In 1966 Robert F Kennedy gave a in South Africa, where he spoke these words about moral courage.
“Few are willing to brave the disapproval of their fellows, the censure of their colleagues, the wrath of their society. Moral courage is a rarer commodity than bravery in battle or great intelligence.
“Yet it is the one essential, vital quality of those who seek to change a world which yields most painfully to change.”
Perhaps it is because I am approaching 50 (having spent half of those years within education) that I feel increasingly clear that moral courage is so profoundly important as a leader - but it is also perhaps the hardest trait to live up to.
Moral courage in leadership
To demonstrate moral courage, one must challenge the status quo, question received wisdom and advocate for more marginalised others, without any expectation of transactional reciprocity.
This is not easy. Taking a stand can result in friends becoming “former acquaintances” and one’s career opportunities being curtailed as bridges are burned trying to navigate the tightrope of integrity.
As such, it is easy to “hide” at the moments when moral courage is most needed; to retreat into the power structures that offer so much, rather than call them out, to keep one’s head down at a time when others need support.
Or perhaps worse, to only feel emboldened to call out issues once the benefits of the systems and structures now being decried have been thoroughly enjoyed.
The dark side of financialisation
Within international education, especially in the past six years as the sector has grown rapidly, it has been clear to see the creeping financialisation of the sector that has led to blurred priorities of profits over pupils and the public good.
When this goes wrong, the results can be terrible: bullying line managers, a focus on returns for investors over professional standards, school cultures where staff do not flourish (despite what mission statements or inspection accolades claim) but suffer burnout, anxiety and exhaustion.
A recent high-profile report about a school in Singapore revealed exactly this - and it will no doubt have been recognised by others as mirroring cultures they have experienced in other settings.
And from all this, the obvious question: if staff are not safe in school, how can we expect them to keep children safe?
Calling out wrongdoing
As a sector, then, we need moral courage - to speak out when we see wrongdoing, to question when it is clear that something is amiss, to be willing to be awkward or difficult and not accept “that’s just the way we do things”.
As outlined before, this is not easy. But for those of us in positions to speak truth to power, we must do so. We cannot wait until the moment has passed and then, many years hence, decide the time has come to make a noise.
We need transparency and accountability to overcome conflicts of interest and nepotism across all jurisdictions. We need a standard whereby peers can challenge in a safe and structured way to root out bad actors and bring the necessary systemic reform.
Education does so much good for many - whether internationally or in state systems. And the majority of those in the system act in good faith and want the best for both their fellow teachers and young people in their care.
Moral courage must be found, though, to ensure that schools are truly safe environments that are beacons of hope and safety for all.
Kausor Amin-Ali is principal of Frontline International School, Ajman, United Arab Emirates, and chair of governors at Robert Miles Infant School, Nottingham, UK. He is also the author of A-Z of School Leadership, A-Z of Teaching and A-Z of Learning
