This document is a chapter in "The Principles and Practice of Educational Management," which aims to provide a systematic and analytical introduction to the study of educational management. The structure of the book reflects the main substantive areas of educational leadership and management, and most of the major themes are covered in…

The author explores a number of issues which he feels will affect English schools, particularly comprehensive secondary schools, in the 1980s: standards (mixed ability teaching, testing, articulation); declining enrollment; parent/community participation in school governance; and external social change. Related trends in Europe and the United…

Britain's new inspection system requires that schools be assessed for efficiency and value for money. Drawing on a content analysis of 66 secondary school inspection reports, this paper considers implementation problems and whether schools have adopted the rational approach to resource management. Few schools had successfully adopted all elements…

Discusses changes in government policies in England and Wales during last 20 years and the effects of the new performance-driven agendas on head teachers. Describes national programs for school leadership based on national standards, competency framework, and visits. Questions effectiveness of these nationally designed programs. (Contains 57…

Explains a new statutory system of teacher evaluation in British schools. Discusses various stages of the appraisal process from a management perspective. The appraisal scheme is capable of meeting three broad appraisal aims (improving accountability, the quality of students' learning experiences, and staff job satisfaction), so long as everyone…

The local education authority in Cambridgeshire (England) addressed issues of funding, accountability, and quality in five stages: affirming core values, identifying quality descriptors, developing understanding, establishing a clear funding basis, and analyzing performance factors. Evaluation techniques include validated self-evaluation,…

A recent investigation into school development plans in (British) primary schools concerned the involvement of governors in the design and implementation process. There were variations both within and between schools in the amount and nature of governor involvement. There is scope for governing bodies to fulfill their roles in providing a…

Past payment by results schemes have failed miserably. Britain's modified 150-year-old system was disdained by teachers, school managers, and inspectors; schools became learning-impoverished environments with test-driven curricula. In modern-day America, accountability concerns and mistrust are corrupting or crippling genuine improvement efforts.…

Four papers from a 1981 conference in England on the management of quality in further education are presented. In "The Management of Quality," Tim Brighouse discusses quantitative versus qualitative measurement of quality in further education advisory input, self-evaluation, leadership, and inservice education. In "Staff…

The present state of English primary education is depicted in this overview and possible future trends affecting primary schools are indicated. Primary schools in England and Wales are normally those with pupils between 5 to 11 years of age. The term Primary Schools encompasses Infant Schools (for children ages 5 to 7); Junior Schools (ages 7 to…

Discusses the "remarkably brief and superficial" coverage of financial matters in the Robbins Report, highlighting public accountability of universities, the funding of research, and student finance. Expresses the need for strict financial regulation considering the amount of money involved and the misuse of funds during the 1960s and…

Factors affecting the development and implementation of education policy for special education in England and Wales is examined in the context of the 1981 Education Act. Factors considered include staff evaluation, the competing definitions of need and good practice, professional and administrative accountability, user rights, politicization, and…

In Britain, the pressure to develop financially efficient further education systems and satisfy formula funding criteria has required that policy be informed and validated via quantitative methodologies that gather, code, and analyze numerical data. This trend must be counterbalanced by qualitative research methodologies (case study and…

Since inception of Britain's 1988 Education Reform Act, key responsibilities have devolved from local education authorities to school governing bodies. In a recent study, the 27 governors interviewed perceived governing bodies as accountable. Individual administrators felt more accountable to parents than to LEAs or inspection agencies. (26…

School inspections under England's Office for Standards in Education (OfSTED) involve observation and grading of individual staff's teaching performance. Results are reported to headteachers. Research in secondary schools has discovered substantial, widespread discrepancies between inspectors' gradings of "very poor" teachers and…