Student Leadership Education In American Higher Education Institions

Since the late of 1970s, with the advent of global age, the leadership crisis and the call for effective leaders, as well as the emphasis put on the graduates' leadership attributes by employers in America compel higher education institutions reconsider its mission, which makes the development of students' leadership an unavoidable concern. At the same time, the innovation of work principle in student affair department makes the leadership education beneficial to students' development attractive undertaking. Under this background, the student leadership education is emerging in higher education institutions, which can be seen from more and more education programs. However, the student leadership education in American higher education institutions is not formulated in a vacuum, on the contrary, it results from higher education institutions' continuous response to the times and society. In the colony times, under the mission of developing leaders, American higher education institutions had been producing the traditional leaders. After civil war, with the emergence of specialized education, the development of students' leadership had once been neglected, however, the spontaneous student leadership education has never ceased to happen, which impels the official seriously deal with it. Finally, in the late of 1970s, facing with the call for ethic education from leadership crisis, promoted by professional associations, higher education institutions' commitment to leadership is increasingly clear, with the leadership programs springing up like mushrooms. Generally, these programs are charged by student affairs department. Though the operation model is different, nearly all the programs have multi-structured staff, appropriate class scale, strict requirement and rich resources.The examination of available data shows that the goals of student leadership education in higher education institutions are not consistent with each other, but the development of new type citizen leaders lie in the core of their mission. The "new type leaders" have the global horizon, cross-culture awareness, social responsibility, change orientation and ethic consciousness when compared to traditional transaction leaders; the "citizen leaders" is different from those official leaders with formal power and duty, because they put their identity as citizen at first place, and leader as the second. However, at whatever levels they act, this kind of leaders own engagement consciousness, community complex and public welfare feelings. The reasons for American higher education institutions intend to develop new citizen leaders are as followings: first, globalization call for new leadership paradigm, which requires the new generation of leaders good at dealing with change and different cultures. Second, American public prefer to the "bottom up" leadership model, which makes the grass-root leaders win the good grace. Third, the college students in 1980s were apathetic toward to citizen responsibility, featured by individualism and declined ethics awareness, which demand the response to it from leadership education programs. Last, the theory of transformation leadership and service leadership, as well as the concern with leadership ethics since 1970s inevitably influence college student leadership education.Though the student leadership education program in American higher education institutions don't have united attributes requirement for the new type leaders. However, the examination of available data shows that the expectations for this kind of leaders' attributes fall into three dimensions: knowledge, action and affection. Among them, the knowledge requirement includes professional, leadership and extended knowledge. The action dimensions demand of interpersonal and intrapersonal skills, decision-making ability and critic thinking ability. The affection dimensions demand of the willingness and values for leadership. In practice, the different leadership programs put emphasis on different attributes.In order to achieve the goal, the student leadership program adopt rich-instructed education means. Usually, they can be divided into five fields, including academic course, co-curricular activities, community service, mentoring and leadership job. Among them, academic course mean to teach leadership knowledge, skill and values. Co-curricular activities mean to guide students discuss related topics and acquire some skills. Community service can help to develop community awareness, public feelings, social responsibility and serve as bridge between theory and practice. Mentoring provide student with individual leadership education service. Leadership job give students the opportunity to practice leadership. However, not all the leadership education programs arrange the above five modules, but put emphasis on different means.The evaluation by Kellogg Foundation and HERI shows that the student leadership education in American higher education institutions well promotes the leadership development of participants, meantime, higher education institutions themselves and the neighborhood community benefit from it. The following experiences contribute to its success: the support from society; the strategic horizon and academic advantage of higher education institution; the excellent program management. However, it doesn't mean that the student leadership education in American higher education institutions is perfect, there are three problems challenging their further development: the unstable fund source; the unsound theoretical base and the inconsistent practice. The author believes, as to the further development direction, there are three obvious trends: the increasing of program numbers; the population of cooperation between institutions and the emphasis on studying abroad.The deep probe of the nature of student leadership education in American higher education institutions shows that it is interdisciplinary. Its courses can be found in any discipline, the professional background of its staff and students is multiple. The complication of leadership activity and the comprehension of leadership research are responsible for it.The student leadership education programs in American higher education institutions have some practice in common due to the influence of some theories in leadership and educational psychology field. In the leadership field, there are the social change model of leadership development and the three factors in leader development. In the educational psychology field, there are constructivism and empirical learning theory.The student leadership education in American higher education institutions is featured by the followings: the historical and logical relations with liberal education; the commitment to community; the integral combination with professional education; the emphasis on multiple-culture awareness; the concerns for disadvantageous groups.The historical examination of the relationship among higher education institutions, leadership education and college student leadership education shows that higher education institutions has been involving with leadership education, consciously or not. Moreover, the involvement has never faded because of the appearance of independent leadership education institutions. The structure or nature of higher education institution is suitable to leadership education, and the college student leadership education maybe the logical result. So, during the process of promoting leadership education, the higher education institution deserves the attention.For the current leadership education, one of the measures to lend force from higher education institutions is to carry out student leadership education. This is the choice fit for the leader development rule and the trend deserving the attention. For our country, it also can enhance the competency power in global age, promote the democratic politics process, heighten the future leader quality, promote the interaction between university and community and make the graduate employment easier.With such important strategic meaning, the student leadership education in our higher education institutions is by no means optimism. The following advices can help to promote it: strengthen the strategic value of college student leadership education; carry out the education among all students at campus; pay attention to value education; develop curriculum by integrating current resources; put emphasis on multiple-culture awareness and global horizon.