Appropriate Leader Behavior for Readiness Level 2

Appropriate teacher behaviors when working with an unable but willing or unable but confident R2 student:

• Seek "buy-in" through persuading
• Check understanding of the task
• Encourage questions
• Discuss details
• Explore related skills
• Explain "why"
• Give follower incremental steps (not "run with it")
• Emphasize "how to"

Some times our tendency as teachers is to do many of these things all the time. The problem is for some readiness levels these strategies can be not only ineffective but counter-productive.

Appropriate Leader Behavior for Readiness Level 1

Just as the readiness level for success will be fluid for your students, your behavior in leading them should also be fluid. As a review, a student with a low readiness level for success (R1):

Readiness Level 1 (R1) - Unable and unwilling, the student is unable and lacks commitment and motivation. Or, Unable and insecure, where the student is unable and lacks confidence.
The unable and unwilling indicators include:

• Defensive, argumentative, complaining behaviors
• Late completion of tasks
• Performance only to exact request
• Intense frustration

The unable and insecure indicators include:

• Body language expressing discomfort: furrowed brow, shoulders lowered, leaning back
• Confused, unclear behavior
• Concern over possible outcomes
• Fear of failure

Appropriate leader/teacher behaviors for the "Unable and unwilling" (R1) students include:

• Directly state specific facts
• Positively reinforce small improvements
• Consider consequences for nonperformance
• Keep emotional level in check

Appropriate leader/teacher behaviors for the "Unable and Insecure" (R1) students include:

• Provide task information in digestible amounts
• Be sure not to overwhelm student
• Reduce fear of mistakes
• Help step by step
• Focus on instruction

One size does not fit all. Students with different readiness levels for success have different needs in order to reach the organizational goals.

Continuum of Follower Readiness - R4

At the highest end of student readiness would be the R4 level. Those with this level of readiness are both able and willing - where the student has the ability to perform and is committed, or able and confident - where the student has the ability to perform and is confident.

Able and willing or confident indicators:

• Keeps teacher informed of task progress
• Makes efficient use of resources
• Responsible and results oriented
• Knowledgeable, able to streamline operational tasks
• Willing to help others
• Shares creative ideas
• Takes charge of tasks
• Completes responsibilities on time or perhaps early

It is important to properly identify the student's readiness level to most effectively help him or her show continual quality improvement.

Continuum of Follower Readiness - R3

Building on our discussion of student readiness (see August 20 and 21), we next will look at Readiness Level 3. These students are able but unwilling - the student has the ability to perform the task, but is not willing to use that ability . . . or . . . is able but insecure, where the student has the ability to perform the task, but is insecure or apprehensive about doing it alone.

R3 - Able but unwilling indicators:

• Hesitant or resistant
• Feel over-obligated and overworked
• Seeks reinforcement
• Concerned task assigned is somehow punishing

R3 - Able but insecure indicators:
Questions own ability
Focus on potential problems
Lacks self-esteem
Encourages leader/teacher to stay involved

Continuum of Follower Readiness - R2

Continuing with our discussion of follower readiness (see post from August 20), the next level of student readiness would be R2.

Readiness Level 2 (R2) - Unable but willing. The student lacks ability, but is motivated and is making an effort . . . or, unable but confident, the student lacks ability but is confident as long as the teacher is there to provide support.

Readiness Level 2 indicators include:

• Speak quickly and intensely
• Seek clarity
• Nod head, make "yes I know" type comments, seem eager
• Listen carefully
• Answer questions superficially
• Accept tasks
• Act quickly
• Preoccupied with end results rather than incremental steps

Continuum of Follower Readiness - R1

Think of the readiness level of your students to be successful in the given task as part of a continuum. Readiness is fluid and will due to many variables. The readiness continuum ranges from a very high level (R4) where the student is able and willing or confident, to a very low level (R1) where the student is unable and unwilling or insecure. 

Looking more closely at the readiness continuum:

Readiness Level 1 (R1) - Unable and unwilling, the student is unable and lacks commitment and motivation. Or, Unable and insecure, where the student is unable and lacks confidence.
The unable and unwilling indicators include:

• Defensive, argumentative, complaining behaviors
• Late completion of tasks
• Performance only to exact request
• Intense frustration

The unable and Insecure indicators include:

• Body language expressing discomfort: furrowed brow, shoulders lowered, leaning back
• Confused, unclear behavior
• Concern over possible outcomes
• Fear of failure

Learning Requirements

Learning requirements are the what . . . 

What do my students need to know and be able to do as result of being in this class?

The learning requirements are tied closely to the district curriculum standards and are ideas that spiral throughout the year. The emphasis on not on some specific set of facts but rather big pieces of knowledge and understandings.

For my classes, we use the acronym C.A.R.S. for our learning requirements:

Cause and effect relationships

Analogies - how to use them and evaluate their accuracy

Research and evaluation of resources

Sense of history - how the past impacts the present

Cause and effect relationships - A critical skill for the understanding of history is an ability to determine and understand cause and effect. It allows one to understand why events happened as they did. This is also a life skill, as young people try to better understand their world.

Analogies - To understand both history and the events of our current world, it is often useful to employ analogies . . . "this is similar to that." The problem is often analogies are over-used and therefore incorrect. We spend time working on a strategy to clarify analogies. When one is suggested, we examine the likenesses and the differences between the situation being studied and the suggested analogy. When properly used analogies can be very useful in understanding and problem-solving, when incorrectly used they can lead to confusion and poor decisions.

Research and evaluation of resources - Here we learn how to find out what we need to know. With knowledge growing exponentially, it is vital to know how to get information. This also involves evaluating the usefulness of resources. Additionally, we examine the advantages and limitations of both primary and secondary resources.

Sense of history - A sense of of where we have been is critical to developing a true understanding of where we are. Having this ability will not only allow us to understand our history class, but will also help us make better decisions in the present. We begin to understand that our decisions today will have ramifications in our future.

As students develop and refine their skills and abilities in these areas, they will be able to consistently learn and improve in any history class . . . and in many other areas. These requirements are imbedded in every unit and allow for greater depth of understanding of the material. Additionally, these requirements provide purpose and meaning for what we study.

Ability and Willingness

For teachers employing Situational Leadership, it is the student who determines the appropriate leader/teacher behavior.

The key here is a function of student readiness, defined as the extent to which a student demonstrates the ability and willingness to accomplish a specific task. Ability is the knowledge, experience, and skill that an individual or group brings to a particular task or activity. Willingness is the extent to which an individual or group has the confidence, commitment, and motivation to accomplish a specific task.

How Much Freedom to Give Followers

Leaders/teachers should give followers/students greater freedom if they possess:

1. A relatively high need for independence
2. A readiness to assume responsibility for decision making
3. A relatively high tolerance for ambiguity
4. An interest in the problem/task and feel it is important
5. An understanding of and identity with the goals of the organization
6. The necessary knowledge and experience to deal with the problem/task
7. An expectation to share in the decision making

Students will be at varying levels which requires the teacher to differentiate his or her approach. Just as it would be inappropriate to restrict freedom of students who possess very high levels of each of these things, it would be ineffective to grant excessive freedom to students who possess very low levels. The key is in the evaluation and adaptation by the teacher. Students may say they want freedom, need independence, know what to do . . . but what does their behavior indicate?

The goal of the leader/teacher is to raise the level of each area for each student . . . to assist each student on the road of continual quality improvement where he or she will be ready to accept greater levels of freedom and responsibility. Differentiation is the key to making this happen.