Cyril Wilkinson – författare

The provisions of the 1988 Education Reform Act have given many schools the turnover and responsibilities of a medium-sized business. The Act is certainly the most important educational legislation since 1944 and local management is the key issue, requiring schools to undertake specialist functions, such as budgetting and marketing, never tackled before at the institutional level. This book introduces some of the practical issues associated with planning and implementing new functions now being devolved to school level. It will enable schools to focus on the implications of the Act and the issues it presents. It stresses the need for the whole school to meet the challenge. Each chapter looks at a different issue, including:* resource management * financial management * budgetary preparation * performance measurement * the uses of information technology * marketing and the school * the legal context * personnel management and staff selection * time management and priority setting. The book does aim to be a practical manual on local management but to provide a clear-thinking and sympathetic discussion of the urgent practical issues now facing all schools. It will be invaluable to all involved in educational management, whether in schools, local authorities, training organisations or academic life.

Originally published in 1987. It has been questioned whether management theory can offer viable insights for education, largely because, unlike many other institutions, there is no exclusive managerial structure in schools - the roles of the teacher and manager are inextricably linked. This dual role usually even includes the head of a school. Nevertheless, some schools seem to be more effective than others. This book argues that, although teaching and managing are inseparable, they are not necessarily indistinguishable activities and that important non-teaching roles can be identified through critical analysis of practice in different educational contexts. The first section describes developments in organisational theory that are producing useful models for school life and also for other comparable areas in the public sector, such as health, the police and local government. The second section examines the actual processes of management in context by analysing how leadership, planning, decision-making and communication operate in real situations.