New prof focuses on leadership

Peng Liu comes to his role as new EAF&P assistant professor in educational leadership with an approach that if you want to make positive change in society, you have to make positive change in education for the communities that need it most.
To that end, his teaching and research interests have focused on educational leadership, leadership development, critical policy analysis, school development and comparative leadership. He is research currently centres on Indigenous leadership.
Liu asks three questions in his study of Indigenous leadership: 1) What is leadership from the Indigenous Peoples’ perspective? 2) How is Indigenous leadership performed in different contexts? 3) What is effective Indigenous leadership practice?
Regarding the first topic, Liu points out that most of the current literature on leadership approaches the subject from a Western European perspective.
“There is a lack of research on how Indigenous Peoples perceive their own leadership.” Liu says, adding he plans to conduct a qualitative study to examine this topic further.
For the second research question, Liu plans to explore how Indigenous leadership is performed in different contexts, including educational reform, the relationship between cultural contexts and Indigenous leadership.
“Culture is very important factor influencing how people behave,” Liu says. “In an Indigenous cultural context, Indigenous Peoples will have their own unique leadership practices.”
And for the last research question, Liu’s study will turn toward investigating the effectiveness of successful Indigenous leadership practices, using a quantitative study to examine how effective Indigenous leadership practices affect teacher emotions, school effectiveness and student learning.
More information about Dr. Liu at http://umanitoba.ca/faculties/education/directory/Liu.html

Charlie McDougall