Leadership and Making a Difference

When I think of a leader, I think of someone who inspires change in people, whether it be in their actions or just in their thinking.  A leader inspires people to think differently about something or just begin to ask questions that may lead to a change in actions.  Leaders are people who want to make a difference, whether it be in a small way or a big way and actually take action to making that change.  Individual leaders have a passion in themselves that inspires them to make a difference.  This passion exudes from their very being and therefore intrigues others which gets them interested.  I have never met a leader quite like Dr. Smith but from the moment we did meet, I could tell he had passion for teaching and passion for his students.  As can be seen in the video, he believes that there needs to be a change in education, and he is the only professor that I ever encountered at the University of Western Ontario who is doing something in his classes to change his teaching for the better; utilizing the typical lecture method of a university class in engaging ways that keep students interested for a two hour class.  He is someone who exudes passion and fights for a change in education.  He makes students think, ask questions, be creative and actually learn and in doing so is one of the most awarded and favoured professors at Western.  A leader in education is someone who vitally cares about students and their learning, someone who wants to enable today’s students to be successful in the 21^st century, someone who has a passion for teaching AND continuous learning.  Leaders in education can inspire change in today’s classrooms which will allow for student engagement, integration of technology and learning that will actually be retained by the students.  I want to be an educational leader as a teacher and aspire to bring the things that I have learned from Dr. Smith, as well as the things that I have learned throughout my year at Brock University with me into the classroom and inspire my fellow teachers and my students to continue the change for the better.