The Perception of the Principal
The perception of the principal batting and hitting children because they are not in uniform is conflict in the present scenario.
The Dilemma of Not Wearing a School Uniform
The director is wroth about the students' actions and behaves in an angry moment. Wrath is an essential cause of conflict and people who behave when they are upset tend to take wrong decisions in order to fix the problem. The dilemma of not wear a school uniform was not addressed by hitting the children with a bat. The dispute here is between the headmaster of the school and the children with no school clothing at all.
Leadership and Conflict Management
When there arises a conflict, a leader is expected to have and apply the necessary skills to deal with the problem. There are various ways of dealing with disputes available for leaders in managing conflict. Conflict management entails the capability of identifying as well as handling a challenge in a fair, sensible and efficient manner. In the scenario, the principal is the leader of the school and failed to recognize his position as a leader to deal with the children without uniform in a sensible, fair and efficient manner. Being a leader, the principal should have realized the need for applying conflict management techniques to deal with the situation that angered him. Minimizing disputes with the children, society and the parents required the principal to understand the conflict and know how to resolve it. It is also a way of reducing more disputes with the children in the future.
Conflict Management Techniques
The available conflict management techniques that the principal could have applied in the conflict situation with the children include accommodating, avoiding, collaborating, competing, and compromising. In the current scenario, the most appropriate strategy to resolve the conflict was to cooperate with the children in dealing with the matter. In conflict management, collaborating entails leaders becoming partners with others in the situation causing conflict between them. Together, they pair up, think about the situation and the best solution that can deal with the problem once and for all.
The Importance of Collaboration
In that case, instead of hitting the children with a bat, the school principal needed to call them in his office for a deliberation on the matter. In the room, the principal would have established why the students did not wear their uniform. He would have reminded them of the school policy that requires all children to put on their uniform while in school. It would be easier to make the children understand the school standard of outfit that must be maintained. Through that, as a leader, the principal would have recognized the situation more profoundly and solve it amicably. If the reasons for not wearing the school uniform for the children were based on ignorant or any other unjustifiable reason, it would have been the duty of the principal to involve the parents by informing them about the situation. In that case, the children and their parents would understand their failure of not following the school policy that requires all children to wear their uniform. The principal would then issue warning letters to the children of getting a suspension the next time they come to school without their costume.
The Negative Consequences of Physical Punishment
Hitting the children with a bat complicated the situation as the children got scared while the principal remained angry. He may take a more stern punishment to the students who may cause more harm to them. Therefore, collaborating is an advisable technique that could have helped all the concerned parties in the conflict. The principal would have obtained a novel solution to the complicated scenario instead of hitting the children with a bat.
