youth leadership development overview
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MONASH UNIVERSITY
Out of the Boardroom
and into the Classroom:
Servant Leadership inYouth Leadership Development
Nathan Eva
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INTRODUCTION
The phrase the youth of today are the leaders of tomorrow is common in society, yet youth
leadership development has been largely neglected in academic research. Although there is a
plethora of organisational leadership research, leadership scholars have noted that society is
experiencing a moral leadership crisis. This comes 30 years after Greenleaf first argued that the lack
of moral leadership in society demands the establishment of a new style of leadership, namely
servant leadership. There has been evidence which suggests that the leadership crisis is rooted inschools, thus highlighting the need to investigate the role that educational facilities play in
leadership development. Therefore there is a need to examine the application of the servant
leadership approach to Australian secondary college youth leadership development programs.
Specifically this study analysed secondary colleges youth leadership development programs and the
perceptions of secondary college teachers and youth leadership facilitators on youth leadership
development on the basis of Sendjaya, Sarros and Santoras servant leadership framework.
YOUTH LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT
Leadership development is one of the most important outcomes in a students educational
experience and has become big business for leadership facilitators and secondary colleges alike. To
add to the numerous secondary college youth leadership development programs, private youth
leadership development agencies have proliferating in the past decade. Even with the numerous
students enrolled in these programs, youth leadership development research trails behind the
practice There are no definitive answers as to why there is limited research in youth leadership
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Covenantal Relationship: is the leaders attempt to foster genuine, profound and lasting
relationships with others.
Responsible Morality: a leaders leadership interactions must be thoughtfully reasoned, morally
legitimised and justified ethically in both the ends sought and the means employed.
Transcendental Spirituality: is the leaders attempt to fuse a sense of calling, meaning and direction
in their own and others lives.
Transforming Influence: is the leaders desire to produce contagious effects in others in multiple
dimensions and turn them into servant leaders. This influence alters the individual in multiple
dimensions such as emotionally, spiritually and socially.
Figure 1
Themes in servant leadership
Dimension Theme
Voluntary Subordination Being a servant
Acts of service
Authentic Self Humility
Integrity
Accountability
Security
Vulnerability
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secondary college graduates, secondary college teachers and youth leadership facilitators. The main
findings of this research are summarised below.
RESEARCH QUESTION ONE
Research question one sought to determine what students are learning to become servant leaders.
A document analysis of secondary college youth leadership development programs revealed that
through these programs, students are being taught the dimensions of Covenantal Relationship,
Transforming Influence and to a lesser extent Authentic Self and Voluntary Subordination. However,
Transcendental Spirituality and Responsible Morality were not being taught. Interviews withsecondary college teachers and youth leadership facilitators revealed that Transcendental
Spirituality was not being taught due to its theoretical origins in religion. Responsible Morality was
not being taught due to two reasons, first, some youth leadership facilitators believe Responsible
Morality is too complex for students to understand and second, secondary colleges tend to focus on
academic results and tangible skills than the internal personal development of their students.
RESEARCH QUESTION TWO
Research question two sought to determine how students should be taught to become servant
leaders. Interviews with secondary college teachers and youth leadership facilitators showed trends
towards the teaching of Voluntary Subordination and Responsible Morality. This echoes scholars
stating that as society is in an ethical crisis of leadership, youth leadership development programs
need to focus on the teaching of ethics. Structured interviews with university student leaders also
identified Voluntary Subordination as a concept needed in secondary college youth leadership
development programs There was also a majority consensus from secondary college teachers
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Teaching Voluntary Subordination fosters the creation of altruistic individuals. Youth leadership
development programs should seek to engage students in acts of service within their secondary
college and community, such as charity work and social causes. To accompany these servantbehaviours, students need to understand why they are performing these acts of service and what it
means to truly be a servant. The following comment alludes to this discussion:
Unless you have an opportunity to practice and see altruism working, for young
people it is largely invisible. If it is not done in schools where else do they get the
opportunity.(Female, Principal, Public, VIC)
To develop the dimension of Authentic Self, students need to discover who they are, what they
stand for and why they lead. This can be achieved through students learning about their own
personal values, vision and how their life experiences shape who they are. Understanding these
elements will assist students in fostering their security, integrity, humility and vulnerability. These
skills can be developed through students involvement in leadership committees and help students
create a holistic understanding of self. Accountability can be used in conjunction with these
committees, making students accountable to their peers and mentor when completing projects. Anexample of accountability is seen in one of the youth leadership development programs:
It is the responsibility of the Co-ordinators [student leaders] to monitor the
functioning of the committees. They need to check with staff regarding student
attendance and participation and discuss with students if they are failing to meet
their leadership obligations. (Taken from one of the Secondary College Youth
Leadership Development Programs)
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Transcendental Spirituality has its focus in religion, being connected to the world and understandingthe bigger picture. As many secondary colleges are non-denominational, religious ideals being put
forward under the Transcendental Spiritually framework are unable to be incorporated into their
youth leadership development programs. Therefore, it is suggested that the servant leadership
framework be manipulated for use in non-denominational secondary colleges removing the factor of
Transcendental Spirituality. Within religious secondary colleges the outcomes of Transcendental
Spirituality development should be to understand that as leaders they are part of a bigger system.
This can be taught in non-denominational secondary colleges if the themes of interconnectedness,
sense of mission and wholeness are focused on from a non-religious base, as alluded to in thefollowing comment:
I dont think it is linked to religion as such, it is Ive been linked to this cosmos and
Ive been given this opportunity at this point in time to make a difference. (Female,
Teacher, Private, NSW)
As previously identified, Transforming Influence is the most prevalent dimension in secondary
college youth leadership development programs. Practically, this has been achieved through
mentoring by either teachers, ex-students or members of the wider community, students mentoring
younger students, developing students visionary skills by creating d ifferent events and being
empowered through numerous leadership committees. Theoretically, secondary colleges need to
address the influence students can have on others and gaining trust from peers by displaying the
characteristics of Authentic Self. The outcomes of exposing students to Transforming Influence are
th t t d t d d d ithi th i d ll d l k t t
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Figure 2
Application of the servant leadership framework in secondary college youth leadership development programs