Unit 10

Part A

According to Strong (2018) in the Unit 10 notes and Goldacre (2011) in his TEDTalk on Battling Bad Science; in order to determine the credibility of an article and the research findings presented I need to examine the article carefully and check for/be aware of the following:

• Check to see if the article  is scholarly and has been peer reviewed
• Research the journal’s reputation and look at what “the requirements for document submission” (Strong, 2018) are.
• Check the author’s reputation. As Goldacre (2011) points out, not every Certificate or Degree comes with the same academic rigour behind it.
• Check to see if the research has been funded by sources that, “meet or exceed those for prestigious journals” (Strong, 2018).  Strong (2018) provides a list of sources in Unit 10 notes that meet these requirements.
• Ensure that the data being collected is transferable to a larger population and generalization of results (Strong, 2018).
• Both Goldacre (2011) and Strong (2018) discuss research bias and the importance of researchers not having any personal bias towards favourable results. Examples shared by Goldacre (2011) referenced pharmaceutical company studies that were biased towards that companies products.
• If a study to cannot be replicated by someone else, the results and methods have been significantly skewed.

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Part B

I think that evidence-based decision making is important for the Transformational Servant leader because Transformational Servant leaders “create trust in their organizations by making their own positions clearly known and then standing by them” (Northouse, 2019, p. 175).  In order to make trustworthy decisions, the decisions need to backed by evidence. They also need to help create a shared vision, be able to be a role model,  and enable others to act (Northouse, 2019) and to do so effectively, leaders need to ensure that they have credible and ethically produced evidence to draw upon.  Evidence based learning must be present in a Transformational Servant Leader in order to help members of their team grow and succeed, to conceptualize a plan, to promote healing and reconciliation and to create value for the community (Northouse, 2019).

As part of a District team that is helping to create and implement new courses that correlate with the redesigned curriculum, it is imperative that I refer to and use scholarly evidence to back up suggestions that I share with the team. A recent example is my Administrator has asked for my assistance in helping him prepare for a presentation that he will have to make to the District Leadership Team next week to address some concerns around moving a certain course from Grade 12 to Grade 11. I need to prepare evidence for him to present that will help demonstrate that keeping the course in Grade 12 is what’s best for students (not what may be best for timetabling or course funding). As someone who is striving to help students grow and succeed, I need to conceptualize an ethical plan that creates value for the school community that centres entirely around making evidenced based decisions.

References

Goldacre, B. (2011). Battling bad science. Retrieved from https://www.ted.com/talks/ben_goldacre_battling_bad_science

Northouse, P.G. (2019). Leadership: Theory & Practice (8th ed). Sage Publications.

Strong, H. (2018). Unit 10 Learning Activities. Retrieved from https://create.twu.ca/ldrs591/unit-10-learning-activities/