Instructor Resource
Northouse, Introduction to Leadership, 4e
SAGE Publishing, 2018
1
Class Activities
Chapter 4: Understanding Philosophy and Styles
Guide to the Class Activities
Each activity is designed based on Fink’s Learning Taxonomy and is tagged with the following
tags under the taxonomy’s learning and assessment structure:
1. Foundational Knowledge (F)
2. Application (A)
4. Human Dimension (H)
6. Learning How to Learn (L)
These activities may be used in either small-group or large-group settings, depending on class
size and time available. Some may also be suitable as homework.
Activities
Password (F)
This is a fun exercise with which to begin class. It helps students learn the terms from the chapter
and how to explain them to someone else. Divide the class into two teams. Make two sets of
cards; one for each team. Each card has a term or concept from the chapter. Round 1: A member
from each team receives an identical card from the instructor. Team A goes first, with the
representative giving a one-word clue to his/her team who try to guess the word or concept from
the clue. If Team A doesn’t guess the word from the first clue, then Team B has a turn, with its
representative giving a second, one-word clue. The process continues until the correct word is
guessed. Team members can work together, but only one person can speak for the team in a
given round. Round 2: Team B starts with the first clue, and so on. Terms:
Leadership style
Philosophy of leadership
Theory X
Theory Y
Theory Z
Authoritarian style
Instructor Resource
Northouse, Introduction to Leadership, 4e
SAGE Publishing, 2018
2
Outcomes of leadership
Leader influence
Paying It Forward (A, H, C)
“Paying it forward” refers to passing on a kindness to a stranger (or acquaintance) without
expectation of return, only that the receiver then passes on a kindness to another. This can
involve gifts of time, money, service, verbal affirmation, etc. In small groups have students
brainstorm ways they can make a difference to one or more people in the coming week. Each
group becomes an accountability group, holding members responsible for following through on
Event Planning (A, L)
One of the ways students can develop their leadership skills is by contributing to the content of
the class. Assign small groups of students one or more of the following tasks: (a) Planning the
final class of the term, with clear learning objectives; (b) Planning a field trip that takes place
within one class period. The site should be related to leadership and there should be a clear
learning objective for the experience; (c) Planning a social event for the class, outside of the
class period; (d) Planning an ice-breaker or other fun activity for each class period during the
Style Overlap (A, I, H)
Post several sheets of newsprint around the room, each sheet listing two or three leadership
beliefs or behaviors associated with a particular style of leadership (without labeling the style).
Ask students to stand by the sheet that best describes their own leadership views. Have them
share with each other what is enjoyable about leading this way. What are the shortcomings?
Some students may identify with more than one set of behaviors. What does this suggest about
the overlap of styles? Can some behaviors be exhibited by more than one style of leader? If
leadership style expresses our philosophy of leadership (attitudes about the nature of people and
the nature of work) then how easily can it be changed? How much is our leadership behavior
affected by the context and by our relationships with subordinates? Sample newsprint statements:
Most people I know work for the money, not because they love the company
Instructor Resource
Northouse, Introduction to Leadership, 4e
SAGE Publishing, 2018
3
Most people need incentives like bonuses to work harder
Leadership Building Blocks (F, A)
Break the class into four teams; three will be task teams and one will be an observation and
judging team. Take the observation team outside the room and explain their two tasks: (1) to
evaluate the leadership behaviors within the task teams and their effect on group productivity and
climate; and (2) to judge the final products on three criteria – completion (were all the blocks
used?), novelty of the design, and attractiveness – choosing a winner from the 3 task teams.
Observer-judges should not reveal their purpose to the task teams. Observer-judges can be
assigned to different task groups, but should also move around the room to compare how the
different teams are functioning.
Each task team will receive a bag with an identical number and type of Lego blocks (the more
blocks, the better). Give a set of instructions to one member of each group, who then becomes
the leader for that group. The leader should follow the instructions on his or her sheet
completely, without reading them to the group. Each group has 10 minutes to complete its
project (depending on the amount of blocks). It’s acceptable if groups don’t use all their blocks
in time. Instructions:
• Team 1: You are the leader of this group. Your task is to build a house using the Lego
Instructor Resource
Northouse, Introduction to Leadership, 4e
SAGE Publishing, 2018
4
• Team 2: You are the leader of this group. Your task is to build a house using the Lego
blocks. With your team, decide on what you want the house to look like. Make
suggestions but don’t give orders. Encourage team members to listen to all ideas that are
shared. Let everyone take part in the building process. Ask quieter members for their
feedback. Give objective praise (e.g. we’re right on schedule) and objective criticism
when warranted (e.g. there are too many yellow blocks on one side).
Debrief, Part 1: At the end of the 10-15 minutes, ask the observer-judges to report their findings
on leadership behaviors in the task groups, and group climate. Ask task group members how
they felt working in their groups. Ask assigned leaders how comfortable they were enacting
Writing Assignments
Write as Another Person (A, I)
As a creative writing assignment, ask students to assume the role of a Theory X, Y, or Z leader.
Have them write a one page description of:
• What the leader believes about how the world works and what motivates people,
Sketch-noting (F, A, I)
Sketch-noting is introduced in the Class Activities of chapter 1. It is a way to think visually about
an issue. Making sketch notes is not about drawing, or artistry, but about making marks on paper
(or a white board) to help oneself think. There is no right or wrong way to do this. Everyone will
do it differently.
Instructor Resource
Northouse, Introduction to Leadership, 4e
SAGE Publishing, 2018
5
Have students reflect on the quote from Victoria Ransom, cofounder of Wildfire Interactive, on
how to ensure the leader’s values spread throughout a company: “You might think that because
you are projecting our [company] values, then the rest of the company is experiencing the
values…”
Then ask students to sketch out (on paper you provide, or a page of their own) how they envision
Tracking My Leader Behaviors (A, I)
Have students track their leader behaviors over a 24 hour period. How often did they:
Offer constructive criticism
Pay a compliment
Offer advice
Seek the advice of others
Make a negative comment about a co-
worker or classmate
or why not? Have students appraise their behavior in a 2-3 page paper.
New on the Job (A, I, H)
Ask students to consider the following situation: you have just been hired as the new manager for
a customer service department of 25 people in a growing cellular telephone corporation. This
growth has not been without its problems, including poor customer service. You have been asked
Current Events (A, H, L)
Instructor Resource
Northouse, Introduction to Leadership, 4e
SAGE Publishing, 2018
6
One Minute Paper Topics (F, A, I)
If I could have any job in the world…