The Impact of Holistic Leadership on Encouraging Teachers to Become Future School Leaders

Abstract

School districts and networks are entrusted with the responsibility to cultivate professional learning environments where current and future leaders can thrive. These professional learning opportunities requires a shift in leadership strategies to also include meeting the school leader’s emotional and personal needs, identifying leadership styles, the state of the school leader’s well-being, the connection of both the school leaders’ leadership styles and well-being to their effectiveness as a leader, and the school leader’s ability to prepare teachers for future school leadership roles (Bacher-Hicks et al., 2023; DeMatthews et al., 2021; Mahfouz & Gordon, 2020). 

This study found that enhancing the use of holistic leadership practices in professional learning is essential in motivating future school leaders, as professional learning plays a critical role in the development of school leaders (Ford et al., 2020; Mahfouz, 2018a). Improving professional learning for educators is an important step in transforming schools (Mahfouz, 2018a). By ensuring professional learning opportunities that build the capacity of future school leaders include targeted leadership, skill development, whole person development, innovation, mentoring, coaching, and cultivating inclusive school cultures, schools can create environments where leadership can be successful and new leaders can be developed. The development of holistic school leaders was found to be heavily impacted by leadership behaviors. Leaders using holistic, moral, servant, situational, and transformational leadership behaviors were found to have a positive impact on future school leaders’ overall motivation.