Student Leadership Roles Research Articles

Authentic student leadership development: structural equation model testing differences among student leader populations

ABSTRACT Objective There remains a need for effective and ethical development in students, for cohesive and connected societies of moral actors. This paper adopts an authentic leadership development in students perspective as a possible complement to discipline expertise. This research explored whether taking leadership roles while studying had a positive effect on students’ development of authentic leadership attributes, including demographic contributions. Method This study comprised a quantitative survey of undergraduate students (n = 415) at an Australian university using structural equation modelling to test relationships between student leadership status and authentic leadership. Results Results demonstrated that student leaders exhibited higher authentic leadership than students who were not leaders. Demographics (e.g. gender) also explained variance across authentic leadership scores. Authentic leadership also served as a useful predictor of whether students intended to take up formal student leadership roles. Conclusions Practical implications of this research include opportunities for policy development to support leadership opportunities and training for higher education students as a method of developing their authentic leadership.

The Impact of Student Leadership on Chinese International Students’ Language Proficiency and Belongingness

International students, especially Chinese international students, are underrepresented in leadership roles in Canadian universities. A review of the related literature indicates that low language proficiency, lack of belongingness, and cultural difference inhibited Chinese international students’ leadership opportunities. This study adopted semi-structured, one-on-one interviews to investigate the benefits that five Chinese international student participants perceived, based on leadership roles in which they participated. The results suggest that taking student leadership roles facilitated participants’ language development at one Canadian university and enhanced their belongingness to the university. However, their participation in student leadership roles did not contribute to their belongingness to Canadian society.

Building a No Cost Undergraduate Community Speech Clinic

Aim: This study aimed to explore the clinic learning models through student perspectives using that insight to explore how these students viewed a newly established speech clinic program and understand the organizational and learning benefits and limitations of the clinic and how it can be improved for future service for student learning.
 Methods: This exploratory study utilized an observation analysis to understand how the student-led functioning of the clinic fits into both the learning models of Bloom’s Taxonomy and Bandura’s Triadic Reciprocal Model of Causality and the factors that contribute most to these learning models. These models were chosen due to the systemic and progressive nature of learning that reflects the academic mission of the university’s accrediting body: the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges. A mixed closed and open-ended student questionnaire was utilized to gain insight into themes that influence the student-led learning model.
 Results: The clinic was overall seen as a place of relationship building and skills development. The main contributors to this relationship-building and skills development lie in the ability of students to apply what they have been learning in the classroom to a functional situation, as well as the opportunity to serve the community and build confidence and leadership skills.
 Conclusion: Student leadership roles in the clinic are leading to self-efficacy which is seen in the highest level of Bloom’s Taxonomy and Bandura’s Triadic Reciprocal Model of Causality.

Exploring the Benefits for First-Year University Students Joining Peer Groups: A case study of a South African University

Abstract
 This study focused on the benefits for first-year university students who lived in the university residences at a South African University joining peer groups. A qualitative approach was adopted through a case study research design. Qualitative data were collected from first-year students in 2017 through three focus group interviews with females only, males only and mixed gender in two first-year residences at a selected South African university. The qualitative data were analysed using thematic analysis. The findings reveal the benefits for first-year students joining peer groups in the residences at the South African university, which include gaining a sense of belonging, receiving academic support, developing student leadership roles, and involving co-curricular activities. The study supports the need for implementing enchanted first-year student programs to assist first-year students in transitioning to higher education and decrease dropout rates.

Incorporation of Standard Operating Procedures for Leadership and Volunteer Transitions in a Student-Run Free Clinic

At the Saint Louis University Health Resource Center, all student leadership roles transition yearly, requiring a robust method to maintain institutional knowledge. Standard operating procedures (SOPs) are written documents containing detailed instructions for the completion of functions within a greater organization. SOPs are utilized in clinical settings and may be useful for student-run free clinics (SRFCs). This project sought to formally establish clinic procedures into centralized documents and assess the utility of these documents. We created SOPs for all leader and volunteer positions which were then assembled into Leadership and Volunteer Handbooks for increased accessibility. Two surveys, one for leaders and one for volunteers, were distributed after the 2020-2021 leadership transition period to investigate the utility of the SOPs. Although the response rates were insufficient, results suggest that leader and volunteer respondents found confidence in utilizing the SOPs during the transition period and beyond. SOPs allow our volunteers and leaders to enhance the performance of their roles despite frequent turnover of positions. Per constructive feedback from survey respondents, we plan to improve awareness of SOPs and increase the frequency of updating SOPs to reflect current clinic operations. Future research should evaluate the utility and efficacy of SOPs in other SRFCs through multiple transition cycles of active leaders and volunteers.

Gender and leadership development in undergraduate computing: a closer look at women’s leadership conceptions

ABSTRACT Background and Context Women remain underrepresented in undergraduate computing, student leadership roles, and computing leadership positions after college. This study provides insight into these inequities by examining gender and leadership conceptions among computing undergraduate students. Objective Guided by leadership identity development and undergraduate socialization theories, I examine the relationship between college experiences and computing students’ leadership confidence, focusing on the moderating role of gender. Method This study uses regression analysis, relying on a longitudinal sample of 1,081 computing students. Findings Findings highlight the role of family, peer, and faculty interactions in predicting leadership outcomes, with special attention to conditional effects by gender. Additionally, findings reveal that leadership confidence in computing appears to be more malleable than students’ general confidence in their leadership abilities. Unfortunately, I found that computing leadership confidence actually declines over time and that computing and general leadership ratings misaligned, such that women reported lower computing leadership confidence, relative to their general leadership confidence. Implications Findings point to the importance of discipline-specific inquiry on college student leadership development. Other findings underscore the importance of fostering high quality student-faculty interactions in computing.

Students as catalysts for curricular innovation: A change management framework

Introduction: The role of medical students in catalyzing and leading curricular change in US medical schools is not well described. Here, American Medical Association student and physician leaders in the Accelerating Change in Medical Education initiative use qualitative methods to better define student leadership in curricular change.Methods: The authors developed case studies describing student leadership in curricular change efforts. Case studies were presented at a national medical education workshop; participants provided worksheet reflections and were surveyed, and responses were transcribed. Kotter’s change management framework was used to categorize reported student roles in curricular change. Thematic analysis was used to identify barriers to student engagement and activators to overcome these barriers.Results: Student roles spanned all eight steps of Kotter’s change management framework. Barriers to student engagement were related to faculty (e.g. view student roles narrowly), students (e.g. fear change or expect faculty-led curricula), or both (e.g. lack leadership training). Activators were: (1) recruiting collaborative faculty, staff, and students; (2) broadening student leadership roles; (3) empowering student leaders; and (4) recognizing student successes.Conclusions: By applying these activators, medical schools can build robust student–faculty partnerships that maximize collaboration, moving students beyond passive educational consumption to change agency and curricular co-creation.

Students Lead the Library: The Importance of Student Contributions to the Academic Library. Sara Arnold-Garza and Carissa Tomlinson, eds. Chicago: Association of College & Research Libraries, 2017. 322p. $62.00 (ISBN 978-0-8389-8867-1). LC 2016-055675.

When trying to inspire students to engage with the library, a book titled Students Lead the Library turns out to be an excellent way to get their attention. Displaying this title while promoting a student advisory board last fall had the surprising effect of immediately drawing students in, as they expressed their pleasant surprise at learning that they could offer significant contributions to their college or university library. For academic librarians, of course, this is less of a surprise, since, as the editors state in the very first sentence of the book: “[Academic librarians] are driven by the belief that student scholars are at the heart of the academic library.” Yet even the most student-focused librarians may find themselves astonished by the diverse selection of student leadership roles represented in this collection of case studies.

The effects of individual characteristics, socioeconomic status, and political engagement on the attainment of student leadership roles in Chinese university students

This study analyzes the effects of individual characteristics, socioeconomic status, and political engagement among Chinese university students with respect to their attainment of student leadership roles. The study investigated 10,930 students from elite Chinese universities. The results showed that female and only-child students were more likely to become student leaders than male students and students with siblings. Students from local Hukou (household registration) were less likely than students from nonlocal Hukou, to become student leaders. Each upgrade of one level in the membership of the Chinese Communist Party doubled the students’ odds for attaining student leadership roles.

The University of California Veterinary Student Leadership Program: Comparison of a Five-Day with a Three-Day Course

Leadership skills can be learned and leadership activities can be stimulated with an effective educational program. The University of California, Davis, School of Veterinary Medicine has demonstrated and previously reported on the enthusiasm for and outcomes of their five-day leadership program for incoming veterinary students. The course was altered and again offered as a five-day program to the next veterinary class but, because of timing and limited resources, was reduced to three days the following year. Thirty students were accepted each year on a first-come first-served basis. This article compares the five-day and three-day program curricula and post-program evaluations. Although the students decided whether or not to participate, short-term effects of the programs were the introduction of a new vocabulary, improved confidence to become leaders, and stimulation of student participation in veterinary student leadership roles. A course like this can get students off to a good start, but it is very likely that to achieve a long-term effect, continued exposure throughout the veterinary curriculum is needed.

Fifty Years after Brown: The Benefits and Tradeoffs for African American Educators and Students

This article examines the benefits and tradeoffs for African American professional educators and students that resulted from the profound Brown v. Board of Education decision. It addresses the impact of the Brown decision immediately after it was rendered for African American educators and students and the legacy of Brown for both of these groups during the previous 50th years. The article also presents the findings from a study of 36 current and recently retired African American high school principals in North Carolina and Alabama to determine their perceptions of the legacy of the Brown decision for both African American educators and high school students. Additionally, the article presents the views of a small sample of these principals who were interviewed regarding the degree to which African American high school students are currently involved in student leadership roles and school activities. Results of the study indicated that the vast majority of the respondents believed that Brown had benefited both African American educators and students; however, they indicated that it had some unintended consequences such as a precipitous drop in the number of African American teachers to serve as role models, competent professionals, and authority figures for students-both Black and White. Furthermore, they perceive that, particularly in integrated high schools where White students are in the majority, the curriculum usually does not adequately address the history, contributions, culture, and experiences of African Americans. Moreover, the principals perceive that African American students in fully integrated schools, with few exceptions, are underrepresented in school leadership roles and are often reluctant to run for elective leadership positions because they usually do not believe they can win. INTRODUCTION On May 17, 1954, at 12:52 p.m., the United States Supreme Court rendered its momentous decision in the case of Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas (1954). The fundamental public policy that the court unanimously ruled upon was straightforward: segregated schools (established and maintained by state action) were inherently unequal. The court clearly said, through its ruling, that but was, in fact, a contradiction in terms-official state sanctioned segregation was a violation of the protection clause of the 14th Amendment of the Constitution, which forbids any state from making or enforcing any laws which deny any person within its jurisdiction the protection of the laws. Prior to the Supreme Court's ruling, dual and segregated school systems had been established and maintained for African American and White students. These schools systems were primarily in the southern states where Jim Crow laws had prevailed after reconstruction. Ironically, the rationale for establishing and maintaining de jure segregated schools had been also formalized by the United States Supreme Court in another momentous decision, Plessy v. Ferguson, in 1896, which legitimized the principle of separate but equal (1896). The case evolved from a suit filed by Homer Plessy, a Black man who had filed suit after he had initially been fined for sitting in the White section of a railroad car in Louisiana. His case questioned the constitutionality of an act of the General Assembly of the State of Louisiana, passed in 1890, providing for railway carriages for the White and colored races. Plessy contested the decision all the way to the United States Supreme Court, which upheld the state's but doctrine. In the Plessy decision, the Supreme Court gave racial inequality and segregation an air of legitimacy for over a half century. Moreover, it served to institutionalize racial segregation and social norms, particularly in me South, in both public and private arenas. Not only did the decision condone and maintain racially railroad cars and other modes of public transportation, it virtually assured segregation in schools and school activities, courthouses, waiting rooms, public beaches, swimming pools, restaurants, bathrooms and drinking fountains. …