Leadership in Higher Education: Graduate Teaching Assistants as the agents of change

Abstract

A large cultural shift is occurring in academia. ‘Success’ is becoming viewed as more than just the publication of high-impact papers and the acquisition of large research grants before their competitors. To be revered by their peers, within their institution and across their field, academics must also demonstrate motivational leadership and engaging teaching. Early career researchers (ECRs) tend to suffer the most from the detrimental effects of this ‘publish or perish’ research culture as they sit at the bottom of the traditional academic hierarchy. For those ECRs that work as graduate teaching assistants (GTAs), poor leadership behaviours from supervisors could be deemed ‘the norm’ and could be reflected in the GTA’s teaching practice, or the behaviour might be recognised as harmful and can be actively avoided. This essay discusses how GTAs are in a powerful position to prevent the spread of toxic leadership in higher education because they are still actively learning and developing their academic identity. I describe how my own experience of poor leadership has shaped my teaching; through this case study, I illustrate how GTAs can utilise positive leadership behaviours to improve the student experience. Future directions for how institutions can facilitate leadership development through training initiatives early in the academic career path are also discussed.