Demands on School Managers

Effective management of a school depends on the efforts of a number of agencies that are closely interlinked. The Regional Education Office, the district office, the local community and the school staff, to name the obvious. All play a part in the daily operation of the school. The head is the pivotal link in this network and, ultimately, plays the most crucial role in ensuring school effectiveness. This role is, however, complex and demanding. It involves management of financial, human and material resources in a dynamic situation affected by many internal and external forces. This situation is frequently made more difficult by decreasing levels of government funding, in real terms, at a time of increasing demands for education

The school head in Guyana is, therefore, in a difficult position, being expected to deliver ‘better quality’ education in a period of diminishing resources. There is a complexity of problems surrounding the majority of school heads and it is important to address issues relating to their appointment, training and support. They are often appointed from within the senior classroom teachers with little or no preparation for the onerous and complex task of school headship - hence, the importance of this Programme.

Charles Handy, an eminent educational writer, describes this situation well when he says:

“Given all the difficulties that schools have to cope with as an organisation, I find it truly inspiring that so much good is achieved by so many of them. I also find it encouraging that so many teachers will aspire to be head of such a complicated and difficult organisation as a school.”

The need for training and support for heads is probably far stronger in Guyana than in more developed and betted resourced education systems as the cost to the systems of school management by trial and error can be considerable. We hope to help you reflect on the realities of the situation in Guyana and on current levels of training provision for heads in the light of their increasingly complex role. We also hope to raise your awareness of the need for self-development and life-long learning if you are to be an effective head. It is hoped that you will extend this awareness to your staff so that your school, as an institution, becomes committed to self-development as it strives to achieve the expected levels of performance.

The nature of school headship in Guyana
By the end of this section you should be able to:

Explain the job description of a school head
Identify the various groups to whom the head is accountable
Identify and priorities your own personal training needs.

A school head, to put it simply, is a person who is appointed by the legitimate authority to lead and manage a school. The appointment of school heads differs depending on the kind of school. The responsibility for appointment lies with the Teaching Service Commission or School Boards. Module 3, Personnel Management, goes into much more detail as to the processes used in Guyana. Whether you were appointed by the Teaching Service Commission, the Ministry of Education or a School Board, on appointment you entered into a contract with your employers. The contract makes you responsible and accountable for the proper management of the school. It is essential that you meet the expected levels of performance or the children will suffer and they have only one chance!

Given the practice in Guyana, where heads are appointed mainly from the senior staff of the school who themselves have received only limited management training, it is possible that you did not receive any preparation on appointment to headship and had to learn on- the-job by trail and error and intuition. You probably experienced many challenges in the process and still have a lot to learn in terms of the attitudes, knowledge and skill needed for effective school management. Your situation is similar to that faced by hundreds of other school heads across Guyana. You are, therefore, not alone in your attempts to improve your managerial skills. Alternatively, you may be a senior teacher or deputy head in a school and have decided that this scenario is not for you and you wish to be well prepared.

Problems faced by heads
Heads in Guyana operate in diverse economic, political, social, cultural and geographical settings. These environments present unique demands and challenges. The circumstances in which you find yourself operating present both opportunities and constraints in the realisation of projected plans. However, an awareness of limitations and possibilities informed by careful examination of your context of operation is more empowering than it is discouraging.

The constraints for many heads may include:

¨ the scarcity or poor quality of resources (time, money, space, facilities, staff)
¨ the awkward size and location of the school
¨ unqualified and under-qualified teachers
¨ a lack of continuity from a high turnover of staff
¨ an absence of effective strategic planning at school, district, regional and national levels
¨ poor career planning for heads
¨ large classes
¨ lack of support for articulated policies (local or national)
¨ poor communication between:
o head and community
o head and ministry
o head and some sections of the school
¨ difficult conditions of service
¨ the slow pace of change in the system
¨ diverse norms and values (cultural, managerial).

The above list is by no means exhaustive. However, it is important to remember that some constraints may only be temporary setback provided you try to:

¨ be positive in your outlook (remember negative thinking is destructive)
¨ be creative and innovative
¨ pick the brains of peers
¨ be realistic about what you and your school can achieve
¨ adopt continuous improvement as philosophy
¨ take full advantage of your opportunities
¨ accept that you are not in competition with your staff, community other
¨ schools or the education system (education is a co-operative enterprise)

But most of all, you should remember that:

¨ children in Guyana have only one chance in their education
¨ children in Guyana rely on you to assist them in becoming rounded, well educated, literate and numerate adults
¨ teachers in Guyana depend on your leadership to realise the task they have been given
¨ society in Guyana needs well educated, socially aware adults
¨ you owe it to yourself to do the best you can to achieve these goals

The above hints should assist you in coping with some of your problems.

Activities of heads
You are probably familiar with the old adage that ‘experience is life’s best teacher. Whatever the lessons and advice that induction to your job as a school head may have given you, the everyday reality must bring many experiences and tasks that are not expected.

Below are some of the typical activities in a school week, as a head:

¨ visiting teachers’ classes
¨ attending to discipline problems
¨ supervising teachers
¨ attending to parents
¨ procuring supplies
¨ holding assemblies
¨ meeting heads of departments
¨ completing ministry and regional paperwork.

Depending on your individual circumstances, the proportion of unscheduled activities may be relatively high.

If you wish to see a pattern of daily events in your school that satisfies you, your staff and your clients, you need not have only a clearly perceived and defined job description but also a working environment in the school that enables you staff to apply your energies where and when they are most beneficial to all.

Module 1, Unit 4 mentions ways of achieving this situation. For example, the unit breaks down the list of activities in the head’s job description into four broad areas and considers the desirable balance between these. One such area of the head’s functions is dealing with pupils, teachers and parents.

Teachers also have their share of the normal and abnormal in the teaching day. If you are to build an effective team to share the many and varied tasks in the school, you will need to demonstrate an understanding and appreciation of the teacher’s working situation as well as perception of the teacher’s view of you as head.

The range of activities and tasks that teachers describe will in many ways resemble those that you described earlier yourself. The teachers may want you to:

¨ observe lessons and advise them
¨ ensure maintenance of the school building and teachers’ houses where they exist (particularly in rural areas)
¨ ensure that staff and pupil facilities are as good as they can be, given the resources available
¨ chair meetings well and ensure they are effective
¨ consult them on all school matters
¨ deal effectively with discipline matters
¨ treat all staff equally and fairly
¨ minimise their bureaucratic burden.

If you wish to build an effective team to run the school, you should analyse these returns carefully and attempt to identify real or perceived mismatches between what you actually do as a head, and what the staff feels you should do. A demonstration of corrective action by you, taken in response to their opinions will go a long way towards achieving a working situation in the school that reveals high levels of staff morale and motivation.

Reading and following the Education Management Certificate Programme
will enable you to develop strategies in every aspect of school
leadership that will assist you in realising these goals.