Lean On Me Assessment - Essay Example

1) The culture of the school prior to Mr. Clark’s arrival was chaotic. The were out of control. The school was full of drugs and violence. There was no order within the school grounds. It was not a good place for learning. The teachers were intimidated by the students. The students did not respect the teachers. Good students were being harassed by the troublemakers. 2) Mr. Clark is able to impose control over the school by using an authoritarian leadership style. “Authoritarian leaders, also known as autocratic leaders, provide clear expectations for what needs to be done, when it should be done, and how it should be done” (Cherry, 2014).

He is very strict and he believes a lot in the value of discipline. In a way he acted like a dictator in the school. His leadership style worked well with the students, but it got him into trouble with the teachers because he did not show mutual respect. The teachers were not the enemy they are a part of the solution to fix the problems at the school. 3) I would describe Mr. Clark’s organizational interventions as one sided. He controlled the interventions by imposing his authority into others.

Due to the major problems the school faced Mr. Clark was the right person for the job. He made sure he resolved problems by imposing strict measures. 4) Mr. Clark’s interventions brought clarity and changes to the school. He was a leader that got involved in every aspect of the school including students, teachers and parents. The students at this school needed the discipline. His style got him into trouble with the teachers because it seemed he did not respect their work. An example of a wrong decision by Mr.

Clark was firing the music teacher for standing up to him. 5) As the principal Mr. Clark had legitimate power over the teachers. Legitimate power is formal authority that can be used to control other people (Schermerhorn, Hunt, Osborn, 2003). Mr. Clark was too tough on the teachers and he was not accepting their input. As time passed in the story of the movie Mr. Clark started to change his ways and he began to cooperate with the teachers in order to make the school a better place for everyone.

ReferencesCherry, K. (2014). Lewin’s Leadership Style. Retrieved February 2, 2014 from http://psychology.about.com/od/leadership/a/leadstyles.htm Schermerhorn, J., Hunt, J., Osborn, R. (2003). Organizational Behavior (8th ed.). New York: John Wiley & Sons. .