Leadership and Values in Language Education - Al Akhawayn ...

68Proceedings of the 27 th MATE Annual Conferencein order to break the traditional lock-step of the classroom” (McDonough &Shaw, 1993:243).5.3 Keys to Success in Leading ChangeLick and Kaufman (2002 cited in Lick 2002) have postulated that in order tocreate change, the institution and its people should “accept and welcome changeas a vital component in achieving future success, define the future they want todesign and deliver, develop and implement a comprehensive transition plan tocreate the desired future, and continuously improve ever closer to the desiredfuture”. Moreover, the institution needs to look for possibilities of creatingchange within their own context because “successful change is a sustainablechange” (Diamond et. al., 2002:16). They must also, Lick (2002) suggested, a)intentionally spend significant portion of our time and effort on understandingtransformational change and the future and b) continually keep questioning theanswers, especially those of our culture and subcultures, in search of productivity,and effectiveness of our institution; and c) create a shared and inspiring visionthat provides direction, motivation, and commitment of others to our institution’sdesired long-range future. Besides, the key to success in leading change isidentifying the knowledge and skills you will need in this period oftransformation.” (Diamond, et al. 2002:16). “The closer the individuals are towhere the action takes place, the more detailed knowledge they require”(Diamond, et al. op cit.: 17). Equally important, leaders and their participantsneed to be sensitive to the principle of ‘The Universal Change Principle’ (Lick,2002:27). So what must be done to accomplish and sustain everlasting change?Given the fact that research units may considerably contribute and inform policymaking in the campus, leaders should (i) encourage research within the campuscommunity, (ii) encourage the use of technology, (iii) and reward the bestpractices and competitions among the participants. They should also encouragesummative and formative evaluation to improve programs and teachingprocedures. Similarly, they should integrate financial operations within academicgoals of the institution. In the same vein, the sort of change that should takeplace in an institution is described by Gregory Bateson (1972 cited in Diamond,et al., op cit.: 16) as a change which:• represents a new way of seeing things;• requires a shift of gears;• is irreversible; after it is implemented, things cannot go back to the waythey were;