Educational Leadership for the 21st Century

To put it simply, the reason education is having difficulty providing the revolutionary leadership and needed services to the society it is meant to serve is because the meta-narrative that currently defines mass education within today’s socio-political environment is a historically referenced model of organization that requires a leap of faith to depart from. To say that mass education may no longer be fully applicable to the requirements contemporary society is imposing on the system is no longer a stretch of the imagination. Indeed, cursory observation of any educational environment guarantees a look into the past married to some technological modifications to encourage a sense of progressivism. And yet we still find teachers using teaching techniques, technologies, and methodologies familiar even to those who retired 20 years previously. In fact, it is not out of the question that if we were to resurrect a teacher (using advanced bio-technology of course) who retired even 5o years ago and died perhaps 40 years ago, that there would be very little need after the resurrection to explain how things worked in the 21st century in the classroom before that teacher from the grave would be comfortable working in the classroom once more. And yet, so much has happened in our current sociopolitical environment on many different levels since that teacher had gracefully exited the classroom for the last time, and we are left pondering the nature of our profession as to whether it is purely a stabilizing force within the fabric of our society whose sole purpose is to check progress, or whether it’s inability to affect change both internally and externally will eventually spell its demise as a socializing instrument for the contemporary sociopolitical narrative. Often when one is confronted by an institutional environment, one is left with little choice but to accept it as an acknowledged entity worthy of its place in our society. If there is a long history attached to it, then full acceptance of this institutional entity requires very little effort. Indeed, it appears that in today’s postmodernist environment, very little is needed to validate an institution and its mandated value system other than slick marketing and the creation of a perceived need for the product being marketed (see such thinkers as Klein and her book entitled No Logo for more treatment on the subject). In short, the age of postmodernism, which most would agree we are in the midst of living, has allowed for a disconcerting profusion of Orwellian mindsets and Brave New World distractions that have entered the public consciousness with very little critical dialogue concerning these processes. Education as it will be argued is also finding itself playing catch-up to society. It will be argued that in this day in age, finding oneself in this position may not be the best possible position to maintain especially as it pertains to education. Why does education find itself in this position? Is it because the value system attached to public education is in and of itself a historically referenced institution that is having difficulty justifying its raison d’être in the deluge of contemporary sociopolitical change? Is it because public education is a system and with this system comes a predefined basis as determined by the dominant hegemonic culture that created it, and from which all other notions of the system are fundamentally couched, framed, initiated, integrated, or created? It is also important to denote that the very concept of mass education can be termed as a metalinguistic phenomenon. Indeed, one could construct an argument based on the notion that education adheres to many of the same frameworks as language and that it can be argued for this reason that education is a metalanguage. Taken from this premise, one can then construct the notion that in order for education to maintain its relevancy, a new vocabulary accompanied by a new grammar espoused by such thinkers ranging from Levi-Strauss to Barthes needs to be constructed into a workable format that allows for phasal or process oriented development, which is evidenced perhaps by the notions of second order change as espoused by contemporaries such as Waters, Marzano, et al.) It is with this in mind that a more complete exploration of mass education is being undertaken to perhaps help begin the development of a more appropriate academic environment for both today’s and tomorrow’s society. The following pages will attempt to shed some light on the implications and insights that come to light when treating mass education as a metalanguage construct. Some of the constructs to be treated are what may be termed as macro-identifiers – historical, physical, and social manifestations that have been recognized as being part of the educational environment. Discussion will also be undertaken as to how this treatment can perhaps help to provide new insight into future directions for mass education through an exploration of a number of theoretical and practical concepts. A discussion this grandiose in nature requires some background, and so we will start with a brief overview of the nature of mass education through a deconstruction of its universally relevant socio-political framework, followed by a discussion of historical and contemporary influences as an aid to framing this exploration. We will also embark on a discussion of contemporary sociopolitical manifestations that have direct implications on the educational environment. This will then be followed by a discussion of the notion of second order change paradigms in education that could serve to provide a more effective platform to enhance the relevancy of public education and therefore its impact on our socio-political environment. Here then in these pages begins a new way of thinking for mass education; one that will provide the insight, inspiration and creative thinking necessary for academic leadership to bring mass education in line with the demands and opportunities of the 21st century. Discussion Sources for Chapter 1 The following question/discussion prompts are to be found at the end of each chapter and can be utilized to help facilitate either group discussion or individual study depending on the nature of the academic context. Please see these questions/prompts only as guidelines from which to begin your enquiry. Remember, there are no right or wrong answers, only answers that can be supported through a critical thinking process resulting in the development of both theoretical and practical development.