Problems of formation of a leader in HEIs according to

demands of modern society

Alimbekova А.А.

L.N. Gumilyou Eurasian National University

6D010300-Pedagogy and Psychology

Astana. Kazakhstan

The present-day reality brings us into accordance with its conditions and every time imposes the new requirements to the society. With every passing day there is increasing the topicality of requirement for preparing an occupational specialist whose administrative abilities are distinct, and who mentally strains after the community relief. In order to achieve the objectives any manufacture needs a leader – a personality who is ready and willing to perform any difficult work which requires sensibility, intention, intellectualism, competence and physical vigor, as soon as who can offer peculiar ideas. One of the main tasks of higher education institutions is to form a personality who is competitive at politico-social and economic crisis, who is willing to take responsibility of the leader, adaptive to different situations, has ambition to develop independently from the intellectual and creative perspectives, competent to designate his own position in society. Nevertheless nowadays most of students do not consumed with desire to participate in solving the challenging problems, incapable to take responsibility and awake interest in something. And society needs the personalities who possess highly developed communicative, managerial skills, able to administer in case of severe position of marked competition, willing to act taking into account needs, interests and possibilities of each person in his team.

For the further development and to be among competitive states in our young country from year to year there it grows the topicality of problem of personnel training. Politico-economical and social conditions of any state develop according to their staff. For this reason in the higher education institutions it is necessary to realize preparation of the leaders who are willing to manage personnel, able to have a dialogue at equal levels, can perform own work together with his partners on the basis of personal-directed mutual activities, relying on humanistic ideas of the future specialists.

In the general student groups the leadership is a little-investigated problem. It took definite place in the sphere of psychology, and in the pedagogy science there was paid little attention to the leadership of students. Since the professional life requires them to be courageus, responsible, active, and enterprising, the education process in the higher education institutions is directed to develop its team on the part of creativity, to provide favourable pedagogical conditions for formation of a leader who is capable to unlock the potential of each member of his team.

Campus life is considered to be successful and happy time for a student when his managerial abilities are fully revealed, and developed his led managed skills and abilities effectively to lead the team.

However, in the modern pedagogical higher education institutions there is not paid due attention to the problem of formation and development of students’ leadership skills. There is not the necessary package of actions directed for development of leadership skills that is needed for professional advancement. Many students are not able to present fully their leadership skills. It is evident that it is necessary to create a program for formation of leadership skills of HEI students. Each student needs help to become responsible and free while making his creative choice, to determine his role and place in society, to be an active and initiative personality.

In such a case at the stage of leader formation we can mention personalized directions which are based on assuming by a teacher of each student as a unique or one only personality who has his private interests, goals, opinion, human values and who on the way of self development and designation of his own place in society strives to realize his priority of option.

Today according to the changes taking place in society there were significantly increased interests concerning to this problem.

In Kazakhstan there are next to non the case studies on the problem of leadership, and Russian scientists in the sphere of pedagogy-psychology, management made a substantial contribution for expansion and updating the such notions as “leader”, “leadership”, “leadership skills”, “leadership potential”, “leadership creativity”, “managerial abilities”. If to turn our attention to the different definitions of the notion “leadership” given by them:

Leader is the representative of a small group who comes forward as a result of interaction of its members, or organizes around himself a group at compliance of its norms and valuable orientations with group ones, and promotes organization and management of this group at achievement of the group purposes. (N.S. Zherebova).

Leader – he this is the leader, his is the person who consciously and actively conducts others to achievement of a definite purpose (V.I. Zatsepin).

The leader is the person who by nature possesses certain properties, but it does not that he obligatorily will become the leader. For this purpose he has to acquire certain cultural values and be at a certain information level, be able to realize the opportunities he has (A.L. Umanskiy).

Leadership skills are certain personality features peculiar to a person who is capable to have control over people around, and necessary identities for effective impact on other people for the purpose of achievement of objectives set.

The problem of leadership was considered by researchers from different positions:

- as a means of coordination, organization of the relations of group members, tool of controlling them (P.L. Krichevskiy);

- as a social and mental phenomenon providing increase of efficiency of the official management (B.D. Parygin);

- as a mechanism of integration of group, group activity (V.B. Olshanskiy).

- as one of the processes for organization and management of a small group satisfying need for group activity, promoting achievement of the group purposes in a reasonable amount of time and with optimum result, eventually, determined according to the contents by the social relations dominating in this society (N.S. Zherebova);

- as a phenomenon of active leading influence of the personality – the group member – on the group in general (L.I. Umanskiy).

- as a result of interaction of a small group members in a certain period of time which both existence of any given qualities or a set of these characteristics possessed by the members, and their manifestation in a certain situation have influence with, as well as mutual influence of the possessed qualities in a certain situation (A.L. Umanskiy);

- as a personal capacity for management, domination of a personality, bringing the others under control in specific conditions. The phenomenon of leadership is connected with task solution and organization of some activity important for the group (A.S. Zaluzhnyi).

From the standpoint of scientists if among the members of the group there is formed relationship which recognizes management, the suggested definitions of leadership show necessity of a leader for the group.

In the first half of the XX century the foreign psychologists first draw their attention to the problem of leadership. A. Adler considered leadership as aspiration for power which emerged in consequence of fear. A. Adler stated that at a person who is possessed by fear it occurs necessity to rule. He gave consideration for suggestion of leadership position by a personality as a necessary circumstance to live.

The American sociologist E. Bogardus determined that a leader possesses such characteristic qualities as knowledge, courtesy, ability to see a joke, intractable temper, know a thing or two, vigor and etc.

In the middle of the XX century a lot of scientists who investigated the problem of leadership gave the following description to the notion leadership: “to stimulate the group to reach the shared objectives, to help a personality to realize general obligations”. He told that leadership consists of activities of all group members, because all of them have their influence in consequence of performed activities: “all members of the group are considered to be leaders, because all of them have their influence as the result of group action, the difference only in possibility of each of them to influence”.

The general conditions for all definitions given in the American social psychology in those years – is recognition of actions of group members as an important factor when the leader is achieving some goals. Consequently, leader is a personality who is engaged in realization of norms and values of other people. Leader defines mutual relations of people in his group, their performing capabilities and responsibility.

Leadership quality of a personality manifests itself as stimulation of the group to reach the general objectives, tendency of rendering of help to the group or ingenuity of leading people to reach the defined goals. Consequently, leadership is activity of a person performed in order to help others define the general goals in the group and reach those goals. According to the scientist, in order to have a leader in the group three factors are necessary:

1. The group must consist of two or more people.

2. It is necessary general tasks and goals.

3. Members of the group must have different responsibilities.

Leadership asserts good influence to form homely atmosphere in the group, in such condition all members of the group do not get perturbed, do not feel fear and helplessness and can work jointly. The leader help each member of the group achieve success, he inspires and spirits up to see the positive aspects of the business they deal with and impacts on people to accept the general goals as their personal very important goals.

According to the views of the scientists, great leaders are not born – they are made. They consider that leadership is knowledge, skill, ability, habit, and harmony of relations which people can learn and develop. Accordingly, education and bringing up process which helps the students in a group form leadership and possess knowledge, skill and ability should be directed to the right way.

Leader is a personality; it is defined by his activities, service and sociocultural environment. As a pedagogue the identity of a leader is particularly defined. The pedagogue should intentionally influence on the students to form in them the qualities of leadership. However, it can be realized in case if a pedagogue is theoretically and methodically ready to form a leader among the students, he is a leader itself and capable to lead the way for the others. His theoretical qualification characterizes the level of knowledge of the pedagogue which he can teach his students; methodical qualification is his ability to educate students and influence on them. Teaching practice proves that all this is necessary but insufficient. Because it is very important when a pedagogue is authoritative before students and is able lead and teach them.

Pedagogue teaches students to foresee and predict their personal advancement and prospects of public duty, actively to look toward to achieve those prospects, he performs his responsibilities in teaching and influences on students to form their leadership qualities. Emergence or formation of a leader among students offers an opportunity for success rate of social-and-pedagogical activity of the pedagogue, and it is support and driving force for constructive activities which are designed and realized in the social-and-cultural medium of the students. For a person who is growing professionally leadership is determined for him as qualitative characteristic which defines the prospects of his constructive self-development.

Literature

1. Zherebova, N.S. Leadership in small groups. Author’s abstract. Thesis Cand. Sc. - L., 1969. – p. 5.

2. Zatsepin, V.I. Revising the structure of vertical communication in the group. Managements and leadership (experience of social-psychological research) / Under the editorship of D.B. Parygin. - L.: Publishing house Leningrad state university - 1973. – P.78-93.

3. Umanskiy A.L. Pedagogical maintenance of a children’s leadership. Author’s abstract. Thesis. Doc. sc.: 13.00.01. - Yaroslavl, 2005. – p. 39.

4. Krichevskiy, R. L. Determinants of role differentiation of the leadership in small groups [Text] / R.L. Krichevskiy// Psychology questions. — 1977.- № 1. – P.28-38.

5. Parygin, B.D. Management and leadership//Management and leadership Publishing house Leningrad state university, 1973. – P. 5-12.

6. Olshanskiy, V.B. Experimantsl psychology for teachers. - M.: Onega, 1994. – p.268.

7. Umanskiy L.I. Stage-by-stage development of a group as a collective // Collective and personality. - M.: Nauka, 1975.- P. 77-87.

8. Adler Yu. Leadership as mechanism of continuous ensuring of competitiveness. Standards and quality. - 2000.- № 10. – P. 14-23.