When I was a boy, my friends and I loved to ride our bikes
all over our small town. We had railroad
tracks running through the middle of the town and we would sometimes have to
cross over them. If you’ve ever looked
down the length of a set of railroad tracks, you may have noticed that they
seem to converge into a single point somewhere near the horizon. In reality, they never actually touch; it’s
just an optical illusion. The art world
would refer to this phenomenon as single point perspective. In what way does this relate to leadership in
education? A singular point of
perspective can present a problem when making decisions. In chapters 4 and 5, Picciano discusses the
use of technology to make “data-driven” decisions. Data-driven decision making can only be
effective if more than one piece of data is used in the process. If only a student’s raw score on a state
achievement test was used as a gage to measure student performance and teacher
effectiveness, some very important needs may never be recognized or met. Picciano’s example showed that analyzing
scores in relation to various student demographics revealed more than raw
scores ever could and led to the committee’s development of a plan targeted at
very specific needs and areas needing improvement. In the art world, this would compare with two
point perspective. Two point perspective
adds depth and dimension to a composition.
This doesn’t apply to how leaders make data-driven decisions; it also
applies to how they lead. Hall points
out that teams are comprised of a variety of personalities, backgrounds,
experience levels, and motivations. Every
member brings their own perspective to the table. It’s the leader’s job to take all of their
perspectives to give depth to their mission.
