Responsibility in a High-Accountability System: Leading Schools in England

• In Event: School Leadership in the Context of Standards-Based Reform: International Perspectives

Abstract

Objectives
In this presentation we will look at the challenges of leadership in a context characterised by high levels of school autonomy coupled with high levels of accountability and a great frequency of change. This context characterises schools in England, leading to a high-pressure environment, but also a high level of innovation in leadership practices. In this paper we aim to look at the consequences of this high autonomy-high accountability context for leaders and leadership.

Perspectives
The role of the headteacher has always been important in English education, and policymakers have repeatedly stressed the centrality of school leaders to school improvement. The central premise of this study is that government policies can play a key role in shaping the environment in which heads work, and in facilitating or hindering school reform.

Mode of Inquiry
This paper is based on an extensive review of the literature on the role of the headteacher in English schools, as well as the study of policy documents and reports by (quasi) governmental organisations.

Results
School leaders play a very strong role in their schools, and are therefore subject to significant pressures. This is leading to a systemic problem in terms of the capacities of the headteacher to take on these tasks in an effective way, and to a crisis of recruitment where even those leaders who have completed the National Professional Qualification for Headteachers often fail to move into headteacher jobs. Some creative solutions are being developed to alleviate these issues, however. These include increased training and professional development for school leaders, the encouragement of distributed forms of leadership in schools, the development of the role of the School Business Manager, a non-educator charged with factors such as administrative and financial management, and the development of school-to-school collaboration and networking. While all these developments have potential, they do themselves pose leadership challenges that require careful management, and the development of localized professional development strategies. In the paper we discuss these innovative strategies and their relationship to leadership, policy and school improvement.

Scholarly Significance
This paper, along with the other papers in this symposium, contributes to our understanding of the role of leaders and it is shaped by political and cultural requirements and the context in which they work. It provides important insights into the ways in which leaders attempt to balance autonomy and accountability.

Author

• Daniel R. Muijs, University of Southampton