As a supervisor of instruction, I have many responsibilities, both to myself and my students. I have to maintain authority while still making myself emotionally and professionally available to those who study under me. With that in mind, the principles of servant leadership fit in well with my sense of ethics - in particular, the principles of listening, empathy, awareness, persuasion, and commitment to the growth of people. These five in particular form an interrelated process of interpersonal communication that allow me to successfully solve problems and reach amicable solutions to them for myself and my students.
On the whole, leaders are usually praised or celebrated for their ability to communicate and make decisions. However, in order to provide proper servant leadership, listening must be developed as an essential skill, leaders being deeply committed to the practice. When one listens, you must listen to both what is being said and not said - picking up on body language, facial cues, and your understanding of the student as a person (Gunderson, 2002). Listening also means listening to yourself; following intuition and your inner voice to fully understand what is being communicated by your mind and body, as well as your spirit.
The servant leader is well served to have awareness, both of oneself and of the people and situations around him. By committing oneself to foster awareness, one can get frightened - the things that they become aware of can be quite unsettling and inspire uncertainty. Greenleaf once said "Awareness is not a giver of solace - it's just the opposite. It disturbed. They are not seekers of solace. They have their own inner security" (Greenleaf, 2002).
Servant leaders must have the ability to put themselves in the other person's shoes, and relate to what they are going through. When communicating with someone who has a problem, they have to be aware that you understand, accept and embrace them. This can be difficult when you disagree with the things they have done, or the attitudes they have, but a strong sense of empathy can help to overcome that. Someone's good intentions must be assumed unless proven otherwise, and you must always be willing to listen to the other person's story with an open mind. When someone comes to you knowing and appreciating that you will receive their story with no judgments, they are more willing to open up to you and convey their honest problems (Parson & Cohen, 2008).
In order to be a servant-leader, rather than a dictator or an authoritarian, you have to persuade others to follow your plan or instruction instead of laying down the law and dictating to them what they should do. By doing this, resentment is fostered, as they are forced to do what you want, instead of wanting to do the same thing. A good servant leader must convince others to follow the same path instead of forcing them to be compliant. (Spears & Lawrence, 2004).
One of the most important aspects of being a servant leader is to treat your students as though they can be more than they are. While they serve important purposes right now, you have no idea how much more they can contribute in the future. To that end, a good servant leader has to be committed to nurturing the growth of students. Professional development and personal contact is paramount to this personal growth, and will allow students to become more of a part of the decision making process (Jennings & Stahl-Wert, 2004). All five of these principles are the ones I hold most dear as means to communicate with my students and solve their problems.
I have attempted to incorporate principles of listening heavily into my role as a servant leader. Frequently, I make sure to keep my doors open any time a student has a problem, doing whatever I can to make time for them apart from urgent duties. As soon as I am available, I make myself open to the student and listen to their problems, with absolutely no judgments. I make a point among my students to come to me with anything, and to remain honest. Even if some of the things they have to say are critical, I take that as something I need to work on myself, particularly if my students' needs are not being met.
One day, one of my students (who had been struggling for a couple weeks prior to this) asked if he could talk to me. Though I was busy at the time with another student, I made a strict promise to them that I would be available to him as soon as the meeting was over. Fifteen minutes later, I kept my promise and brought him into my office. It turned out that he was having difficulty dealing with the increased homework he had been given, and he did not know what to do. I was very relieved that he came to me and talked about it, as we resolved the issue before it became a problem with grades or his attitude.
As a servant leader, I attempt to make myself as aware of my students and myself as possible. Keeping my eyes and ears open, I take steps to thoroughly inspect and communicate with all my students to get a picture of how I am doing, and how their work is progressing. Without making judgment calls, I objectively assess where the class' progress is, as well as the progress with other projects. If someone is lacking or struggling, I simply make a note of it and find the right moment to take steps to increase productivity and progress. During instances of student lethargy, I find new things to work on and ways to integrate the projects as best as possible, using our resources to the fullest.
My listening and empathy skills are very deeply intertwined; in my mind, one of the most important principles of having empathy is listening to what your students have to say. Even that small gesture goes a long way with them, as it grants them agency and authorship within the classroom. The aforementioned student, who had been struggling with the bigger workload, came to me the following day to discuss some personal issues that were weighing on his mind, and were also affecting his mindset at work. He wanted to work hard, but did not feel comfortable at first talking to me about it. I made sure to put myself in his shoes, and understand that he was feeling that his work was going unappreciated, and the bigger workload made him feel as though he was not up to the task. Fearing that he had advanced as far as he would in this classroom was troubling him, and I understood his position. This is the essence of empathy, and it helped me to dedicate myself to his personal and professional growth.
Not often, but more than I would like, I have confrontational students. These are typically new student who feel they have a better understanding of the subject matter I teach than I do, and often have serious reservations about the homework I give. However, when I need something done, I understand completely the difference in workload and enthusiasm carried by people who believe in what I am doing and those who do not. To that end, I know that persuasion is more important to my role as a servant-leader than barking orders.
The aforementioned student, who was having tremendous difficulty with their new workload, was concerned that they could not go any higher in the classroom or their careers. Understanding this frustration and feeling empathy for them, I allowed them to have some extensions and consult me for help. He was a great student, and I also believed in his mission to grow as a person and a professional. I knew my classroom would benefit from his skills. Luckily, we managed to work together to bring his grades up immensely. I wanted to help him grow to become a better student, and with my help we managed to bring his grades and his work ethic up to appropriate standards.
In conclusion, the principles of listening, empathy, awareness, persuasion, and commitment to the growth of people are the facets I believe are most important to my development as a supervisor. In the classroom, I have to be actively engaged in what my students are going through, and that involves being invested in their success and well-being. In order to find out exactly what they need to change or improve, I have to listen and be aware, and I have to empathize; to make the changes they need, they must be persuaded instead of ordered. All of these things come together to show a true commitment to personal and academic growth, and they are the principles of servant leadership I truly believe are most important to my duties.
References
Greenleaf, R. (2002). Servant Leadership. Paulist Press.
Gunderson, D. (2006). The Leadership Paradox: A Challenge to Servant Leadership in a Power-
Hungry World. YWAM Publishing.
Jennings, K. and Stahl-Wert, J. (2004). The Serving Leader. Barrett-Koehler Publishers.
Parsons, M. & Cohen, D.J. eds. (2008). On Eagles' Wings. An Exploration of Strength in the
Midst of Weakness. Lutterworth Press.
Spears L, & Lawrence, M. ed. (2004). Practicing Servant-Leadership. Jossey-Bass.
