the restoration of human agency in educational administration/ leadership theory, research and

The Restoration of Human AgencyIn Educational Administration/

Leadership Theory, Research andPractice

A long and distinguishedcareer in educational

and public administration

Heard my first Cocking Lecturein 1977 at NCPEA in Eugene,

Oregon

One of the founder’sOf NCPEA

Tennessee StateCommissioner of

Education

Practitioner,teacher, principaland superintendent

Today we would call hima leader for social

justice

An Exploration of The Intellectual, Conceptual,

And Epistemocratic Structure of Educational

Administration/Leadership And itsImpact on Practice and Preparation

in Eight Parts

Where is the field? Two views of conflict


Where we are now as a field



Human agency-line of argument andthe dominant discursive practicewithin the national apparatus




Intertextuality and practice in theUniversity context and consequences

The restoration of human agency- howthe current epistemocratic structureminiaturizes our field-how NCATEworks to freeze field development


Steps to restore human agency to ourfield- cognitive aesthetics



Some observations and recommendations to consider in restoring human agency

Re-positioning the schools aslevers of social change-concluding thoughts

So Let’s Begin theEight Steps of the“Cocking Moment”

Thomas Kuhn (1962)The Structure ofScientific Revolutions

paradigm dominanceis “normal” science

Thomas Kuhn (1962)The Structure ofScientific Revolutions

Imre Lakatos (1999)The Methodology ofScientific ResearchProgrammesparadigm dominance

is “normal” scienceparadigm competitionis “normal” science

“ for an intellectual community to be in a great creative age, it must be making great discoveries and also overturning them, and not just once, but over and again”

Randall Collins (1998) The Sociology ofPhilosophies: A Global Theory ofIntellectual Change, p.32.

Since the Greenfield/Griffithsdebates of the mid-1970s

1.The capacity to significantly expand the content and knowledge of the field to include:(a)The ability to solve problems previously judged to be unsolvable;(b) The ability to predict (not simply describe) significant cause/effect relationships in novel ways previously unknown2. The presence of conflict (not consensus) because of theoretical pluralism (and competition)

scholasticism

1

An emphasis onconsolidationand codificationinstead ofdiscovery…

scholasticism

standardization

2

1

creation of the knowledge base-codification/consolidation/technical cores

-the ruthless reduction of variance to create identical units-(usually to reduce costs)-the creation of “one size fits all” to erase specialization (and thus preparation

costs) [loss of contextual “fit”]-job de-skilling, break roles into smaller

parts to reduce costs of replacement

scholasticism

standardization

stagnation

3

2

1


behavioral standards-job de-skilling

-No search for new theories to explain new/old phenomena- Same epistemocratic assumptions/procedures employed iteratively and repetitively- No questioning of presuppositions of lens employed in conducting research or even awareness that there is a lens (talk of rigor is always within extant lens not outside of it)-Lack of competing research programs (paradigms)-No theoretical/conceptual battles going on

scholasticism

standardization

stagnation

3

2

1


behavioral standards-job de-skilling

no new theories needed,only better status quodelivery of current practice

The individual humanbeing is a purposivemoral agent andcan act withinor without socialstructures “rooted ina value system andwith a sense ofpersonal identity”(Bandura,2001:14)

dominant discursive perspectivesdominant discursive perspectives

science/truth

prediction/control

economic models

behaviorism

distributedleadership

rational choicetheory

traditional courses

art

morality

performance

emotion

Figure 1A Bricolage of Two Sides of Leadership

context

intuition

agentiveacts

-science/truth-prediction/control-economic models-behaviorism-distributed leadership-rational choice theory-traditional ed. adm. Courses-ISLLC/ELCC standards

-art-performance-morality-emotion-context-intuition-agentive acts

No one person thinks alone and language has a life of itsown and speaks through people. “Discursive practice”means specific forms of speech and writing that adhereto certain relational rules that indicate “the roles andqualifications for the utterers of specific discourse, themode of specification of their objects of knowledge,the conceptual framework for the derivation, formalizationof utterances, and the strategic relations of conditioning andeffect operating between discourses and other forms of social practice” Michel Foucault, 1980, p. 244

Michel Foucault (1980)

graduatestudents

(teachers)admission university

NCATETEAC

statedepts. of

educationstand

ards

nationalprofessor

associationsNCPEAUCEAAERA

nationalpractitionerassociations

AASA, NASSP,ASCD, NAESP

regulation licensureschool

practitioners

NPBEA

standards

CCSSO ETS(ISLLA)

exam

U.S. Govt.Recognition

support

support

Figure 2The National Apparatus for Educational Leadership

ELCC/ISSLCstandards

graduatestudents


NCATETEAC

statedepts. of

educationstand

ards

nationalprofessor





practitioners

NPBEA

standards

CCSSO ETS(ISLLA)

exam


support

support


ELCC/ISSLCstandards

Where the “right wing”think tanks attackthe current apparatus :the key topowerwith the NetworkF. Hess, AEI, “A License to Lead?”

graduatestudents


NCATETEAC

statedepts. of

educationstand

ards

nationalprofessor





practitioners

NPBEA

standards

CCSSO ETS(ISLLA)

exam


support

support


ELCC/ISSLCstandards

= power gained

= power lost

1.The denigration and or erasure of the function of university faculty to engage in unconventional (i.e., non-ISLLC related) research;

1.The denigration and or erasure of the function of university faculty to engage in unconventional (i.e., non-ISLLC related) research;2. The enshrinement of current practice as an epitome, denying the need for further theoretical research

3. Enabling the transferof preparation to non-university sites and tovirtual on-line for-profitcompetitors who hireadjuncts and have nointerest in the pursuitof new knowledge.

3. Enabling the transferof preparation to non-university sites and tovirtual on-line for-profitcompetitors who hireadjuncts and have nointerest in the pursuitof new knowledge.4. The loss of autonomyto change its curriculum

3. Enabling the transferof preparation to non-university sites and tovirtual on-line for-profitcompetitors who hireadjuncts and have nointerest in the pursuitof new knowledge.4. The loss of autonomyto change its curriculum5. The vocationalizationof its curriculum

The current apparatus is insensitiveto issues of social justice which falloutside the boundaries of rationalchoice theory, the ISLLC standardsand NCATE accreditation & licensure;It focuses exclusively on the achievementgap without examining how schoolsreproduce inequity and inequalityand thus perpetuate social injustice.No idea of cultural capital and the confirmation of existing social biases.

Figure 3The University’s Doctoral Discursive

Intertextual Practice inEducational Administration

candidates graduatesor

g.

theo

ryschoollaw

finance rese

arch

meth

ods

behaviorism

structuralism

RC

Tem

piric

ism

accreditation

academic degreeslic

ensu

re

ISLLC

Sta

ndard

s

common corecourses

ontological/epistemologicalperspectives

bureaucraticagencyregulations

• the elimination of everything that is “subjective”, i.e., not “rational,” “logical” or “observable”

• the elimination of everything that is “subjective”, i.e., not “rational,” “logical” or “observable” • a premium placed on prediction and control

• the elimination of everything that is “subjective”, i.e., not “rational,” “logical” or “observable” • a premium placed on prediction and control• people are “actors” embedded in structures and are shaped (determined) by such structures

• the elimination of everything that is “subjective”, i.e., not “rational,” “logical” or “observable” • a premium placed on prediction and control• people are “actors” embedded in structures and are shaped (determined) by such structures• individual behaviors are predicted by competitive economic behavior (game theory)


Steps to restore human agency to ourField- cognitive aesthetics

Some observations and recommendations to consider

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the known world (ontology)

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western cultural perspective (ideology)

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western cultural perspective (ideology)line of demarcation

INCLUDED

EXCLUDED

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line of demarcation

Lines 1 & 2:A culture isa subset of theknown world,though those ina specific culturemay not be able todifferentiate betweenone and/or the other-believing them to be the same

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line of demarcation

LEADERSHIPLines 2 & 3:Leadership swimsin specific culturesand common signsand symbols-theconnections betweenleaders and followersis a cultural/socialconstruction

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LEADERSHIP

empiricism (epistemology)

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line of demarcation

LEADERSHIP


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LEADERSHIP


RCT (economics)rational choice theory

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LEADERSHIP



behaviorism

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LEADERSHIP



behaviorism

structuralism

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LEADERSHIP



behaviorism

structuralism

organizational sociology/theory

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line of demarcation

LEADERSHIP



behaviorism

structuralism


Lines 4-7The dominantinterlockingepistemologiesof the currenteducationaladministrationdiscursivepractice

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LEADERSHIP



behaviorism

structuralism


management

Line 8:A subset oflines 1-7, withtight connectionsto lines 4-7,especially businessmodels

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LEADERSHIP



behaviorism

structuralism


management

educational administration

college course work/texts

Lines 9-10educationaladministrationheavily indexedto lines 4-8since the“theory movement”

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LEADERSHIP



behaviorism

structuralism


management


college course work/textsISLLC standards

ISLLA/licensure

Lines 11-12representonly the“core technology”and not the fullrange ofadministrativeduties

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LEADERSHIP



behaviorism

structuralism


management



ISLLA/licensure

The ISLLCELCC

StandardsLeave out

Much

what’s left out

• freeze the development of the field (anti-change)• dumb down the curriculum• de-skill administration and keep us in intellectual silos• provide easy transport to non-university sites where classes can be taught by non-university faculty• de-emphasize research and the need for new knowledge• vocationalize preparation

statistics

psyc

holo

gy

sociology

Leadershipstudies

Pol

itic

al

scie

nce

technology

Management

concepts

economics

law

anthropology Cultural

studies

thea

ter

liter

atur

ebiology

TEACHING/LEARNING

LGBTI

A “knowledge dynamic” instead ofa “knowledge base”

The “field” is not frozen aroundcurrent concepts nor should it be

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behaviorism

structuralism


management



ISLLA/licensure

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LEADERSHIP



behaviorism

structuralism


management



ISLLA/licensure

levels

4-7

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LEADERSHIP



behaviorism

structuralism


management



ISLLA/licensure

• there will be no new research approaches to understanding leadership• no substantive changes to the ISLLC-ELCC standards (just tweaking)

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LEADERSHIP



behaviorism

structuralism


management



ISLLA/licensure

TIGHTEN

LINES 4-7

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LEADERSHIP



behaviorism

structuralism


management



ISLLA/licensure

1.Makes use of a variety of individual points of

of view, perhaps borrowing a specific

individual’s “angle of vision” when appropriate

2. Utilizes a dramaturgical or theatrical technique

of “showing not telling” and momentarily

becoming objective within this perspective

3. Engages in generalizations from narratives

using critical comments4. Assumes a panoramic view of

events, presenting a narrative of “simultaneous

happenings or sometimes disassociated scenes that

a narrator- agent could cover only by the use of

the most improbable devices”5. Discovers, describes “multiple traits

and facets of characters (or cultures) under

study readily and plausibly without having to work

things around to bring any single point of

view within discovery range” R. Brown (1977)

SCIENCE ARTISTIC STRUCTURES

QuantitativeResearch

QualitativeResearch

Literaryforms

Visualforms

PerformingArts

ethnographies

photographybiography

paintingsculpture

zone of transference

Cognitive Aesthetics and The Science/Art Transference In A Study of Educational

Leadership

theatre

Promising Perspectives for New Studies in

Educational Leadership

empiricism empiricism empiricism

context and culture

morality and the moral function

cognitive aesthetics

Some Benchmark Examples of Cognitive AestheticsIn Educational Leadership Research

theatre

Qualitativeresearch SCIENCE ARTISTIC STRUCTURES

leadersh

ip as p

erform

ance

Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot1983-The Good High School:Portraits of Character &Culture

Harry Wolcott1973-The Man inThe Principal’sOffice

qu

antitative research

Kate Rousmaniere2005-Citizen TeacherThe Life and LeadershipOf Margaret Haley

Richard AckermanPat Maslin-Ostrowski2002-The WoundedLeader

Larry Cuban1976-Urban SchoolChiefs Under FireJeffrey Brooks

2006-The Dark SideOf School Reform

Sara Lawrence-LightfootJessica Hoffman Davis1997-The Art and ScienceOf Portraiture

L. Glenn Smith & Joan Smith1994-Lives in Education: ANarrative of People & IdeasJoseph & Jo Blasé

2003-Breaking theSilence

z o n e o f t r a n s f e r e n c ez o n e o f t r a n s f e r e n c e

Fran KochanBarbara JacksonDan Duke- 1999Voices from theFiring Line


Steps to restore human agency to ourField- cognitive aesthetics


SomeRecommendationsToConsider

too narrow, blind to matters of culture and the artistic dimensions of leadership performance (performance is an art not a science), locked into an epistemocratic structure (empiricism, behaviorism, structuralism, RCT) which effaces human agency and does not recognize its own prejudices, believing itself to be epistemologically neutral and inclusive;

too many of our texts (including the ISLLC-ELCC standards) are presented atheoretically and ahistorically leaving our students unable to locate their own practice on any specific conceptual, theoretical or intellectual field(s) and consequently all they are doing is “practicing practice,” where practice is rarely anchored and identified theoretically or historically. They have little idea of what is new and what is old and too many of our texts do not assist them in this regard. It is as if nothing happened before like what is presented to them.

“ Hence we have the pathetic notion that theway to get our bearings is to dig down intothe dirt instead of taking a survey of thelandscape. We are advised to ‘study the facts,’the idea being that statistics will tell us not onlywhat is, but what ought to be” BOYD BODEModern Educational Theories, 1930 (Ohio State)

• took on the standards devised by Franklin Bobbitt, raising questions about consensus as the basis for determining their efficacy (truthfulness) which have also been raised with the ISLLC-ELCC standards;• indicated that fixed standards reinforced the status quo (because it locked inequities into place) or in Bode’s words, “The notion that life consists of specific activities may have some sort of validity in a society that is stratified in fixed classes. It has no place in a democracy.” (p.111)

• avoid NCATE if at all possible (many outstanding programs are NOT NCATE accredited: Harvard, UT Austin, U. of Michigan, Wisconsin-Madison, UVA, UCLA, USC, Berkeley, and more;• If you can’t avoid NCATE, roll as many of the licensure requirements into a few courses; free up your curriculum to become more inclusive in the arts and humanities; think outside the prevailing epistemocratic structure. Avoid having licensure dominate your program/curriculum;

• reduce or eliminate organizational theory as a degree requirement;• combine law, finance and personnel into one course around common themes;• when introducing students to the field, present it historically and from different perspectives: modern, postmodern, etc. help students locate their field of practice historically and epistemocratically so they know what they are actually practicing and explain what ends within what views are being included and excluded

e m p i r i c i s m

e c o n o m i c s

p r a g m a t i s m

RCT

c r i t i c a l t h e o r y

b e h a v i o r i s m

s t r u c t u r a l i s m

r e a l i s m

Specific practicesare supported bypresuppositions

Andperspectiveswhich define

them

s c i e n t i f i c mgt.

e c o n o m i c s

p r a g m a t i s m

RCT




r e a l i s mthe intellectual/conceptual/theoreticalcontours in which aspecific practice islocated

Moving BeyondPracticingPractice

epis

tem

ocra

ctic

isom

orph

ism

e m p i r i c i s m

e c o n o m i c s

p r a g m a t i s m

RCT




r e a l i s m

Why Is It Important toLocate Professional PracticeWithin Contours?

Why it is important to locate a specific practice within theconceptual/intellectual/theoretical contours in which the

practice is situated

A mostly fatal disease of women who in the act ofgiving birth, were infected by their own doctorswho failed to wash their hands before deliveringa baby—the prevailing theory of day [called humoralmedical theory] believed disease to be caused by animbalance in the body’s humors and had no conceptof germs (bacteria)

The theoretical fieldin which medical doctorsengaged in assistingwomen giving birthresulted in their deaths.No amount of codifying“best practices” in deliverywould have preventedthose deaths. Doctors didnot critique their theoreticalassumptions even whentheir patients died and evenwhen some did wash theirhands and their patients survived. They had no wayto explain the results.

e m p i r i c i s m

e c o n o m i c s

p r a g m a t i s m

RCT




r e a l i s m

Contoursprovide

reasons to changeor not to change

when an alternativepractice isconsidered

neo-classical economics

macroeconomicsEMH-efficient market hypothesis

DSGE-dynamic stochasticgeneral equilibrium

financial engineers

creditdefaultswaps

specificfinancialpractice

EMH=the price of a financial assetreflects all available informationthat is relevant to its value

c o n

t o u

r s

“ that markets are complete---that a priceexists today, for every good, at every date,in every contingency. In this world, you can always borrow as much as you wantat the going rate, and you can always sellas much as you want at the going rate.”The Economist, July 18, 2009, p. 66)

• our programs are too isolated (siloed) in schools colleges of education. We have too few friends in foundations, counseling, teacher education, psychology;• our doctoral research practices are not likely to yield many breakthroughs in pushing the boundaries of our field out because our epistemocratic structure dominates our mindset and choices of topics to pursue. What we may want to know about leadership (not management) is erased in the selection of methods to pursue it. We must insist our students push significant boundaries and that be able to place their research in an historical theoretical context;

• we need to adopt Lakatos’ “competing research paradigms” idea as “normal science”;• we need our students to understand the difference between “verification” and “discovery” in their thinking and in their research• we need to re-establish the importance of the individual human as a thinking, moral agent, especially in the leadership of schools and that conflict in this arena is guaranteed in a democracy. Value conflicts are part and parcel or normalcy. Conflict free zones are an anomaly;• we must get our IRB friends to understand that real research means we may not even know what the right questions are;

Re-positioning the schools aslevers of social change-concluding thoughts

Social justice

“leading does not occurin a vacuum, but ratheris rooted in our deepestbeliefs about humankind,nature, and the realworld around us.”

Spencer Maxcy

Mohandas Gandhi

A part of the soulthat wants toinsist on its ownimportance…

the restoration of human agency in educational administration/ leadership theory, research and

Documents

field developmentsteps

views of conflictwhere

fieldhuman agencyline

human agencyre

theuniversity context

national apparatuswhere

consequencesthomas kuhn

intellectual community