Humble leaders can be helpful in making groups more effective: Study

Modest leaders of teacher groups help to boost professionalism and engagement among team members, suggest the findings of a recent study. The study, done in China, found that teachers in the Chinese equivalent of professional learning communities (PLCs) were more willing to share their knowledge and expertise when they rated their PLC leaders as being higher in humility. The reason was that humble leaders made teachers feel more empowered to share their knowledge because they felt psychologically safe to take risks, said study co-author Roger Goddard, professor of educational studies at The Ohio State University. ìA little humility on the part of leaders goes a long way in helping groups be more productive and collaborative,î Goddard said. ‘When people feel their leader admits mistakes and is open to learning from others, everyone contributes more and makes these groups more effective.’ Goddard conducted the study with Yun Qu of Beijing Normal University in China and Jinjie Zhu, a doctoral student in education at Ohio State. The study was published online recently in the journal Educational Studies. In the United States and elsewhere, PLCs are designed to facilitate professional development through discussions in which teachers share their best practices and what they have learned through their experiences in the classroom.