Leadership is essential in all aspects of life, including within families, at work, and in the community. As social beings, humans naturally seek the security and guidance of capable leaders.

Recognising this universal need for leadership emphasises the critical importance of leadership development in children and young people. In a previous blog post, I detailed three vital strategies schools should employ to cultivate students’ leadership skills.

These strategies include explicit teaching, making leadership development accessible to all students, and providing opportunities for students to practice and demonstrate leadership.

In this blog post, I outline three key elements to include in a student leadership program to add depth and difference when you’re teaching leadership to students.

 

1. Build CHARACTER.

Character trumps personality when we consider authentic leadership. Many character traits contribute to leadership excellence, but responsibility, empathy and resilience  consistently  appear in studies of leadership attributes:

Responsibility

Personal accountability is essential to authentic leadership. Without accountability, there is no leadership. Develop responsibility by assigning kids tasks that require accountability.

• For example, giving students leadership roles in group projects or classroom activities helps them understand the importance of reliability and meeting deadlines.

• Encouraging students to set personal goals and reflect on their progress also fosters a sense of ownership over their actions and decisions.

Empathy

Empathy enables leaders to connect with others. Without empathy, leaders are simply managers—foster student empathy through activities that encourage understanding and compassion.

• Use role-playing exercises where students must consider different perspectives and discuss how others might feel.

• Incorporating literature and stories highlighting diverse experiences can help students better understand others’ emotions and challenges.

Resilience  Great leaders must be resilient to handle criticism and rejection and lead through difficulties. To build leadership resilience, create a supportive environment where students feel safe taking risks and learning from their mistakes.

• Encourage a growth mindset by praising effort rather than innate ability, which helps students view challenges as opportunities for growth.

• Providing constructive feedback and celebrating small successes can motivate students to persevere through difficulties and setbacks.

By focusing on these traits, you are helping to develop effective and compassionate leaders.

 

2. Develop VALUES.

Great leaders have strong values that anchor them when they make decisions and interact with others. Three fundamental leadership values to promote when teaching leadership to students are integrity, respect and courage.

Integrity

Integrity is the north star on the moral compass, or it should be. It implies honesty, principles and ethical behaviour. Integrity has many layers, but it can be encouraged in primary classrooms in many ways, including:

• Encouraging honesty and ethical behaviour in all classroom activities.

• Holding open discussions about moral dilemmas and the importance of doing the right thing, even when it’s complicated.

• Role-play scenarios where students must make ethical decisions can also help reinforce the value of integrity.

Respect

Respect is at the heart of all decent human interactions and, as such, is an essential value for leaders. Teachers cultivate respect by promoting a classroom environment where every student feels valued and heard. For leadership development:

• Teachers should model respectful behaviour by listening actively to students and acknowledging their opinions.

• Providing group activities that require students to work together and appreciate each other’s contributions can also help instil a sense of respect.

Courage

Every leader must be courageous and willing to make bold and difficult decisions. Develop courage* in the classroom by encouraging students to take on new challenges, even when they feel uncomfortable or anxious.

• Include activities that require public speaking, presenting ideas, or leading group discussions.

• Celebrate with students when they show bravery, whether in small or significant ways. Recognition reinforces the importance of courage in leadership.

*The Young Leaders Program incorporates values identification into its sessions, which adds depth to its program offering.

 

3. Build COMPETENCY.

Research consistently shows that influential leaders have above-average communication skills, exceptional organisational abilities, and high levels of emotional intelligence. Each of these competencies can be developed in primary school.

Presentation skills

Speaking in front of others is a crucial leadership competency. The inability to speak in front of others prevents many students (and adults) from taking on leadership roles.

• Please encourage students to present in front of their peers regularly. This could be through class presentations, debates, or storytelling sessions.

• Teach students how to create different types of presentations, just as you teach students to write for various purposes.

Organisation

Organisational ability is a crucial management and leadership competency that every budding young leader should have.

• Help students set specific, achievable goals for their tasks and projects. This teaches them to plan and prioritise effectively.

• Give students opportunities to collaborate in teams with shared leadership and organisation tasks.

Emotional intelligence

Self-awareness, emotional regulation and the ability to understand the emotions of others are higher-level leadership capacities that shouldn’t be left to chance.

• Please encourage students to reflect on their emotions and how they affect their behaviour. Journaling is a valuable tool for this.

• Use a tool such as the Young Leaders Feelings Finder or Mood Meter to help students identify their emotions and shift to an emotional state required by a situation.

Teaching and developing these key competencies are central to the Young Leaders’ way of leadership development.

 

Finally…..

This is the second part of a two-blog series on student leadership development. In summary, student leadership development occurs best in primary schools when:

 

1. Leadership is taught, not caught.
2. Leadership is accessible to all.
3. Real leadership opportunities are available for aspiring leaders.
4. Character, rather than personality, influence leadership.
5. Leaders model the core values of their schools and communities.
6. Key leadership competencies are taught and nurtured.

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NOTE: When you’re ready to develop the leadership potential of students, the Young Leaders Program offers everything you need (lessons, leadership framework, modelling, mentoring, journalling) to start senior students on their leadership journey. Find out more.