1.3. HOW DO EXPECTATIONS OF GOOD LEADERSHIP DIFFER BETWEEN CULTURES?

HOW DO EXPECTATIONS OF GOOD LEADERSHIP DIFFER BETWEEN CULTURES?

   What leadership styles do we associate with Western schools in general? What about Eastern schools?

Nowadays, in Western schools we associate good leadership with characteristics such as being pragmatic, people-oriented, inspirational, tolerant or cooperative.

In many Eastern cultures, what they value the most in schools are knowledgeable leaders who are hard-workers, respectful and more distant. In general, I would say that they work less with democratic approaches and they are usually more directive and task-oriented. I read an article about leadership in Asia which illustrates very well this.

    What leadership styles do we expect in international curriculum schools?

What we expect for leaders of international schools to be is in line with the mission and vision of these schools. Leadership styles should be clearly people-oriented, collaborative, transformational and democratic, as we expect leaders to be international-minded, global citizens with respect for diversity, and who are able to adapt to different situations and different people. It is called pedagogical leadership.

    What issues might arise about the differences between your previous answers?

If we associate Western and Eastern cultures with different leadership styles and then I have found some universal traits for leadership styles in international schools: how can these traits be international in different cultures?

I think this is something leaders have to be very careful about. Intercultural understanding is the most important aspect here. Leadership teams need to be aware of the different conception of leadership in different contexts in order to adapt to them and provide all students and educators from any part of the world with opportunities to express what they want and how they prefer to work.