You and your self-study: finding a focus

Self-study is not about asking ‘how can I improve..? or evaluating how good a particular strategy, initiative or scheme is. It does not seek to answer questions such as ‘how do I know what works?’ or ‘how effectives is…?’. These are all legitimate research questions to ask but they are not self-studies.

It is key to keep in mind that the purpose of self-study is to question and understand who you are, what you are doing and why. It is about developing a deeper understanding that asks questions about the taken-for-granted aspects of teaching, learning and education. It could be described as an opportunity to take a look at the state-of-the-actual. In other words it is not about introducing anything new and trying anything out, instead it is all about looking at what is already happening.

As part of this exploration as a practitioner researcher you will be asking questions about yourself as a professional:

who are you as a leader?
As a professional?
As a curriculum head/principal teacher/head teacher/other?
What view of professionalism informs the way in which you work?
Is there any tension between the kind of leader you would like to be and the way you feel you have to be?
These questions will lead you to read about and understanding differing views about professionalism and how these varying conceptions inform and influence what we perceive the role of the leader to be. Alongside this you will need to engage with the literature and theories of leadership.

These questions might helpfully be seen as the ‘bigger picture’ and it is essential that your self-study allows you to focus upon the micro level of your practice as well as the wider political influencing factors.

Your self-study will lead you to ask more focused questions about who you are as a leader:

What models and views of leadership do I have?
What are my underpinning beliefs and values about leadership and being a leader?
Do I act in ways that are consistent with these beliefs? And how do I know?
Who do I believe is influencing me most and do I influence most? And why?
What are the implicit assumptions about leadership in my school/context?
How do others perceive the role of the leader and/or me as a leader?
What assumptions about leadership are implicit in policy?
What are my assumptions about the people with whom I work?
How do I interact with various groups/individuals with whom I work (teachers, parents, other professional, other ‘leaders’, management etc.)?
So, through this self-study you will question who you are as a leader, what, how and why you do what you do and the way that you do it. However, this is an enormous undertaking and it you might usefully focus your self-study on a particular concern or interest you may have in terms of understanding yourself as a leader and your leadership practice.

In the light of the reading you do on theories of leadership you may wish to explore a particular idea or concept in relation to your own assumptions and practices.

You might focus on how you interact with a particular group of people, this might be in relation to a specific project or role.

You might have a particular concern regarding your leadership role and responsibilities, for example perhaps dealing with conflict or finding ways to engage people. You might choose to examine why this is a concern.

The above are just a few possible examples of what might be the focus of your self-study.




Task: Find your focus

You should now spend some time thinking about what your possible focus for your self-study might be. You will likely need to do further reading around the nature and purpose of self-study and engage with the literature on leadership. As you read and think about this your focus will evolve. You should record this process on your personal wiki - headings/pages have been set up for you.

You should start doing this once you start your reading on self-study. You should have a fairly good indication of your focus recorded in your wiki by Oct 16th.