Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Background information about the Education Management Certificate

Following the World Conference on Education for All in 1990, education ministries, international agencies, and NGOs agreed on action plans to improve the capacity and performance of schools. The plans recognise that the school Headteacher carries prime responsibility for creating an effective educational environment. Without the necessary skills, many heads are overwhelmed by the task.

In Guyana, the situation is a particularly difficult one. Often, experienced and skilled teachers are appointed to run complex schools without adequate preparation and training.

The Commonwealth Secretariat in conjunction with UNESCO, SIDA and GTZ introduced the Training and Support Programme for School Heads which was initiated by the Commonwealth Education Programme in 1991. The joint Programme undertook to work with English‑speaking African ministries, to analyse the way they trained school heads, given available resources. At the same time, writing teams in seven countries, with the support of their Ministries of Education, began drafting resource materials covering the primary aspects of running a school. Problems of producing and distributing training materials were also addressed.

The training modules were written, trialled, edited and designed, and made ready for presentation in 1993. They constitute a remarkable testimony to the possibilities for effective co‑operation among education professionals.

In practical terms, the work has been co‑ordinated by the Commonwealth Education Programme. But nothing could have been achieved without the very generous contribution of participating Ministries of Education. Permanent Secretaries assigned senior ministry staff and school heads to work on the materials; they committed funds from overstretched budgets to support the writing teams; they made trialling and testing of the materials possible and they released their staff for the regional sessions. Thanks must go to all those who made this project possible.

The Programme demonstrated the practical advantages of working co-operatively. Participating ministries were supported throughout by generous financial contributions. Joint funding made possible the development of a regional strategy to address the needs of school heads and laid the foundation for bilateral support for national initiatives.

In 2000, the materials were adopted with the kind permission of the Commonwealth Secretariat as the basis of the Education Management Certificate in Guyana. They were updated by a variety of officers from NCERD, the Ministry of Education, The University of Guyana and the Cyril Potter College of Education. The materials and costs for the project were supported by the Guyana Basic Education Training Project (GBET) in conjunction with the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). In their own words, GBET really means "Improving Guyana Basic Education Teacher Training Project." The primary goal is to improve the quality of basic education in Guyana. The expected outcomes are:

¨ Increased number of teachers qualified and trained in hinterland regions.
¨ Increased number of head and deputy headteachers, Regional Education Officers, DE Supervisors and Inspectors certified in Education Management in hinterland regions.
¨ Improved rationalisation and functioning of Distance Education resources support services and mechanisms

The project recognises the particular difficulties in Guyana relating to access to Higher Education, particularly in the hinterland. Hence, this Programme is delivered through the model of Distance Education.

The first batch of the Education Management Programme was successfully completed in 2004 with 201 school managers being successful. As a result of experience gained and comments from Master Trainers who were integrally involved in the delivery of the Programme, it was found prudent to have some of the modules revised and to include another module to deal with current management needs of the education system.

This is part of the process of building the management capacity of the education sector, utilising resources within the Ministry of Education. This is a necessary aspect of any developmental programme that has to respond to the needs of its clientele. The experience gained from the first two trials of the programme provided the backdrop for the revision process which addressed the Study Guide and User’s Guide for participants of the third and fourth cohorts of trainees, training of whom is now completed, with the most recent batch having over 350 graduates.

In 2008, the Modules were revisited. They were completely revised by NCERD staff in cooperation with Voluntary Service Overseas. The VSO Education Management Specialist worked with officers of the Ministry of Education, Regional Education Office staff throughout the country, Master Trainers of the Programme and Trainees themselves to review, revise and rewrite (in many cases) the whole programme so that it met the needs of the educational context in Guyana in the 21st Century. We offer our sincere thanks to all those involved.

What is our purpose?
It is widely recognised and agreed that one of the key factors influencing school effectiveness is the nature and quality of the leadership and manage­ment provided by each school head.

This series of modules has been written to provide school heads with a source of practical ideas about ways in which they may become better managers of better schools. The material does not present much theory; instead each reader is required to draw on their own individual experiences and to evaluate their own circumstances and practices, in order that they may apply the lessons learned in their schools. Like other professionals, school heads need to accept a large measure of responsibility for their own self‑development and for the development of their schools.

The extent to which these materials have a practical impact on school quality will only become clear over time but school heads should fairly quickly be able to identify some examples of how they have changed the way they manage their schools and how their schools are better as a result. Heads may wish to share ideas with their school colleagues, District Education Officers and Inspectors, discuss with them what they are doing and how these materials are helping to improve their practice. The purpose of these modules is to reverse this trend and to equip school heads, those aspiring to be heads and those interacting with heads, with the necessary knowledge and skills of good leadership and management.

Who are the materials designed for?
These materials are written primarily for practising school heads of nursery, primary and secondary schools, whether government, board schools or private as well as those in senior positions who aspire to be Headteachers. We hope that Principals of other educational institutions will also find these materials of use.

Leadership and Management skills are also required by many others involved in education, from the senior Ministry of Education staff, through to Regional Education Officers, District Education Officers M.E.R.D. inspectors, school governors, private school owners, and even, in some aspects, parents and members of the community. These materials are for readers who belong to any of these groups, and who are interested in improving school performance.

What are the methods of study?
Since these materials are written for a variety of people, let us move from describing readers specifically as 'school heads' to something more direct and personal: 'you'.

Self‑directed study: One of the main ways in which we hope you will use these materials will be through self‑directed study or open‑learning. By self-­directed study we mean that you, the readers, choose when and what you want to study. Because everyone has a different background, in the experi­ence we have and in the character of our schools, our learning needs vary considerably. We hope within the nine modules, each of which consists of between five and nine units, you will find something new and relevant to your needs. You will study the modules in an order prescribed by the Programme but indeed many units may be studied on their own.

The modules may be studied by individuals working on their own, or in informal or formal study groups.

Individual study: A large part of our learning takes place on our own, perhaps reading and thinking quietly in school or even at home. We hope that these materials will be available for you to do this. Then you may select what you want to learn, in the order and at the pace of study you choose. In this way you are not put under any immediate external pressure, but may work out for yourself what may best apply to you and your school.

Informal study groups: Of course you do not have to study these modules only on your own. The materials could and should be used by you with other heads in your locality, coming together informally, in peer groups or study circles, perhaps at a local resource centre, to review your work and share ideas. Within your own school, members of staff would benefit by looking at topics together. The materials should prove a useful source of ideas for your School Improvement Plan Committee. The materials could also be used at your Regional School Heads’ Meetings.

Formal groups: These materials can also be used in a more systematic way to cover all school heads at formal workshops organised by District Education Officers or for more advanced specialist courses, by NCERD or CPCE.

How is the content related to change in schools?
These resource materials are written in an interactive style which requires your participation. More than that, they require a commitment on your part to introduce into your school beneficial changes, which are relevant, cost-­effective and accepted by your staff, pupils and community.

Each unit contains a variety of stimuli which are intended to get you thinking, to capture your interest and to open up the topic. These include activities like drawing up checklists, answering questions, gathering data and discussions with your colleagues, whether teachers in your school or other heads. While you are doing the activities you will be involved in reflection, in which you are encouraged to think through issues, to recon­sider standard practices, and to seek alternative solutions to solving prob­lems. Within the units there are regular commentaries which draw together loose ends and consolidate principles. The study of these resources will not be complete until there is some action by you in the way in which your school is organised and managed, following guidelines included in each unit. Evaluation, especially self‑evaluation (which also relates to the concept of reflection above) is the last element in this cycle.

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