Book Description

Abstract: The concept of leadership development has long been a focus of research in education. Notably, there has never been a more pertinent time in history for leadership. Since the beginning of the early 20th century, there has been thousands of research studies conducted on the 'traits' possessed by effective leaders (Northouse, 2009). Possibly, all of the traits identified could be associated with effective leadership; however the research leads us to believe there are six key traits to leadership including: intelligence, confidence, charisma, determination, sociability, and integrity (Northouse, 2009). These six traits in addition to leadership and decision-making efficacy are learnable, manageable characteristics that individuals can practice. High school students are at an age where development and growth are a part of everyday life and it is notable that these years in high school may tend to be the best and most crucial years for leadership development to begin. The opportunity to build leadership skills outside of the classroom may only exist for some high school students through their participation in organizations and activities. The purpose of this study was to determine if student participation in activities and organizations during high school was related to student leadership traits. This correlational study employed survey methodology to develop a profile of students at Madison Plains High School in London, Ohio. The survey collected quantitative data from high school student respondents used to describe the relationship between their self-perceived leadership and their participation in activities and organizations. The survey was administered via a paper questionnaire asking respondents to self-assess their leadership traits and to provide data about their participation in organizations and activities during high school. Demographic data was also requested. A six-point Likert-type response scale was provided for respondents to report their agreement/disagreement with 48 items that respectively comprised eight leadership trait categories. Students were also asked to report the number of years during high school that they participated in organizations and activities (0 year - 4 years) and also to indicate if they had served in a leadership role in each respective activity. Overall, this study found that Madison Plains High School students generally agreed that they possessed leadership traits comprising the eight leadership constructs. Junior students generally rated their self-perceived leadership traits lower than students in the other three grade levels on each of the eight leadership constructs. Nine statistically significant relationships were found between activity participation and the leadership constructs however, the magnitude of most correlation coefficients was low therefore, the relationships were not of practical significance. Based on the results of this study, the researchers concluded that there was no practical relationship between the self-perceived leadership traits of Madison Plains High School Students and their participation in organizations and activities during high school. Student leadership development should be a top priority for school administrators, teachers and faculty members at Madison Plains High School. School administrators and teachers should seek to provide students with leadership development opportunities within the scope of the school curriculum.