Overview

ABSTRACT:
Trees falling in forests: Evidencing leadership of learning and teaching, within a system of distributed leadership

Committed to building leadership for learning, Griffith has focused on developing Program Director role, to enhance program (degree) quality and to strengthen organisational leadership.  Since 2014, a program of activities has shifted the program leaders’ identity from being an administrator and coordinator to being a director and leader.

This presentation will briefly describe the approach taken to facilitate this identity shift and then shares lessons learnt.  The theme for discussion relates to identity – the challenge of claiming recognition as leader, within a system where leadership is distributed. “How can I say I led (that) when it was a team effort?”. “Who am I to put my hand up and say my leadership resulted in (that particular outcome).” For some, claiming leadership feels contradictory to their values of collegiality.  It challenges their academic identity.  Such intrapersonal conflict can be a barrier for leaders’ development, recognition and progression.

Discussing this theme goes towards understanding how to frame and articulate leaders’ contributions to shared learning and teaching outcomes, within a distributed system, in order to strengthen the identity of learning and teaching leaders.

IMPACT:
The presenters extended the reach and depth of their action research methodology by sharing learnings in a roundtable discussion, at this international forum.  The learnings were generated from the action research process, used in Griffith University's Building Program Leadership Strategy 2014 - 2018.  Over 440 Griffith colleagues participated in the strategy.  In 2019, The Building Program Leadership Strategy team was awarded a competitive, peer reviewed, Vice Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Learning and Teaching. 

CITATION:
Carruthers, S. & Maddock, M. (2018, June) Trees falling in forests: Evidencing leadership of learning and teaching, within a system of distributed leadership. Roundtable discussion held at Council of Australasian University Leaders in Learning and Teaching (CAULLT), Learning Leaders in Higher Education Conference, Melbourne
 

Implement

For more information about this presentation, please contact the authors. 

Support Resources

• Conference Program

  Learning Leaders in Higher Education Conference which is sponsored by the Council of Australasian University Leaders in Learning and Teaching (CAULLT).

• Learning Futures Academic Leadership page

  Information about Griffith's Building Program Leadership

Contributed by

• Learning Futures
  Samantha Carruthers
  
• Learning Futures
  Louise Maddock
  

Preferred Citation

Carruthers, S. & Maddock, L. (2020). Trees falling in forests: Evidencing leadership of learning and teaching, within a system of distributed leadership. Retrieved from https://app.secure.griffith.edu.au/exlnt/entry/9429/view