Diagnosing is a cognitive competency. It involves understanding what is now and knowing what you can reasonably expect to make it in the future. The discrepancy between the two is the problem to be solved. This discrepancy is what the other competencies are aiming to resolve.
The importance of a leader's diagnostic ability cannot be overemphasized. The successful leader must be a good diagnostician and must value a spirit of inquiry. The abilities and motives in the people under the leader vary; therefore, leaders must have the sensitivity and diagnostic ability to be able to sense and appreciate the differences. In other words, leaders must be able to identify clues in the environment. The leader must use analogies sparingly, consider the issue's history - both sources and context, thoroughly examine key assumptions, consider the histories of the people involved, consider the history of the organization, and finally see the issue as part of a time sequence (see blog post from 5/17/2013).
Yet even with good diagnostic skills, leaders may still not be effective unless they can adapt their leadership style to meet the demands of their environment. This is the heart of Situational Leadership . . . and I believe the critical piece of differentiation of instruction in a classroom.
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