wider community or both? Did you work alone or with others to initiate change in your community? 8. Beyond what has already been shared in your application, what do you believe makes you a strong candidate for admissions to the University of California? Things to consider:  If there's anything you want us to know about you but didn't find a question or place in the application to tell us, now's your chance. What have you not shared with us that will highlight a skill, talent, challenge or opportunity that you think will help us know you better?

From your point of view, what do you feel makes you an excellent choice for UC? Don't be afraid to brag a little.

Writing tips

Start early..

Give yourself plenty of time for preparation, careful composition and revisions.

Write persuasively.

Making a list of accomplishments, activities, awards or work will lessen the impact of your words. Expand on a topic by using specific, concrete examples to support the points you want to make.

Use “I” statements.

Talk about yourself so that we can get to know your personality, talents, accomplishments and potential for success on a UC campus. Use “I” and “my” statements in your responses.

Proofread and edit.

Although you will not be evaluated on grammar, spelling or sentence structure, you should proofread your work and make sure your writing is clear. Grammatical and spelling errors can be distracting to the reader and get in the way of what you’re trying to communicate.

Solicit feedback.

Your answers should reflect your own ideas and be written by you alone, but others — family, teachers and friends can offer valuable suggestions. Ask advice of whomever you like, but do not plagiarize from sources in print or online and do not use anyone's words, published or unpublished, but your own.

Copy and paste.

Once you are satisfied with your answers, save them in plain text (ASCII) and paste them into the space provided in the application. Proofread once more to make sure no odd characters or line breaks have appeared.

This is one of many pieces of information we consider in reviewing your application. Your responses can only add value to the application. An admission decision will not be based on this section alone.

Need more help?

Download our worksheets:

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Center for Creative Leadership

  • Published April 16, 2024
  • 2 Minute Read

4 Ways That Scaling Leadership Development Powers Engagement, Retention, and ROI

Woman smiling thinking about the benefits of leadership development and how it powers engagement and retention white paper

The Benefits of Leadership Development

Our white paper explores what research suggests are the direct benefits of leadership development (i.e., program-specific outcomes) and the indirect benefits of development, including increased employee engagement and attractiveness to potential employees. It outlines 4 key leadership development benefits that have emerged from both our own and other research, noting that investments in leadership development:

  • Facilitate organizational alignment,
  • Enhance the organization’s change readiness,
  • Promote equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI), and
  • Strengthen leadership pipelines.

Creating Competitive Leadership Advantage

When implemented effectively and comprehensively, leadership development has the potential to grow individuals and transform an entire organization from being one that merely meets its objectives into one that excels.

That’s why we say that one of the key benefits of leadership development is also simply that it creates competitive leadership advantage. And having a competitive leadership advantage not only raises the organization’s level of leadership capacity, developing a healthy leadership pipeline for the future, but also enables organizational agility, which is essential in today’s era of constant disruption.

One of the most critical drivers of organizational success in adapting to change is effective leadership at all levels — not just at the top.

To create the engagement and productivity required for this level of performance, leaders need to inspire others, drive innovation, collaborate across boundaries, and create an environment of psychological safety and inclusion. But these leadership skills don’t simply emerge and spread throughout the organization on their own. It takes focused effort and intentional strategy to optimize the leadership talent organizations need today and in the future.

Building these needed skills, from the top to the bottom of your organization, can feel like an impossible task. How can you possibly get quality development into the hands of all employees to fully leverage the benefits of leadership development?

The answer is by implementing a leadership development initiative that can be scaled . A scalable leadership development program is one that can easily be adapted and executed across an organization, regardless of its size or structure. A scalable development program unlocks leadership development’s benefits and creates significant competitive leadership advantage.

Download our white paper today to learn the many benefits of leadership development and how to scale it to start building a stronger talent pipeline at your organization.

Download White Paper

Download this paper to learn more about what research has identified are the direct and indirect benefits of leadership development, and how scaling development can create significant competitive leadership advantage.

  • PDF & Print-Friendly Version

Based on Research by

Stephen Jeong

Stephen is a former U.S. Naval Nuclear Electrical Technician turned industrial-organizational (I/O) psychologist. He specializes in people and organizational measurement, leading-edge leader analytics, and the design and validation of new assessment products and services aimed at improving organizational performance.

Table of Contents

Don't miss a single insight! Get our latest cutting-edge, research-based leadership content sent directly to your inbox.

Related Topics

What to explore next.

essay on educational leadership

Strengthening these 4 areas of employee engagement — starting with the effectiveness of your frontline managers, your largest population of people leaders — makes a huge difference for retention.

essay on educational leadership

Scaling leadership development is the best way to future-proof your organization, creating new capabilities across a large population of leaders in a short amount of time.

Ever wonder the meaning of leadership? Based on our decades of research, we define leadership as a social process that enables individuals to achieve collective results.

Organizations that prioritize soft skill development create stronger cultures. Learn the specific people skills our research has found are needed at each leader level, and how to develop them.

Our research explored how much organizations invest in leadership development. Learn 5 factors HR executives say are part of a successful and effective leadership development strategy.

Related Solutions

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We’re your trusted partner for leadership development initiatives. Transform your trainings with a leadership license to access our expert content.

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Scale your in-house training with CCL Passport, a leadership subscription and all-access pass to the Center for Creative Leadership's content.

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What are your talent development initiatives doing for your organization? Partner with us for a customized talent development program to fit your context and culture.

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At the Center for Creative Leadership, our drive to create a ripple effect of positive change underpins everything we do. For 50+ years, we've pioneered leadership development solutions for everyone from frontline workers to global CEOs. Consistently ranked among the world's top providers of executive education, our research-based programs and solutions inspire individuals in organizations across the world — including 2/3 of the Fortune 1000 — to ignite remarkable transformations.

Center for Creative Leadership

essay on educational leadership

Education for a Free Society

Liberty depends on citizens who understand the ideas and institutions that have made free, prosperous societies possible.

UT Austin’s School of Civic Leadership is a new school that prepares a rising generation to advance human flourishing in our state and nation.

The School of Civic Leadership is home to a community of scholars and students who draw on ancient questions—What is justice? What is liberty? What is true?—to  prepare for lives of significance and for successful careers. We wrestle with the great  ideas of the Western tradition to prepare ourselves for the opportunities and challenges of our moment. We study the best achievements and greatest difficulties of the American tradition in order to understand what it takes to preserve the blessings of liberty for ourselves and for others.

Students in the SCL encounter the distinct inheritance of Western civilization and the American constitutional tradition as part of a larger quest for wisdom about how to live and how to lead.

Public universities owe to citizens an education that enables them to sustain democracy. The UT Austin motto says that “Education is the guardian genius of democracy.” The School of Civic Leadership provides students with knowledge of America’s political philosophy, economic system, and civic institutions. Building on the University’s tradition of civic education, we prepare students to draw on the wisdom of the past to meet the challenges of the present.

Civic education is a central aspect of liberal education. From the Latin root liber , meaning free, a liberal education is an education in and for freedom. Such a Socratic, liberating education is indispensable for citizens, who are responsible for the future of American life. It rests on open inquiry, reasoned debate, civil discussion, and freedom of thought and speech. The School of Civic Leadership advances this vision by offering a civic education that makes one free to form and exercise reasoned judgment and engage with others to improve our world.

Foster Thoughtful Citizenship

The major in Civics Honors gives students an education that prepares them for life and for responsibility in their communities. Learn to deliberate on questions of policy as well as broader questions that frame our common life, such as what it takes to live well.

2023 American Enterprise Institute (AEI) Executive Council Spring Summit, co-sponsored with the Civitas Institute at the University of Texas at Austin.  Friday, February 17, 2023 Morning sessions and panel discussion.

Ask Great Questions

The minor in Civics gives students of any major resources to live well and lead well. In this interdisciplinary program, students learn to think by wrestling with the great questions of the Western tradition and the American constitutional tradition. 

Explore the Tradition

The minor in PPE introduces students to insights on freedom, prosperity, and society. Explore our course descriptions, and learn about the PPE minor.

IMG_2704

Dan Bonevac

Daniel Bonevac is Professor of Philosophy and Human Dimensions of Organizations in the College of Liberal Arts, where he teaches and does research in logic and ethics, especially organizational ethics.

essay on educational leadership

Scott Carrell

Scott Carrell is Professor of Economics in the College of Liberal Arts.

essay on educational leadership

Sheena Greitens

Sheena Chestnut Greitens is Associate Professor in the LBJ School of Public Affairs.

essay on educational leadership

Patricio Fernandez

Patricio A. Fernandez is Associate Professor of Philosophy in the College of Liberal Arts

essay on educational leadership

Devin Stauffer

Devin Stauffer is Professor of Government. He specializes in classical and early modern political philosophy.

Most Affordable Online Doctorate in Education (EdD) Programs for 2024

Organizations require great leadership to reach their full potential and weather the worst storms. If you are looking to become a more effective and thoughtful manager or team leader, you may be considering a graduate degree program. For people who are further along in their careers and looking for a more flexible option, an online Ed.D. program in organizational leadership may be a good fit. But earning a doctorate degree requires a big investment of both time and money. So Fortune has ranked eight online Doctorate in Education (Ed.D.) programs by affordability. Tuition amounts were compiled using data provided by schools for our ranking of the best online Ed.D. programs in 2022. If schools did not provide the total tuition cost of the program, we multiplied the cost per credit amount by the minimum credit hours required to graduate. Cost per credit amounts were either provided by schools or taken from the program webpage. This ranking was last updated December 2022.

Online Ed.D. from Top-5-Ranked Peabody College

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1. Trevecca Nazarene University

  • ACCEPTANCE RATE
  • CREDITS REQUIRED TO GRADUATE
  • RETENTION RATE

2. Abilene Christian University

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3. Spalding University

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Hawai‘i Pacific University M.Ed. in Educational Leadership

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4. Virginia Commonwealth University

Virginia Commonwealth University

5. University of Dayton

University of Dayton

6. Drexel University

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7. Baylor University

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8. Vanderbilt University

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Maryville University’s Doctor of Education | Online

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  3. Educational Leadership and Management

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  6. 📗 Essay Sample on Educational Leadership

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VIDEO

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  3. Chevening Leadership Essay by Jonathan Ayodele 2023 Scholar

  4. Essay on Leadership in English

  5. Conceptualising the role of educational leader

  6. DO NOT APPLY FOR CHEVENING BEFORE WATCHING: Chevening leadership essay tips and tricks

COMMENTS

  1. What I Believe about Educational Leadership: A Reflective Essay

    This Research Paper by: Janet Young. Entitled: WHAT I BELIEVE ABOUT EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP Education, in my opinion, is one of the most honorable professions a. person can experience. Each teacher or principal involved with educating. children is someone that makes a difference in the lives of children and influences.

  2. Educational Leadership and Management

    Educational Leadership and Management Reflective Essay. Schools and colleges bring teachers, parents, and students together (Fitzgerald, 2009). Each of these groups has its unique goals and objectives. Every school leader should employ the best strategies in order to mentor these stakeholders.

  3. Educational Leadership: Theories and Practices Essay

    The fourth peer-reviewed article was authored by William Place and Jane Clark Lindle (2006) who drew several theories about educational leadership's key role in society and the educational institution. The authors differentiate the norms between scholars and practitioners in educational leadership.

  4. Critical Analysis and Reflection of 3 Major Models of Educational

    a more attractive concept to get them reused. ( Niesche & Gowlett, 2019). Action-centred, Transformational, Instructional and Distributed models of leadership are. widely spread nowadays among ...

  5. Writing an Educational Leadership Philosophy Statement

    Similar in format to a teaching philosophy statement, an educational leadership philosophy statement "clearly communicate[s] what our beliefs are about educational leadership, why we hold these beliefs and how we translate our beliefs into practice" (Berenson and Kenny, 2015).

  6. (PDF) Navigating Educational Leadership: Challenges, Styles, and

    The systematic review delves into the multifaceted landscape of educational leadership and management, highlighting diverse leadership styles, challenges in leadership development, impacts on teaching practices and student outcomes, and gender ... Related Papers. Educational Management Administration and Leadership. 3. Arar, K. (2012). Review ...

  7. Educational Leadership Essay Examples

    Educational Leadership Essays. Analyzing the Scholar-Practitioner-Leader (SPL) Model. The Scholar-Practitioner-Leader (SPL) model is a complex structure that includes scholarship, practice, and Leadership in education. Even as leaders instill themselves within this model, they struggle to find coherence in the fusion of theory and practice, one ...

  8. 10 Traits of Effective Educational Leadership

    Here are ten traits for your consideration: 1. Vision to reframe school improvement. This might be the most important trait of all in educational leadership skills. Without it, other skills and attributes are not possible. School improvement is, to use a termfrom Michael Fullan "isa process, not an event.".

  9. Essay on Education Leadership

    1.1 Education Leadership and Crisis Management. Educational leadership involves a particular form of leadership and process that occurs in groups in a long-term approach to learning and development. The particular goals depend on the context, with the main goal based on learning and thus ensuring academic success through material training and ...

  10. Educational Leadership Essays

    Educational Leadership. An analysis of research on educational leadership acknowledges the importance of the principal in the elementary and secondary school setting. As a leader, the principal's role has developed from one of a managerial position to one of an instructional leader who also manages. Cheney and Davis (2011) note that "The ...

  11. Writing an Effective Leadership Essay: Tips and Examples

    A leadership essay is a college application essay that requires you to share your previous experiences as a leader. We've got examples to help you write one. ... Conclusion - End with a compelling statement about your leadership qualities and how you hope to apply them to your education, career, and the world in general; Advertisement

  12. Educational Leadership Reflective Essay

    Educational Leadership Reflective Essay Joshua S. Grover Spring, 2012 Introduction Responsibility: perhaps no better word describes what a leader faces as he or she manages an organization. As future leaders are cultivated and preened for future positions, it is necessary and vital to instill upon them the importance of such a position.

  13. My Educational Leadership Model Essay

    1806 Words. 8 Pages. 3 Works Cited. Open Document. In developing my own educational leadership model (MELM) I began with establishing what I believe the goal of education should be, since leaders by definition are leading people towards something. The goal of education is to effectively teach students the essential skills and knowledge they ...

  14. Educational leadership

    This page of the essay has 305 words. Download the full version above. Today the world has focused on leadership, because all the problems which emerge in the changing circumstances of the world are due to weak or poor leadership style. So, leadership plays a vital role in the lives of people. Similarly in the educational system, the role of ...

  15. Education Leadership Essay Examples

    Education Leadership Essays. Essay on Education Leadership. 1.0 Introduction This chapter covers the relevant theories covering crisis management and leadership, the theory behind education leadership, the role and significance of education leadership on learning and development, prominent challenges faced by educational leaders when faced with ...

  16. Sample Educational Leadership Essay

    Sample Educational Leadership Essay - Free download as Word Doc (.doc / .docx), PDF File (.pdf), Text File (.txt) or read online for free. This reflective essay discusses the author's experience and understanding of educational leadership and organizational management gained through coursework at Minnesota State University Moorhead. The author realized their potential as an educational leader ...

  17. Doctor of Education Leadership

    The Ed.L.D Program — taught by faculty from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, the Harvard Business School, and the Harvard Kennedy School — will train you for system-level leadership positions in school systems, state and federal departments of education, and national nonprofit organizations. Ed.L.D. is a full-time, three-year ...

  18. Essay on Educational Leadership Roles

    Essay on Educational Leadership Roles. Good Essays. 1064 Words. 5 Pages. Open Document. In Education, teachers recently have had little opportunity to take on leadership roles. These opportunities have been limited to traditional ones such as becoming a principal or ones clearly defined in a specific school setting like a literacy coach.

  19. Educational leadership : a reflective essay

    Educational leadership : a reflective essay. Abstract. The role of a leader is invaluable in setting the tone of the environment and the vision for the school. There are so many parts to leadership, that continual learning will be necessary for any successful school leader. A school leader plays many roles including: a reflective practitioner ...

  20. Statement of Purpose Educational Leadership Sample

    Essays edited by experienced graduate application essay editors are dramatically improved. My purpose for seeking a Doctorate Degree in Educational Leadership is to expand my knowledge of theory and research methods as it pertains to education. I especially want to fine-tune my research skills as I feel that the importance of gaining research ...

  21. 40 Philosophy of Education and Teaching Philosophy Examples

    Play-based learning is a big part of my teaching philosophy. Kids who learn through play have more authentic experiences, exploring and discovering the world naturally in ways that make the process more engaging and likely to make a lasting impact. In my classroom, technology is key.

  22. Masters in Educational Leadership Online Degree Program

    Educational leadership is a joint effort utilizing the talents and expertise of educators, students, policy makers and the public at large to enhance public K-12 educational quality and systems. These enhancements are typically executed through improvements to training regiments, pedagogy, epistemology, and developmental psychology.

  23. Leadership in Education: Building Collaborative Teams & Driving

    Leadership in Education: Building Collaborative Teams & Driving Innovation. Jul 16. Tue., July 16, 2024, 2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. ET. Add to Calendar. Price: Free. Register. Join us for an ...

  24. Personal insight questions

    Remember, the personal insight questions are just that—personal. Which means you should use our guidance for each question just as a suggestion in case you need help. The important thing is expressing who you are, what matters to you and what you want to share with UC. 1. Describe an example of your leadership experience in which you have ...

  25. Leadership Development Benefits: Engagement & Retention

    The Benefits of Leadership Development. Our white paper explores what research suggests are the direct benefits of leadership development (i.e., program-specific outcomes) and the indirect benefits of development, including increased employee engagement and attractiveness to potential employees. It outlines 4 key leadership development benefits that have emerged from both our own and other ...

  26. School of Civic Leadership

    The School of Civic Leadership provides students with knowledge of America's political philosophy, economic system, and civic institutions. Building on the University's tradition of civic education, we prepare students to draw on the wisdom of the past to meet the challenges of the present. Civic education is a central aspect of liberal ...

  27. Most Affordable Online Doctorate in Education (EdD) Programs ...

    Online Ed.D. from Top-5-Ranked Peabody College Earn your doctor of education in leadership and learning in organizations online in as few as 3 years.

  28. My Interest And Choice Of Educational Leadership

    Good Essays. 1857 Words. 8 Pages. Open Document. Introduction. My interest and choice of educational leadership emanates from my desire to play a part in the development of effective policies in the academic sector and help in improving the appropriate strategies to deliver quality education. The need for proper leadership skills in the ...