Today you observed 2 students participating in a Volleyball lesson,led by an 'expert' Volleyball coach.
In today's blog I would like you to draw coherent and insightful conclusions about both students and the leadership style being applied from the evidence you collected over that 12 minute observation.The following prompts could help you organise and communicate your conclusions.
1. Using the Situational Leadership (SL) model posited be Hersey&Blanchard, make judgements (draw conclusions) about the maturity levels of each of your students. Remember to explain the basis upon which you made those judgements. Include evidence where appropriate.
2. Again, apply the SL model to explain and draw conclusions about the leadership you observed being applied. Remember to explain the basis upon which you made those judgements. Include evidence where appropriate.
3. Do you think the style suited your student? Explain your answer.
I found these explanations on the internet as an alternative learning resource.
Situational Leadership explained video
Another SL video
Observing my two students today I was able to make judgements on what their maturity levels were.
ReplyDeleteWatching student A I was able to see that she is a quiet yet strong girl. I could tell that she was quiet because she would just stand there and listen in her group but would voice her opinion when she thought they were performing a skill wrong. I could see that she was eager to learn because she always persevering even when she wasn't quite getting the technique right and I could see in her actions that she was also well concentrated on what she needed to do. She does lack a bit of competence but it didn't stop her from being confident in helping her peers. With her determination which I observed today and her lovely and helpful self I can definitely say that if she continues she will develop into a good player. She reminds me of a pocket rocket so little yet shows so much spark and energy.
Student B was a very confident male. A loud and vibrant boy cheering up the class and always motivating others. This was evident when he would voice his thoughts to the class and when they broke into groups he was always encouraging and helping his peers with the task set by the leader. He has a lot of potential in volleyball. His competence and skill level still needs some work but with the amount of confidence this child possess he is not going to let his competence stop him . He is a very enthusiastic boy which is highlighted when he's amongst his peers smiling away and enjoying all the new things he is learning. He is a lovely boy who shows compassion towards his peers.
I believe leader in this lesson was a situational leader. He varies his leadership depending on the group he is leading. I saw him go to one group where the group was very confident and he set them a task and away they went. When he went to another group where they lacked confidence he approached them and gave them direct and specific instructions. He also demonstrated the skill for them. His way of leadership shows he has the respect of his followers and they listen to him. His communication was always clear, constructive and direct.
I think this style suited my two students because they were good listeners and followers. I believe they have the personalities that suit this leadership style because they like being given direct instructions.
Your post indicates many perspectives and skills Ngawaiora. Firstly.you can draw coherent conclusions supported with details to justify your judgements. The insight you demonstrate comes mainly from your ability to perceive the socio-emotional level of the two learners you observed. Finally, I enjoyed the positive projection into the future of both learners that you made. Ka mau te wehi.
DeleteQ1.
ReplyDeleteStudent 1 showed to me that he was really willing to learn and liked to listen carefully to instructions. He would ask his classmates questions if he was unsure and then try and implement the skills being taught into his dills. Student 1 was semi competent when it came to the skills and drills the class was learning and liked to be involved. As the class went by his competence level grew. He showed a growth mindset and laughed off his mistakes and carried on with his peers. I can confidently say that if he keeps up what he’s doing and continues to think the way he does then he will achieve highly in the volleyball unit.
Student 2 showed me that he was really focused into the learning and looked like he really wanted to be there. He wasn’t very competent when doing the skills and drills but he was semi confident. His confidence seemed to grow as the class went by. He seemed as though he didn’t like when people seen him muck up but, as his peers helped him, he was willing to learn more from them and used feedback he was given to improve his set.His growth mindset grew more as the class went on. I think that if he keeps at it, he has the potential to be a strong volleyball player.
Q2.
Situational leadership is about choosing what type of leadership style you’re going to use depending on the situation. The leader I observed today showed situational leadership and changed his style of teaching when approaching different groups. I have seen that when he approached a confident and pretty strong group of kids, he showed them the drills, made sure the were okay with it and then sent them to practice by themselves. When he approached a not so confident and shy group, he made sure to take his time with them and show step by step instructions on how to do the drills. His leadership today showed me that he cared about who he was teaching (followers) and he really wanted to help them improve.
Q3.
I think this style suited my students because they are great listener and eager to learn. They enjoyed learning new skills and they seemed to have fun with their peers when doing the drills,
I liked the way you coherently connected student 1's learning behaviour to Growth Mindset and explained the basis upon which you made this judgement Alecia. You were very attentive to what and who motivated/supported him to learn too great insight. the conclusions you drew about the coach/leader were supported in detail. For your assessment report I recommend your clearly label the readiness level of the learners and the SL style of the coach.
DeleteStudent 1 was a quiet girl that didn't talk much but she was laughing and enjoying her learning. Whilst observing this student I could see that she had a strong willingness to learn, although she lacked competence that didn't stop her from giving up. She stayed engaged with tasks that her group had been set to do. I could see that she cared about her learning because she stayed paid attention the entire time and once didn't get side tracked. She showed perseverance.
ReplyDeleteStudent 2:
This student was quite a shy boy. When the ball wasn't near him, he always had his hands in his pocket, however as the ball approached him he would attempt to ‘set’ it back to his peers. He lacked competence, however he still gave it a good go. I could see that he lacked confidence by his body language and he also stated “I am not good at this”
As the maturity increases, the independence of the student also increases accordingly. These two students are only at a young age and this is probably their first time experiencing ‘volleyball’ so therefore I think as they get older and keep practicing the skills they will become more confident.
I think the leader of this class was a situational leader. He had to vary his leadership style to the different students because not every one of his followers learns and thinks the same. As we went from group to group the instructions were different. When he went to a more confident group he was able to give them a task and they will do it. Whereas when he went to a group who were less confident he spent a lot more time with them as he had to keep demonstrating the skill and give them direct and clear instructions. I think this leadership style was best suited for his followers I could also see how much respect he had for his students and their learning. The entire time his instructions were very clear.
Yes I believe the Situational leadership style was best suited to my students because the leader was able to give them direct instructions. Oth my students lacked in confidence and competence so the leader was able to direct them.
The conclusions you drew were insightful and were supported by explanations but poor editing affected the coherence of this post Jean ie"although she lacked competence that didn't stop her from giving up" is contradictory to the point you were trying to make I think. Also, I'd like to challenge you about the boy you label as 'shy'. Perhaps hands in the pockets (body language) means something else? Do you think that it is maturity or competence increase that promotes better task independence? Now that you have viewed the SL video I think you will be able to see the coach used S1 with the less confident/competent learners and S2 with the others.
DeleteToday, during the Volleyball lesson, I observed 2 students: Reitu Kenny and Moana Muru Brown.
ReplyDeleteReitu was really confident and really willingness. She was having fun and she had always the smile on her face. She was not so competent, but she was trying to improve her skills with all herself. I think that her maturity level (based on the system of the situational leadership) is the number 2, because she was willing and enthusiastic, but lacks the ability.
My second student is Moana Muru Brown. During the 12 minutes of observation she seemed willingness, through the fact that sometimes she had hands in her pockets, but she was always listening carefully to the teacher. She was not so confident and she seemed a little bit shy. She wasn't really competent, but she was trying her best. I think that also Moana has the second maturity level.
The leadership that I observed being applied is the situational leadership, because the coach has to adapt his style to each type of student. I observed more specifically the selling style and the delegating style.The selling style was used to improve the skills of the students, to create valuable and positive change in the followers and to enhances the motivation, morale and performance of them. He also used the delegating style because there was team building and power sharing.
I think that the selling one is really a good choice for my students, because the coach was focuse on helping every member of the group to succeed. Honestly I think that the delegating one is not good for my students, because they are not so competent for this style of leadership, but maybe it was the best one for others students in that class, that were highly skilled and willing to complete the tasks.
I am so pleased that you consulted Hersey & Blanchard's SL model from which to construct this detaile, coherent and insightful post Alessia. Ka mau te wehi.
DeleteAs I observed Student 1 my first impression was ‘uncommitted’ and didn't really want to be there. This is because as I walked in she had headphones on and not too focused on what she should be doing, which indicates to me she wasn't listening. But after complying with her teacher her participation through the lesson was great. She had the willingness and dedication to work hard and develop her level in volleyball, this doesn't mean she always got it right but she enjoyed herself in the unit which was most important. Student 1’s competence was low but she had high commitment. She didn't really execute the skill well, but that didn't stop her from trying again and again, this shows me resilience, which relates to confidence. Student 1 was confident to continue trying new things even if it was high above her skill level she still had the confidence in attempting the skill well.
ReplyDeleteStudent 2 had a lot in common with student 1, as they both were at the same skill level. But what intrigued me about student 2 is that he had a willingness to help others around him. This was surprising to me because he kept it quiet in his little group, for example, student 2 was being directive, feeding clear instructions, and had an idea where the ball had to go. This was clear to me as his body language showed confidence. He was pointing and moving students around showing leadership, but whenever the teacher will come to the group he’ll shy away. I believe that this is because he didn't want to get it wrong and didn't want to be embarrassed, this is all self-confidence. Student 2 also didn't always get it right showing low-semi competence, I could see that he really wanted to work towards executing the skill successfully but he needed that guidance from his teacher. The more guidance he got the more committed he became in his group, which helped him develop his skills and his peers.
Situational leadership you need to be able to adapt in a situation to succeed a purpose. Today as I observed an ‘expert’ coaching volleyball to 19 students, he was able to be flexible to adapt to the needs of the class and he modified his style management to suit the development level of a year 9 class. I saw that his main focus was to develop their skill level (the class) to his standard. For example, the communication between himself and the students was clear and direct, the students replied by co-operating to execute the skill efficiently, but this wasn't always the case for some, as it was hard for a variety of students to do the skills successfully. According to Blanchard and Hersey theory, out of the four styles I believe that this expert used two; telling (S1) and selling (S2). S1 was used more because he’d create roles for the students to do and expected them to reach a level that they weren't at. I challenge that this is where this expert needed to take a step back and look at where the weaknesses were occurring, as he was moving them to fast for their skill level. If this was me I would have found a different way to target where their knowledge was missing by also making it fun and not boring that they might lose motivation.
I believe that this style suited student 1 and 2 as it fitted their development level between the both of them. The expert was directive that helped influence the followers to be successful.
It is obvious to me from this post Troy, that you re-read and re-wound the supporting resources to construct this detailed and insightful post. I liked your willingness to challenge aspects of the style used to lead these learners and provide an "if it was me..." alternative because next week it WILL be you!
DeleteStudent 1 surprised me, as he was very confident, and willing to fully participate in the activities. As I was observing him, I was noticing how he was interacting with his peers in his group. His encouragement towards his classmates showed me how he likes to motivate others, in order to help motivate himself which I found quite intriguing. He has some skill and did perform some movements really well, but also tended to struggle slightly.
ReplyDeleteMy second student was a lot more quiet and kept to himself throughout the lesson. His body language made it obvious he wasn't in his comfort zone, which I believe would've made it harder to focus and enjoy the class. I did see him try at certain parts throughout the lesson, but I could even tell from his facial expressions, that he was giving up faster than he was trying.
Situational Leadership is all about adapting our leadership style, to suit your team/peers needs. They did use this leadership styles, as they needed to gain the attention of the whole class, and each student is different. In some situations he used Autocratic leadership, to gain focus from certain students who weren't interested.
I think this style suited my students, because they needed to have a lot more support, as one of them was very shy. The support that was given to them, would've really helped them because they would've felt passion and support.
Student 1 - Starting my observation, this student was quite shy to begin with. She was quiet and barely involved. I saw that she did not talk as much as several of her peers did throughout the lesson. Later on during my observation, this student became alot more confident and out going. She began to communicate with her peers more, her attitude towards the lesson changed as time progressed and she started to look like she was really enjoying the lesson because she began to smile and giggle. Although she wasn’t the most skilled, she tried her best to improve.
ReplyDeleteStudent 2 - I saw that this student loved learning. He was eager, right from the start, to learn the correct movements and skills of volley. His positive attitude was so infectious that his team mates became more confident to give one another feedback. Like student one...he wasn’t the most skilful volleyball player, but he was always ready to try his best to up his skills.
Adapting to different leadership styles to suit certain situations/people is situational Leadership. This style of leadership was predominantly used during our observation. He was teaching about 19 students so he had to adapt to all their personalities accordingly. His tone also changed during the lesson depending on the student he was working with. I believe this leadership style suited my 2 students very well, Because they both were very willing positive learners. They gained support from both their peers and leader.
This post is packed with insightful comments and judgements supported with justifications Danni. We will be revisiting the hersey and Blanchard Model in today's lesson to enable you to classify both the leader and the learners as well.
DeleteThank you for the feedback 13 PHE as I take on board your thoughts. Although I have coached VB for 37 years, the style of leadership I use with a Y9 PE class as opposed to my Y10 VB team are very much different.
DeleteIf we look at the VB "team", they are students who want to be there, who want to learn the skills, who want to compete and who want to physically engage with their mates in a team setting - among other things. In a way they are highly motivated to show up for training 3-4 x each week. Once hooked on VB, we provide an opportunity for them to really advance their skills and over the remaining time I coach them until they leave BOIC, they will continue to be challenged to perform at increasingly higher levels. In the early days, as the coach I am very much in control and I direct the training / competition but as they mature in their senior years, the ownership passes to them and they have far more responsibility in determining where the effort needs to be put in improving aspects of their game. If you think about it when it comes to competition, the role of the coach is reduced dramatically as it is the players who make the decisions in the game environment. In VB quite literally it is with every contact of the volleyball. With me anyway, over time and as players mature, the leadership style changes to suit the team environment / culture.
With a Y9 PE class we have a vast range of abilities and personalities. It is important to "know your students" and appreciate the different levels of motivation in a given class. Admittedly in this situation I would consider myself a (soft) autocratic leader in that I'm not going to be as demanding with Y9 PE as I would with a competitive team but I am the one in control of the lesson and how it progresses. It is important that students develop an enjoyment of being physically active and unfortunately VB is a really technical sport with "strange movement skills" like setting and bumping. Some students love it and embrace it - others can't get out of there fast enough so the levels of motivation to learn and perform differ. Factor in the "baggage" that students bring to a PE lesson that interferes with learning and we appreciate teaching skills is not that simple. In 9M we have 4 students who you might classify as "morbidly obese" and asking them to "move" is a real challenge. Many students have real esteem issues as well and performing in front of others can be quite terrifying.
Anyway - as I type I have to go on duty but would welcome further discussions.
Gotta go!
Thanks for sharing your beliefs, philosophy and practice with us Mr. Scott. Differentiating between the way you lead a Y9 PE class and how you lead a Volleyball team is particularly useful as it nicely aligns with our class discussions about how a leader in physical activity contexts change their style over time, in response to developing competence and commitment.
DeleteToday during the Volleyball I observed two students, student one Tom Collier-Cross and student two Malia Davenport. Student one was willing to listen to instructions and to do his best at the skills he was taught. He had a decent competence in Volleyball considering he wasn’t exposed to Volleyball for a long time. Although having low competence he had high confidence in his own abilities. His maturity level was a 2 because he was confident and willing but lacked experience and competence in Volleyball.
ReplyDeleteStudent two although having a quiet personality was willing to improve in Volleyball and follow instructions. She had a low competence and I could tell it was one of her first times participating in Volleyball. Even being a shy person she had good confidence in herself and was always trying to learn and participate to benefit her skills. Her maturity level was also a 2.
The leadership that was utilized by the teacher was situational because he quite frequently had to change and adapt to different situations and to differences in students. I believe he used the styles S1 and S2 which are telling and selling. and his communication was very direct and sharp with cooperation from the students. H created drills and skill development exercises and I think he went too fast for some students. One example of this is 3 students were in a triangle setting the ball around to each other and they struggled with that. Instead of either taking a step back or staying there for longer until they got the hang of it he advanced to adding in movement which was far too complex for some students.
I believe this style suited the students because they were at development level 1 and 2, (D1, D2) the teacher was clear and direct about what the tasks were which is needed in a lower developed student in context.
I'm not sure what you mean by 'considering he wasn’t exposed to Volleyball for a long time' Shane.I wonder what style you would see the coach using with more competent and committed learners? Do you think he should change? What differences would you expect to see in his interactions with such learners.
ReplyDeleteStudent 1 surprised me alot, as she seemed to be quite confident and had the willingness to improve the skills whilst interacting and giving uplifting words to her peers. This came as a shock to me because she is so quite, dose not say to much... abit of a stand off student. I was impressed by how she was giving it her best try although not being the most skilled volleyball person.
ReplyDeleteStudent 2 I saw that he was eager to get into it , and was trying his hardest to perform the movements. But he was a little bit away with the fairy’s not fully engaging himself with the learning by not listening to mr Scott when he was talking .
I think this style suited my two students because they both seem like the quietest people and both needed as much support as they could get. Giving them little confidence boosters making them try even harder in the way they do the skills.