Blazing New Trails - Connexions

214 CRITICAL ISSUES IN SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT
CHARACTER EDUCATION AND EDUCATIONAL LEADERS
School principals and administrators are challenged by a myriad of taxing forces
which ultimately find their source in character-related problems. First, administrative leaders
are challenged by an accountability-rich standardized testing environment that demands the
improvement of academic skills on the part of all students. Ryan (2003) noted, “After two
decades of poking and prodding high school students toward higher academic achievement,
education reformers, administrators, and teachers are becoming discouraged” (para. 1).
Character programs that demonstrate positive relationships to academic improvement can
justify educational leaders’ efforts to focus on character-building and ethical conduct. Ryan
(2003), making a connection between character education and academics, related significant
benefits of character education to the learning community writing:
A strong case can be made that the poor academic performance of American high
school students is directly linked to their failure of character: that is, to their lack of
strong personal habits, such as taking responsibility for completing their academic
chores, and having persistence in tackling the hard business of learning. (para. 2)
Students with instructional self-discipline skills could improve students’ academic
performance. An administrative leader’s knowledge of the benefits associated with character
education could be the motivating force for the implementation of a character education
program.
Secondly, the current condition of student character warrants study of administrator
efficacy in teaching character education. Schools are challenged by the associated behaviors
and attitudes resulting from students’ moral decline as evidenced by the incidences of student
violence, drug and substance abuse, bullying, cheating, pregnancy and sexually transmitted
diseases, and a host of safety concerns (National Center for Educational Statistics, 2004).
Thirdly, school administrators must face the increasing demands inherent in the
principalship including, but not limited to, teachers’ concerns for school safety and job
satisfaction, parents’ concerns for students’ safety, self-esteem, and growth, community
concerns for civil and caring students, and the business community’s concern for a wellprepared
and honest workforce. Under such circumstances, the study of educators’
perceptions of their ability to successfully implement character education efforts, as well as
their motivations and convictions for doing so, can provide insights into principal leadership
preparation and practice.
PRINCIPAL LEADERSHIP FRAMEWORK
Implementing a character education endeavor requires the consideration of the
constructs and associated descriptors as proposed in the administrator character education
efficacy model. Of these constructs and descriptors, the administrator leadership construct has
connections to various leadership theories including ethical leadership (Hitt, 1990; Trautman,
1998), moral leadership (Pellicer, 1999; Spears, 2001), servant leadership (Covrig, 2000:
McKerrow, 1997), and transformational leadership. Pragmatic implications of these theories
impact a variety of leadership components including decision-making, modeling, moral
reasoning for problem-solving, personal integrity, consistent behavior, and moral purpose.
A character-focused school presupposes a leader who has a conceptual understanding
of character education programming, but who also possesses an affinity toward a leadership