As stated by West-Burnham (2009) earlier in this section, morals or morality involves the actual living out of what it means to be human within a community of human beings. He adds that moral leadership is “behaviour which is consistent with personal and organisational values which are in turn derived from a coherent ethical system” (p. 64). Additionally, they exemplify their leadership by limiting self-interest because they see leadership as a resource rather than status.
In the narrowest form, moral leadership begins with closing the gap of student achievement. This highlights the moral issue that students have the right to reach their potential. However, theorists suggest this view of moral leadership is the starting point towards becoming human, which is conveyed by a leader’s deeper sense of moral purpose (Fullan et al., 2006; Fullan, 2009; Hargreaves & Fink, 2006; Hopkins, 2011; Robertson, 2011; Terrell & Lindsey, 2009). Moral leaders are acutely aware of this, as well as the limitations of human behaviour when it comes from a self-centred perspective. Moral leaders begin by focusing on their own values and ethics. This assists in their decision making when resolving ethical issues, which they communicate and model to followers (Becker, 2009; Begley, 2010; Currie & Lockett, 2007).
Marshall and Oliva (2006) believe the above description is a form of ‘moral transformative leadership’. They state that this form of leadership has three specific distinctions:
1. Leaders critically analyse the positive and negative effects of power within the educational institution.
2. Leaders deconstruct their work in order to reduce inequality in the organisation’s culture.
3. Leaders believe that their school promotes academic learning as well as helping “to create activists to bring about the democratic reconstruction of society” (p.19).
In this form of leadership, ethical principles are transformed into moral actions through the social reality, relationships and subjective meaning that is unearthed from a shared moral purpose (Greenfield Jr, 2004; Harris, Day, & Hadfield, 2003; West-Burnham, 2009).
Moral leaders are aware of the need to foster context based values, which lead to morally based actions (Begley, 2010; Day et al., 2001). These types of leaders have been recognised as having the moral craft to manage evolving issues within their organisations, while maintaining “a highly contextualised and relational construct” (Day et al., 2001, p. 25). Sergiovanni (1994, 2001) states that morally based leaders enhance a school’s capacity to build frameworks or a moral compass. They have a unique ability to construct collective moral responsibility and connections amongst organisational members. Schools characterised by this move from being an educational institute to a living community. For example, Sergiovanni (2001) believes this involves a moral awareness of what it means to be a school community:
1. Community helps satisfy the need that teachers, parents, and students have to be connected to each other and to the school;
2. Community helps everyone in the school to focus on the common good;
3. Community provides students with a safe harbour in a stormy sea - a place where they are accepted unconditionally;
5. Community builds relationships and responsibilities. (p. 62)
Sergiovanni’s (2001) description of an authentic school community highlights a leader who is focused on relationships within their community, while managing the complexity of leadership in today’s schools. Day et al. (2001) have identified head teachers who lead in this way, which they note as a form of values-led contingency. Day (2000, 2004, 2005) believes values-led leaders understand the complexity of their roles. They have a holistic approach towards achieving their moral purpose and are known for their courage and tenacity. These authentic moral leaders actively nurture a community culture because they see themselves as agents of change, guiding teachers, parents and students towards a shared moral purpose (Day, 2004; Fullan, 2002b, 2003b, 2008a).
Moral leaders, based on the above description, have been noted as engaging in deep reflection about their own actions and beliefs. They constantly reflect on their moral purpose as leader and learner. As a result, they enhance their own self- awareness and knowledge (Branson, 2007; Greenfield Jr, 2004). For example, Frick (2009) noted in research that principals were able to tap into unique mental models based on the context of the ethical issues presented. These mental models were not based on normative ethical frameworks but rather on a notion of applied ethics in action. In other words, their moral leadership reflected the authentic concept of “what one is, as opposed to what one does. What one is flows directly from the values he or she possess” (Maguad & Krone, 2009, p. 210).
Enlow and Popa (2008) support ‘what one is and what one does’ as a concept of authentic moral leadership. They note these leaders have the ability to apply a complex notion of moral reasoning, which they describe as moral imagination. For example, these moral leaders have the capacity to envision a better human society. Theorists also describe this as a form of ethical intelligence (Glanz, 2006; Maak & Pless, 2006; Pless & Maak, 2008; Sammons & Elliot, 2003). Furthermore, Dalton, Fawcett and West-Burnham (2001) propose that moral imagination enables a new concept of a school community to emerge. This is where the school becomes “a resource for the community on equal terms with its
statutory educational function” (p. 145). Werhane, Hartman, Moberg, Englehardt, Pritchard & Parmer (2011) support the notion of moral imagination. They describe it as leaders’ ability to make decisions by perceiving a combination of normative, social and relationship based values. This view is also supported by Maak and Pless (2006).
West Burnham (2009) summarises a view of authentic moral leadership by stating that it consists of five intersecting themes of leadership:
1. The embodiment of consistent leadership values (personal and organisation values).
2. Supporting teachers to become more professional as they pursue a clear purpose of education.
3. The fostering of social capital within a united community. 4. The culture of the school reinforces a shared moral purpose, and 5. Leadership is “deeply rooted in the ethics of education” (p. 66).