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Pedagogical Leadership Essay

Pedagogy is about the interactions and experiences which support the curriculum and the process of how young children learn. This is related to how education is practiced, the techniques of instruction and strategies that makes learning to take place and provide opportunities for acquiring knowledge and skills within a social and material context (Siraj-Blatchford et al. 2002). It is described as the interaction between the teacher, the leaner and the learning environment. In early learning education environment, this is how the adult and child interacts. At this age, how the children learn and develop is not about the subject of what to be taught but about how it is delivered and the relationship. Research has shown that the interactions and experiences are one of the most significant factors explaining the effects of care and early education on children’s learning and development (Granrusten, Gotvassli, & Lillemyr, 2018.).

Pedagogical Leadership is about leading to learning. Pedagogical leadership is the leading or guiding the educators, teachers, individuals, and groups to facilitate teaching and learning process in early childhood education (Coughlin & Baird, 2013). This is described as one who understands how children learn and develops, and makes it happen in an easier way taking into consideration the relationship at home, school and the environment.

The work of early childhood education and care has had a growing interest in pedago­gical leadership rising from the need to increase quality and influence organizational change (Andrews, 2009). Any person who has a deep understanding of early learning and development may take on the role of the pedagogical leader. The pedagogical leader will be important in the working environment by being a partner, facilitator, observers and co­-learners at the same time, an educators, children and families. Most importantly, pedagogical leaders challenge others to see themselves as researchers in the teaching and learning process. This practice will build a culture of reflective teaching which helps to find out and resolve the complexities at workplace (Coughlin & Baird, 2013). In the workplace, it is critically important that the leader plays an important role in being a positive role model, empowering the staff members, shared vision, creating a relationship at all level and have an effective communication and consultation skill.

At work the Pedagogical leadership helps and require the workers to rethink the way they learn and work together as adults, in the workplace. Adult learn best when they are interested and engaged in the daily activities. The pedagogical leader care for and arrange ways that are useful for educators in their day to day practice. Some of the disposition ways are being curious, openness, resiliency and purposefulness, which helps to create a culture where there is less focus on teaching and more on how learning takes place for both the child and the adult (Coughlin & Baird, 2013).

According to Johnson and Johnson (1991), leadership is “the art of ensuring that group members work together with least friction and most cooperation.” It is important that the pedagogical leader ensures that workers work together towards common goals. For example, at my day-care centre, all the workers have a general theme for the week, this ensures that all the workers have a common goal of imparting knowledge in the children, when your room is changed to another, you know exactly what is expected to be taught/discussed. 

According to Hujala, Heikka and Halttunen (2011) pedagogical leadership consists of three major roles: developing educational practices, taking care of human relations and administrative management from the point of view of educational goals.

·         The pedagogical leader will support the educational goals, task of the organisation and then shaped the children learning need and values of the organization.