Feb 02 2025 43 mins
In the debut episode of The Leader in Us podcast, hosts Sophie Crouch and Deb Kelly welcome guest speaker Sharron Jones, a regional pedagogue in Education Futures at UniSA's Whyalla campus, to discuss the transformative role of relationships in leadership and education. Sharron shares her journey as a teacher and leader in regional South Australia, where she developed and implemented "A Caring HyFlex" teaching model to address the unique needs of regional pre-service teachers.
Throughout the episode, Sharron emphasises the importance of fostering strong, trust-based relationships as the cornerstone of effective leadership. She highlights her philosophy of prioritising relationships over hierarchical leadership models and shares practical strategies for creating inclusive and empathetic learning environments. These include active listening, collaboration, and building student agency by encouraging self-confidence and independence.
Sharron also explores how her leadership style, rooted in humility and service, motivates her students and colleagues to embrace challenges and grow. Drawing on her experiences, she provides valuable insights into handling conflict, advocating for regional students, and inspiring others to lead by example.
This heartfelt conversation highlights the power of relationship-driven leadership to transform education, promote equity, and empower future leaders.
Sharron leaves listeners with a profound takeaway: By putting relationships first, everything else will naturally follow.
Listeners are invited to reflect on how relationships shape their own leadership journey and consider Sharron's thought-provoking question for the next guest: How do you promote agency and confidence in others?
For more information on "A Caring HyFlex Pedagogy", visit A Caring HyFlex Pedagogy (https://journals.sfu.ca/jalt/index.php/jalt/article/view/2067)
Throughout the episode, Sharron emphasises the importance of fostering strong, trust-based relationships as the cornerstone of effective leadership. She highlights her philosophy of prioritising relationships over hierarchical leadership models and shares practical strategies for creating inclusive and empathetic learning environments. These include active listening, collaboration, and building student agency by encouraging self-confidence and independence.
Sharron also explores how her leadership style, rooted in humility and service, motivates her students and colleagues to embrace challenges and grow. Drawing on her experiences, she provides valuable insights into handling conflict, advocating for regional students, and inspiring others to lead by example.
This heartfelt conversation highlights the power of relationship-driven leadership to transform education, promote equity, and empower future leaders.
Sharron leaves listeners with a profound takeaway: By putting relationships first, everything else will naturally follow.
Listeners are invited to reflect on how relationships shape their own leadership journey and consider Sharron's thought-provoking question for the next guest: How do you promote agency and confidence in others?
For more information on "A Caring HyFlex Pedagogy", visit A Caring HyFlex Pedagogy (https://journals.sfu.ca/jalt/index.php/jalt/article/view/2067)