CONT956: Building Relationships and Developing Leadership
In this course, you’ll explore the essential role of leadership in fostering relationships and creating a positive climate, focusing on coaching conversations and navigating difficult discussions. You'll engage in activities and discussions to enhance your self-awareness and reflect on your leadership style, helping you align your actions with your vision.
You'll also learn about the importance of contextual awareness and be provided with tools and frameworks to understand and navigate your community's diverse backgrounds and experiences. Key elements include mastering coaching techniques, preparing for and managing difficult conversations, and building a supportive community. Through case studies and experiential learning, you'll develop practical strategies for fostering collaboration and a sense of belonging. The course emphasizes ongoing reflection and adaptation, ensuring you can sustain a positive and inclusive environment over time.
Learning Outcomes
What You Will Learn and Do
In this course, you’ll have the opportunity to
- compare leadership models to see how certain values and skills affect a leader’s success in schools
- describe your own leadership vision for education, with a focus on the essential values and through an exploration of your identity
- identify what kind of support and structures are needed to help learning communities grow and keep relationships strong
- explore the fundamentals of nonviolent communication and practice active listening
- improve your ability to express ideas clearly and succinctly through spoken words, ensuring effective verbal exchanges in various contexts
- examine strategies to cultivate a workplace atmosphere that promotes continuous personal and professional growth, encourages innovation, and supports lifelong learning
- model how to initiate conversations in a way that leads to helpful discussions, sets a friendly tone and aims for understanding and solutions
Assessments
Module 1
Situating Your Leadership Role
Module 2
Community Building
Progress Update 1
Module 3
Place-Based Leadership
Module 4
Communicating Effectively
Formative Assessment
Module 5
Developing People and Building Capacity
Progress Update 2
Module 6
Navigating Difficult Conversations
Module 7
Compiling a Leadership Toolbox
Summative Assessment