SCHOOL

P
R
PROject Based SCHOOL Management
Training Modules
for managers and other managerial staff
written by experts within the project
Education and Culture DG
Lifelong Learning Programme
Project Based School Management

Project Based School Management (PRO-SCHOOL) is a Comenius
Multilateral project, financed under the framework of the Lifelong Learning
Programme in 2008-2010. The aims of the project are, first, to develop a new
management methodology for High Schools by adopting a project-based
management methodology. This is in order to improve the leadership qualities
and competences of the management team. The second aim is to improve the
effectiveness of schools, regarding the demands of a knowledge-based society.

The main activities of the project are research (case studies) on effective
school indicators, and designing and testing training materials to improve the
management skills and competences of school managers, deputy managers and
other managerial staff. One of the main outputs, and the means to exploit this
project, is an in-service training course which will be held in Izmir in September
2010.

This publication contains methodology, training modules and the
curriculum which will be used in in-service training. These training modules
and curriculum are designed by project partners who represent diverse
institutional profiles. The Menderes Town National Education Directorate is a
responsible public institution with a wide range of educational activities. The
County School Inspectorate, Braov, is a district authority which provides
teaching staff and personnel for the educational institutions. The Lombardia
National Agency for the Development of School Autonomy is a public national
agency that supports schools in their autonomous processes. The Transilvania
University of Braov has broad experience in developing methodologies for in-
service training and project management. The University of Peloponnisos,
Department of Social and Educational Policy, offers training on social and
education policy. The Czech University of Life Sciences has broad experience in
teacher training; and the University College, Ghent, has considerable experience
in quality assurance.
i

ii
We hope that these Training Modules, Curriculum and Methodology
will be a source of reference in the training of school managers.

More information on the PRO-SCHOOL project is available on the
project website: http://www.pro-school.eu/

M. Emin BAKAY
Project Coordinator


Training Modules developed by experts from the partner
institutions and tested during the national sessions organised for
managers of secondary schools in six partner countries:


TURKEY
Coordinating organisation of the project
Menderes Town National Education Directorate Izmir
M. Emin Bakay, Gldan Kalem
www.menderes.meb.gov.tr


BELGIUM
University College Ghent
Isabelle Joos, Liesbet Gevaert
http://english.hogent.be/


CZECH REPUBLIC
Institute of Education and Communication, Czech University of Life Sciences
Prague
Prof. Milan Slavk, Ing. Emil K, PhD., Mgr. Ji Votava,
Ing. Barbora Jordnov
http://www.ivp.czu.cz


GREECE
University of the Peloponnese, Department of Social and Educational Policy
Corinth
Assosiate Prof. Despina Karakatsani, Assosiate Prof. Anthi K. Provata
http://pelopas.uop.gr/UK/
www.uop.gr


ITALY
ANSAS - National Agency for the Development of School Autonomy
Lombardia
Patrizia Gelmetti, Tiziana Pedrizzi
http://www.irrelombardia.it


ROMANIA
Brasov Country School Inspectorate
Mirela Blemovici, Cornelia Iliescu, Monica Lupu, Lavinia Butnariu
http://www.isjbrasov.ro

Transilvania University of Brasov
Prof. dr. eng. Anca Duta, Prof. dr. eng. Ion Visa, Assoc. prof. dr. Dana Perniu
http://www.unitbv.ro
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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Project-Based School Management Philosophy and
Training Methodology.............................................................. 1
INTRODUCTION.................................................................................................2
1. PROJECT, PROJECT MANAGEMENT, PROJECT-BASED
ORGANIZATIONS and MANAGEMENT........................................................4
1.1. Project ...........................................................................................................4
1.2. Project Management ...................................................................................5
1.3. History of Project Management ................................................................7
1.4. Project-Based Management?......................................................................9
1.5. Project-Based Organizations ...................................................................10
2. A NEW APPROACH TO SCHOOL MANAGEMENT:..............................11
PROJECT-BASED SCHOOL MANAGEMENT..............................................11
2.1. Why Project-Based School Management? .............................................11
2.2. Project-Based School Management Model............................................13
2.3. Key Management Skills for Project Based Management ....................17
3. TRAINING METHODOLOGY for PROJECT-BASED SCHOOL
MANAGEMENT.................................................................................................18
3.1. Adult Learning Principles........................................................................19
3.2. The Role of the Trainer ............................................................................20
3.3. Suggested Training Methods ..................................................................21
3.3.1. Group Work........................................................................................21
3.3.2. Case Study...........................................................................................23
3.3.3. Discussion...........................................................................................24
3.3.4. Brainstorming.....................................................................................25
3.3.5. Role play..............................................................................................26
3.3.6. Icebreakers ..........................................................................................26
3.3.7. Buzzgroups..........................................................................................27
3.4. Evaluation of Training .............................................................................28
3.5. Sample Activities and Introductory Questions for Trainers...............29
4. CONCLUSION ................................................................................................31
5. RESOURCES & LINKS...................................................................................31
Training Modules.......................................................... 33
Effective School Indicators and In-Service
Training Needs of School Managers .............................. 34
1. INTRODUCTION...............................................................................................35
2. PROJECT-BASED SCHOOL MANAGEMENT PROJECT........................35
2.1. Summary of the Project............................................................................35
2.2. Aims and objectives of the PRO-SCHOOL project..............................36
3. EFFECTIVE SCHOOL INDICATORS and IN-SERVICE TRAINING
NEEDS OF SCHOOL MANAGERS IN SOME EU COUNTRIES................37
3.1. Aim of the Research..................................................................................37
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v
3.2. Methodology..............................................................................................37
3.3. Findings......................................................................................................39
a) Personal Data............................................................................................39
b) Effective school indicators .....................................................................39
c) In-service training needs of school managers......................................45
4. SUGGESTED METHODOLOGY..................................................................46
5. CONCLUSION ................................................................................................46
6. RESOURCES & LINKS...................................................................................48
Lifecycle of The Project............................................ 49
1. INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................50
2. HISTORY OF PROJECT MANAGEMENT..................................................50
3. WHY PROJECT MANAGEMENT IN SCHOOLS?.....................................53
4. SETTING UP A PROJECT MANAGEMENT PLAN..................................55
4.1. Identification setting up the goal, objectives.....................................55
4.2. Expected outcomes: indicators ................................................................58
5. APPRAISAL .....................................................................................................58
5.1. Identifying the funding programme ......................................................59
5.2. Identifying the resources .........................................................................61
5.2.1. Internal resources: ........................................................................62
5.2.2. External Resources:.......................................................................62
5.3. Developing the project proposal.............................................................63
5.4. Correlation: Objectives Activities Results.......................................65
5.5. Project time frame: the Gantt chart.........................................................69
5.6. Developing the Financial plan correlating activities with financing
............................................................................................................................71
6. FINANCING....................................................................................................75
6.1. Contracting.................................................................................................76
6.2. Project financing criteria..........................................................................78
7. IMPLEMENTATION......................................................................................79
7.1. Monitoring.................................................................................................80
7.2. Reporting....................................................................................................83
8. PROJECT EVALUATION: EXTERNAL EVALUATION AND AUDIT...84
9. CONCLUSION ................................................................................................86
10. RESOURCES & LINKS.................................................................................87
Tools for Project-Based School Management...... 88
1. INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................89
2. TERMINOLOGY.............................................................................................90
3. PROJECT MANAGEMENT TOOLS............................................................91
3.1. SWOT Analysis.........................................................................................93
3.2. PEST Analysis ...........................................................................................96
3.3. Managing Stakeholders ...........................................................................98
3.4. Logical Framework Approach...............................................................100
3.5. PERT Chart ..............................................................................................104
3.6. GANTT Charts .........................................................................................105
4. SUGGESTED METHODOLOGY................................................................105
5. CONCLUSION ..............................................................................................106
6. RESOURCES & LINKS.................................................................................107

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Management Theories and School Management
Styles.................................................................................. 108
1. INTRODUCTION.........................................................................................109
2. TERMINOLOGY...........................................................................................110
3. MANAGEMENT THEORIES........................................................................110
3.1 Scientific Management Theory..............................................................110
3.2. Human Relations Theories..................................................................111
4. LEADERSHIP STYLES.................................................................................114
4.1. Transformational and Transactional Leadership ...............................114
4.2. Total Quality Management....................................................................115
4.3. Servant Leadership.................................................................................117
4.4. Situational Leadership...........................................................................118
4.5. Instructional Leadership........................................................................119
5. COMMUNICATION ....................................................................................120
6. SUGGESTED METHODOLOGY................................................................123
7. CONCLUSION .............................................................................................124
8. RESOURCES & LINKS.................................................................................124
Methods of Quality Management in Schools..... 126
1. INTRODUCTION .....................................................................................127
1.1. Objectives ................................................................................................127
1.2. Preliminary assignments........................................................................127
2. TERMINOLOGY BASIC CONCEPTS.................................................128
3. BASIC CHARACTERISTICS OF INTEGRATED QUALITY
MANAGEMENT...............................................................................................129
4. METHODS OF QUALITY MANAGEMENT.........................................130
4.1. PDCA Cycle.............................................................................................130
4.2. European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) and
Transnational Institutional Cooperation (TRIS) .......................................134
5. THE SELF EVALUATION PROCESS.........................................................138
6. SELF EVALUATION TOOLS......................................................................141
5.3. Instrument for self evaluation in secondary education (IZES)....141
6.2. Quality plan/Annual Report of Faculty of Social Work and Welfare
Studies of University College Ghent ..........................................................142
6.3. Quality assurance tool PRO-SCHOOL................................................143
7. SUGGESTED METHODOLOGY................................................................145
8. CONCLUSION ..............................................................................................145
9. RESOURCES, SUGGESTED READINGS & LINKS................................146
Evaluation of School Effectiveness ...................... 149
1. INTRODUCTION.........................................................................................150
2. TERMINOLOGY BASIC CONCEPTS.....................................................151
3. DEVELOPMENT OF SCHOOL EFFECTIVENESS RESEARCH............151
4. SETTING OUT THE CRITERIA .................................................................153
a. Selection of criteria....................................................................................153
b. Checking quality of selected criteria ......................................................155
c. Operational definition of each criteria/ Defining indicators ...............157
5. CLASSIFICATION OF CRITERIA.............................................................160
6. CONCLUSION................................................................................................163
7. SUGGESTED METHODOLOGY..................................................................164

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8. RESOURCES & LINKS....................................................................................164
School Managers and Learning Achievements............ 166
1. INTRODUCTION.........................................................................................167
3. NATIONAL TESTING OF STUDENTS IN EUROPE..............................168
4. SCHOOL MANAGERS and SCHOOL RESULTS....................................170
5. TRAINING METHODOLOGY...................................................................172
5.1. Case study................................................................................................173
5.2 Case Study Grid.......................................................................................174
5.3 Discussion on Best Practices and Guidelines ......................................176
6. PROJECT FORMULATION by USING PBSM.........................................177
In-Service Training Curriculum.................................. 180
PROJECT-BASED SCHOOL MANAGEMENT PHILOSOPHY AND
TRAINING METHODOLOGY.......................................................................181
EFFECTIVE SCHOOL INDICATORS AND IN-SERVICE TRAINING
NEEDS OF SCHOOL MANAGERS ...............................................................183
LIFECYCLE OF THE PROJECT.......................................................................185
TOOLS FOR PROJECT BASED SCHOOL MANAGEMENT.....................187
MANAGEMENT THEORIES AND SCHOOL MANAGEMENT STYLES
..............................................................................................................................190
METHODS OF QUALITY MANAGEMENT IN SCHOOLS......................192
EVALUATION OF SCHOOL EFFECTIVENESS..........................................194
SCHOOL MANAGERS AND LEARNING ACHIEVEMENTS..................196


viii

PREFACE

OPEN MANAGEMENT and THE PROSCHOOL Project

The effective functioning of every institution largely depends on the
quality of its management. This applies to both commercial companies as well
as educational institutions. On the one hand management is a scientific
discipline, which has its own clear rules, but on the other hand leadership is
also the ability to achieve optimal situations in which plans will be realized,
ideas become real forms, and processes will begin to operate.

School management is a specific issue for several reasons. One is that
education is a public good and also a process, which should always be directed
to the achievement of general and specific functions in a particular country. It
should therefore be funded by government and controlled and monitored to
some extent. This specified situation gives a few restrictions, but also the
priorities to school management.

Significant attention is paid to the school management of human
resources. The structure of school personnel in an educational institution
involves very different social and professional structures and consists mainly of
students, teachers and non-pedagogic staff. In terms of the high school
students, the manager of the school needs to deal not only with students of
different ages but also with developmentally the rapidly changing personalities
of students and very often with their parents or their legal representatives. The
pedagogic staff includes not only teachers of both the theoretical and vocational
subjects but also teachers of the practical training (formerly called foremen),
and also preceptors, educational advisors and school psychologists. The non-
teaching staff includes professionals from a wide variety of administrative staff,
from the managers of libraries and study centres, to school canteen workers and
service workers (school porter, cleaners). The most important task of the school
manager is to harmonize this heterogeneous orchestra in order to achieve

ix
good functioning of the school. Then the school can provide a positive
educational environment, which is crucial for students and staff and other
school members.

One of the most important tools for effective management is the open
management strategy. The principle, which very often rationalizes the
leadership, but sometimes also complicates it, is the involvement of all the
above-mentioned categories of staff in decision-making processes, of course
some staff more, and others less. The top manager the headmaster - has to
cope with this tool skillfully and purposefully, in order to motivate his staff and
encourage cooperation without wasting time with an endless, ineffective, and
unconstructive discussion.

The basic skill is the leaders competence to combine the needs of the
institution with the individual interests of individuals. There are various
managerial techniques and strategies to achieve what is mutually beneficial; the
firmly accountable collaboration of managers with their subordinates. However
the fulfillment of tasks agreed during the cooperation between both sides will
require to be checked by leaders.

An example can be the involvement of staff in the process of self-
education, which contributes to the improvement of the qualification structure
of employees and increases the self-confidence of the individuals and their
value in the labor market.

The educational environment already described will cope with another
essential feature of the institutions, namely When teachers do not educate
themselves, the students do not learn.

If a manager is able to address the issues of effective functioning of the
particular educational institution as demonstrated by a well prepared and
constructed SWOT analysis, with special attention to opportunities and threats,

x
there will be opportunities to point out situations which have not been
perceived by others.



For open management, it is also necessary that it operates with a
delegation of authority, which is not often used by managers. They do not have
the courage and strength to delegate competence to others. Of course
monitoring is necessary, but it must have its limits.

In the management structures of high schools there has appeared a new
position that of project manager. For the effective running of a modern
school, these become key players in the management team, because the
institution depends on the existence of projects, time and again.

Also in this case, project managers have to be highly qualified, accurate
and responsible professionals. If the heads and school managers give them
appropriate space, their skills, competencies and outputs will be utilized for the
common development and well being of the school.


Prof. Milan Slavk
Director of the Institute of Education and Communication
Czech University of Life Sciences Prague







PROject based SCHOOL
management








Project-Based School
Management Philosophy and
Training Methodology






Authors:
M. Emin Bakay
Gldan Kalem








Developed by:
Menderes Town National Education Directorate, Izmir, Turkey

1

INTRODUCTION

This methodology is an output of a Comenius Multilateral Project called
PRO-SCHOOL (142320-LLP-1-2008-1-TR-COMENIUS-CMP). The aim of the
project is to develop a new school management methodology based on the
project-based management approach in order to improve effectiveness of high
schools in Europe. This methodology is designed to explain the underlying
principles and philosophy behind project-based school management and to
provide a training manual which is expected to be used in in-service trainings
of school managers in European countries.

The Aim of each training module is explained at the beginning of each
module, however the general aim of this methodology and training modules is
to introduce Project-Based School Management (PBSM) approach to school
managers. In the end, school managers are expected to learn the rationale
behind the PBSM and be able to use this new management approach in their
schools.

We believe that this methodology and accompanying training modules
will be a good source of reference for the academic community who work in
both development of in-service training and the adult education area. It will
also be very useful for high school managers who want to implement project-
based school management in their schools.

Delivering good effective training is a skill which has to be acquired
through a learning process and then developed by experience, irrespective of
the subject matter. Modern training methods focus on the active participation in
the training of trainees, rather than relying on passive listening to an expert. To
use these methods successfully requires an understanding of training
methodology.

This document is therefore designed to help trainers to:
understand the rationale behind the project-based school management,
2

identify the knowledge, skills, attitudes and values which are necessary
for successful project-based management,
understand the importance of ensuring participation in training.

The first part of the document covers information about project, project-
based management and organizations and continues with the rationale behind
the project-based school management. The second part provides a training
methodology for future trainers of school managers and suggests some training
methods.

Definitions of basic concepts:
Project:
1. A project is a work effort made over a finite period of time with a start
and a finish to create a unique product, service, or result. Because a
project has a start and an end, it is also called a temporary effort or
endeavor (Sanghera, 2006:2).
2- A project is a series of activities aimed at bringing about clearly specified
objectives within a defined time-period and with a defined budget (European
Commission, 2004:8).

Project Management:
Project management is the usage of knowledge, skills, and tools to manage a
project from start to finish with the goal of meeting the project requirements
(Sanghera, 2006:3).

Project-Based management:
Project-based management is arrangement of activities within an
organization to achieve its goals. Project-based management promotes
distributed and project-specific responsibilities in the organization.

Project-Based Organization:
A project-based organisation is an organisation, which defines
Management by Projects as an organizational strategy, applies temporary
3

organisations for the performance of complex processes, manages a project
portfolio of different project types, has specific permanent organisations to
provide integrative functions, has an explicit project management culture, and
perceives itself as project-based (Gareis and Huemann, 2000).
Project-Based School Management:
Project Based School Management is characterized by the existence of an
explicit pm-culture, i.e. by a set of pm-related values and norms. In the school
the project management is considered as a process, for which there are specific
procedures and a common understanding of the performance of this process
(Gareis & Huemann, 2000).

Stakeholders:
Any individuals, groups of people, institutions or firms that may have a
relationship with the project are defined as stakeholders. They may directly or
indirectly, positively or negatively affect or be affected by the process and the
outcomes of projects (EC, 2004: 146).


1. PROJECT, PROJECT MANAGEMENT, PROJECT-BASED
ORGANIZATIONS and MANAGEMENT

1.1. Project
A project is an endeavour in which human, financial, and material
resources are organized in a novel way to undertake a unique scope of work, of
given specification, within constraints of cost and time, so as to achieve
beneficial change defined by quantitative and qualitative objectives (Turner,
2009: 2). A project is a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique
product, service, or result. The temporary nature of projects indicates a definite
beginning and end. The end is reached when the projects objectives have been
achieved or when the project is terminated because its objectives will not or
cannot be met, or when the need for the project no longer exists. Temporary
does not necessarily mean short in duration. Temporary does not generally
4
apply to the product, service, or result created by the project; most projects are
undertaken to create lasting outcomes (PMI, 2000:5).

At any organization there are many activities being executed every day.
Most of these activities are organized into groups of interrelated activities.
These groups fall into two categories: projects and operations. An operation is
an ongoing and repetitive set of tasks, whereas a project has a lifecycle a
beginning and an end (Sanghera, 2006:3)

1.2. Project Management
Project management is the application of knowledge, skills, and tools to
project activities to meet the project requirements. Project management is
accomplished through use of project cycles such as initiating, planning,
executing, controlling and closing (PMI, 2000:6).

Projects involve a degree of uncertainty. Thus organisations performing
projects usually divide each project into project phases to improve management
and control. Project phases are known as the project cycle.The project cycle
generally defines what technical work should be done in each phase and who
should be involved in each phase (PMI, 2000:12).

The first step in the project cycle is to identify an issue that a project
could address. This usually involves a needs assessment which finds out what
organization needs are. The needs assessment is followed by a capacity
assessment to see what strengths the organization has which it can use to
address its problems. The project should seek to strengthen any weaknesses. It
is important to use the organizations own capacities and resources to address
the problems they face. It is therefore important to carry out a capacity
assessment after needs assessment to identify strengths that the organization
could use to address the problems they identified earlier. The project, if needed,
should focus on strengthening the organizations capacities to address their
5

problems. Once a priority need has been identified, we can start to think about
how it can be addressed.
The second step of the project cycle is stakeholder analysis. Stakeholder
analysis helps to improve the projects understanding of the needs of those
affected by a problem, identify potential winners and losers as a result of the
project, and reduce, or remove, potential negative project impacts. If
stakeholders are not identified at the project planning stage, the project is at risk
of failure. This is because the project cannot take into account the needs and
aims of those who will be affected by it.

The next stage of the project cycle is problem analysis. Before we start to
design the project, we need to analyze the problem identified during project
identification. Problem analysis helps primary stakeholders to identify the
causes and effects of the problems they face.

After the problem analysis, the risk analysis is the next step. Risk is the
potential for unwanted happenings. Every activity involves risks. If they
happen, some risks will affect the activity more than others. Risk assessment
helps to identify them and consider the likelihood of them happening and their
likely impact. The risks can then be managed by changing the project plans to
ensure the risks are minimised.

The next step is the action planning. Action planning includes the details
of how the project will take shape in terms of timing, resources, budgeting and
personnel. This is done by activity plan. The activity planning is to help us
consider; who will do what, when this will happen and what types of inputs,
besides people, will be needed.

The next project cycle phase is budgeting. A budget is necessary for
transparent financial management. After all these steps, the project
implementation and evaluation phases start. It is important to measure our
performance during the project. Evaluation provides accountability which
6

shows that we are using the resources wisely. By measuring, analysing and
reflecting on our performance, we can learn lessons that will enable us to either
change our project plans or change our approach to other projects. By using
indicators to measure progress, we will know whether or not we have achieved
our objectives (Blackman, 2003).

All of these project cycle phases will be explained in detail in the
following modules.

1.3. History of Project Management
Project management, in its modern form, began to grow only a few
decades ago. Starting in the early 1960s, businesses and other organizations
began to see the benefit of organizing work in project format. This project-
centric view of the organization evolved further as organizations began to
understand the critical need for their employees to communicate and
collaborate while integrating their work across multiple departments and
professions and, in some cases, whole industries.

During the early years, in the second half of the nineteenth century,
when the business world was becoming increasingly complex, large-scale
government projects were the impetus for making important decisions that
became the basis for project management methodology.

Near the turn of the twentieth century, Frederick Taylor (18561915)
applied scientific reasoning to work by showing that labour can be analyzed
and improved by focusing on its elementary parts. Before then, the only way to
improve productivity was to demand harder work and longer hours from
workers. Taylor introduced the concept of working more efficiently, rather than
working harder and longer. Taylor's associate, Henry Gantt (18611919),
studied in great detail the order of operations in work. Gantt chart diagrams
proved to be such a powerful analytical tool for managers that they remained
virtually unchanged for almost a hundred years.
7


Taylor, Gantt, and others significantly contributed to make project
management a distinct business function that requires study, planning and
discipline. In the next decades, marketing approaches, industrial psychology,
and human relations began to take hold as integral parts of project
management.

During World War II, complex government and military projects and a
shrinking war-time labour supply demanded new organizational structures.
Complex network diagrams (Network Diagram: A diagram that shows
dependencies between project tasks. Tasks are represented by boxes, or nodes,
and task dependencies are represented by lines that connect the boxes. In
Project, the Network Diagram view is a network diagram.), called PERT (PERT
analysis: PERT [Program, Evaluation, and Review Technique] analysis is a
process by which you evaluate a probable outcome based on three scenarios:
best-case, expected-case, and worst-case.) charts and the critical path (critical
path: The series of tasks that must be completed on schedule for a project to
finish on schedule. Each task on the critical path is a critical task.) method were
introduced, giving managers more control over massively engineered and very
complex projects. Soon, these techniques spread to all kinds of industries as
business leaders sought new management strategies and tools to handle their
growth in a quickly changing and competitive world. In the early 1960s,
businesses began to apply general system theories to business interactions.

Today the view of business as a human organism implies that for a
business to survive and prosper, all its functional parts must work in concert
toward specific goals, or projects. While various business models evolved
during this period, they all shared a common underlying structure: a project
manager manages the project, puts together and coordinates a team, and
ensures the integration and communication of the workflow horizontally
across different departments. Over the past ten years, project management has
8

been continuing to evolving and is spreading to different sectors other than
business such as the education sector (Microsoft).

1.4. Project-Based Management?
Global social, economic and technological changes have affected the way
organizations are managed. Companies and business have become more
competitive and flexible to adapt to a constantly changing environment.
Administration of the organizations and management of organizational
activities has also changed. The project-oriented organization is now more
common; project-based management is the new general management; thirty
percent of the global economy is project-based. Project management is now a
skill required of all managers (Turner, 2009:1).

Project-based management is the arrangement of activities within an
organization to achieve specific goals. Project-based management promotes
distributed and project-specific responsibilities in the organization. Projects can
be in many different sizes. There are major projects from engineering or
industry such as water, energy, transport. However the projects with which
most of us are involved are smaller. Projects at work include engineering or
construction projects to build new facilities; maintenance of existing facilities;
implementation of new technologies or computer systems; research,
development, and product launches; or management development or training
programs. Projects from our social lives include moving to a new house; or
going on a holiday.

Project management is about converting vision into reality. We have a
vision of some future state we would like to achieve. Project-based management
is the structured process by which we successfully deliver that future state
(Turner, 2009: 2). The following part briefly explains the basic characteristics of
project-based organizations.

9

1.5. Project-Based Organizations
A Project-based Organisation is an organisation, which defines
Management by Projects as an organizational strategy, applies temporary
organisations for the performance of complex processes, manages a project
portfolio of different project types, has specific permanent organisations to
provide integrative functions, has an explicit project management culture, and
perceives itself as project-based (Gareis and Huemann, 2000).

Project-Based
Organisation
Strategy: Management by projects
Structure: Temporary and
permanent organisations
Culture: Project
management and new
management paradigm

Source: Gareis and Huemann, 2000
Figure 1: Project-Based Organisation

Project-based organisations consider projects not only as tools to perform
complex processes, but as a strategic option for the organizational design of the
company. Management by Projects is the organizational strategy of
companies dealing with an increasingly complex work environment. By
applying Management by Projects the following organizational objectives are
pursued:

Organizational differentiation and decentralization of management
responsibility,
Quality assurance by project team work and holistic project definitions,
Goal orientation and personnel development, and
Organizational learning by projects.

10

Project-based organisations perceive projects and programmes as
temporary organisations for the performance of complex processes. Further, in
a Project-based organisation the application of a New Management Paradigm
is required. Traditional management approaches are emphasizing detailed
planning methods, focusing on the assignment of clear defined work packages
to individuals, relying on contractual agreements with clients and suppliers and
using the hierarchy as central integration instrument.

Compared with this traditional management approach the major
concepts common to new management paradigm are;
Consideration of organisation as competitive advantage,
Empowerment of employees,
Process-orientation,
Team work in flat organisations,
Continuous organizational change,
Customer-orientation, and
Networking with clients and suppliers (Gareis, 2001).


2. A NEW APPROACH TO SCHOOL MANAGEMENT:
PROJECT-BASED SCHOOL MANAGEMENT

2.1. Why Project-Based School Management?
Changing, evolving, globalizing and complex business and economic
conditions are strongly affecting schools. Schools have to keep pace with the
changing world in order to survive. Many countries are now looking for new
ways to improve their education system and the success of their students.
School managers play a vital role in setting the direction for successful schools.
Schools are also becoming Project-based organisations because of these global
changes. There are many projects running in schools and each project is run by
a temporary organization. The main problem is that there are no defined
procedures to manage these organizations in schools. By applying PBSM
11

approach to rearrange structure of organization schools will become more
effective organizations.
When we closely examine educational systems, we can see that schools
have to carry out many projects besides their routine tasks. These projects are
sometimes their own projects, and sometimes projects of ministries,
governorates, local authorities and NGOs. Schools use their own human and
material resources for these projects. Management of these projects along with
regular activities and responsibilities of schools creates serious problems most
of the time. Working for these projects creates extra workload for managers and
school personnel in addition to their routine tasks. Many project teams are
established just for the implementation of these projects, for a limited time
period. However, cooperation and coordination between these teams can not be
successfully achieved in many cases. Lack of coordination and connection
between projects and schools objectives not only creates extra workload but
also causes diversion in achieving educational objectives. For example, in
Turkey schools carry out projects about subjects such as reducing violence in
schools, energy-saving, disability awareness, scientific project fairs, arts
and sports projects etc., meanwhile teachers have to continue their usual
teaching activities and administrative tasks. This situation does not differ much
in other European countries. In none of the partner countries do specifically
trained school personnel on project management exist except for Belgium.
There is also no formal structure to maintain coordination among projects
within schools.

A project team has to be established for each project; however most of
the time none of the team members has any project management training or
background. Furthermore, while all these projects are carried out by teachers, in
most of the cases they do not get any motivating awards or payment for their
extra workload. For example in Turkey, Romania and Greece school managers
and teachers do not get any extra payment or reduced hours in exchange for
their extra workload. Among the partner countries, only in Belgium and Italy
do teachers get reduced working hours and extra payment in exchange for
12

project work. Even if teachers and managers are willing to carry out such
projects, it is hard for them to manage projects effectively and in accordance
with the schools objectives since they do not have the necessary project
management qualifications. These multitudinous projects which are not
associated with the schools objectives are not good either for schools or for
projects. While these projects cause excessive workload, the lack of coordination
and project management skills creates unsuccessful projects. In the long run,
this situation disrupts the schools work discipline and causes failure of
projects.

School managers generally complain about the number of projects they
have to deal with and the difficulty of coordinating them. Thus, it is very
important to provide school managers good project management skills to
achieve successful projects. In order to overcome these kinds of difficulties and
put an end to the chaos in schools, the project-based school management
method is created. The application of this method will enable schools to manage
these complex processes and achieve successful results. Project-based school
management is created in order to assure more regular and systematic
structures of the processes which already exist within schools.

2.2. Project-Based School Management Model
Project-based school management is the adaptation of project
management approach to school management. It is difficult to monitor
activities in educational organisations because most of the objectives are general
and difficult to measure. The Project-Based School Management (PBSM)
method can be widely used as a mean of improving schools. By using project-
based management school managers will be able to consider all dimensions of
schools. School activities and development plans will become more traceable
and measurable. PBSM will help school managers in monitoring and assessing
the processes within the school. Using PBSM in school management activities
will help managers to: 1) clarify the purposes and current situation, 2) clearly
13

define the key elements 3) facilitate communication between all parties
involved 4) identify how the success or failure of schools should be measured.

Within every school there are permanent structures which are necessary
for the realization of schools vital functions. These permanent structures are
the formal side of schools and they are necessary for continuity of the school's
main functions. School managers and other administrative staff, teachers,
students and other school personnel are part of these permanent structures. The
routine operations of the schools are carried out by these permanent structures.
However there are other temporary structures exist within schools. These
temporary structures are usually put together to perform certain tasks
(projects). As described in previous sections, in order to deal with the complex
structure of the schools, the organizational structure and relations between
these units in schools can be organized as shown in the following figure:

Manager
DeputyManagers
Teachers
Students
Staff
Project A
Project
Manager
Project B
Project
Manager
Project C
Project
Manager
Project D
Project
Manager
Parents
Market
NGOs
Etc.
Permanent Organization
TemporaryOrganizations
Stakeholders

Figure 2: Project-Based School Management Model
(Developed by M. Emin Bakay adapted from Gareis & Huemann, 2000)

The temporary structures are the group of people and resources which
put together in order to achive certain projects. For each project, the temporary
structures should gain a formal status as permanent structures. Otherwise,
14

coordination, management and control of the activities and achievement of the
objectives of the school become difficult. Project-Based School Management
provides this coordination and control.

Project-based management enables school managers to achieve more
effective resource, time, quality, and risk management in their schools. The
project-based management approach also help school managers to identify
problems and stakeholders more clearly. This helps them improve schools with
the participation, support and commitment of all parties.

In the following section, the management processes in project-based
schools will be discussed. Based on Fayols management theory, the functions
of project-based school management can be explained as follows:

I- Planning: Planning means examine the future and drawing up plans
of action.
Objectives: the strategic planning method should be used in determining
the school's objectives and the planning process should include all stakeholders
and senior management.
Plans: Schools short, medium and long term plans should be prepared
with the active participation and contribution of all stakeholders.
Decision-making: Decision-making process should be participatory and
school managers should distribute some portion of the administrative
powers/authority. In schools, teachers must be trained as project managers,
and project managers should take active role in decision-making.

II- Organizing: Building up the structure, material and human resources
to achieve the objectives.
The organizational structure is presented in above chart. The most
important aspect is to give a formal status to temporary units. It is also
important to compensate project managers and team members according to
their effort and time spent in project activities.
15


III- Commanding: Commanding means maintain activity among the
personnel.
Leadership: It is very important to assume leadership role for school
managers in project-based schools. School managers should maintain a
democratic leadership. Project managers should also be trained as leaders in
order to achieve successful management of the projects. Project managers
should have necessary leadership skills. Leadership styles will be explained in
the following modules.
Motivation: Gaining project manager status improves motivation and job
satisfaction of teachers. Furthermore, the power, authority and competences
gained through project manager status and extra payments also affect the
motivation and the organizational commitment.
Communication: The communication between each project manager will
be horizontal which creates more effective communication.

IV- Coordinating: Coordinating means binding together, unifying and
harmonizing activity and effort.
One of the most important jobs of school manager is to create an
environment which enables the coordination and cooperation among
independently functioning project teams. In order to create this efficient
environment, project managers should meet regularly, inform other project
managers about their own projects, cooperate and work together when
necessary.

V- Controlling: Controlling means seeing that everything is occurring in
conformity with the policy and the practice.
School manager should monitor and control the milestones and activities
of each project and create a controlling and evaluation system. More detailed
information about controlling and monitoring can be found in the Evaluation
module.

16

2.3. Key Management Skills for Project Based Management
General management skills provide a foundation for project based
management skills. However there are other important skills which are
required achieving successful project-based management such as leading,
communicating, negotiating, problem solving, and influencing the organisation
(PMI, 2000:21-24).

Organizational
Learning
Individual
Organization Team
Individual
Learning
Team
Learning

Source: Gareis and Huemann, 2000
Figure 3: Team and Organizational Learning Process in the Project-Based
Organizations

The PBSM is also a tool for organizational learning. During the
organizational learning process individual learning and organizational learning
occurs simultaneously. When organizing and implementing a project there are
some factors needs to be considered by project managers:

Obtaining cooperation: Cooperation of the all parties involved and
stakeholders is necessary for successful projects.
Ensuring resources are available when required: Successful completion of
project activities relies on availability of resources on time.
Defining management responsibility: When defining roles in the project
consider both work and management roles, because usually
management roles cause delays in the process. Define who will do what
and who will make the decisions.
Ensuring good communication: Project manager must define who needs
what kind of information. Channels of communication into a project
must be clearly defined and limited (Turner, 2009).
17

Turner (2009: 93) identifies seven traits of effective project leaders:
Problem solving: The purpose of every project is to solve a problem for the
organization. But also projects entail risk, and so during every project
managers are highly likely to encounter problems. Project managers
must be able to solve them.
Results orientation. Projects are about delivering beneficial change. Thus
project managers need to be focused on the results of their project.
Self-confidence. This is part of the emotional intelligence of project
managers. They must believe in themselves and their ability to deliver.
Perspective. Project managers must keep their projects in perspective.
Communication. The project manager must be able to talk to everybody
from the managing director down to the janitor. Sometimes the janitor
knows more about project progress than anybody else.
Negotiating ability. Project planning is a constant process of negotiation.
Project manager asks people to work for the project. Project manager
must convince them that it is worthwhile and beneficial for them to do
that.
Energy and initiative. When the project gets into trouble, the project
manager must be able to lift everybody else onto their back and get them
out of the hole.
Many other management skills can be added to this list, however it is
important to bear in mind that management skills can be improved by
training and practice.


3. TRAINING METHODOLOGY for PROJECT-BASED SCHOOL
MANAGEMENT

The following part of the document provides brief information on basics
of adult training and gives concise explanation of some well-known training
methods.


18

3.1. Adult Learning Principles
Andragogy is the science of teaching adults. It takes into account that
adults have already acquired knowledge and experience. In andragogy, the
importance of building on already existing knowledge and skills is the main
focus. Adults want to be involved in identifying learning needs. As training
mostly takes place in the professional life of an adult, he/she will be interested
in practical results and knowledge that can be applied immediately.

In order to activate and build on already existing knowledge, the trainer
should make an enquiry as to what the trainees already know, what their
experience is, what problems they encounter, what they would like to learn. To
ensure active contribution, the trainer should allow them to speak, ask
questions, discuss, do something practical, and not just make them listen.
Participation enhances the value of training for learners.

Learners will be more involved in training when they can see the
relevance of the training and the opportunity to apply the training in practice.
But training is not only about exploring and absorbing new knowledge but also
about digesting it. Therefore the trainer must include something into the
training programme to ensure digestion of the new theory presented, for
example role play or case study.

To transfer theoretical knowledge, presentations are the most obvious
technique. However, lectures will never be sufficient: interaction and sharing
what is already there will help people who are not into listening to abstract
theory. Case studies and role playing can be carried out to train on practical
skills, diges information or test new situations. In order to change attitudes and
perceptions, exercises or discussions that will touch on feelings and opinions
should be included. Discussion is also an important tool for giving guidance
and introducing new concepts in a way that is acceptable for the trainees
(Adapted and summarized from Council of Europe, Training Manual on
European Convention of Human Rights).

19

3.2. The Role of the Trainer
In small group teaching situations, the role of the trainer is that of
facilitator of learning: leading discussions, asking open-ended questions,
guiding process and task, and enabling active participation of learners and
engagement with ideas. However, small groups function and behave in various
ways and have different purposes. Trainers therefore need to be able to adopt a
range of roles and skills to suit specific situations (London Deanery). Therefore
adult learning principles are important for trainer or training facilitator. If the
trainer uses adult learning principles both to develop training designs and to
facilitate groups, it will increase the likelihood that adult learners will learn, be
committed to the groups goals, and generate more solutions to problems.

Trainers should focus on the following eight adult learning principles to
evaluate if they are applied to their workshop design:
Focus on real world problems.
Emphasize how group members can apply what happens in the group.
Relate the group activities to member goals.
Relate the materials to their past experiences.
Allow debate and challenge of ideas.
Listen to and respect the opinions of group members.
Encourage members to share resources.
Treat everyone in an adult-like manner (Hart and Crisps, 1991:22).

Making the shift from trainer as expert to facilitator is sometimes seen as
diminishing a trainers power and authority, but this should not be the case.
Facilitating learning is empowering for both the learner and the trainer and
frees the trainer from many of the burdens that having to be an expert might
entail. It would traditionally have been seen as a weakness for a trainer to say I
dont know, lets find out or I dont know, do any of you students know the
answer? but every field of science is changing so rapidly that no one can know
everything (London Deanery). Therefore, it is important to facilitate group
learning using adult learning principles and using appropriate training
methods.
20

3.3. Suggested Training Methods
Establishing clear aims and learning outcomes and making sure these
are communicated to trainees - is of considerable assistance to trainers in
determining their choice of training techniques or formats. Some methods are
more effective than others in achieving particular objectives and some
techniques are more resource-efficient than others. It is important to remember
that the acquisition of knowledge is different from the acquisition of skills. It is
generally accepted that:
People acquire skills:
10% by hearing
25% by seeing
65% by doing
People acquire knowledge:
10% by doing
15% by hearing
75% by seeing

There is another key reason for ensuring careful choice of method:
variety in training method keeps learners interested. In short, in planning
training sessions, not only the provision of knowledge, but also addressing the
acquisition of skills allowing application of project-based management concepts
should be considered.

The following part of the methodology contains useful information on
facilitating group work during the training of school managers. Trainers may
use one or more of these methods. They may also use other methods according
to characteristics of trainees and availability of time and resources.

3.3.1. Group Work
Learning in groups involves to some extent cooperative or collaborative
learning. Cooperative learning is learning in interaction with other participants.
Group dynamics and group tasks are vital in this learning style. Small groups
21

allow using cooperative learning techniques such as tasks and responsibilities
which should be accomplished together with the other members of the group.
Other elements of cooperative learning are discussion, explanation, exchange of
opinions and asking for help. Participants need safe surroundings to ask
questions or to give their opinion. They feel more at ease in homogeneous
groups and interact more easily with each other, whereas heterogeneous groups
might hamper collaborative learning.

Working with groups requires specific skills of the trainer, in order to
deal with co-operation and communication in a group, to guide the
participants in their learning process and to be a source of information and a
role model in his/her way of thinking and reasoning. Group work can be used
in a variety of situations and for a variety of tasks:

Discussion of a certain topic: Here, the group is asked to discuss a given
topic or topics within a given timescale (usually no more than 60
minutes), and report back to the rest of the group via a spokesperson or
rapporteur (by highlighting the key conclusions of the group, possibly
with the aid of a sheet or flipchart paper).

Discussion of case study: groups may also be asked to discuss realistic
scenarios involving no more than 3 main points (and normally based
upon an earlier presentation in which the key issues have been
highlighted). Again, it is usual for groups to be asked to report back to
whole group session.

Simulation or role-play involves the allocation of a particular role to a
group or sub-group. Participants will then be asked to discharge a task
from this perspective. The simulation exercise may be presented as a
whole at the outset of the problem, or handed out issue by issue as the
exercise progresses to try to replicate the notion of a developing
situation. (Council of Europe).
22

Group membership can be decided at random to provide as wide a
variety of views as possible, or selected according to a chosen criterion, such as
background, or experience. Either way, pre-selection is preferable to allowing
participants to choose their own groups, which can create confusion for
participants. The composition of small groups could remain constant
throughout the event, or be varied each time they are convened. However, it is
important to be aware that of particularly knowledgeable and assertive group
members who may attempt to dominate the discussion and impose their own
views. Reticent group members may need encouragement to participate,
particularly where there are domineering members. Firm facilitation may be
required to prevent discussion wandering off the point and to manage
members who perhaps are reluctant participators and are inclined to be
disruptive.
For these reasons it is important to use trainers who have been trained in
the dynamics of small groups and their management (Judicial Studies Board,
2004).


3.3.2. Case Study
A case study is the presentation of a specific incident, or scenario, with
relevant background information, that is analyzed in detail with a view to the
identification of a solution. It creates the opportunity to understand and apply
principles and rules to a real or imaginary scenario. Case studies are intended
to raise questions and allow participants to work through the decision-making
process to find their preferred solutions (Judicial Studies Board, 2004: 45). The
case study simulates reality, draws upon participants experiences and
knowledge, involves them more actively in the learning process and forces
them to apply theory to practice. Usually, the trainer prepares the case study;
however, participants may be involved in determining the content (Hart and
Crisp, 1991: 67).

23

The following guidelines may help conducting a case study:
Trainer should review sources for an appropriate case study that fits
training objectives. As needed, the details of the case study should be
adapted or written a case that fits participants problems.
The participants should be divided into groups of four to six.
The purpose of using a case study should be explained and the directions
should be given beforehand.
Individuals follow the directions, read each case and rank the alternative
responses.
In small groups, participants hold a discussion of their rankings. Trainer
may want them to reach consensus on a group ranking or only hold a
discussion on their rationale for their rankings.
In the end the trainer should conduct a discussion with the total group,
polling information from each group, perhaps tallying group rankings
on the flipchart. The trainer should tie questions to the objectives of the
training (Hart and Crisp, 1991:73).


3.3.3. Discussion
Discussion is probably the most frequently used method by trainers,
however, it isnt easy. The art of questioning takes lots of preparation and
practice. Discussions between the trainer and participants and those among
participants are a useful experience because the learners can take a more active
role, help to determine more of the content to be discussed, and utilize more of
their senses. Discussions can be grouped under two titles; structured
discussions and free discussions. In structured discussions, trainer prepares a
list of questions to be discussed based on defined objectives for holding this
discussion. The content is more carefully controlled by the questions asked. In
free discussions, the trainer announces the purpose of the discussion, explain
ground-rules and carefully monitor the process. Here the participants take
more control of the content of the discussion (Hart and Crisp, 1991: 63).

24

3.3.4. Brainstorming
Brainstorming is a popular tool that helps trainees generate creative
solutions to a problem. It is particularly useful when a trainer wants to break
out of established patterns of thinking, so new ways of looking at things can be
developed. Used with a team, it helps to bring the diverse experience of all
team members into play during problem solving. This increases the richness of
ideas explored, meaning that better solutions can be found to the problem
(Mindtools).

Brainstorming is a creative and cost-effective tool. It requires no more
than a flipchart and some thick marker pens. Brainstorming is based on the
principle that it is possible to generate more ideas collectively than the sum of
the ideas that would be produced individually, as interaction enables one
member to trigger new ideas in another. The trainer asks a question, adresses a
problem or topic to the group and records the responses on the flipchart.
Alternatively, each participant could record their ideas on Post-it notes, which
can then be displayed collectively; this enables individual contributions to be
evaluated and categorized afterwards.

Brainstorming works best when members of the group are expressly
invited to call out the first thing that comes into their heads. Those who are
willing to do this may be less inhibited and will come up with ideas and
suggestions that can be full of insight and that may not have been reached by
way of a more rational, logical approach. Individual ideas are initially
committed to paper without analysis. The contributions are then evaluated by
the whole group or taken into smaller groups to be used as prompts or catalysts
for discussion. They can also be hung on the wall of the main training room and
used throughout the remainder of the course as a focus for reflection and
review.


25

The trainer should be aware of the fact that the session may need to be
facilitated with firmness in order to overcome the temptation to pass judgment
on ideas as soon as they are revealed. Some participants may be inhibited by
concerns about having their ideas ridiculed (Judicial Studies Board, 2004).

3.3.5. Role play
Role plays are another hands-on method for simulating real life. Role-
play is a means of demonstrating or acting out a scenario whose content is
relevant to a particular learning outcome, to provide a context for evaluation
and discussion. The role play enacts an event (case) and gives participants a
chance to re-examine their behaviour. It allows them the opportunity to practice
and experiment with new behaviours, to emphasize different iewpoints, and to
receive feedback on their behaviour. A role play draws upon the participants
experiences and knowledge and forces them to apply theory to practice (Hart
and Crisp, 1991: 78).

Role plays may be scripted or unscripted. The scripted role-play is of
particular value to observers as it constitutes, in effect, a case study brought to
life. The unscripted role-play can be used to confront participants with a
situation similar to one they would probably encounter in real life. Usually,
role-play will involve two or more participants who are given some briefing
beforehand, although the briefings will not be identical. The purpose should be
to give the participant the opportunity to experience, in a safe and supportive
context, something that they would be likely to experience in their work
(Judicial Studies Board, 2004: 47).

3.3.6. Icebreakers
Icebreakers are valuable short exercises that can be given to participants
at the beginning of a training event to enable them to feel more at ease and to
get to know each other quickly before the main work of the training begins.
They also enable the trainer and facilitators to identify members of the group
(Judicial Studies Board, 2004: 45).
26

Getting a workshop off on the right foot is essential. Using structured
activities at the beginning of the training design ensures that the participants
get involved right away, increases their energy and interest, and perhaps gives
an early introduction to a key idea or skill that will be developed later.
Icebreakers actively involve participants they enjoy these hands on
experiences (Hart and Crisp, 1991). There are many small games and activities
to use as icebreakers. These games are widely available in training handbooks.
The trainer may also create his/her own games.


3.3.7. Buzzgroups
Buzz groups are small groups two or three people who are asked to
discuss a particular topic and then report back. They are by their very nature
informal and it is usually enough to ask participants to discuss the topic with
the person next to them. This is a useful method to have available where it is
not appropriate to break from big group to undertake a full-scale small-group
exercise and can be effectively used with larger groups to maintain
concentration.

Buzz groups should be given a clear, straightforward topic to address
and allowed five minutes at the maximum or until such time as the buzz of
conversation has died down. They are particularly effective in the early stages
of a training course when participants may still be experiencing some
inhibitions. After the discussion, a selected number of groups can be asked to
feed back to the whole group so that views or thoughts can be shared and,
where appropriate, this may be recorded on a flipchart. The trainer should be
aware of that unclear directions will lead to unfocused discussion and that if
too much time is allocated to the discussion participants may lose interest and
become bored (Judicial Studies Board, 2004).



27

3.4. Evaluation of Training
Evaluation means a system of judging the benefit of teaching or training
to participants. Training is always done with specific objectives. With more time
and money spent on designing training programmes, training organizers would
need to ensure its success. Hence, evaluation of training is very important.

The most commonly used evaluation model is Kirkpatricks four level of
evaluation model. Kirkpatricks framework suggests that it is useful to look at
evaluation in four stages. These are usually described as Levels 1, 2, 3 and 4.
Each succeeding level builds on information obtained at the preceding stage to
build a full picture:

Level 1: Reaction Level 1 is about the event. This level looks at what is
happening during and at the end of an event. This level is really about how the
participants enjoyed it and found it useful. Participants are evaluating the
teaching, not the learning. To a large extent, they are evaluating the trainer. At
Level 1, trainees asked for opinions on areas such as: Did you enjoy it? Was it
useful? What do you think you have learnt? What comments do you have on
the tutor(s)? How was the level of participation for you? What did you feel
about the training methods? What do you think of the venue? How did you feel
about the joining instructions? This type of evaluation is inexpensive and easy
to administer using interaction with the participants, paper forms and online
forms.

Level 2: Personal learning Level 2 is about learning. It happens during the
event, at the end and sometimes immediately after it. Essentially, Level 2 moves
from whether or not people have enjoyed the event (Level 1) to whether they
believe they have learnt from it. The formal way to assess learning is to apply
some kind of test of achievement. Can participants now do something they
couldnt do before? Level 2 evaluation methods range from self-assessment to
team assessment to informal to formal assessment.

28

Level 3: Applied learning At Level 3 the longer term results are looked at.
Can people actually transfer what they have learnt to the real world? Do their
knowledge and skill stay with them after the course is over? Was there some
kind of measurable change in what they can do? Could this person reliably
train someone else in the skills they have now acquired? Individual pre- and
post-training tests or surveys, face-to-face interviews, observations and
feedback from others, or focus groups to gather information and share
knowledge can be used as evaluation tools at this level.

Level 4: Results At this level, the longest-term impact on peoples lives,
and in work settings, on the organization is looked at. This kind of evaluation is
rarely attempted because it is difficult, if not impossible, to disentangle the
effects of learning from many other factors (Rogers, 2007).

Evaluation is an important part of the trainings no matter what
methodology or tool is used. Evaluation helps improving the content and
process of training as well as trainers themselves. It is important to remember
that evaluating the elements of the training course itself gives little about
whether the trainee will apply what theyve learnt back in the schools. Using
behaviour based training methods where the trainees work on real situations
will boost their self-efficacythat is, increase their belief that they will be able
to use a particular influencing style in a particular situation back in their
schools.

3.5. Sample Activities and Introductory Questions for Trainers
The following sample introductory questions can be asked before the
PBSM subject introduced:
Introductory Questions:
Give an example of an activity which you routinely do in your schools.
Give an example of an activity of your school which is not routinely
performed.
29

Before introducing the subject on key management skills following
sample introductory questions can be asked:

The following three sample activity can be used before or after related
subjects are introduced:

Activity-1: Needs Assessment
Think of an area which needs to be improved in your school. What is the
problem? Are there any other related problems? Write down the main problem
and list all related problems under it according to their relations with each
other. Change your problem statement into a positive sentence which will be
the objective of your project.
WARNING: In real situations, when defining problem do not forget to ask the
opinions of the stakeholders who are directly affected by the problem.


Activity -2: Capacity Assessment
Think of the problem which you identified in Activity-1 and make a scaling
grid which shows capacity of your school in terms of following aspects.
Management
Human resources (knowledge, skills & motivation)
Infrastructure (physical/technological, etc)
Financial resources
Relationship with environment (partnership, networking, etc)


Activity- 3: Management Skills & Competences
List the skills and competences of effective project managers (your opinion)
Personal Competences:
Social competences: ...
Managerial competences:



Introductory Questions:
Which management skills do you think school managers need to apply
project-based management?
Is there any in-service training courses offered in your country about
project management?
30

4. CONCLUSION
This methodology covered the project-based management, project-based
school management approach and training methodology for in-service training
of school managers. As stated earlier a project is a series of activities aimed to
achieve clearly specified objectives within a defined time-period and with a
defined budget. Project management is the usage of knowledge, skills, and tools
to manage a project from start to finish with the goal of meeting the project
requirements. Project-based management is arrangement of activities within an
organization to achieve its goals. The Project-based School Management
approach uses project portfolio management within the schools in order to
coordinate and successfully complete various complex tasks (projects).

The social, economic and technological developments have affected in
many sectors as well as education. Many countries are now looking for new
ways to improve their educational systems. Schools are now becoming project-
based organisations since project-based management enables school managers
to achieve more effective resource, time, quality, and risk management in
schools.

In conclusion it is important for school managers to learn what project is,
how they are managed. This new project-based school management approach
will help them achieve educational objectives more effectively and increase
their schools success.


5. RESOURCES & LINKS
Blackman, R. (2003). Project Cycle Management. Teddington, UK: Tearfund.

Council of Europe: Training Manual on European Convention of Human Rights
http://www.coehelp.org/course/view.php?id=47

European Commission (2004). Project Cycle Management Guidelines.
EuropeAid Cooperation Office, Vol.1.

31

Gareis, R. (2001). Competences in the Project-oriented Organization.
Projektmanagement Group, University of Economics and Business
Administration, Vienna. http://www.wu.ac.at/pmg/fs/pub/cpoo.pdf

Gareis, R, and Huemann, M. (2000). Project Management Competences in
Project-Oriented Organization. University of Economics and Business
Administration Vienna Projektmanagement Group, Franz Klein-Gasse 1,
A-1190 Vienna, Austria.
http://www.pm4dev.com/documents/links/Links-
4/Project_Management_Competencies-PMA.pdf

Hart, Lois B. and Crisp, Michael G. (Eds). (1991). Training Methods That Work :
A Handbook for Trainers. Menlo Park, CA, USA: Course Technology
Crisp, 1991. p 63.

Judicial Studies Board (2004). The Tribunal Training Handbook of the Judicial
Studies Board of England and Wales
http://www.jsboard.co.uk/downloads/handbook_070105.pdf

Kodama, M. (2007). Project-Based Organization in the Knowledge-Based
Society. London: Imperial College Press.

London Deanery, Faculty Development: The Role of the Teacher
http://www.faculty.londondeanery.ac.uk/e-learning/small-group-
teaching/the-role-of-the-teacher

Microsoft Office: A Quick History of Project Management
http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/project/HA011353421033.aspx

Mindtools, Essential Skills for Excellent Career: Brainstorming
http://www.mindtools.com/brainstm.html

Project Management Institute (2000). A Guide to the Project Management Body
of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). Pennsylvania:Project Management
Institute Inc.

Rogers, Jenny. (2007). Adults Learning (5th Edition). Buckingham, , GBR: Open
University Press.

Sanghera, P. (2006). PMP in Depth: Project Management Professional Study
Guide for PMP and CAPM Exams Course PTR Development Staff.
Course Technology, Incorporated.

Turner, R.J. (2009). Handbook of Project-Based Management, Leading Strategic
Change in Organisations. The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. London.


32





PROject based SCHOOL
management







Training Modules







Developed by:
Menderes Town National Education Directorate Izmir, Turkey
Country School Inspectorate, Brasov, Romania
Transilvania University of Brasov, Romania
University of the Peloponnese, Greece
Institute of Education and Communication,
Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Czech Republic
Faculty of Teacher Training and Faculty of Social Work and Welfare
Studies, University College Ghent, Belgium
ANSAS National Agency for the Development of School Autonomy
Lombardia, Italy
33






PROject based SCHOOL
management








Effective School Indicators and In-Service
Training Needs of School Managers






Authors:
M. Emin BAKAY
Gldan KALEM








Developed by:
Menderes Town National Education Directorate Izmir, Turkey
34

1. INTRODUCTION
The PRO-SCHOOL is a Comenius Multilateral Project started in
December 2008 with the aim of developing a new management approach in
order to improve the effectiveness of schools in Europe. Effectiveness can be
defined as the extent to which actual performance compares with targeted
performance (Oxford Dictionary). Partners from six countries (Belgium, Czech
Republic, Greece, Italy, Romania and Turkey) conducted a preliminary case
study research in order to find out about the school managers, teachers and
parents opinions on school effectiveness. The results of this research are limited
to the case study countries and cannot be generalized to the entire Europe;
however we believe that the results can at least shed light on the school
effectiveness indicators according to perceptions of managers, teachers and
parents.

The aims of this chapter are to give brief information about the PRO-
SCHOOL project, to give a picture of effective school indicators according to
perceptions of high school managers, teachers and parents from partner
countries, to share the in-service training needs of school managers and to
disseminate the project outputs with target groups.


2. PROJECT-BASED SCHOOL MANAGEMENT PROJECT

2.1. Summary of the Project
Schools have to change in order to adapt themselves to a changing
environment and to prepare students for a knowledge based society. However
some schools are losing students because they are considered unsuccessful by
parents and society. It is a well-known fact that school managers who are
capable of adapting schools to a changing environment and who are equipped
with good leadership skills are the main components of an effective school.
Increased management abilities of school managers will improve the
effectiveness of schools. Effective schools will produce more successful
students. Successful students will be a contribution to society.
35

In this project by adapting Project Based Management to school
management a new school management method is developed. The project
based management method has been widely used and its success has been
proved. By adapting this method into school management, schools will be
improved, they will become more effective and successful.

2.2. Aims and objectives of the PRO-SCHOOL project
The aims of this project are to develop a school management
methodology which is applicable to high schools in all partner countries and to
improve the effectiveness of schools according to the demands of the
knowledge-based society.

The concrete objectives are:
1. To provide a new management methodology for school managers to
improve their management skills and competences.
2. To develop innovative methods and materials for school management.
3. To contribute and support the implementation of in-service training
methods and practices for school managers.
4. To highlight and disseminate examples of best practices in school
management across Europe and the project results as well.

In order to achieve these objectives and to address the specific needs of
the target groups, the partners first conducted a research on indicators of
effective schools in terms of school managers, parents and teachers between
February and June 2009. Through the research, the partnership investigated the
in-service training needs of the target groups. According to the research results
a new school management method has been developed. Educational materials
developed during the project include a training curriculum for the target
groups (school managers and management staff). In all partner countries, local
training sessions are organized and 90 school managers participated in these
activities. During local training sessions, the effectiveness of the educational
materials are tested. In the end, the results will be exploited in the Comenius in-
36

service training course involving at least 20 school managers at 26 September -1
October 2010 in Izmir Turkey. All materials produced during the project life
cycle are available on www.pro-school.eu web page. Project outputs are
prepared in 7 languages (English, Turkish, Romanian, Italian, Czech, Dutch and
Greek).


3. EFFECTIVE SCHOOL INDICATORS and IN-SERVICE TRAINING
NEEDS OF SCHOOL MANAGERS IN SOME EU COUNTRIES

3.1. Aim of the Research
The aim of the research is to conduct a comparative analysis of effective
school indicators in order to identify best practices at national and trans-
national level and to obtain a clearer picture of the target group needs and
expectations.

We intended to answer two important questions:
1. What are the effectiveness indicators of the schools in each
participating countries in terms of managers, teachers and parents?
2. What are the in-service training needs of school managers in each
participating country?


3.2. Methodology
The research has two main stages. In the first stage a report template is
prepared and filled out by partners. This report template is covered: the
structure of national education system; a classification of high schools; the
number of secondary schools, classes and students; a list of theoretical and
methodological references related with school effectiveness; a list of indicators
used for the evaluation of schools and school managers. At the end of first stage
a list of effective school indicators is created. Total 219 indicators are listed in
six main dimensions. The dimensions were:

37

1. Physical conditions
2. Management and planning
3. Education and training
4. Social life
5. Financial aspects
6. Relations with environment.

The indicators are grouped in 23 sub-dimensions (see Table-1 for sub-
dimensions) A questionnaire consists of those 23 sub-dimension developed to
measure the importance of indicators according to managers, teachers and
parents. The questionnaire for teachers and parents consists of two parts. The
first part consist of personal data (gender, age, years of experience, level of
education) and the second part is represented by the 1-5 scale questionnaire.
The means are evaluated as;
Unimportant : 1.00-1.79
Of Little importance : 1.80-2.59
Moderately important : 2.60-3.39
Important : 3.40-4.19
Very important : 4.20-5.00

Example 1:
Indicator
Importance
(1 = not important :
5 = maximum importance)
Infrastructure, classes and laboratories (adequacy of
school in terms of classes, buildings, activity rooms,
conference halls, laboratories and auxiliary areas).
1 2 3 4 5

The questionnaires were used to measure the perceptions of parents,
teachers and school managers about school effectiveness indicators. A total of
234 managers, 368 teachers and 343 parents completed the questionnaires.
Another part was used to find out about the in-service training needs of school
managers. This part is added to the questionnaire for school managers.

38

Example 2:
Areas Explanation Do you need in-service
training in this area?

1.Physical
conditions
How to improve the infrastructure,
hygiene, safety and security systems
of the school?
Yes No


3.3. Findings
a) Personal Data
Regarding personal data of school managers, there was difference
between the high number of female manager group in Romania, to an almost
balanced sample in Belgium, to a strong male prevalence in Italy that is even
higher in Greece, the Czech Republic and Turkey.

Samples also differ in age distribution. It is interesting to underline that
the younger national groups are the Turkish and the Czech Republic, followed
by Belgium and Romania. The older groups are the Greek and the Italian ones,
whose largest part is composed of managers over fifty years old.

The differences in educational levels are interesting, too. All managers in
the Czech Republic have an MA degree or higher education level. Most of the
managers from Belgium and Italy have an MA degree or higher education,
while a small percent have a BA degree. Lower degrees of education are
observed in Turkey and Greece. The Romanian group is the only one that
includes some managers without any university degree.

b) Effective school indicators
In the first stage of research the effective school indicators derived from
national reports collected and listed below.




39

Table 1: Effective School Indicators
Dimensi
on
Summary Indicators
N of
national
indicators
synthesize
d
Hygiene, safety and security system
(hygiene standards, health-policy, medical care, precautions
in case of a fire or natural disasters, youth protection, safety
and security of work environment)
10
Infrastructure, classes and laboratories
(adequacy of school in terms of classes, buildings, activity
rooms, conference halls, laboratories and auxiliary areas)
11
ICT and the Internet
(adequacy of ITC equipment, computer network and
internet connection, availability of Internet access for
students and staff)
3
P
h
y
s
i
c
a
l

c
o
n
d
i
t
i
o
n
s

Documentation
(development of the school library, up-to-date books,
information and documentation resources)
3
Quality system
(existence, structure, content and standardization of
projective documents and procedures, organizational chart,
job descriptions, data management and quality indexes)

7
Effectiveness of school operations
(sufficiency of teachers for all disciplines, didactic
continuity, transfers and shifts, number of students in
relation to teachers and potential students)
13
Curricular offer
(school time in relation to needs of society, number and
kind of lesson hours)
5
Extra-curricular offer
(extra training courses, activities outside school time and
outside school)
4
Staff and human resources management (carrying out the
management of teaching and non-teaching staff -
recruitment, selection, work loads, use, motivation, -
development of human capital, competencies and skills)
7
Absenteeism of teachers and staff
(absenteeism rates and short absences)
3
M
a
n
a
g
e
m
e
n
t

a
n
d

p
l
a
n
n
i
n
g

School climate
(to create a cosy living-and-learning climate within the
school, to care well-being of the staff and of students, to
survey students, families, staffs and other stakeholders
satisfaction)
13
40

Management style and participated decision making
(information and participation of students and teachers to
decisions, involvement of teachers in management and
delegated functions, leadership style)
15
Guidance
(tutorship and guidance for staff, tutorship and counselling
services for students)


4
Teaching activities
(teaching styles, use of materials and tools, focus on general
education or specialization, homework)
9
School results in terms of output
(testing sessions, achievement levels for main subjects as
Literature, Math, Science, Civics - class promotion and
repetition rates, age regularity, abandoning and drop outs,
graduation rates)

School results in terms of outcome
(success of students in university and higher education
admission, students employed after some years from
graduation, access to the labor market coherent with
studies)
42
E
d
u
c
a
t
i
o
n

a
n
d

T
r
a
i
n
i
n
g

Students behavior coherent with students role
(sufficient use of educational tools and equipments,
engagement towards school tasks, disciplinary situation
and corrective measures, rate of absenteeism, attires)
17
S
o
c
i
a
l

L
i
f
e
Participation in social life
(community, athletic, cultural and environmental activities,
celebratory events, clubs)
14
Effective use of budget
(budget control, ability to decide expense promptly, ability
to meet educational aims using available financial
resources, suitability to the development project)
13
F
i
n
a
n
c
i
a
l

A
s
p
e
c
t
s

Ability to attract financial resources
(donations from parents and other sectors, project
financing, school nets, other takings)
6
Parents involvement
(school parents associations, cooperation with school
management)
10
Relations with community
(relations with other institutions, promoting the schools
image, relations with media)
7
R
e
l
a
t
i
o
n
s

w
i
t
h

E
n
v
i
r
o
n
m
e
n
t

Other services to community
(adult and continuing education, public use of school
spaces)
3

41

It can be seen that the highest numbers of indicators are related to
School results in terms of outputs and outcomes. The other high numbers of
indicators are related to Students behaviour coherent with students role and
Management style and participated decision making.

From the analysis of data, it is very clear that in all partner countries,
managers, teachers and parents give importance to all listed indicators shown
in Table 1. The means of indicators are evaluated in between 4.5 and 3.5. This
means that all listed indicators are important or very important to them.

A table of indicators according to perceptions of managers, teachers and
parents is given below.
42

Table 2: The list of the indicators according to importance for school managers,
teachers and parents

School Managers Teachers Parents
1
School climate Effectiveness of school
operations
Hygiene, safety and
security system
2
Effectiveness of school
operations
Hygiene, safety and security
system
Effectiveness of school
operations
3
Infrastructure, classes and
laboratories
School climate School climate
4
ICT and the Internet ICT and the Internet School results in terms of
outcome
5
Staff and human resources
management
Staff and human resources
management
Staff and human
resources management
6
Teaching activities Infrastructure, classes and
laboratories
Students' behaviour
coherent with student's
role
7
Hygiene, safety and security
system
Curricular offer ICT and the Internet
8
Effective use of budget Teaching activities Infrastructure, classes
and laboratories
9
Management style and
participated decision making
Guidance Absenteeism of teachers
and staff
10
Curricular offer Effective use of budget Guidance
11
Guidance Students' behaviour coherent
with student's role
Curricular offer
12
School results in terms of
outcome
School results in terms of
outcome
Teaching activities
13
Students' behaviour coherent
with student's role
Management style and
participated decision making
School results in terms of
output
14
Absenteeism of teachers and
staff
Documentation Effective use of budget
15
Documentation School results in terms of
output
Documentation
16
Quality system Quality system Management style and
participated decision
making
17
School results in terms of
output
Absenteeism of teachers and
staff
Participation in social
life
18
Relations with community Parents involvement Quality system
19
Parents involvement Participation in social life Parents involvement
20
Participation in social life Extra-curricular offer Ability to attract
financial resources
21
Ability to attract financial
resources
Relations with community Relations with
community
22
Extra-curricular offer Ability to attract financial
resources
Extra-curricular offer
23
Other services to community Other services to community Other services to
community


43

Research results for each country and more detailed information can be
found on the project web site (http://www.pro-school.eu). It is also important
to analyze the difference among managers, teachers and parents perception
about effective school indicators. The analysis of the most important top ten
indicators is given below.

Table 3: Comparative list of indicators according to managers, teachers and parents

Dimension Summary Indicators
Manager
s
Teache
rs
Parents
Hygiene, safety and security system X X X
Infrastructure, classes and laboratories X X X
ICT and the Internet
X X X
Physical
conditions
Documentation
Quality system
Effectiveness of school operations X X X
Curricular offer X X
Extra-curricular offer
Staff and human resources
management
X X X
Absenteeism of teachers and staff X
School climate
X X X
Management style and participated
decision making
X
Management
and planning
Guidance
X X
Teaching activities X X
School results in terms of output
School results in terms of outcome X
Education
and
Training
Students behaviour coherent with
students role
X
Social Life Participation in social life

Effective use of budget X X
Financial
Aspects
Ability to attract financial resources
Parents involvement
Relations with community
Relations
with
Environment Other services to community

It can be concluded that all stake holders give more importance to the
Physical conditions, Management and planning and Education and
training dimensions. This result is also coherent with the in-service training
needs of school managers that we are going to discuss in the next section.
44
c) In-service training needs of school managers
The following step in the analysis of manager questionnaire responses
was to select the areas in which managers think that they need in service
training. To the question: Do you need in-service training in this area?
managers answered as in the following table.

Table 4: Training needs (percent of Yes) by country

Area BE

CZ GR IT RO TR Mean
1 1. Physical conditions 38,70 75,0 82,14 36,70 45,20 33,30 47,21
2 2. Management and planning 64,50 62,5 78,57 63,30 80,60 69,70 71,33
3 3. Education and training 71,00 12,5 89,28 86,70 61,30 69,70 75,60
4 4. Social life 45,20 50,0 64,28 10,00 35,50 30,30 37,06
5 5. Financial aspects 32,30 0,0 46,42 66,70 83,90 51,50 56,16
6 6. Relations with environment 35,50 75,0 89,28 46,70 71,00 42,40 56,98


If we do not consider the areas where national samples indicate a lower
request for training, only two areas are considered as relevant by all national
samples Education and training and Management and planning. While the
Czech managers need a low level for education and training (12.5%) they
emphasise a need in Physical conditions (75%) and Relations with
environment (75%).

The next step was to integrate the two parts of the questionnaires, to
choose the indicators on which to focus during the training course. The
following table synthesizes the dimensions, and connects the indicators as
illustrated in the most important indicators list for each country.
45
Table 5: Dimensions and the most important indicators for countries

Dimension Indicators Countries top ten
1
Education and
training
Teaching activities
School results in terms of outcome
School results in terms of output
GR, CZ, IT, RO, TR
GR, IT, RO
--
2
Management and
planning
School climate
Effectiveness of school operations
Staff and human resources management
Management style and participated
decision making
Guidance
Curricular offer
Absenteeism of teachers and staff
Quality system
BE, CZ, GR, IT, RO,
TR,
BE, CZ, GR, IT, RO,
TR
BE, CZ, GR, IT, RO
BE, CZ, IT, TR
BE, GR
CZ, IT, RO, TR
RO, TR
GR
3
Relations with
environment Relations with community CZ
4 Financial aspects 5.1 Effective use of budget BE, IT
5 Physical conditions
1.1 Infrastructure, classes and laboratories
1.2 ICT and the Internet
1.4 Hygiene, safety and security system
BE, GR, IT, RO, TR
GR, IT, RO, TR
BE, GR, RO, TR
6 Social life 4.1 Participation in social life TR




4. SUGGESTED METHODOLOGY
The content of this module can be introduced in an interactive way.
Structured discussions and presentation methods can be used. First, the
participants are asked to talk about what effective school means, afterwards,
based on the results of the discussion, the summary of the project and the
research results can be introduced.

5. CONCLUSION
We can summarize the research results about training needs as follows:
The Education and training Area: This area of indicators is the one that gained
the highest level of interest from the school managers as far as the school
efficacy is concerned. The highest percentage refers to the Greek school
managers (89. 28%) followed by Italy (86. 7%), Belgium (71%), Turkey (69. 7%),
46
and Romania (61,3) while Czech Republic expressed the lowest (12.5). The main
indicators in this area are considered to be the Teaching activities and the
School results in terms of outcome.

The Management and Planning Area: This area gained the second
position but the percentages attributed by the partner countries differ from the
previous ones. Greece and Romania expressed a high and similar level of
interest (78.57% and 80.6%) followed by Turkey (69.7%), Belgium (64.5%) and
the Czech Republic (62.5). Italy came last (63.3%). The main indicators in this
area are School climate, Effectiveness of school operations and Staff and
human resources management.

The Relations with environment Area: In fact the area Relations with
environment received a far lower interest, even if still significant, with Greece
showing 89% and the Czech Republic 75%, followed by Romania 71% whose
school managers expressed a high level of interest for these issues. Italy, Turkey
and Belgium (that attributed 46.7%, 42.4% and 46.7% respectively), did not
show a special interest for these issues, maybe because they focused on them
for many years in the last decades.

The Social Life and Physical Conditions Areas: These areas are
considered as interesting by Greece and the Czech Republic. In fact less than
half of the school managers in all other partner countries do not think that these
two areas are relevant. Physical conditions obtained 45.2% in Romania, 38.7%
in Belgium, 36.7% in Italy and in Turkey 33.3%, while issues connected with
Social Life scored 64.28% in Greece, 50.0% in the Czech Republic,
45.2% in Belgium, about 30% in Turkey and Romania, and only 10% in Italy.

The Financial Aspects Area: Financial aspects are considered as most
relevant by all partners, except for Greece due to its particular context
characterised by the centralisation of the national system as detailed in its
national report. These issues are considered as extremely relevant by Romania
47
(83.9%) even if to the detriment of the first two areas. The other partners are
generally ready to consider these issues as central but with a different level of
interest (Italy 66.7%, Turkey 51.5% and Belgium 32.3%). There is no interest at
all in this area in the Czech Republic. A first analytical study of the partners
school systems would certainly show the significant differences existing at
legislative level in the different countries, a fact that binds the school managers
to very different laws and norms, thus making it almost impossible to find a
common framework of financial aspects for the course design and plan.

6. RESOURCES & LINKS
www.pro-school.eu
www.eurydice.org






48





PROject based SCHOOL
management








Lifecycle of The Project






Authors:
Prof. dr. eng. Anca Duta
Prof. dr. eng. Ion Visa
Assoc. prof. dr. Dana Perniu








Developed by:
Transilvania University of Brasov, Romania

49
1. INTRODUCTION
The objectives of this module consist in developing the knowledge and tools for
understanding project management and its benefits in view of ensuring the
quality of the processes in an educational institution and in various sections of
it, and of preparing school managers for accessing national and European
funding opportunities by developing coherent and structured projects for the
school or for needs within the school. Thus, school managers and heads of
working teams will be supported in preparing, delivering and assessing the
knowledge, by valorizing the resources and avoiding overlapping.

The module starts with the brief history of project management and
continues with stages of the project management with a special attention to
school context and with practical lessons.

This module can be taught by using interactive teaching methods whichs
are covered at the beginning of this publication.

Assessment of the training can be done by asking trainess to develop an
Activity Plan for a project to be implemented in their educational institution.


2. HISTORY OF PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Project management rises as a need for developing instruments able to
support reaching a goal within an organization, team, or even at an individual
level.

Project management in its present form is strongly linked with the
industrial revolution, in the XIX century when the need for budget
management, workforce utilization, demand and supply scaling, required the
development of a management system that was methodological and goal
oriented. Still, large scale projects developed before are proof that sound
50
organizing allows for great achievements; it is almost impossible to imagine
building the pyramids, the large cathedrals, temples or mosques without a
resource management (Bista).

The initiators of modern project management are Frederick Taylor and
Henry L. Gantt (the Gantt chart), followed by Admiral Raborn of the U.S. Navy
who introduced the PERT project management tool (Program Evaluation and
Review Technique). Details on the XIXth century developments in Project
Management are presented in the Chapter Project-Based School Management
Philosophy And Training Methodology.

Still, traditional 'on time/on budget' measures can fail; the traditional
metrics are incorrectly treated as early warning indicators, with impending
trouble unforeseen.

In 1997, Dr. Eli Goldratt published a book about a new way of looking at
Project Management through TOC: Critical Chain, developing the Theory of
Constraints that gives a realistic view of the real limits in project development
and implementation, by re-programming, fine tuning and shifting priorities,
before it is too late (Process Quality Associates).

Project management solutions represent nowadays a set of tools to
complete projects within a defined scope, time, and within cost constraints. It is
important to notice that these three factors can never be maximally fulfilled at
the same time, and it is the task of the project manager to decide upon the
importance of each during the projects stages and in the project considered as a
whole.

51

Figure 1: Constraints in project development


Over the past decade project management software has been developed,
with many features and options, (tools for risk management, activity based
costing analysis, earned value management, planning, budgeting and other
tracking tools). Apart from their significant support in developing reports, the
software tools for project management are important because they offer a clear
view (usually via diagrams and charts) on the activities time-resource
correlations, and allow calculating the cost scenarios, thus minimizing risk of
failure. But, it is the project manager who delivers the correct input data and
project management software is not a guarantee for success if it is not correctly
handled.

With this history behind, problems are still being raised. A survey
developed by the Standish group in 2006, (Standish Group, 1995) for the US IT
large projects showed that:
Only 66% of all the projects finish in time or before schedule;
Most of the projects exceed their initial budget with an average of 156%;
Over 70% of the projects do not fulfill the entire quality indicators, in the
initial time frame.

The consequences are direct (in terms of progress and financing) and
indirect (in terms of lack of confidence toward the developers). Real-time
corrective actions, on correct forecast studies, represent a key to overcome these
consequences. Therefore, applying rigorous project management, careful
52
Quality
Time
Scope Costs
monitoring and risk assessment is compulsory for real success. Therefore,
while the 1980's were about Quality, the 1990's about Globalization, the 2000's
are targeting Velocity, for facing competition.

There is a set of stages in developing and implementing a project, known
as Project Lifecycle. In 2002, The European Commission - EuropeAid developed
a Handbook for Project Cycle Management (EC, 2002), which is the
fundamental tool in running European projects and can be used as a reference
for project management, Fig. 2:


Figure 2: Project cycle management,
Source: European Commission, 2002.

The steps mentioned in this diagram will be further detailed in this
course module, along with concrete ways to handle various project
management problems in education institutions.


3. WHY PROJECT MANAGEMENT IN SCHOOLS?
Initiated by engineers, project management is now a tool developed by
interdisciplinary groups and applied in all the activity fields.

Schools, either primary, secondary or tertiary are entities having as their
main goal to deliver quality education to their students, thus fulfilling their part
as designed by the society. But, what does quality education mean? Usually
there is a set of national standards and indicators that assess the didactical
activities.
53

Still, the competition within the education area is stimulated by the

quality offer of the school and most importantly - by the final result: the
position of the graduates in the labour or education market. This competition
can be successfully approached when knowledge is provided according to the
needs (Visa, Duta and Diaconescu, 2009).

In managing a school there is a set of mandatory components
(curriculum, syllabi, number and type of attendees) but there is also a set of
components available or accessible that can be well managed and make a
difference between educational institutions of the same kind. These are mainly
two types of resources:

The internal resources (human resources, financing, infrastructure); their
management is usually done based on traditional experience, on see and
act base, therefore crises are regular and the school management staff is
overloaded;
The external resources that can be accessed for increasing the quality of the
entire education frame in the school. They can merge from different
streams (local, national, European support programs for education). These
are always accessible in competitions.

Therefore, the main points where modern project management can and
should be applied in schools are:
In developing and implementing the School Management Plan, as tool for
fulfilling the operational objectives of the School Management Strategy;
In developing successful project proposals, for resources development,
thus again fulfilling the School Management Strategy.

Additionally, project management tools can be used for designing and
developing any new educational product (course, laboratory application,
assessment tool) because the essence is to clearly identify answer to the
following questions:
54
What needs must be fulfilled, so why is the project done? (goal, objectives);
How do I reach this? (tasks, activities)
Which are the outcomes? (results)
Which are the resources involved and required? (human resources,
infrastructure, funding)
To whom does the project addresses? (target groups: staff, pupils, trainees,
etc.)
Which is the optimal timeframe (project duration)


4. SETTING UP A PROJECT MANAGEMENT PLAN

4.1. Identification setting up the goal, objectives
Why should a school manager start a project?
The usual answer is: because we need financing for. This is not a
correct answer because it starts with a gross (and most of the time unrealistic)
estimation on the most sensitive issue.

Lesson 1: Projects are developed to fulfill a need or to solve a problem.

Identification of needs/problems is an important part of the project
development and is the only realistic route to have a clear picture of the goal,
objectives and extend of your project.
The Needs analysis/Problems analysis must be done starting with the
project idea and having in mind the major outcome of the project.

Lesson 2: Focus on a single major outcome.

This outcome can be the answer to a strategic requirement (e.g. I want to
bring my school in the top regional ranking), or to an institutional need (e.g. I want
to develop a new education line), or to a concrete need (e.g. I want to better integrate
minority pupils).
55
Therefore, before any other action, the target group(s) must be identified
in detail (type, number, age, level of education, etc.).

Lesson 3: Define your target groups.

The need analysis must give a clear view of:
the existent situation (in your own school, in other schools, at national
level, at international level);
the unfulfilled requirements (at general level, at the particular level of your
institution).

Lesson 4: Study the examples of good practice To make good decisions
you need good Information.

There are several tools for developing a quantitative needs analysis:
Questionnaires, addressed to the target groups. In developing an efficient
questionnaire, a limited number of questions must be set (no more than
15), without leading answers, but with control questions (at least 2). The
formulation should be a mix of questions with multiple choice answers,
ranking questions and questions with open answer. The quantitative
analysis is done based on setting the average/acceptable level of response.
Be aware that the usual rate of useful responses is 15%.

Focus Groups, realized with 8-10 representatives of the target groups,
previously informed on the questions; the focus group is moderated for
60min by a non-intrusive moderator and is videotape recording. The
analysis is done based on the participants answers and on the soundless
images, mainly for body language analysis.

Once the analysis finishes, a set of quantifiable needs can be formulated.
For large projects (over 5M), Feasibility Studies are used to replace the Needs
Analysis. The development of a Feasibility Study requires specialized expertise
56
and is not part of this course. Based on the Needs analysis or on the Feasibility
Study, the initial project idea can be transformed in the Project Aim or Project
Goal.

Lesson 5: Formulate the Project Aim in one sentence/phrase, with less
than 50 words.

The aim of the project must focus on the major project outcome and must
outline the innovative aspects and the expected impact. If your problem can be
solved by simply buying several items, than you dont need projects but the
adequate shop!

Lesson 6: Projects must be innovative either as content or as solutions.

Example of wrong formulation: This projects aims to develop a new sports
hall for our school.
Example of good formulation: This projects aims to increase the quality of
education in our school, by developing a new sports hall, open for sport classes
and for extra-curricular activities, increasing team work and reducing violence
in school.

In fulfilling the projects aim, operational objectives are formulated. The
operational objectives must be divided in terms of content and duration. Most
of the projects, even in the very large projects can be formulated with three,
maximum four operational objectives.

Lesson 7: Objectives must answer to the question What does the project
do?

Usually, objectives are formulated with verbs (develop, to implement, to
test, to optimize, etc.).

57
Beside the operational objectives, two support objectives must be formulated
for each project:
Administrative and financial objective: defining the decision structure, the
decision flow and the communication pattern, within the project;
Dissemination and valorization: defining the targeted dissemination
(what?, when?, how?, to whom?) and indicating the concrete way the
project results will be used inside and outside the institution.

4.2. Expected outcomes: indicators
A project is developed to fulfill a major need by a measurable major
outcome. Any major outcome gives way to supplementary outcomes, either
used within the project or outside.

E.g. a database developed in the early stages of a project is a working tool for the
project but can also be used outside, in the school or in more schools or administrative
bodies.

These outputs must be pictured from the very beginning and must be
monitored based on Result Indicators.

Examples of Results Indicators: number of pupils that get results above. grade
within a given timeframe; number of teaching staff trained on the subject.; number of
new laboratories developed;

Lesson 8: Results Indicators must be measurable and unambiguous.


5. APPRAISAL
Appraisal involves analysis of a proposed project to determine its merit
and acceptability in accordance with established criteria. This is the final step
before a project is agreed for financing. It checks that the project is feasible
against the situation on the ground, that the objectives set remain appropriate
and that costs are reasonable (EC,2002). For developing a successful project
proposal the project management tools should be applied.
58
5.1. Identifying the funding programme
At this stage of a project proposal development, the project manager has
to start to look after financing programmes, at regional, national or
international level.

National and regional projects are usually funded per institutions and
are small or average in terms of funds. European projects are mainly developed
by trans-national partnerships and can be small, average or large, depending on
the EU programmes and components and on the project extent.
During 2007-2013, all the EU financing lines dedicated to education and
training are joined in the European Lifelong Programme LLP. Details can be
fund on the web page:
http://ec.europa.eu/education/lifelong-learning-programme/doc78_en.htm



Figure 3: Front page of the LLP European programme for education and training

59
Any financing programme has a Guide of Application. This must be
carefully studied and the priorities set for the programme must integrally apply
to your specific project. If this is not the case, you have to reconsider your initial
idea and re-shape it according to the priorities of the programme that best fits to
your project purpose.

After deciding on the financing source to be accessed, the project can be
given a name/title. It is important to choose a short name (no more than 20
words, recommendable significantly less), specifically outlining the projects
major outcome, unambiguous and avoiding redundant information. Try to find
a project name that can also be put in an acronym, with certain significance,
according to the priorities set by the financing programme.

Example of wrong formulation: Developments for increasing the quality of
education.
Comments: Redundant any project brings developments; Non-
specific: it can apply to any education structure, from kindergarten to doctoral
schools.
Example of good formulation: Quality assurance instruments for vocational
schools in product design.
Comments: the title contains the major outcome (quality assurance
instruments), the field (product design) and the target group (vocational
schools).

Lesson 9: The projects title must be concise, unambiguous and specific.

The Guide of Application also contains a list of eligible institutions.

Lesson 10: Before writing the Project Application, check if your
institution is eligible.


60
The Guide of Applications includes the Call for Proposals, detailing:
The general programme priorities and the priorities for that specific Call.
Your project must have objectives answering to both. It is not necessary to
answer to all priorities set, but it is not recommendable to answer only to
one;
The deadline for submitting the proposal (date and hour be aware it is
the time of the financing body not your local time): in the recent years
proposals are submitted electronically and as hard copy.
The maximum amount available for the entire programme and the
maximum amount eligible for the project. Sometimes also the minimal
project financing is set. Not respecting these makes your project ineligible
for further evaluation;
The minimum and maximum eligible duration of the project;
The eligible costs (e.g. VAT is not always eligible);
The template for the project proposal: most of the application forms are
restricting the number of characters used for the project proposal. Writing
a lot in few words is time demanding and should be done from the very
beginning;
The evaluation file, based on which your proposal is financed;
Contacts where questions can be addressed.

Lesson 11: Before writing the Project Application read and understand
the entire Guide of Application.


5.2. Identifying the resources
At this stage you have a structured idea of your project and of the
available resources. It is time to think at the resources needed for developing
the project. Reformulating the initial triangle Time Cost Scope for
optimizing the quality, one can sense the importance of the (internal) resources
in developing a project:
61

Figure 4: Triple constraints in project development

The resources supporting the project development must be identified in
the proposal stage and are the following:

5.2.1. Internal resources:
Human Resources (staff in the school, technicians). Identify the resources
needed for the project, avoid overlapping of competencies, group them
in working teams, and inform them from the beginning on their role in
the project. It is advisable to involve the working group coordinators in
the stage of developing the project proposal, to bring their expertise and
to understand the projects constraints.
Infrastructure (buildings, classes, laboratories, equipment, IT networks,
software, library, etc.), that represents an asset in the project
development;
Funds. Many projects are asking for a financial involvement of the
beneficiary, in terms of co-financing. Moreover, all the projects start with
a pre-financing but the rest of the costs is delivered based on initial
payment from the beneficiary, being funded only the eligible costs;
Information resources: e.g. access to databases.

5.2.2. External Resources:
Partnership: for the projects specifically requiring partnership, the
expertise and the role of each partner must be clearly identified. In trans-
national projects a partner mix with homogeneous cover in terms of
geographical position and in terms of competencies is recommendable;
62
Quality
Schedule
Scope Resources
Supporting entities: confirming the need and viability of your project and
acting as dissemination vectors;
Financing: required throughout the Project Application.

Lesson 12: When developing the resource analysis, focus on the resources
specifically needed in the project, and dont detail all the available ones.


5.3. Developing the project proposal
Each Guide of Application contains the template to be filled in when
submitting a project proposal. Depending on the financing body, this template
has various levels of complexity.

There are situations when there is not a specific body targeted, e.g. when
you intend to implement project management tools for an internal project,
setting as goal (for example) To get on the third position in the regional ranking of
the high-schools. In this situation it is wise to develop your own template,
considering the evaluation rules (either internal or of the administrative body in
charge, e.g. the District School Inspectorate) but respecting the major
components of any project proposal, which are:

1. Evaluation of the State of the Art; Needs/Problem Analysis; Justification of
the project
2. Project Aim and Project Objectives
3. Activity Plan
4. Expected results; expected outcomes
5. Risk analysis
6. Dissemination
7. Resource evaluation, including financing


63
When filling in the project proposal template, also consider the
Evaluation File, which is developed based on criteria that can be fulfilled by
different parts of the proposal. These are (EC, 2002), quality assessment criteria
for Relevance and Feasibility, and must answer to the following questions:

1. Relevance
1.1. Are the projects objectives in line with the programmes objectives?
1.2. Are the partners (stakeholders) clearly identified, eligible, and
necessary?
1.3. Are the target groups clearly identified, eligible and justified?
(qualitative and quantitative description)
1.4. Are the problems of the target groups sufficiently detailed and
realistically evaluated?
1.5. Is the Needs/Problems analysis sufficiently comprehensive?
1.6. Does the project explain why it is necessary to fulfill the programmes
target?
1.7. Does the projects purpose and results express a direct benefit for the
target groups?
1.8. Does the economical and financial analysis give an adequate description
for the above problems?

2. Feasibility:
2.1. Does the project aim contribute to the overall objectives?
2.2. Are the outcomes resulting from the project activities?
2.3. Will the project aim be achieved if the results are attained?
2.4. Can the aim and the results be reached within the project with the
means and resources suggested?
2.5.The external factors have been realistically evaluated (Risk analysis)?
2.6. Is the probability of the project completion acceptable?
2.7. Will the beneficiary/partners be able to implement the project?
2.8. Does the economical and financial analysis provide enough information
for the problems above?
64
A project proposal that gets a No to one of these questions is not
eligible for financing.

Therefore, it is not recommended to write a project proposal in the
template order, and it is useful and less time consuming to start with the core
of any project, which is the Activity Plan.

Lesson 13: Start writing a project proposal with the Activity Plan.

A final comment at the end of this module is for those hiring consultancy
firms for writing the project proposals. The best description of the problems can
be given by those who identified those problems. The best solutions and
resource management is given by the internal project manager. So, try to
develop your very own project proposal. In the end, you can ask for
consultancy for tuning the formulation, and for harmonizing different parts
(especially related to financing), but not before. Otherwise, the proposal will be
well written, the financing will be granted but this project will not fully match
to the initial purpose.


5.4. Correlation: Objectives Activities Results
The Activity Plan is a key tool in project management and correlates the
objectives with the activities and the results.

The project activities must be the means and methods used for fulfilling
the objectives. While any objective answers to the question What does the
project do?, any activity must be formulated to answer to the question How is
it done?.




65
Any activity must end with at least one measurable result. If a certain
result cannot be formulated, then that specific activity is not necessary. The
results can be tangible (books, questionnaires, analysis, equipment, etc.) or
intangible but measurable (software, methodology, novel/updated knowledge
of . students, etc.).

Lesson 14: In developing an objective, at least two activities are needed
and each activity must be finalized with at least one measurable result.

This is valid both for the operational and for the support objectives,
Figure 5.


Figure 5: Chart diagram of the Activity Plan of a project
Source: Transilvania University of Brasov, Romania


The Activity Plan is usually developed as a matrix. An example is
presented in Table 1.



Aim
Operational
Objective 1
Operational
Objective 2
Dissemination
& Valorization
Objective
Operational
Objective 3
Adminstratie
&Financial
Objective
Activity 2.1. Activity 2.2. Activity 1.1 Activity 1.2
Result 1.1.1 Result 1.2.1
Result 1.2.2.
Result 2.1.1. Result 2.2.1
.. ..
66
Table 1. Activity Plan of the SEE-EU Tool project (selection)
Duration Objective Activities Results
A1.1. Curriculum
development
R.1.1. Curriculum
R1.2.1. Syllabi for
the course Energy
and Environment
R.1.2.1. Syllabi for
the course
Photovoltiacs
A.1.2. Developing
the syllabi for the
modules.
.
A.1.3. Developing
the hands-on
training
methodology
R.1.3.1. Training
methodology
set fo guidelines
R.1.4.1. Manual
for the course
Energy and
environment
R.1.4.2.
Handbook for the
course
Photovoltaics
A.1.4. Developing
the
teaching/learning
instruments

A.1.5. Testing the
outcomes in the real
class environment
R.1.5.1. Feed back
report
O.1. Develop the
education frame for

renewable energy
sources in secondary
schools
A.1.6. R.1.6.1.
A.2.1. Develop and
implement the
management
structures and the
decision flow
R.2.1.1. Project
Organisation
Chart and project
management
O.2. Develop and
implement the
managerial frame of the
project
A.2.2. Develop the
acquisition
procedure for one
PC network
R.2.2.1. One PC
network installed
A.3.1. Develop the
project web site
R.3.1.1. The
project website
www.
R.3.2.2. The
project logo
Year 1 of
the project
O3. Develop and
implement the
dissemination plan
A.3.2. Develop the
dissemination
materials R.3.2.1. The
project leaflet
Year 2 of
the project
On

67
This is part of the Activity plan for a three year-project aiming to develop
new teaching/learning instruments, at secondary schools level, on renewable
energy systems. The project was developed in the frame of the Comenius 2.1.
programme in a partnership involving 10 intentional partners and coordinated
by Transilvania University of Brasov (Visa, 2005). Amounting over 500,000
EUR, the project developed a complex frame for training teachers on
sustainable energy and teaches them how to implement the concepts of green
energy and clean energy into the high-school curricula for different subjects
(Chemistry, Physics, Geography, etc.), (Visa , et.al, 2008 and Duta et.al, 2006).

Although simple, the Activity Plan is the key in formulating and
developing. It also represents the reference in monitoring and assessing a
project during and after its end.

Lesson 15: There is no restriction in the activities number. Make them
detailed and in a logical sequence, as long as each can be assigned a result.

The results can be on-going (necessary to develop a next activity) or final,
and in this case they represent the projects outcomes. Keep in mind that all the
results mentioned in the proposal stage must be developed during the project.
Otherwise, detailed explanation is required, funding may be reduced or ended
(if some of the major outputs are not developed). So the number of activities is
actually restricted by the planned results.

There are situations when the exact starting date is not known (e.g. for
European projects), therefore any Application Proposal is developed according
to a generic time frame where month 1 is considered the first month from
signing the contract/grant agreement.




68
5.5. Project time frame: the Gantt chart
A Gantt chart is a bar representation, of the activities duration, outlining
the beginning and end moments.

According to the project extent, it can be developed on trimesters
(usually for projects longer than 3 years), on months (for projects of one up to
three year), on weeks or on days (for very short projects). In any case, for a
project there is a single Gantt chart. An example is given below, for the
activities detailed in Table 1. such as for a one year project. In the real situation,
this Gantt diagram was developed for all the activities during the 36 month of
the project.

Month Activity
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
A.1.1
A.1.2
A.1.3
A.1.4.
A.1.5
A.1.6.
A.2.1.
A.2.2.
A.3.1.
A.3.2.

Figure 6: Example of correct Gantt chart


It should be noticed that, inside of a given objective, the activities must
respect a waterfall arrangement, as a logical consequence of the fact that, if an
activity is necessary, than its result must be used in a following activity.





69
Month Activity
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
A.1.1
A.1.2
A.1.3
A.1.4.
A.1.5
A.1.6.
A.2.1.
A.2.2.
A.3.1.
A.3.2.

Figure 7: Example of incorrect Gantt chart


An example of wrong timing is clearly identifiable in the Gantt chart
presented in the Fig. 7. It is obvious that activity A.1.4. is either completely not
necessary, or planned in the wrong period.

Gantt charts can be further developed by showing links between the
activities in different objectives, by highlighting the responsible, by noting the
milestones (e.g. datum of the Project evaluation, of the Progress Report, of the
Final report, etc). Specialized software develops Gantt charts with the desired
degree of complexity, Fig. 8:








70

Figure 8: Complex Gantt chart, highlighting the Progress Report (PR) datum


5.6. Developing the Financial plan correlating activities with
financing
Based on the Activity Plan and on the Gantt chart, the Financial Plan of
the project can be developed. This is a stepwise procedure and considers the
budgetary headings set by the programme. There are many budgetary
structures running now in various projects, depending on the main focus of the
programme: there are programmes supporting human resources development
(with a very low amount dedicated to infrastructure) and there are programs
for infrastructure development with very low amounts for all the other costs.
All in all, the main budgetary headings in a project are described in the Table 2:
PR
71
Table 2: Budgetary headings in a project

Budgetary
heading
Description Share
[%]
Observations
1. Personnel costs Costs for the personnel in
the teams developing the
projects outcomes
Cost for the management
team
30..50
2. Equipment
and materials
Costs for purchasing
equipment and materials
directly related to the
development of the project
outcomes
2050
3. Mobility Cost for travel,
accommodation and
subsistence during
mobilities
1020 Sometimes
subsistence costs are
included in
Personnel costs.
4. Other costs Costs that cannot be
assigned under the previous
headings
510
5. Sub-
contracting
Costs for activities that
cannot be developed with
the institution/partnership
resources
Max.
15

6. Overheads
(Indirect costs)
1560 Sometimes also
including the
personnel costs (e.g.
in the FP7
programme)


Lesson 16: When developing the financial plan carefully read and respect
the financial rules in the Guide of Application.

Calculating the costs is done as follows:
1. Personnel costs: based on the timesheet for each team member
(according to the activity and the Gantt chart) and on the hourly salary;
these costs are validated if the results for the paid activities are attended.
2. Equipment and materials costs: based on an offer selection or an auction
procedure; these costs are fully validated if they are strictly necessary in
the project, and the equipment is used only in the project. Depreciation
72
time must also be considered in validating the costs. So, as a rule of
thumb, expensive equipment must be purchased (if justified) in the early
stages of the project.
3. Mobility costs are validated if the mobility is fully supported by the
projects activities (e.g. a partner meeting, a specific dissemination event)
and are calculated on real costs basis (for travel and accommodation).
Subsistence costs are validated based on the internal institutional rules,
as real costs or as lump sum.
4. Other costs can be conference taxis, bank charges (not always!), external
audit course, printing costs, etc.
5. Sub-contracting represents an acquisition of services and must be done
based on an offer selection or an auction procedure;
6. Overheads cover all the institutional costs that are not directly related to
the project but support it, such as utilities (power, heating, water),
supporting departments, etc. Theses costs need no proves.

The financial sheet of the project must further be developed for
calculating the projects budget.

Table 3: Financial sheet of a project

Budgetary heading [EUR] Activity
Personnel Equipm
ent
Mobility Other Subcontrac
ting
Indirect Total
A.1.1. 5000 0 0 50 0 150 5165
A.1.2. 300 20000 0 0 0 60 20360
A.1.3. 0 0 1000 40 0 0 1040
A.1.4
.
Total A B C D E F T


Note that there are activities that do not require indirect costs such as
Mobility and equipment purchase. Based on this financial sheet, the Provisional
Project Budget can be developed and included in the project proposal.

73
Table 4: Provisional Project Budget

Budgetary
heading
Year 1
[EUR]
Year 2
[EUR]
Year
[EUR]
Total*
[EUR]
1. Personnel
costs
A
2. Equipment
and materials
B
3. Mobility C
4. Other costs D
5. Sub-
contracting
E
6. Overheads

F
Total projectss budget T
* As calculated from the financial sheet


Supplementary, the Application proposal requires a detailed description
of the cost calculation.
Usually, there is not a template for this, but a clear explanation is
recommendable.
In this view, the calculation of the Personnel cost can be done by adding
a sheet of the following form:

Table 5: Time-team sheet

No. of hours Activity
Project
coordinator
Team
member 1
Team
member 2
. Total
A1.1. X X
A.1.2. X X
A.1.3. X X
.
TOTAL A

Based on this time-team sheet, on the Gantt chart and on the average
hourly gross salary, the personnel costs can be fully justified.

The Equipment costs can be justified by adding to the proposal some
preliminary offers, proving the average expected costs of the equipment.
74
The Mobility costs are calculated considering the number of mobilities
and:
An average duration (usually 3-4 days), for calculating the subsistence
costs (usually up to 50 EUR/day);
An average amount for airplane costs (300 EUR);
An average amount of accommodation costs (80 EUR/night).

Sub-contracting costs should be well justified and only if they are really
necessary.
Overheads are justified either by the Guide provisions (usually 7% of the
total costs, in EU projects for education and training) or by the institutional
rules.
After the Application Form is completed and all the annexes are
developed read the Check List given in the Guide of Application once more,
then start the submission.

Lesson 17: Before starting the proposal submission, read the Guide of
Application and the Evaluation Form once more.

After the proposal was submitted, dont forget to inform the project
team(s) and to thank them for their cooperation.


6. FINANCING
The results of the projects evaluation can be expected after a reasonable
period of time, no sooner that 2 month, but usually after 5-6 month. Regional or
local programmes are faster evaluated, by the District School Inspectorate,
Local or Regional Councils, etc. Depending on the project extent, there can be
more levels of evaluation (eligibility, technical content, financial content, panel
evaluation). The national and EU programmes have sites where the status of the
project proposal can be tracked.
75
When the assessment process is finalized, the results are publicly posted
on web sites and the project coordinator is officially announced about the
results. The official announcement also contains the Evaluation Files completed
by at least two evaluators (blind evaluation you will never be announced who
the evaluators were).

If your proposal is unsuccessful, please read carefully the Evaluator Files,
they contain valuable suggestions for improving the proposal. Then, if your
idea is really good, try again to the next Call with an improved proposal.

Lesson 18: The success rate in EU projects is, on average 15%.

If your proposal is successful, you are invited to start the contracting
procedure within a very short period (usually within 10 days).


6.1. Contracting
Contracting is a mandatory step for any successful project proposal
regardless of the financing body (local, regional, national, international). It
represents a legal document, binding both parts to a set of rights and duties.
The contractual forms include the Grant/Financial Agreement and annexes.
One compulsory annex is the initial project proposal, meaning that, once
approved, the proposal becomes a reference document and everything assumed
in the proposal will be fulfilled.

Lesson 19: Carefully read the contractual forms and ask for advice to a
legal councilor to fully understand all the contractual provisions.

There is little that can be changed in the Grant Agreement, especially in
national and international programmes. The only changes accepted are
supplementary formulations on restrictions, as a result of the risk analysis.
76
The agreements for projects financed by local or national programmes
are less complex and sometimes subject to negotiation but, in any type of
project, the initial proposal stays as reference because it was this proposal that
got enough confidence from the financing body.

During the project implementation, modification of the initial proposal
might be necessary. These are subject of Amendments to the Grant/Financial
Agreement and are done, based on detailed Justification Reports, submitted by
the project coordinator.

The changes can consist of modifying:
The Project Timetable (the Gantt chart), by shifting activities starting
moment or by modifying their duration;
The Activity Plan, by adding/removing activities;
The project team(s), by adding/removing team members; new team
members must have a CV according to the specific need that justifies there
inclusion;
The project budget by shifting amounts between the budgetary headings;
The project partners, by adding or removing partners. This must be done
without any budget increase and by preserving the initial project
outcomes.

Lesson 20: The amendments to the Grant Agreement are not allowed to
change the aim, objectives and major outcomes of the project. They also cannot
increase the project budget.

The approval of the amendments requires a certain period of time
(months) and during this period, payments are suspended.
We strongly advise to continue the project activities in this period and to
inform the team members and the partners about all the steps. As a result, we
also strongly advise to submit a request for amendment only if it is absolutely
necessary.
77
6.2. Project financing criteria
Any project must have a distinct bank account for developing the project.
The account data are part of the Grant Agreement.

Financing steps are also part of the Grant Agreement and are usually:
Pre-financing share: a share varying from 15 to 30% from the total project
amount;
One or two intermediate financing share during the project duration; these
are submitted after evaluating the Progress Report(s) and are directly
correlated with the amount of costs declared eligible in these reports;
One financing share after the evaluation of the Final Report (after the
project ends), usually of 20% from the total project amount.

Simply speaking, a financing body decides, based on the periodical
reports, on the level of financing and, in extreme cases on the project
continuation. That also means that the institution stepping in a project must
have a minimal amount of financial resources (besides co-financing) to support
the project development (at least in an amount of the last financing share). The
analysis of the internal financial resources (at institution or partnership level)
has to be done at the proposal step and significantly influences the total project
amount.

It is not very difficult to meet the financing criteria, when the provisions
detailed in the Guide of Application and in the Grant Agreement are respected.
Usually these provisions ask for:
A sound financial management, meaning that all the costs are directly
related to the project activities and are fully justified by them.
Respecting the constraints on budgetary headings. E.g. if a project asks for
a maximal investment in equipment (say at 25% of the total budget), this
should not be overstepped;
Proof for the payments done: invoices, payment orders, personnel sheets,
etc., delivered during the eligible period of the project;
78
Any change in the project budget must be announced to the financing
body; shifts lower than 10% between the budgetary headings are usually
accepted without the need to submit a request for amendment.
The financial aspects of any projects seem, most of the time, too strict and
demanding; still, all the contractual provisions must be strictly respected and
there should be a person in the project team specially designated for these
issues The Financial Administrator/Responsible, directly reporting to the
project coordinator, but not the project coordinator.
It is also necessary to understand that the financing bodies took a
responsibility when financing your project and must be sure that this was a
(fairly) good decision.

Lesson 21: The Grant Agreement has a provision stating that the project
coordinator must keep all the documents available, at all times, for the
financing body control or for external audit.


7. IMPLEMENTATION
Internal monitoring and periodically reporting represent key tools in
project management and are of utmost importance in a successful project. For
this, decision structures must be developed inside the project and their tasks
must be clearly defined.
The decisional structure of any project is the Management Committee.
According to the project extent this consists of a usually uneven number of
members, including the project coordinator and the financial responsible. The
other members must have specific responsibilities (e.g. responsible for
developing the education instruments, responsible for implementing, testing
and optimization the courses, responsible for dissemination, etc.). For small
projects, below 100,000EUR, three members in the Management Committee
represent a team able to develop the activities. For larger projects inside a single
institution (primary or secondary school, School Inspectorate, Teachers House,
etc.) the responsible people are usually the heads of the working teams or of the
work packages.
79
For partnership projects, the Management Committee consists of
representatives of each partner plus the project coordinator and financial
responsible. In this situation, the uneven number of members is not mandatory.
Dividing the Activity Plan in work packages can help organizing the project
development. A work package represents a set of activities, dedicated to one or
more related project outcomes. The work packages can match the project
objectives or one large objective can be divided into several work packages.
Each work package has a person responsible who directly reports to the
Management Committee (if he/she is part of it) or to the dedicated responsible
in the Management Committee.


7.1. Monitoring
Monitoring the project activities is part of the tasks of the Management
Committee.
Monitoring represents the systematic and continuous collection, analysis
and using of information for the purpose of management and decision-making
(EC, 2002).
There is a difference between project development/execution and
monitoring, mainly in terms of targeted results (Reynolds, 2009). While project
development targets the outcomes, project monitoring focuses on the
conformity with the Activity Plan, financing and timing. Therefore, monitoring
is a powerful decision tool for re-scheduling the activities due time, for real-
time decisions on team working and financing.
Setting milestones helps with the projects monitoring as these are linked
with the projects tangible and intangible outcomes.

A monitoring plan includes periodical meetings where, based on internal
reports, the project status is analyzed. The decisions taken in the Management
Committee are mandatory for the entire project team(s). The decision flow must
be clearly defined and respected, for avoiding misunderstandings and
overlapping of responsibilities. A regular decision flow is presented in Figure9:
80

Figure 9: Decision Flow
Source: Transilvania University of Brasov, Romania

Between the meetings, communication must be insured by electronic
means (e-mail, dedicated website, web-site forum of discussions, etc.). Phone
calls are not recommendable, because they can raise misunderstandings.

The most common monitoring tools are:
Minutes of the meetings
Internal reporting forms of the teams responsible, of the responsible of
the work packages, etc.
E-mails

In the beginning of the project a risk analysis must be developed by the
Management committee. Periodically, the project monitoring must examine the
inside and outsides developments and compare it with the risk analysis.
Risk Analysis must identify the possible risks, their impact and the probability
for their occurrence. As a general rule, risks generating lower impact have the
highest probability to occur, therefore it is considered that:

Impact of the risk x Probability = constant

Risks are also related to financing. Therefore, putting risks into figures
results in (Mindtools):

Risk = Probability of event x Cost of event
Project manager
Responsible
for
Responsible
for
Financial
Manager
Responsible of
Work package 1
Responsible of
Work package 2
Team 1 Team 2
Management Committee
81
A complex analysis is the well-known SWOT (Strong Points, Weak
Points, Opportunities and Threats).

Lesson 22: Each project has weak points and faces threats. Not
identifying them from the very beginning is a major management mistake.

Risks are related to Weak Points and to Threats.
Examples of risks in developing a project are:

I. Weak points (directly related to the project, quite easy manageable):
Human - from individuals or organizations, illness, death, etc.
Operational - disruption of supplies and operations, loss of access to
essential assets, failures in distribution, etc.
Reputational - from loss of business partner or employee confidence, or
damage to reputation in the market.
Project - risks of cost over-runs, jobs taking too long, insufficient product or
service quality, etc.

II. Threats (outside the project, difficult to influence)
Procedural - from failures of accountability, internal systems and controls,
organization, fraud, etc.
Financial - from business failure, stock market, interest rates,
unemployment, etc.
Technical - from advances in technology, technical failure, etc.
Natural - threats from weather, natural disaster, accident, disease, etc.
Political - from changes in tax regimes, public opinion, government policy,
foreign influence, etc.

Once the weak points and the threats the project faces have been
identified, the next step is to work out the likelihood of the risk taking place and
to assess its impact and calculate its value. Then, measures to minimize the
impact must be taken. This is risk management and can be done through
different means:
82
By using existing assets: This may involve improvements to existing
methods and systems, changes in responsibilities, improvements to
accountability and internal controls, etc.
By contingency planning: allowing immediate action, with a minimum of
project control if you find yourself in a crisis management situation.
By investing in new resources: that can be justified in the project budget.


7.2. Reporting
Reporting is part of project management. It represents a requirement of
the financing programme, and it represents the document basis on which
external evaluation/assessment is done.

The number of Progress/Interim Reports depends on the project
duration and level of financing. For short term projects (up to one year) the
Progress Reports may be missing so a single report (the final report) is
delivered in the end. For projects longer than one year, at least one Progress
Report is required. Projects asking for large financing (millions of EUR) have
usually a Progress Report every three month.

For national or international projects, the template for the Progress and
Final Reports are part of the Grant Agreement and are mandatory. For projects
without a specific template, reporting must be done by developing their own
template, respected during all the reports. In both situations, the Reports consist
at least of the following:

Projects objectives and the objectives for the reporting period;
Activity Plan, outlining the activities for the reporting period;
Self-assessment of the activity development;
Results and outcomes for the reporting period;
Comments on any shift from the Activity Plan, including in the amount
and content of the results;
Financial report, on budgetary headings;
83
Comments on any shift between the budgetary headings, in correlation
with the Activity Plan;
Annexes supporting the statements in the report. Written outcomes
(books, leaflets, booklets, etc.) must be included in the report;
Other comments related to the project development and management.

The Report should be done on forms having details on the project in the
heading (title, ID number, financing programme, financing body).

Lesson 23: Before submission, the reports should be discussed and
validated in the Management Committee of the project.


8. PROJECT EVALUATION: EXTERNAL EVALUATION AND
AUDIT
The Progress and the Final Reports are submitted to the financing
programme for (external) evaluation. During this step, clarification notes can be
delivered to the project coordinator, asking for supplementary proof or for
details on particular aspects in the report. This is a normal working procedure.
The answers should come in the shortest possible time (within days), for
speeding up the evaluation process.

After the evaluation is finished, the project coordinator receives an
official note or an Evaluation Report, about the results. Usually the results are
quantified, in terms of % of accomplishing the project indicators and % of
eligible costs from the total declared amount. Based on these, after submitting a
Progress Report, the decision can be:

Project continues as it is, with reimbursed costs in the amount of the total
costs declared eligible;
Projects continues with recommended modifications and with a lower
budget;
Project stops.
84
Stopping a project is a very drastic (and rare) decision and is justified
only in cases when most of the outcomes provisioned for the reporting period
were unreasonably skipped or are of significantly low quality, comparing to the
initial target. In both situations, this is the result of a low quality project
management.

When submitting the Final Report, the evaluation can result in the
following:
Total reimbursement of the final share of costs, when all the expenditures
during the project are declared eligible. Amounts spent above the budget
are not reimbursed;
Reimbursement of the total eligible costs for the last reporting period, in
an amount lower than the final share, due to maximum 10% of
expenditures found ineligible. This is the usual case in national and EU
projects;
Reimbursement of the eligible costs for the last reporting period, in an
amount significantly lower than the final share, due to 10%...20% of
expenditures found ineligible. In this situations penalties are applied in
national and EU projects;
Decision for not financing the final share when the project targets were
not attained in a large extent. In rare cases, this can be followed by the
request for returning the financing to the financing body.

While the first case represents proof of exceptional project management,
the last one mirror almost complete lack of managerial skills, not only from the
project coordinator but from the entire management committee.

External evaluation can also be done, at the project location, by teams
from the financing bodies. These visits are announced in advance so that the
management teams can well prepare the documents. Usually these visits are
(also) specific of projects developing infrastructure, and one important point is
85
to see the developments, and the conformity with the Activity Plan and
reporting documents.
Lesson 24: The visits aim to give a clear picture of the project
development and of how money is spent. Therefore, give all the required proof,
all the necessary explanations. Be polite, well documented and consistent.

Audit is an external assessment procedure performed by a neutral body,
hired by the financing organization. Audit is always done face-to-face and can
target the technical content or the financial aspects, each of them having
different teams of experts. The audit visits are also announced in advance and a
list of assessment topics is included in the official announcement. Therefore, it is
advisable to prepare for the audit visit by following these topics but, be
prepared for any questions and proof related to the project.

External evaluators and auditors are usually persons with broad
experience in project management and extended expertise in project assessment
therefore, these procedures although demanding and stressful, represent a good
opportunity to learn more about how your project could be better run.

The assessment procedures never target, from the very beginning,
terminating a project. They are done for minimizing the failure risk of the
project (this is a risk of the financial body this time) and to give the best use for
the funds invested.

9. CONCLUSION
Project management is a science developed, as any science, as an answer
to particular needs. You can picture any significant action of you professional
life as a project (why?, what?, how?, when?, ) but this, as you have already
seen, is only the beginning. Project management imposes also activity tracking
(monitoring) and activity assessment.

In contrast to most of the other sciences, project management is best
learned by practicing. Therefore, start with small projects (lower risk, lower
86
impact) and continue, step by step, with projects increasing in difficulty,
complexity and funds.
This is possible anywhere but particularly in educational institutions,
because the results are concrete and, in the end, really rewarding.

Closing lesson: We wish you courage to start on this road and success in
all your well managed projects! And, dont forget: successful management is
linked with team working!


10. RESOURCES & LINKS

Bista, B.Project management:
http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Bharat_Bista

Duta, A., & Visa, M., & Perniu D., & Visa, I. (2006). Education On Sustainable
Development Extended At High School Level. Brasov: Conference PRASIC.

European Commission [EC]. (2002). Project Cycle Management Handbook:
http://www.sle-berlin.de/sleplus/files/PCM_Train_Handbook_EN-
March2002.pdf

Mindtools: Risk Analysis & Project Management www.mindtools.com

Process Quality Associates Inc., Project Management History:
http://www.pqa.net

Reynolds, D. (2009). Phases of Project Management - Monitoring and Controlling.

Standish Group. (1995). CHAOS Report:
http://www.projectsmart.co.uk/docs/chaos-report.pdf

Visa, I., & Duta, A., & Diaconescu, D. V. (2009). Integrated Research and Education
in Romanian Universities Needs and Priorities. CNETT.

Visa, I. (2005). Sustainable Energy for High-School Education. A European
Training Tool. SEE-EU Tool, SOCRATES COMENIUS 2.1, 226362 CP 1
2005 1 RO COMENIUS- C21, 2005-2008.

Visa I., & Perniu, D., & Jaliu, C., & Visa, M., &Duta A. (2008). European
Training In-Service Tool on Sustainable Energy. The 22
nd
European PV
Conference, Hamburg.

87





PROject based SCHOOL
management







Tools for Project-Based School
Management





Authors:
Mirela Blemovici
Cornelia Iliescu
Lavinia Butnariu
Monica Lupu












Developed by:
Brasov County School Inspectorate, Romania
88
1. INTRODUCTION
Nowadays, the quality of the education provided by school increasingly
relies on the quality of the management in the respective school unit. As a rule,
the manager is the promoter of change as well, and that is why we believe that
managerial training is essential. In order to be effective, the managers training
should no longer consist in adding only to their professional knowledge, but
should also bring about changes at the level of concrete action.

It is therefore obvious that school managers, just like managers from
various other fields of activity, should succeed in attaining their objectives by
successfully and efficiently allocating and using resources. To achieve this, they
need to know, adapt and use the project based management tools, which will
help them take quick and efficient decisions in various circumstances, so that
their school could take pride in real progress and performance (Ministry of
Education and Research, 2001).

The aim of this module is to present some of the most important practical
tools useful for the life cycle of a project.
After completing this module, the participants will be able to:
Identify the project management tools which can be used for project
based school management;
Find out the main characteristics of the most commonly used project
management tools;
Use appropriate examples of good practice in the management of their
schools.









89
2. TERMINOLOGY

Critical Path Method (CPM): A technique used to predict the duration of
a project by analysing which sequence of activities has the least amount of
scheduling flexibility.

Gantt Chart: A popular bar chart that aims at showing the timing of
tasks or activities as they occur within a time frame. Although the Gant chart
did not initially show the relationships between activities, this has become more
common in current use as both timing and interdependencies between tasks can
be identified.

Logical Framework Approach LFA-(LogFrame): A planning matrix
including the basic aspects of an institutional project, a policy, a plan, a
program , that facilitates the design, execution, follow-up, and evaluation of
actions at any stage of the project.

Milestone: A key event during the life of a project, usually completing
project deliverables or other noteworthy achievement.

PERT Chart: A tool used to schedule, organise and co-ordinate tasks
within a project. PERT stands for Program Evaluation Review Technique, a
method developed by the United States Navy in the 1950s to manage the Polaris
submarine missile programme. Also known as a precedence diagram, a
network chart and logic diagram.

PEST Analysis: A strategic planning tool used to evaluate the impact
that Political, Economic, Social, and Technological factors might have on a
project. It involves an organisation taking into account the external
environment before starting a project.

90
Stakeholder: A stakeholder is anyone, internal or external to an
organisation that has an interest in a project or will be affected by its
deliverables.

SWOT Analysis: A strategic planning tool used to evaluate the
Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats to a project. It involves
specifying the goal of the project and identifying the internal and external
factors that are favourable and unfavourable to achieving that goal.

PROJECT Portfolio: Ensemble of projects within an organisation which
are carried on simultaneously.


3. PROJECT MANAGEMENT TOOLS
The most commonly used tools in project management are: SWOT
Analysis, PEST Analysis, Managing Stakeholders, Brainstorming, Logical
Framework Approach, PERT Charts and Gantt Charts. These tools have each
their strengths and particular purpose. The use of the most important ones
may be summarized as a basic guide in the matrix below.

Matrix key:

S SWOT Analysis
P PEST Analysis
B Brainstorming
LFA Logical Framework Approach
G Gantt Charts
*** - main tool
** - optional/secondary tool
* - sometimes useful


91
Table 1: Use of Project Management Tools
S P B LFA G
Project brainstorming and
initial concepts, ideas,
structures, aims, etc.
*** ** *** *
Gathering and identifying
all elements, especially
causal and hidden factors
*** *** * *
Scheduling and timescales *** ***
Identifying and sequencing
parallel and interdependent
activities and stages
* *** *
Financials - costs, budgets,
revenues, profits, variances,
etc
* * ***
Monitoring, forecasting,
reporting
** *** ***
Troubleshooting, problem
identification, diagnosis and
solutions
*** ** ** * *
'Snapshot' or 'map' overview
- non-sequential, non-
scheduled
** **
Format for communications,
presentations, updates,
progress reports, etc
** * ***



Strategic planning is the main function of the institutional management.
A strategy is a plan of action which reunites in a coherent system the objectives,
stages and methods by means of which an organisation can value at maximum
its resources and which ensures its optimal functioning within a dynamic and
competitive environment.

In the development of a shortterm project or of a strategic one the
specific analysis tools are: SWOT and PEST (Voiculescu, 2006).

92
3.1. SWOT Analysis
Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT) Analysis is a
management tool used to evaluate a schools strengths, weaknesses,
opportunities and threats. The tool is used to produce a model that can serve to
provide direction in the development, formulation and assessment of project
management plans. SWOT Analysis is an important step in the planning
process that is often undervalued and omitted in constructing the project
management plan. This basic management tool is straightforward and easy to
use. Basically, factors are divided into internal and external issues. Based on the
analysis of the information provided by the model, project management can
better decide if the information gathered is something that will assist in
accomplishing its objectives. Conversely, SWOT Analysis can also identify
potential obstacles to success, as well as flaws in the plan that must be
addressed, controlled, or eliminated if the desired results are to be achieved
(McNamara).

In order for the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats
(SWOT) Analysis to be effective, project management must do more than
simply identify the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats involved.
Risk management demands that it is necessary to avoid, eliminate, or at the
very least, minimize identified weaknesses and threats. Weaknesses should be
closely scrutinized in order to determine whether or not it is possible to convert
them into assets. Similarly, threats should be closely examined for the
opportunity of building strengths in areas where they stood, once they have
been eliminated. Strengths and opportunities should be closely studied as well in
order to maximize their effectiveness. Project management would be well
advised to take advantage of this simple, cost effective management tool and to
make it a fundamental step in the planning process.


93
A word of caution though, SWOT analysis can be very subjective. Do
not rely on SWOT too much. Two people rarely come-up with the same final
version of SWOT. So, use SWOT as a guide and not a prescription. Simple
rules for successful SWOT analysis (www.marketingteacher.com):

Be realistic about the strengths and weaknesses of your organization
when conducting SWOT analysis.
SWOT analysis should distinguish between where your organization is
today, and where it could be in the future.
SWOT should always be specific. Avoid grey areas.
Always apply SWOT in relation to your competition i.e. better than or
worse than your competition.
Keep your SWOT short and simple. Avoid complexity and over
analysis.
SWOT is subjective.
SWOT Analysis can also be applied in ensuring project quality
management in schools.
94
Table 2: SWOT Analysis Example

A practical example:
The SWOT Analysis applied by a technical high school from Brasov, Romania in order to
develop the existing qualifications so as to meet the demands of the labour market
STRENGTHS WEAKNESSES
The high school benefited from a PHARE-
VET programme which contributed to
financing investments in infrastructure
and equipment meant to extend the area of
qualifications.
The high school has developed
partnerships with economic agents and
students can improve competences taught
in school.
Positive results of previous other
programmes of elaborating services in
counselling and students career guidance
which can be extended and adapted at
regional level;
The TVET Reform system contributed to
the development of human resources in
school units which can be used as trainers
and experts.
Not all the school labs offer a high
standard of equipment necessary for the
qualifications targeted by school.
Relatively reduced possibilities of
implicating the local administration in
the partnerships between the school and
the economic agents.
The local economic agents dictate the
dynamics of job offers.(e.g. tourist
services get to be more requested than
jobs in industry);
Technical high schools are mainly
located in urban areas, so students face
problems with commuting, transport
and accommodation in boarding
schools.
OPPORTUNITIES THREATS
The existence in the region of other
partnerships whose experience could be
valued by technical schools.
The regional expertise of institutions
providing training and of centres for the
education of adults.
A growing tendency of economic agents
involvement and interest in extending the
area of qualifications.
The bankruptcy of local heavy industry
triggered students lack of interest in
pursuing technical studies.
Local possibilities of supporting schools
with modern equipment are still
reduced.
Presence of school drop outs due to
poverty and lack of motivation for
study.
Orientation of students towards
theoretical high schools may prove
detrimental to technical profiles.

95
3.2. PEST Analysis
It is very important that a school considers its environment before
beginning the planning process. In fact, environmental analysis should be
continuous and cover all aspects of planning. The school's environment is
made up of:

The internal environment e.g. staff, students, finance, etc.
The micro-environment e.g. economic agents, local community etc.
The macro-environment e.g. Political (and legal) forces, Economic forces,
Socio-cultural forces, and Technological forces. These are known as
PEST factors.








Figure 1: PEST Analysis
Adapted from http://www.learnmarketing.net/pestanalysis.htm

Political context has had an important influence on education policies
such as:
The connection between the national compulsory curriculum and the
one decided by school.
Types and structure of national exams.
General development directions of national education.

The local economic context determines the strategic planning at the
level of each school unit in terms of opportunities and risks, according to
location in a certain area more or less developed, urban or rural, industrial or
agricultural.
S
S
S
T
T
T
R
R
R
A
A
A
T
T
T
E
E
E
G
G
G
Y
Y
Y


P
S
E T
96
The social context contributes to providing students for schools, but it
also has an impact on the level of expectations of both students and parents.

The technological context should be in accordance with the European
one based on forming competences for a knowledge-based society and that is
why school has to comply with these requirements in order to ensure the
quality and effectiveness of education.



Table 3: The PEST Analysis applied by a technical high school from Brasov, Romania

A practical example:
The PEST Analysis applied by a technical high school from Brasov, Romania
LEVELS of Context Analysis Domains of
PEST
Analysis
National context Regional context Local context
P
o
l
i
t
i
c
a
l

c
o
n
t
e
x
t

- Relative lack of coherence
in political reforms
regarding education.
- Dominant options aim at a
practical character of
curriculum according to EU
requirements.(based on
competences)
- Technical
education is more
and more connected
to the labour market
dynamics.
- Encouraging the
access to European
funds through
structural projects
as an alternative in
most high schools.
- An autonomy tendency of
schools as a result of
decentralization.

E
c
o
n
o
m
i
c

c
o
n
t
e
x
t

- Financial resources depend
on the national budget
destined to education which
may vary yearly.
- Due to the economic crisis
the evolution of economy is
uncertain, so the prognosis
of qualifications demanded
on the labour market is
uncertain too.
- The regional policy
of economic
development will
continue to be a
priority in the years
to come as well.
- The local economic agents
dictate the dynamics of offers
of jobs.(e.g. tourist services
are more requested than jobs
in industry)
97
A practical example:
The PEST Analysis applied by a technical high school from Brasov, Romania
LEVELS of Context Analysis Domains of
PEST
Analysis
National context Regional context Local context
S
o
c
i
a
l

c
o
n
t
e
x
t

- General demographic
decrease of school
population.
- Priority orientation
manifested by students
towards theoretical high
schools has become
detrimental to technical
ones.
- Presence of school
drop outs due to
poverty and/or lack
of motivation for
continuing studies.

- Technical schools are
mainly located in urban
areas, so students face
problems with commuting,
transport and accommodation
in boarding schools.
- The bankruptcy of local
heavy industry triggered a
lack of interest in pursuing
technical studies.
T
e
c
h
n
o
l
o
g
i
c
a
l

c
o
n
t
e
x
t

-Technological development
favours top technologies and
IT services.
- National programmes
provide computers in
schools and ensure their
access to INTERNET.
- Growing interest
for providing school
labs with modern/
updated equipment
obtained as a result
of EU Projects.
- Local possibilities of
supporting schools with
modern equipment are still
reduced, but 8 high schools
are fully equipped due to
PHARE-VET funds.



3.3. Managing Stakeholders
The act of managing the stakeholders refers
to the complete and thorough process of
managing all of those communications that are
meant to provide information to all of the relevant
stakeholders. Stakeholder Analysis is the technique
used to identify the key people who have to be
won over. Then Stakeholder Planning is used to
build the support that helps your project become a
successful one. Some of the benefits of using a
stakeholder-based approach are:
You can use the opinions of the most powerful stakeholders to shape
your projects at an early stage. Not only does this make it more likely
that they will support you, their input can also improve the quality of
your project.
98
Gaining support from powerful stakeholders can help you win more
resources this makes it more likely that your project will be successful.
By communicating with stakeholders early and often, you can ensure
that they know what you are doing and fully understand the benefits of
your project this means they can support you actively when necessary.
You can anticipate what people's reaction to your project may be, and
build into your plan the actions that will win people's support.

The steps of your Stakeholder Analysis are:
a. Identifying Your Stakeholders
The first step in your stakeholder analysis is to brainstorm who your
stakeholders are. As part of this, think of all the people who are affected by
your work, who have influence or power over it, or have an interest in its
successful or unsuccessful conclusion.

b. Prioritize Your Stakeholders
You may now have a long list of people and organizations that are affected by
your work. Some of these may have the power either to block or advance it.
Some may be interested in what you are doing, others may not care.
Map out your stakeholders on a Power/Interest Grid as shown in figure 1, and
classify them by their power over your work and by their interest in your work.















Figure 2: Power/Interest Grid for Stakeholder Prioritisation
Source: Adapted from http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newPPM_08.htm
Low
Interest
Power
High
High
Low
Monitor
(Minimum
effort)
Manage
Closely
Keep
Informed
Keep
Satisfied
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Someone's position on the grid shows you what actions you have to take
with them:
High power, interested people: these are the people you must fully
engage with and make the greatest efforts to satisfy.
High power, less interested people: put enough work in with these
people to keep them satisfied, but not so much that they become bored
with your message.
Low power, interested people: keep these people adequately informed,
and talk to them to ensure that no major issues are arising. These people
can often be very helpful with the details of your project.
Low power, less interested people: again, monitor these people, but do
not bore them with excessive communication.


c. Understanding your key stakeholders:
You now need to know more about your key stakeholders. You need to
know how they are likely to feel about and react to your project. You also need
to know how best to engage them in your project and how best to communicate
with them.

The best way is to talk to your stakeholders directly people are often
quite open about their views, and asking people's opinions is often the first step
in building a successful relationship with them.

Conduct a full stakeholder analysis. Ask yourself whether you are
communicating as effectively as you should with your stakeholders. What
actions can you take to get more from your supporters or win over your critics?



3.4. Logical Framework Approach
The Logic Frame, a strategic project planning and action tool, helps
leaders and teams systematically answer these four critical questions:
100
1. What are we trying to accomplish and why?
2. How will we measure success?
3. What other conditions must exist?
4. How do we get there?

The answers to these questions are embedded in the LogFrame cells, and
the cells interact with each other in a dynamic way.
The completed LogFrame offers an execution plan that links project
deliverables to the strategic intent.






Figure 3: Logic matrix
Source: www.ManagementPro.com


Use the following steps to conceive a project using the Log Frame:
Stage 1: Elaborate a project summary;
1. Define the GOAL the project contributes to;
2. Define the PROJECT PURPOSE which must be attained;
3. Define the RESULTS to attain this purpose;
4. Define the ACTIVITIES in order to attain each result;

Objectives
Logic
Intervention
Indicators Verification Assumptions
Goal


Project
purpose


Outcomes


Activities

Means Cost



Pre-
conditions
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Figure 4: From Objectives Tree to the Logic matrix
Source: Romanian Government, Ministry of European Integration, 2004



As these steps are logically connected, this logic must be checked out:
5. Check logic vertically using IF/THEN test:
Figure 5: Logic Intervention
Source: Romanian Government, Ministry of European Integration, 2004


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In order to check all the factors connected to the project, you need to
make some assumptions:

6. Define your ASSUMPTIONS for each level. It is necessary to define a
base for the projects efficiency evaluation and for this:

7. Define your Indicators of Objectives Verification (level of objectives
achievement) for the goal, then for the project purpose, then for outcomes and
finally for the level of activities;

In order to be used, indicators must be SMART:
Specific- in terms of quality, quantity and deadlines
Measurable at an acceptable price
Available from existent resources
Relevant for what they intend to measure, corresponding to the
objectives level
Timely produced when necessary

8. Define your sources and means of verification (MV) which will
demonstrate what was achieved. Thus, you have just achieved a description of
the project and you can pass to:

Stage 2
9. Allocate costs for each activity: prepare the Project Budget
10. Check the LogFrame Matrix using Project Checklist

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3.5. PERT Chart
PERT chart is a project management tool used to schedule, organize, and
coordinate tasks within a project. PERT stands for Program Evaluation Review
Technique, a methodology developed by the U.S. Navy in the 1950s to manage
the Polaris submarine missile program. A similar methodology, the Critical Path
Method (CPM) was developed for project management in the private sector at
about the same time.

It can be applied in school project management too, but it is a rather
complicated and complex tool for school needs.

PERT diagrams reflect dependence relationships between tasks in a
project. Here is a general example:

Tasks Precedence
A
B
C A
D B,C
E D


Figure 7: Example of PERT Diagrams
a. Activity-on-Node Diagram
b. Activity-on-Arrow Diagram

1. Activity-on-Node Diagram
Nodes represent activities
Arrows represent precedence
Maybe more than one single start and end node

2. Activity-on-Arrow Diagram
Nodes indicate beginning/end of activities
Arrows represent precedence
One single start and one single end node

A C D E
B
A
B
C
D E
b
b)
a)
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A PERT chart presents a graphic illustration of a project as a network
diagram consisting of numbered nodes (either circles or rectangles) representing
events, or milestones in the project linked by labelled vectors (directional lines)
representing tasks in the project. The direction of the arrows on the lines
indicates the sequence of tasks.

The PERT chart is sometimes preferred over the Gantt Chart, another
popular project management charting method, because it clearly illustrates task
dependencies. On the other hand, the PERT chart can be much more difficult to
interpret, especially on complex projects. Frequently, project managers use both
techniques.

3.6. GANTT Charts
Gantt Charts are extremely useful project management tools. The Gantt
Chart is named after US engineer and consultant Henry Gantt (1861-1919) who
devised the technique in the 1910s.

Gantt charts are excellent models for scheduling budgeting and for
reporting, presenting and communicating project plans and progress easily and
quickly; as a rule, Gantt Charts are not as good as a Critical Path Analysis Flow
Diagram for identifying and showing interdependent factors, or for 'mapping' a
plan from and/or into all of its detailed causal or contributing elements.
More information on the Gantt Chart and a filled out example can be found on
the module Lifecycle of the Project.


4. SUGGESTED METHODOLOGY
Instructional strategies are as important as the content. The training
methods and strategies should address and meet the demands of different
learning styles of the audience, ensure an active participation of the trainees in
the learning process, facilitate their interaction with the trainer, with the
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training materials and with the other colleagues, so as to allow the participants
to analyse and understand the contents, consequently providing the necessary
feedback in order to make learning effective and optimise it. A diversified
methodology will therefore be used aiming at motivating and actively
involving the participants during the course in the progress of their own
learning achievements.

We suggest that the presentations of the theoretical concepts should be
concise and alternate with case studies, practical applications and examples
taken from the participants own experience.

It is equally important that participants should practise the actual use of
the presented tools in order to solve concrete problems they are confronted with
in their activity, in order to better understand their utility.

As to organizing the participants during the course we recommend
presentation, pair work, small group activity, independent-individual work.

Open discussions and questionnaires will assess the quality and the
utility of the module content, of the materials used by the trainers, their
performance, and last but not least, the overall impact of the module on
participants.


5. CONCLUSION
A good school manager should master and be in permanent control of all
the necessary tools, so as to ensure an efficient management and organisation of
the school unit, namely: tools for the needs and existing resources analysis, for
the planning and monitoring of the whole activity and for evaluation and
dissemination.

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The present module presents these instruments very concisely, allowing
the school managers to select, apply, and practise them while developing
projects in their own schools to optimize the whole activity, synchronise and
adapt them, so as to meet the ever increasing demands of a knowledge-based
society.


6. RESOURCES & LINKS

McNamara, C. Field Guide to Non-profit Strategic Planning and Facilitation
and Field Guide to Non-profit Program Design. Marketing and Evaluation.

Iosifescu, S. (2001). Educational Management for educational institutions. Bucharest.

Voiculescu, F. (2006). Needs-Resources analysis strategic management in education.
Aramis Publishing.

Ministry of Education and Research. (2001). Guidelines for training of trainers-
Educational Management. Bucharest.

http://www.projectmanager.com/index.php
http://www.businessballs.com/index.htm
http://www.ltcsbooks.com/Articles/
http://www.mindtools.com/
http://www.ceismc.gatech.edu/MM_tools/evaluation.html
www.marketingteacher.com
http:// www.businessballs.com/project.htm
108







PROject based SCHOOL
management







Management Theories and School
Management Styles






Authors:
Anthi K. Provata
Myrto Tourgeli-Provata





Developed by:
Peloponnesus University Greece
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1. INTRODUCTION
The school does not have the characteristics of a typical business or
organization. The products of this organization are human beings. A school
manager has to manage people. Managing people is not a matter of
manipulation. It is about working with staff and colleagues on a partnership
basis to achieve the strategic goals of the organisation. To achieve this he/she
needs to know and use management theories. Also, a school manager has to
realise the importance of the skill of managing people, and that this skill needs
to be sharpened on a continuous basis. The effectiveness of the school
management depends on the leadership style brought forward by the school
manager.

The school manager should be able to motivate the teaching staff, to
encourage creativity, to promote innovation, to communicate actively with the
staff and the social surrounding of the school, to identify the human needs, to
find solutions and to possess self-knowledge. Communication, along with
leadership and decision-making is one of the top three attributes a successful
manager needs. To achieve this, the school manager needs to define his
business role and know what what it takes to achieve a successful outcome
(Adair, 2004).

The aim of this module is to give participants basic information about
management theories and leadership styles and to help them understand the
importance of management and communication skills for effective school
management.






110



2. TERMINOLOGY
Management: The act of getting people together to accomplish desired
goals and objectives.

School management: The process of coordinating people (students,
teachers, supporting staff), activities and available means in the most effective
way.

Motivation: The activation of goal-oriented behaviour.

Communication: A process of transferring information from one entity to
another and sharing thoughts and opinions. The science of managements advocates
communication as the means to achieve unanimity in decision-making,
responsiveness to administrative rules and agreeable individual conduct within the
working environment.

3. MANAGEMENT THEORIES

3.1 Scientific Management Theory
At the turn of the century, most of the organizations that manufactured a
variety of products were dealing with ongoing, routine tasks . Frederick Taylor
developed the scientific management theory which espoused careful
specification and measurement of all organizational tasks. Tasks were
standardized as much as possible. Workers were rewarded and punished. This
approach appeared to work well for organizations with assembly lines and
other mechanistic, routinized activities (McNamara). Taylor advocated the
development of science management with clearly stated rules and laws,
scientific selection and training of workers, and the division of tasks and
responsibilities between workers and management.
Taylor recommended that there should be a detailed analysis of each job,
using the techniques of method study and time study in order to find the
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method of working that would bring about the largest average rate of
production, that so called one best way. He also advocated issuing written
instructions, training and incentive payments in order to ensure that jobs were
performed in the approved manner.

Taylors theory focused on managing work and workers. He drew
attention to the importance of selection, training, compensation and motivation,
the areas directly relevant to managing people in todays environment.


3.2. Human Relations Theories
Unions and government regulations reacted to the rather dehumanizing
effects of scientific management theories. More attention was given to
individuals and their unique capabilities in the organization. A major belief
included that the organization would prosper if its workers prospered as well.
Human Resource departments were added to organizations. Behavioral
sciences played a strong role in helping to understand the needs of workers and
how the needs of the organization and its workers could be better aligned
(McNamara).

Founder of the Human Relations Movement Elton Mayos reminded us
that employees are human beings and they have needs and expectations. His
studies shoved that organizations have a human element and there is a strong
relationship between worker morale and the quality of supervision. There are
factors other than the work environment which affect worker motivation.
Workers develop informal groups within the organization and these
informal groups play significant roles in influencing group members
behaviour.

Maslow is also focused on human motivation. His theory, with some
modification, is valid today in understanding human motivation and forms the
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basis of human motivation training. The theory provides insights for managers
into what makes people tick and what motivates them. According to Maslow
each of us is motivated by needs. The needs are hierarchically structured and
they act as motivators. Air, food, drink, shelter, warmth and sex all come under
physiological needs. All individuals have these needs and they have to be met.
Once physiological needs are satisfied then safety needs become predominant.
Maslows theory also directs our attention to another question; what happens if
the needs are not met? Within the organizational context, in order to manage
people effectively, we have to consider the consequences of unmet needs and
learn how to handle such situations.

Another human relations theorist McGregor put forward two sets of
assumptions in relation to human behaviour. These sets of assumptions are
presented as theory X and theory Y. McGregor's ideas suggest that there are
two fundamental approaches to managing people. This theory of motivation
has a significant impact in the field of managing people. He presents two
approaches to managing people. The theory X approach, with its associated
assumptions, generally produces poor results and the theory Y approach with
its associated assumptions, produces better performance and results (Everard
and Geoffr, 1999). Basic assumptions of theory X and Y are as follows:

Theory x ('authoritarian management' style)
The average person dislikes work and will avoid it if he/she can.
Therefore most people must be forced with the threat of punishment to
work towards organisational objectives.
The average person prefers to be directed; to avoid responsibility; is
relatively unambitious, and wants security above all else.


Theory y ('participative management' style)
Effort in work is as natural as work and play.
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People will apply self-control and self-direction in the pursuit of
organisational objectives, without external control or the threat of
punishment.
Commitment to objectives is a function of rewards associated with their
achievement.
People usually accept and often seek responsibility.
In industry the intellectual potential of the average person is only partly
utilised.

So, how these assumptions work in management practices?
In a situation where they make theory X assumptions they will manage
people by directing and controlling them.
In a situation where they make theory Y assumptions they will manage
people by involvement and by delegating responsibility.


Chris Argyris also contributed to human relations theory. He focused on
the relationships between individuals and organizations. Argyris put forward a
theory which suggests that people tend to behave in a way explained by theory
X, not because they are lazy, but because in practice organizations treat them
like immature individuals. This is the basic principle of the Immaturity-
Maturity Theory. According to Argyris, many organizations still adhere to a
bureaucratic/pyramidal value system. This type of system leads to false
presumptions within the organization, as a result of which workers are not seen
as mature individuals. According to this theory, the human personality
develops from immaturity to maturity within a continuum, where a number of
key changes take place.




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4. LEADERSHIP STYLES
Many theories of leadership have been influential in guiding school
managers. A few of these theories are examined here.


4.1. Transformational and Transactional Leadership
In general terms, transactional leadership is defined as trading one thing
for another (quid pro quo), whereas transformational leadership is more
focused on change. In more specific terms, Bass and Avolio (1994) describe
three forms of transactional leadership: management-by-exception-passive,
management- by- exception-active, and constructive transactional.

Transactional Leadership Styles:
1-Management-by-exception-passive: Involves setting standards but waiting
for major problems to occur before exerting leadership behaviour. Followers of
this leadership style typically believe that their job is to maintain the status quo.

2-Management-by -exception- active: Leaders who demonstrate
management by exception -active pay attention to issues that arise, set
standards, and carefully monitor behaviour. In fact, they are so aggressive in
their management behaviour that followers of this leadership style believe that
they should not take risks or demonstrate initiative.

3-Constructive transactional leadership is the most effective and active of
the transactional leadership styles. This type of transactional leader sets goals,
clarifies desired outcomes, exchanges rewards and recognition for
accomplishments, suggests or consults, provides feedback, and gives
employees praise when it is deserved. The distinguishing feature of this
transactional leadership style is that followers are invited into the management
process more than is the case with the other two styles. Followers generally
react by focusing on and achieving expected performance goals.

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Transformational leadership is the favoured style of leadership given that it
is assumed to produce results beyond expectations. As articulated by Bass
(1985), four factors characterize the behaviour of transformational leaders:
individual consideration, intellectual stimulation, inspirational motivation, and
idealized influence. Individual consideration is characterized by giving personal
attention to members who seem neglected. Intellectual stimulation is
characterized by enabling followers to think of old problems in new ways.
Inspirational motivation is characterized by communicating high performance
expectations through the projection of a powerful, confident, dynamic
presence that invigorates followers. Finally, idealized influence is characterized
by modelling behaviour through exemplary personal achievements, character,
and behaviour.

These four factors of transformational leadership identified by Bass and
Avolio (1994) are necessary skills for school managers if they are to meet the
challenges of the 21st century. For example, the school leader must attend to the
needs of and provide personal attention to individual staff members,
particularly those who seem left out (individual consideration). The effective
school manager must help staff members think of old problems in new ways
(intellectual stimulation). Through a powerful and dynamic presence the
effective school manager must communicate high expectations for teachers and
students alike (inspirational motivation). Finally, through personal
accomplishments and demonstrated character, the effective manager must
provide a model for the behaviour of teachers (idealized influence) (Marzano,
Waters and McNulty, 2005:13-15)


4.2. Total Quality Management
Edward Deming (1986) is generally considered the founder of total
quality management (TQM). Although TQM was created for the world of
business, it has had a strong influence on leadership practices in education.
Waldman (1993) proposed five basic factors that more specifically define the
116


actions of an effective leader: change agency, teamwork, continuous improvement,
trust building, and eradication of short-term goals.

Change Agency is defined as the leaders ability to stimulate change in an
organization. The leader does so by analyzing the organizations need for
change, isolating and eliminating structures and routines that work against
change, creating a shared vision and sense of urgency, implanting plans and
structures that enable change, and fostering open communication.

Teamwork: One of the distinguishing features of TQM is the importance
of teams within an organization. The effective leader is not only involved in
establishing teams, but also sees to their viability by providing necessary
resources and support.

Continuous Improvement: This is a concept that is derived from the
Japanese term kaizen, which means (roughly) the continual and incremental
improvement of the critical aspects of the organization by all members of the
organization. A leader must invite continuous improvement into the
organization and keep it alive by keeping the goals of the organization up front
in the minds of employees and judging the effectiveness of the organization in
terms of these goals.

Trust Building: As the term implies, trust building involves creating a
climate in which employer and employees perceive the organization as a win-
win environment. Trust building can be described as the process of
establishing respect and instilling faith into followers based on leader integrity,
honesty, and openness. Leaders establish an atmosphere of trust by their daily
actions. Specific actions leaders must exhibit include knowing the concerns of
employees, knowing what motivates employees, and knowing the necessary
conditions for employees to operate at levels of maximum effectiveness.

117


Eradication of Short-Term Goals: This term refers to the eradication of the
types of goals traditionally set within an MBO (management by objectives)
model. Specifically, this means the elimination of goals that are based on
quotas, are highly numerical, and are short term. The goals should be focused
more on process and the long-term perspective. The effective leader not only
helps establish the criteria around which goals are established, but also
participates in the goals design and implementation (Marzano, Waters and
McNulty, 2005:15-16)


4.3. Servant Leadership
The term servant leadership first appeared in the leadership literature in
the 1970s. It is attributed to Robert Greenleaf (1970, 1977), who believed that
effective leadership emerges from a desire to help others. This perspective
stands in sharp contrast to those theories (such as transactional leadership) that
emphasize control or overseeing those within the organization.

Servant leadership also has a unique perspective on the position of the
leader within the organization. Instead of occupying a position at the top of a
hierarchy, the servant leader is positioned at the center of the organization. This
implies that the servant leader is in contact with all aspects of the organization
and the individuals within it as opposed to interacting with a few high-level
managers who also occupy positions in the upper strata of the hierarchy.

Although servant leadership is typically not embraced as a
comprehensive theory of leadership as are some other theories (such as TQM),
it has become a key component of the thinking of many leadership theorists
(Marzano, Waters and McNulty, 2005:16).




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4.4. Situational Leadership
The theory of situational leadership is typically associated with the work
of Paul Hersey and Kenneth Blanchard. The basic principle underlying
situational leadership is that the leader adapts her leadership behaviour to
followers maturity, based on their willingness and ability to perform a
specific task. Four leadership styles match high and low willingness and ability
to perform a task:

When followers are unable and unwilling to perform a given task, the
leader directs the followers actions without much concern for personal
relationships. This style is referred to as high task low relationship
focus, or the telling style.

When followers are unable but willing to perform the task, the leader
interacts with followers in a friendly manner but still provides concrete
direction and guidance. This style is referred to as high task high
relationship focus, or the participating style.

When followers are able but unwilling to perform the task, the leader
does not have to provide much direction or guidance but must persuade
followers to engage in the task. This style is referred to as low task low
relationship focus, or the selling style.

When followers are able and willing to perform the task, the leader
leaves the execution of the task to the followers with little or no
interference, basically trusting followers to accomplish the task on their
own. This style is referred to as low task high relationship focus, or the
delegating style.


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The effective leader is skilled in all four styles and knows the ability level
of followers along with their willingness to perform specific tasks. The effective
leader realizes that no one leadership style is appropriate for all followers and
all situations and accurately discerns which styles are appropriate for which
followers in which situations (Marzano, Waters and McNulty, 2005: 17-18).


4.5. Instructional Leadership
One major emphasis in the educational arena in the early 21st century
has been the continuing demand for greater accountability to increase student
performance. National and state expectations require schools to ensure that all
students achieve mastery of curriculum objectives, and local schools focus on
implementing those requirements to the best of their ability. As a result, leading
instructional efforts in a school has evolved into a primary role for school
managers.

In order to meet the challenges associated with national and state
expectations, managers must focus on teaching and learning especially in
terms of measurable student progress to a greater degree than heretofore.
Consequently, todays managers concentrate on building a vision for their
schools, sharing leadership with teachers, and influencing schools to operate as
learning communities. Accomplishing these essential school improvement
efforts requires gathering and assessing data to determine needs, and
monitoring instruction and curriculum to determine if the identified needs are
addressed (Richard and Catano, 2008:4).

Instructional leadership can be defined as "those actions that a principal
takes, or delegates to others, to promote growth in student learning." In
practice, this means that the manager encourages educational achievement by
making instructional quality the top priority of the school and brings that vision
to realization. The role of an instructional leader differs from that of traditional
120


school administrator in a number of meaningful ways. Whereas a conventional
principal spends the majority of his/her time dealing with strictly
administrative duties, a principal who is an instructional leader is charged with
redefining his/her role to become the primary learner in a community striving
for excellence in education. As such, it becomes the principals responsibility to
work with teachers to define educational objectives and set school-wide or
district wide goals, provide the necessary resources for learning, and create new
learning opportunities for students and staff (e-lead)

The instructional leadership will require knowledge and frameworks to
guide leaders in creating schools that systematically improve student learning.
School managers can affect student success by helping teachers be the best they
can be. If we want students to grow and develop their skills, then we must want
the same for teachers. Beginning with their first day on the job, managers must
send a message of instructional support (Robbins and Alvy 2004: 89).


5. COMMUNICATION
The manager is responsible for the creation and the advancement of the
schools culture. However, this process engages the activity of other educational
agents as well, such as the teaching staff, the administrative personnel, the
school counsellors, the social surroundings and not least the location of the
school.

The competence of the manager is assessed by his ability to create a
positive climate for work within the school. In order to achieve this, it is
essential that he manages effectively the human resources of his unit, a
challenging task due to the volatile nature of human behaviour. (Saitis, 2002)
The inequality caused by the differences in age, gender or education may
hinder the progress of interpersonal relations within a school community. To
maintain a productive atmosphere within the school, then, the manager must be
vigilant over such disparities and prompt to overcome them.
121


The actions of the manager should be directed toward three ends:
the communication and cooperation with the teaching staff,
the communication with students and
the communication and cooperation with parents.

In the communication process, the manager should be impartial, setting
targets and encouraging expectations, assigning tasks and discussing further
actions with the members of staff, allowing them the possibility to participate in
the decision making, being, finally, supportive to the staff whenever they are
faced with extraordinary challenges.

The communication and cooperation with the teaching staff: Unofficial
discussions are an effective means of communication. A competent manager
should not hesitate to discuss with the school staff the issues that arise with
respect to the functioning of the school. His/her attitude in this discussion,
however, should be defined by certain rules: he ought to give his colleagues the
opportunity to express their opinion on any matter but at the same time to
maintain the relevance of the discussion to the school affairs, to listen carefully
to the suggestions of his colleagues but also to direct conversations towards
solving the issues that are at stake. The satisfactory outcome of such
discussions, which will have encouraged understanding, appreciation and
familiarity between colleagues, promotes the establishment of good relations
within the working environment. This development, which, moreover,
facilitates the communication of ideas and allows creative initiative to take
place, becomes the foundation for a consistent school management.

Unofficial meetings of the teaching staff help reduce the tension and
encourage cordial relations between colleagues. Such friendly meetings may
take place during break-time, in the classroom or the teachers lunching room,
but they may also be scheduled on an extracurricular basis for special occasions.

122


The communication with students: The manager, always in coordination
with the members of staff, is above all responsible for the achievement of
educational objectives. He is expected to achieve by putting into effect all of his
personal qualities: sincere awareness, pedagogical proficiency, flexibility,
communicative authority, fair judgment.

Communication between teachers and students, however, is a matter
that deserves particular attention, especially in the requirement of disciplinary
measures against student misconduct, a fact which occurs often due to student
conflicts and frictions within the crowded school environment. Since conflicts
are inevitable and the opinions of teachers on the subject of punishment
diverge, disciplinary issues arising within the school should be dealt with
extraordinary caution and provisions should be ensured for the steady
advancement of the student. In the process, it should be seen that the smooth
functioning of the school is not interrupted. The achievement of these tasks
relies once more on the goodwill and motivation of a proficient manager and
his colleagues.

The communication and cooperation with parents: Systematic cooperation
between the school and the family is a basic precondition for the development
of a well-organized school. The accurate and punctual notification of parents
prevents the rise of misunderstandings which lead to inconvenience and
conflict.

It has become clear, by now, that the cooperation between the school and
the family is rendered advantageous through the skilful mediation of the
manager. On the one hand, the effectiveness of the administration depends on
the working conditions in general, but on the other hand, it is the manager, as
an outstanding teacher with a distinguished personality, who sets up
exemplary conditions for cooperation. This means that the manager should not
only make an effort to accommodate the viewpoints of the parents, but he
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should also be perceptive of unreasonable demands and distressed situations
which result from unstable relations within the students family. The manager
will only be able to cope with this stressful and time-consuming task by being
thoroughly organized, compiling lists of responsibility and keeping a record of
all actions, making a rational use of his time and being assiduous in his duties
(Saitis, 2002).


6. SUGGESTED METHODOLOGY
This section begins with an introduction to the teaching of the most
useful points of management theories and leadership styles. The theoretical part
of the course will be supported by Power Point presentation; the practical part
will consist of discussion, case studies, and other exercises and activities.

Leadership Style & Communication Strategy-Activity:
Identify the leadership style and communication strategy that you would
adopt in following situation:

Situation: You have to introduce a new student club (e.g. theatre club) in
your school (required by decree). Discuss and present; what leadership styles
and communication strategy would you use if;

(a) Some of the teachers are objecting to the establishment of this new
club?
(b) None of the students are interested in joining the club?
(c) Parents are objecting to the establishment of this new club?

Leadership Styles: (small group discussion & presentation of discussion results)
Communication strategy: (small group discussion & presentation of discussion
results)


124


7. CONCLUSION
The effectiveness of the school management depends on the leadership
style brought forward by the manager, which in turn is subject to his
personality traits, his professional expertise and his degree of devotion. The
position of the school manager is highly significant for the achievement of
targets set by the school or for the successful implementation of educational
changes within the school. It is important for school managers to have basic
knowledge of management theories in order to adopt appropriate leadership
style in appropriate situations. In this module we discussed some of the well-
known management theories and leadership styles and we presented the school
managers communication role with staff, students and parents.

There is no magic formula of leadership in managing schools. The
Project-based school management approach does not prescribe a certain style of
management of leadership. On the contrary we believe that the important thing
is to adopt a flexible and participative approach in school management in order
to improve school effectiveness.


8. RESOURCES & LINKS

Adair, J. (2004). Handbook of Management and Leadership, Thorogood.
E-lead: http://www.e-lead.org/resources/resources.asp?ResourceID=14

Development Staff (Contributor) (2004). New Principal's Fieldbook: Strategies
for Success. Alexandria, VA, USA: Association for Supervision & Curriculum
Development.

Everard, B., & Geoffry, M. (1999). Effective School Management. translated by D.
Kikizas. Patras: Hellenic Open University.

Marzano, R. J., & Waters, T., & McNulty, B. A. (2005). School Leadership That
Works: From Research to Results. Alexandria, VA, USA: Association for
Supervision & Curriculum Development.

McNamara, C. Very Brief History of Management Theories:
125


http://managementhelp.org/mgmnt/history.htm

Richard, H. B., & Catano, N. (2008). Qualities of Effective Principals.
Alexandria, VA, USA: Association for Supervision & Curriculum Development.

Robbins, P.; & Alvy, H.Association for Supervision and Curriculum.

Saitis, C. (2002). Organizationand Administration of Education. Athens.

126







PROject based SCHOOL
management









Methods of Quality Management in
Schools



Authors:
Isabelle Joos
Liesbet Gevaert









Developed by:
University College Ghent, Belgium
127


1. INTRODUCTION

1.1. Objectives
The participants:
enumerate the basic characteristics of integrated quality management;
explain the Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) cycle, the European Foundation
for Quality Management (EFQM) model with the nine fields of interests
and the TRIS method;
display their insight in the various phases of a self evaluation process;
are aware of good practices in internal evaluation;
are capable of judging self evaluation tools.


1.2. Preliminary assignments
Prepare the following three questions, at least two days before the
module. Send your preparation by mail to the module trainer.

1. Describe how quality management and internal evaluation within your
school is tested. Please make sure to include the following items in your
description:
How do you approach quality management and internal evaluation?
Which model do you adhere to?
Which areas do you involve?
What happens to the results of your activities concerning quality
management and internal evaluation?
2. What are the strengths of your assessment method?
3. Which obstacles have you already experienced when assessing your
school?



128


2. TERMINOLOGY BASIC CONCEPTS

Introductory questions:
What is quality assurance?
What is quality management?
What is meant by internal and external evaluation?

Quality assurance
Quality assurance, or QA for short, refers to a program for the systematic
monitoring and evaluation of the various aspects of a project, service, or facility
to ensure that standards of quality are being met (Wikipedia).
Quality assurance is the maintenance of a desired level of quality in a service
or a manufactured product, esp. by means of attention to every stage of the
process of delivery or manufacture (The Oxford English Dictionary).

Quality improvement
Quality improvement covers product improvement, process
improvement and people based improvement (Wikipedia).

Quality management
Quality management can be considered to have three main components:
quality control, quality assurance and quality improvement. Quality
management is focused not only on product quality, but also the means to
achieve it. Quality management therefore uses quality assurance and control of
processes as well as products to achieve more consistent quality (The Oxford
English Dictionary).

Internal and external evaluation
Self evaluation -or an internal evaluation- can occur with a view to
responsibility in preparation for an external evaluation. In using the self
evaluation, the educational organization makes a state of affairs, with regard to
the quality of the input, the processes and the results (TRIS, 2003).
129


The self evaluation process
The self evaluation process allows the organization to discern clearly its
strengths and areas in which improvements can be made and culminates in
planned improvement actions which are then monitored for progress
(Wikipedia).


3. BASIC CHARACTERISTICS OF INTEGRATED QUALITY
MANAGEMENT

Introductory question:
How do you see 'integrated' quality management?

Integrated quality management, first and foremost, means that all of the
organizations levels will be involved in the quality management process.
Management and personnel feel the need to ensure and improve quality and
also cooperate in the quality management process.

Integrated should also be taken to mean that the various phases of the
educational process have to be taken into account. In practice, however, the
preliminary phase and after-care are often glossed over in order to save time.

Finally we also note that if a school is permanently working on quality
management this is also considered a basic characteristic of integrated quality
management. Quality management, however, entails more than just one
initiative, one activity, etc. Every day there are various opportunities to work
towards ensuring educational quality or, by extension, quality management
within an educational institution. Integrated quality management presupposes
a constant assessment of oneself.



130


Practical examples:
General director Jan De Maeyer (Flanders-Belgium) developed a Three Mirror
Method. In his method De Maeyer claims that secondary schools must be aware of
the importance of the objectives a school defines. The first Mirror (1. Perspective-
Objectives, a preparatory phase, takes a lot of time but cant be left out in the
perspective of integrated quality management.

The Faculty of Social Work and Welfare Studies has created various committees in
order to ensure that quality management becomes a subject for discussion within
the institution. There is now an (alumni) students committee, an activity
committee, a policy group, a training committee, a consultative committee that
focuses on the course, a department, etc.



4. METHODS OF QUALITY MANAGEMENT

4.1. PDCA Cycle
Introductory questions:
Does your institution take the time to draw up a real planning schedule as
regards quality management?
Which data are gathered in your institution in the frame of quality
management?
How are these data assessed in your institution?
What about the results?


In integrated quality management, the emphasis is on quality
guarantees on the one hand and quality improvement on the other hand.
Initiatives in the frame of these two processes always need to rely on a given
system. If one undertakes individual actions, this will probably generate
results, but this will not always contribute to the objectives of the institution's
quality policy.

The PDCA cycle meets this requirement by providing for four stages,
i.e., PLAN DO - CHECK ACT.

131



Figure 1: PDCA Cycle
Source: TRIS, 2004


PLAN (prepare and plan):
The quality improvement process starts with the formulation of quality
objectives in the most concrete manner possible. The SMART principle is often
used to do this; the acronym SMART stands for:

Specific: the objective is formulated in a uniform and clear manner;
Measurable: the objective can be reached under measurable, observable
conditions;
Acceptable/Demonstrable/Provable: the objective is accepted by the
persons involved/it is clear who is in charge of the objective;
Realistic/Relevant: the objective is realistic/relevant;
Limited in Time: the objective needs to be reached within a given time
frame;


3. CHECK

2. DO

4. ACT

1. PLAN
132


Writing out objectives in terms of concrete behavioural terms will result
in an efficient assessment of the actions undertaken. Please ensure that the
writing out of objectives does not become an objective per se. Otherwise the
planning becomes a necessary formality and nothing more. The employees of
an educational institution have to be involved in the quality planning process
and always need to bear the organization's underlying vision in mind. This is
then written out in a policy plan.

Practical example:
The self evaluation working committee organizes meetings to inform the
teachers and the staff about the decisions made and the progress of the self
evaluation process every month until December 2010.
The school manager updates the procedures of the quality manual in
January 2011.


DO (implement):
The next step entails the carrying out of objectives. It is important to
keep in mind systematic data gathering at this stage. Moreover you should
ensure that all of the parties concerned have been briefed as to the use of
registration systems so that they continue to be motivated to keep a correct
inventory of facts and figures. Always provide feedback about the processing
of results to the parties concerned, so that they will also be able to review the
result of their actions and will be able to use these results to move to the next
planning stage.

Often a quality system is developed in educational institutions. In
writing this can become a quality manual. This manual encompasses a
transparent ensemble of norms, procedures and resources within the
organization.



133


CHECK (follow-up and assess):
The gathered data including perception data, satisfaction
measurements, objective figures and inflow data - will be analyzed in a
subsequent stage. The real situation is then compared with the desired data
and concrete actions to be undertaken are reviewed based on strengths and
weaknesses.

ACT (adapt and anchor):
An inherent element of the assessment is the re-operationalization of
the objectives and the adaptation of activities. This can entail guaranteeing
quality but the institution should also take advantage of the opportunity to
follow up on societal developments and thus recognize activities aimed at
improving quality.

Practical examples:
General director Jan De Maeyer (Flanders-Belgium) developed a Three Mirror
Method based on the PDCA Cycle (Plan-Do-Check-Act). The first mirror
emphasizes the planning phase, namely the perspectives of the stakeholders and the
schools objectives. The second mirror looks into the instruments and resources
available at the secondary school. After implementing the schools objectives by
actions, a report is written based on the results of the evaluation activities (Mirror
3). Mirror 3 takes also notice of planning the necessary actions to improve the
schools functioning.

Every year the Faculty of Social Work and Welfare Studies of University College
Ghent draws up a quality plan based on systematically gathered data as regards
the institutions primary processes. The departmental Educational Quality Unit
defines the objectives, which tie in with the institution's vision and mission, the
strategic policy plan and the results of the visit. These objectives are then
communicated to employees, among others through the electronic platform.
Throughout the year, data are gathered pertaining to alumni and students, school
leaver surveys, etc. as well as inflow and throughput data of students in given
disciplines. After these data have been analyzed by the departmental Educational
Quality Unit, these results are discussed in various consultative bodies and
quality days are organized annually to define points for action and to follow up on
the results.


134


4.2. European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) and
Transnational Institutional Cooperation (TRIS)

Introductory questions:
Does your institution use a model to organize the quality management
process?
Which aspects of your organization are mapped when assuring quality?

In 1999 the European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM)
developed a model with nine fields of interest or aspects that are related to
quality and which are necessary to tackle quality in an integrated manner. The
model was adjusted in 2003.

The manner in which the organization functions is set against these
fields of interest, which have been subdivided into subareas and subcriteria.
EFQM states that the organizational conditions and processes are the
conditions for achieving results.

Figure 2 illustrates how area 1, Leadership, controls the nearby areas,
i.e., area 2 Policy and strategy, area 3 Employees, and area 4 Partners and
resources. These are the preliminary conditions for being able to carry out
area 5 Processes. The model has four results areas: Customers, 'Employees,
Society, and Desired End Results. The figure below also shows how the
PDCA cycle can be integrated in the EFQM model.

Innovation and improvement is inherent to the EFQM model. A school
and its teachers/staff grow towards excellence by implementing the PDCA
cycle. In Project based school management Philosophy and Training
Methodology the organizational learning was illustrated. Training of the
leadership competences (area 1) and informing about policy and strategy (area
2) leads to schools innovation and growth.

135
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Education experts have also applied this European model, which was
mainly used in the profit sector to education. The outcome was a Transnational
Institutional Cooperation or a TRIS working committee. This cooperation gave
rise to a method that was already adapted to the new developments in the
frame of quality management, more specifically with regard to internal and
external evaluation.

The TRIS method retains the explanation of the subcriteria as integrated
in the EFQM model. Within the TRIS method, the conditional areas, processes
and result areas each have five levels or developmental stages. A formulation
from a higher stage (excepting stage 1) always implies that the criteria from a
lower phase have been acquired. Scores are attributed based on the
development levels.

The use of the TRIS tool is explained in the following source: TRIS-groep
(2004). TRIS-instrument versie 5.0. Kwaliteitsverbetering voor het
professioneel hoger onderwijs (Quality improvement for professional
higher education) Geel, TRIS-groep.

After scoring of the areas for attention, Strengths, Weaknesses,
Opportunities and Threats analysis (SWOT, see module Tools for project based
school management) has to be drawn up, followed by proposals to obtain the
desired results within the defined time-frame anyhow.




137




Figure 3: Spider web chart
Source: TRIS-group, 2004

At the same time, the status quo is represented graphically in a spider
web chart using the development levels.

A practical example:
The Faculty of Social Work and Welfare Studies of University College Ghent wrote the
following in its self evaluation report for 2009-2010 as regards the degree of
Professional Bachelor in Social Work and Welfare Studies:

In its quality declaration, the Board of Governors has indicated a general frame in
which the quality policy of University College Ghent has to be shaped.

A first pillar of this policy declaration is based on systematic self evaluations of each
course, department, service or sector, which will result in improvement goals. The
European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) model is used as a reference
frame for these self evaluations, translated into Transnationale Institutionele
Samenwerking (TRIS) for education.

A second important pillar is made up of the systematic surveys of parties concerned, of
which the results are integrated in the self evaluation.

A last pillar entails working with improvement goals and improvement plans, which are
laid down in a departmental annual action plan and annual report and which are
submitted to the board of governors by way of the Departmental Council. The quality
system imposed by the non-university college thus guarantees the cyclical system of
plan-do-check-act (P-D-C-A), with a view to achieving improved quality and provides
for a classification of priorities.
138



5. THE SELF EVALUATION PROCESS

Introductory questions:
Which obstacles have you experienced when carrying out an internal
evaluation of your institution?
Which positive experiences did you have when carrying out an internal
evaluation of your institution?

Recent developments contribute to schools increasing assessing their
internal functioning, much like companies, in view of the fact that they are
holding more responsibility for tasks such as drawing up the scheduling of
school policy, laying down objectives, etc.

In view of the fact that self evaluation does not exclusively consist of
filling out instruments - a number of examples will be dealt with at the end of
this reader -, but that it has to start from a development perspective, we will be
listing the different stages of a self evaluation process, as described in
Handboek zelfevaluatie in het secundair onderwijs (Geert Devos e.a., 2002, 7-
51).

Step 1: The start-up situation at school
Before launching a self evaluation, it is good to know which experiences
a school can draw on for setting up self evaluations, which level was used (a
descriptive, problem-solving or policy-oriented approach) and which factors
can foster/obstruct this assessment.

There is a fixed template within a group of schools to prepare inspections
(external evaluation).

Setting up a working committee can help including tasks in first instance
and then making them open for discussion.


139


Step 2. Tasks during the self evaluation
In an ideal situation everyone is an actor in the self evaluation process.
An educational institution will, however, have to make choices as to who will
initiate, undergo, implement, coordinate, support, control, influence, etc. the
process. It is important to determine who will be involved in which phase
(when) of the process and to which extent. An answer needs to be found to the
following questions:

Who will carry out the evaluation?
Who will be surveyed?
Who will receive feedback about this?
Who will undertake action based on the results?

Geert Devos e.a. (2002) write that the parties concerned are the director, a
self evaluation working committee and the schools employees. It is also worth
looking at whether it is desirable or necessary to request external support. The
parties concerned and their tasks can alternate stage by stage and the tasks can
also overlap.

Step 3. Preparation of the self evaluation
Before kicking off the actual self evaluation, a number of important
decisions have to be made. The following items have to most certainly be on the
agenda of the preparatory meetings:

The objectives of the self evaluation (see module Evaluation of School
Effectiveness)
What exactly needs to be assessed;
Who will be surveyed;
Which resources the organization will make available;
How the parties concerned will be informed and motivated;
Which timing will be effectively maintained.

140


Step 4. The self evaluation itself: gathering data and reporting
The choices made in step 3. Preparation of the self evaluation will
determine the content and form of the self evaluation to an important extent,
i.e., the choice of certain data gathering methods and data analysis.

Before starting to gather data, the choice has to be made between written
or verbal data gathering, qualitative or quantitative research such as, e.g.,
working with questionnaires, interviews, gathering figures, etc. Each method
has its benefits and disadvantages; it is recommended that these be reviewed
beforehand.

Finally, a report will summarize the results of the self evaluation. It is a
useful tool during the school development process in view of the fact that it
provides a status quo of the school's functioning and, what's more, it can serve
as a foundation for drawing up further developments and actions.

Step 5: Discussion of the results and drawing up an action plan
After undertaking self evaluation actions, one should not forget feedback
with regard to the results of the survey to all the parties concerned. This can be
prepared in small groups, such as, for example, in the self evaluation working
committee. Subsequently the concrete actions/points for action need to be laid
down and monitored.

Finally, it can be concluded that self evaluation is a process that can be
set up by the organization itself among carefully selected participants. Self
evaluation is also always systematic, using a number of instruments, with the
aim of describing and evaluating the organizations functioning. A number of
improvement initiatives will subsequently be taken in the frame of the entire
organizations development.



141


Practical example:
General director Jan De Maeyer developed a Three Mirror Method for self-
evaluation. This model consists of three major mirrors (Mirror 1. Perspective
Objectives; Mirror 2. Instruments Resources; Mirror 3. Report- Plan of action) to
carry out an internal evaluation at schools.

The Faculty of Social Work and Welfare Studies of University College Ghent wrote
the following as regards the degree of Professional Bachelor in Social Work and
Welfare Studies in its 2009-2010 self evaluation report:

The Faculty has made considerable investments in quality management as regards
structure and content. An external quality management coordinator, with expertise in
the field of quality management, was appointed. A departmental Quality Unit
coordinates the activities as regards content and provides policy-related advice for the
policy team and training committees.
[]

University College Ghent has chosen to use TRIS as a self evaluation tool. The course
structurally integrates the TRIS tool in its policy by carrying out an internal self
evaluation every six years. Consensus groups are made up of members of the
educational staff and students.

The results are submitted to the quality management student and alumni committee
and the disciplinary committee and the priorities are integrated in the courses annual
action plan. A similar analysis will be carried out in the meantime in preparation of an
external evaluation, directed by the course committee. Next to this all operational
activities (projects and daily operations) will be registered in the departmental annual
report in order to justify achievements.

Next to the aforementioned initiatives, the results of satisfaction surveys, education
assessments, study yield, etc. are an important input for improvement objectives. The
strategic policy plan and the related annual action plan are the synthesis and amalgam
of the various analyses.



6. SELF EVALUATION TOOLS

5.3. Instrument for self evaluation in secondary education (IZES)
IZES was developed by Prof. dr. Peter Van Petegem (University of
Antwerp) and draws inspiration from school effectiveness surveys. Five
domains at school level and five domains at class level are differentiated in this
tool. These domains are surveyed individually, the answers can be processed
electronically.
142


IZES SCHOOL LEVEL IZES CLASS LEVEL
Performance-oriented policy Effective learning time
Educational leadership Structured education
An orderly and positively learning
climate
Adequate subject material and
opportunity to learn
Quality of the curriculum Expectations as regards students
Cooperation between teachers Evaluate and monitor students progress
Confirmation of students
Figure 4: Table IZES school and class level
Source: Van Petegem, 2002

It is not always easy to integrate an existing instrument in the
organizations own school context. Often it requires some retranslating to
the schools own climate. At the same time, one needs to stay informed
about new - societal - developments in order to be able to integrate them
in the existing instruments after examination.


6.2. Quality plan/Annual Report of Faculty of Social Work and Welfare
Studies of University College Ghent
Every service within the Faculty of Social Work and Welfare Studies of
University College Ghent has to draw up an annual plan of activities,
formulated in effective actions and linked to the long-term objectives or
strategic objectives of the organization (cf. Annual Action Plan). Every service
works on strategic projects, and besides the description of these actions that
relate to these projects needs to include indicators that indicate which
requirements these actions need to comply with. The position and name of the
manager of each project is indicated in the overview.At the end of an academic
year, the actions (Results) are assessed and the phase in which a project finds
itself becomes clear:Start-up phase exploratory phase development phase
operational assessment phase improvement phase or completed (cf. Annual
Report).
143


An illustrative overview of the first four projects is given below.
Figure 5 : Quality plan Annual Report
Source: University College Ghent

6.3. Quality assurance tool PRO-SCHOOL


















Figure 6: Hierarchy of the planning processes
Source: Frhlichs, 2000

Mission

Objectives

Strategy

Tactics
- Long-term objectives
- Medium to long-term objectives
- Annual budgets
- Programme
- Short-term objectives
- Projects and activities
Vision
144


Projects have to be seen in the frame of the organizations medium to
long-term objectives and long-term objectives, i.e., the strategic objectives.

The ensemble of projects within an organization is known as the project
portfolio. The coordination of ongoing projects and the management of new
projects also require the necessary competences of the school manager. The
school manager and the teachers/staff involved in the projects can use specific
software to monitor the portfolio of projects to work effectively.

For the PRO-SCHOOL project a quality assurance tool was developed.
Deadlines, periods of time, people who are responsible are listed to monitor all
the workpackages of the project.



Figure 7 : Quality assurance tool PRO-SCHOOL
Source: University College Ghent

When the data from the QA-tool is gathered the quality assurance
progress report can be written. It illustrates the contribution of each partner in
the project and reports the strengths and weaknesses of the project.


145


Figure 8: Quality assurance progress report
Source: University College Ghent

7. SUGGESTED METHODOLOGY
The module Methods of Quality Management is an interactive course.
Trainees clarify their own experiences in the field of quality assurance and
quality improvement based on their preparation of the module (cfr 1.2.
Preliminary assignments).

Theoretical knowledge will be transferred by a presentation and
discussed further in exercises.
In the module there will be interaction and knowledge sharing by means
of a structured discussion.


8. CONCLUSION
Integrated quality management involves all the organizations levels in the
quality management process. Due to a systematic approach, following the PDCA
cycle for instance, a school can work permanently on quality management.

In the self evaluation process data is gathered concerning the components
of quality, illustrated by the EFQM model, and described in a report. A good
preparation and its communication to the personnel of the school are very
important aspects in the self evaluation process.
146


Finally, to monitor a project-based school management three tools are
illustrated: Instrument for self evaluation in secondary education, Quality plan
and annual report of University College Ghent and the Quality assurance tool of
PRO-School.



9. RESOURCES, SUGGESTED READINGS & LINKS

Resources
Faculty of Social Work and Welfare Studies. (2009). Zelfevaluatierapport van de
opleiding professionele bachelor in het Sociaal Werk. Ghent: Faculty of Social Work
and Welfare Studies.

Devos, G., & Verhoeven, J.C., & Opdebrouck, W., & Verbeeck B. (2002). Handboek
zelfevaluatie in het secundair onderwijs. Mechelen: Wolters Plantyn.

Dulmers, R.J., & Brekelmans, P.T.J.M., & Dietvorst, C., &Giesbers, J.H.G.I., &
Mahieu, P.W.M., & Satter, J.M.G. (1988). Marketing voor scholen. Alphen aan den
Rijn, Vlaardingen: Samson, Nederlands Studie Centrum.

Freeman, R. (1993). Quality Assurance in Training and Education. How to apply
BS5750 (ISO 9000) Standards. London: Kogan Page.

Frhlichs R.C., & Platje, A. (2000). Project based management. Inrichting en
beheersing van de multiprojectorganisatie. Deventer: Kluwer.

Onderwijs Vlaanderen (2009). Schooldoorlichting. Retrieved December 8, 2009
from http://taalunieversum.org/onderwijs/termen/term/61/

TRIS-groep Kwaliteit in internationalisering (2001). Methode voor
kwaliteitsverbetering van het hoger onderwijs naar het EFQM-model versie 1.2. Geel:
TRIS-groep.

TRIS-groep (2004). TRIS- instrument versie 5.0. Kwaliteitsverbetering voor het
professioneel hoger onderwijs. Geel: TRIS-groep.

Van Petegem, P. et al. (2002). IZES Secundair onderwijs. Instrument voor
zelfevaluatie. Leuven: Acco.



147


Suggested Readings
Quality Management

Bosker, R. J. (2001). Kwaliteitszorg. Alphen aan den Rijn: Kluwer.

Cuyvers, G. (2002). Kwaliteitsontwikkeling in het onderwijs. Antwerpen/Apeldoorn:
Garant.

Cuyvers, G. (2007). Zorgen voor kwaliteit. Handboek kwaliteitsontwikkeling voor non-
profit organisaties. Tielt: Lannoo.

Foks, M., & Moonen, B., & Odenthal, L. (2007). Kwaliteit maak je met elkaar:
handreikingen voor het stimuleren en implementeren van gelaagde kwaliteitszorg op
school. Amersfoort: CPS.

Grek, S., & Lawn, M. e.a. (2009). North by northwest: quality assurance and
evaluation processes in European education. Journal of Education Policy. 24 (2009).

Gvaramadze, I. (2008). From Quality Assurance to Quality Enhancement in the
European Higher Education Area, European Journal of Education. 43 (2008), 4.

HM Inspectorate of Education (2007). How good is our school: the journey to
excellence. Livingston: HMIE.

Hofman, O. (1996). Onderwijs is geen machine: echte discussie over
kwaliteitsbeleid ontbreekt. Didactief. 26(1996), 8.

Peeters, R. (2000). Beleidsvisie; naar een integratie van interne en externe
kwaliteitszorg. Persoon & Gemeenschap. 52(2000), 3.

Van Damme, D. (2005). Quality Assurance and Accreditation in the Flemish
Community of Belgium In: S. Schwarz, Don F. Westerheijden (2005).
Accreditation and Evaluation in the European Higher Education Area. Dordrecht:
Kluwer Academic Publishers.


Self evaluation

Devos, G., & Verhoeven, J. (2002). Handboek zelfevaluatie in het secundair onderwijs.
Diegem: Kluwer.

Devos, G., & Verhoeven, J.C. (2003). School Self-Evaluation-Conditions and
Caveats. The Case of Secondary Schools. Educational Management Administration
& Leadership. 31(2003), 4.

148


MacBeath, J., & Schratz, M., & Meuret, D., & Jakobsen, L. (2000). Self-evaluation in
European schools: a story of change. London: Routledge.

TRIS-groep. (2004). TRIS- instrument versie 5.0. Kwaliteitsverbetering voor het
professioneel hoger onderwijs. Geel: TRIS-groep.

Vanhoof, J. & Van Petegem, P. (2009). Zelfevaluatie als motor voor
schoolontwikkeling: succesfactoren en valkuilen. Mechelen: Plantyn.

Van Petegem, P. (1998). Vormgeven aan schoolbeleid: effectieve-scholenonderzoek als
inspiratiebron voor de zelfevaluatie van scholen. Leuven: Acco.

Van Petegem, P., & Brandt, W., & Jacobs, D. (2003). IZES Secundair onderwijs.
Instrument voor zelfevaluatie van secundaire scholen. Leuven: Acco.


Links
PRO-SCHOOL project: http://www.pro-school.eu/
Goal setting (SMART):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uThBb3kGf4k&NR=1
SWOT - analysis:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GNXYI10Po6A&feature=related
EFQM: http://ww1.efqm.org/en/
TRIS: http://www.epok.org/default.asp
EduBROn: http://www.edubron.be



149







PROject based SCHOOL
management








Evaluation of School Effectiveness






Authors
Prof. Milan Slavk
J Votava









Developed by:
Institute of Education and Communication, Czech University of Life Sciences
Prague, Czech Republic


150


1. INTRODUCTION
Growth in the use of standardized testing in this century reflects
continuing interest in the outcomes of education. Tests were most frequently
used to assess the performance of individual students. However, Coleman and
Karweit (1972) proposed that they could also be used to provide measures of
school performance in evaluating educational environments. Over the past
three decades, standardized tests have been used increasingly as instruments of
national education reform (Stufflebeam, Madaus and Kellaghan:, 2000: 113). In
order to improve the quality of education it is important to measure the
effectiveness of schools with all all components.

As a part of the PRO-SCHOOL project, partners gathered their countries
school evaluation criteria, and cross examination of these criteria showed us that,
apart from minor differences, all partner countries use similar criteria. Detailed
results of this research can be found on the Research Results module of this
publication.

This training module aims to enhance understanding of the educational
evaluation process. Evaluation process is closely related to the quality assurance
which is covered by the module Methods of Quality Management in Schools.
The module 'Methods of Quality Management' gives basic information about
setting out quality management in schools. This module focuses on one specific
area, namely the standards for assessing quality, i.e. the criteria and its
indicators. We would like to present an approach based on which the school
management would be able to use the already established sets of evaluation
criteria effectively, and be able to create its own criteria in a methodologically
appropriate manner, and to apply them in practice.
In short, this module aims to train school managers on;
Learning and understanding good examples of school effectiveness
evaluation criteria and processes and
Learning how to choose appropriate evaluation criteria according to a
schools objectives and strategy
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2. TERMINOLOGY BASIC CONCEPTS
Criterion (pl. criteria): A standard or principle by which something is
judged, or with the help of which a decision is made. (Oxford Advanced
Learners Dictionary)
Standard: A level of quality, especially one that people think is
acceptable or a level of quality that is normal or acceptable for a particular
person or in a particular situation.
Indicator: (indicate = to point out, show) a sign that shows what
something is like or how a situation is changing.
Indicator: is a variable that allows the verification of effects of educational
processes.
Quality: the standard of something when it is compared to other things
like it; how good or bad something is.
Quality of educational processes/educational institution/ educational
systems is a desired level of processes and results which is prescribed in
educational standards and could be objectively measured and evaluated.
School effectiveness: The process of articulating the mission, setting
goals, and using data to form assessments in an ongoing cycle of goal setting
through and planning.


3. DEVELOPMENT OF SCHOOL EFFECTIVENESS RESEARCH
School effectiveness research has made many developments in the USA
and UK during the twentieth century. These changes in the concept of school
effectiveness (illustrated in Figure 1) have a great impact on the criteria used for
internal or external school evaluations.

The stages in Figure 1 illustrate the shift in focus of the school effectiveness
research. In the second half of the twentieth century the school products were
assessed towards the input data, such as books in the library or specific teacher
characteristics (cfr School effects research, stage 1)

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Stage 1:


Stage 2:



Stage 3:



Figure 1: Stages of development of the concept of school effectiveness
Source: Tedlie, Reynolds 2000


The figure explains the short historical development of school
effectiveness research in western countries, especially in the USA and the UK.
Overall, there have been three major strands in the school effectiveness research:
school effects research (see Stage 1) this studies evolved from simple inputs-
outputs to multilevel model analyses, effective school research (see Stage 2): in
this section there were simple case studies on the beginning, currently this stage
consists of mixed qualitative and quantitative studies and collateral classroom
and school examinations, school improvement research (see Stage 3): it is
examination of processes which could contribute to school change, it goes
beyond simple school effectiveness knowledge and it demands multilevel
approach. The researchers realized that not only the input but also the processes
within a school influence the output of a school. Instructional leadership or
giving attention to student's progress is examples of processes within a school
(cfr Effective school research and school improvement studies). Stage 3 clearly
shows that the internal and external evaluation of education should take into
account the input, process, output and context data. Nowadays researches prefer
to include another variable, namely 'context' in their analyses (e.g. demographic
data of the school).

Inputs
Outputs Process
Context
Inputs
Outputs Process
Inputs
Outputs
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4. SETTING OUT THE CRITERIA
In the process of internal evaluation and, to a lesser degree, also in the
process of external evaluation the school managers can set out the criteria to be
used in the evaluation. There is a plethora of ready-made systems which can
either be applied as a whole (e.g. EFQM model) or used as a catalogue of tools
available when working with specific standards.

Selection and use of suitable evaluation criteria is a complex exercise. The
text below will give a description of some generally valid recommendations. The
procedure that we propose consists of the following steps:

a. Selection of criteria
b. Checking quality of selected criteria (reliability, validity)
c. Operational definition of each criteria/defining indicators

a. Selection of criteria
As a school manager it is important to evaluate the school on a structured
way. Based on literature or research models a school manager can define his own
criteria and indicators within a specific school context.

An evaluation against the criteria involves making a judgement after
considering the available evidence. The evidence may be drawn from many
sources; direct observation in the classroom of teaching and learning and of
samples of students work, or examination of documentation, ranging from
policy documents to minutes of meetings or teachers records. Direct observation
can be supplemented by discussions with staff, students and parents (Blacknell
Forest, 1999: 4).

The module 'Methods of Quality Management in schools' illustrates the
EFQM- model. EFQM consists of 9 criteria, 32 subcriteria and more descriptors.


154


The 9 EFQM criteria are:
1. Leadership
2. Policy and Strategy
3. People
4. Partnerships and Resources
5. Processes
6. Customer Results
7. People Results
8. Society Results
9. Key Performance Results

It is useful to evaluate all the areas of the EFQM model within a defined
timespan. Not every year a school has to measure all the areas at once, instead
the school manager makes up a time schedule including several years to
interrogate every area.

Within the PRO-SCHOOL project each partner made a research report on
school effectiveness indicators of their own country. Turkey, Greece, Romania,
Italy, Czech Republic and Belgium - Flanders - listed up the criteria and
indicators used in each partner country to evaluate schools.

For example Belgium (Flanders)
In Flanders the educational inspectorate uses the CIPO model as a
reference frame for its school inspections. The model offers an overview of the
following aspects but also represents the relations between the components:

Context
Gathering all of the elements of the schools functioning, on which a
school has little or no influence.

Input
Gathering all of the elements of the schools functioning which can be
changed by the school itself to a certain extent (cf. human availability,
educational offering, and material resources).
155


Process
Gathering all of the elements of the schools functioning which are
completely controlled by the school itself. No distinction is made between the
educational policy and the educational support policy.

Output
Gathering all of the elements that are directly and indirectly related to the
quality that a school achieves. This quality pertains to educational performance
as well as to personality forming aspects, in the short and the long term.
(See Figure 2 in 'Methods of Quality Management' module)

The selection of criteria is largely influenced by the purpose of the
evaluation and the nature of the evaluated phenomenon. Nonetheless, it is not
sufficient to enlist the criteria; our decision has to be justified. The aim of the
evaluation can be e.g. a description of current situation, an attempt to precisely
set out the objectives and subsequently to express the extent of their
accomplishment or to get a deeper knowledge and understanding of
relationships between the conditions of education and its outputs. When
assessing e.g. the exploitation of ICT at schools, the following criteria can be set
out:
Hardware availability
Software availability
Availability of school computers for students
Availability of school computers for teachers
ICT competence of teachers
...
b. Checking quality of selected criteria
The criteria of an evaluation determine the questions that the evaluation
aims to answer. Hence they decide the data to be collected and the use that is
made of it. Obviously, therefore, they must be stated clearly and in detail. It is
perhaps too easy, however, to emphasize only the need for a detailed list of
clearly stated criteria. The evaluation will be a valid one only when (i) the criteria
156


included in the list are appropriate and relevant, and (ii) the list is complete in
that it consists of all the appropriate and relevant criteria. To meet these
conditions, it is hardly sufficient simply to list the criteria that come to mind. To
meet the first, it might be possible to argue the appropriateness of relevance of
each item in the list. This would be satisfactory up to a point but the more the
emphasis is laid on defending the criteria without having a basis for their
inclusion in the first place, the less satisfactory it would be. So far as the second
condition is concerned completeness of the list would presumably be defined in
terms of an inability to think of any other item to include (Hodgsona and
Whalley, 1985:44)

Criteria should also be expressed as plain statements of the practice
considered to be critical to success and, therefore, what effective schools do.
Phrased in this way, the criteria can be used as targets when a school is planning
its development and considering what it might want to achieve (Blacknell
Forest, 1999:3).

Good evaluation requires minimizing factors that could lead to
misinterpretation of results. The criteria for meeting this requirement are
reliability and validity of the evaluation criteria. Reliability is defined as an
indication of the consistency of scores across evaluators or over time. An
evaluation is considered reliable when the same results occur regardless of when
the evaluation occurs or who does the scoring. There should be compelling
evidence to show that results are consistent across raters and across scoring
occasions. Validity is defined as an indication of how well an evaluation actually
measures what it is supposed to measure.

When selecting and defining criteria for evaluation, it is important to
ensure both the validity and reliability. The data collected during a school
evaluation must in some way accurately reflect the actions being assessed. To the
extent that this is so, the assessment is valid. Reliability relates to whether or not
the findings can be replicated. Validity does not ensure reliability, and reliability
157


does not ensure validity. For instance, a study can be valid, but lack reliability,
and vice versa.
An example might help one understand the meaning of and relationship
between validity and reliability. Imagine a scale. If you weigh five kilogram of
potatoes in the morning, and the scale is reliable, the same scale should register
five kilogram of potatoes an hour later (unless, of course, you peeled and cooked
them). Likewise, when evaluating Use of school computers for teaching the
students (see next section) your tool should be reliable it should not make any
difference whether the assessment is done today or the next day. However, even
if a tool is reliable, it may not provide a valid measure. Lets imagine same scale
that consistently tells you that you weigh 75 kilogram. The reliability
(consistency) of this scale is very good, but it is not accurate (valid) because you
actually weigh 80 kilogram! In this case you need to ensure validity of your
evaluation tool by guaranteeing content validity (which deals with whether the
assessment content and composition are appropriate, given what is being
measured), construct validity (which is essentially how closely
the assessment relates to the domain that you wish to assess) and predictive
validity (which suggests that predictions made on the basis of
the assessment results will be valid).

c. Operational definition of each criteria/ Defining indicators
Each criterion should be operationalised, i.e. such a definition should be
coined that will cover its empirical verification. The term of operationalisation
means proceeding from the primary, intuitively created idea of a concept to its
specification, namely by means of direct or indirect variables and values acquired
by these variables.

The dimension is usually a precise quantity, a value that immediately
corresponds to the given variable. The weight is measured in grams, time in
seconds, and length of a paper in the number of words. Some criteria, however,
cannot be quantified in such a simple way. Therefore we look for other, partial
variables or manifestations thereof. A positive social climate can thus be
158


monitored through questions on whether a student feels safe, whether he/she
has friends in the class, whether he/she witnesses conflicts among his/her peers,
etc. Differences in the concept of an indicator and a dimension are demonstrated
in the following example:
Criterion: Use of school computers for teaching students
Operationalisation by means of a dimension: Use of school computers
for teaching students = time spent by students at school computers
Operationalisation by means of an indicator: Use of school computers for
teaching students = URL addresses visited by students and activities
performed on the computer (e.g. what applications were used)
The above referred to information clearly indicates that both the selection
of criteria and the selection of their variables and particularly the criterion
variable relationships must be meaningful. Does it make sense for the evaluation
to e.g. monitor how many minutes the students spent on computers? What is the
reporting value of this information?

Practical exercises
Define two indicators to measure 'School Climate'.
Define two indicators to measure ' Staff Communication'

Practical example Turkey
The table below illustrates 6 dimensions of school effectiveness defined by
the PRO-school group and the corresponding indicators of Turkey.

Table 1: Practical example of school effectiveness in Turkey
Dimensions Indicators

1. Physical
conditions

The school (classes, buildings, activity rooms, laboratories,
library, and canteen) and annexes are clean
The precautions have been taken in case of a fire
The precautions taken for students security
The school has enough laboratories
The school has enough ICT facilities
There is enough and up-to-date books in library
There are enough space and facilities for spare time of
students
159



2. Management
and planning
There are enough teachers for all lessons
School provides extra training courses for students
The absenteeism rates of teachers
Regularity of teachers shifts
Students attires
Participation of students and teachers for decision making
Sharing concerned information with students
Informing students about school rules and regulations
Rewarding students achievements
Giving adequate guidance services
Monitoring students developments
Guiding students according to their affinities and skills
Organising seminars to protect students from harmful habits

3. Education
and Training

Teachers are using necessary materials and tools in lessons
Achievement levels of the students are regularly measured
There are joint testing sessions in school
Homework encourages students to do research
Students are successful in (National) university admission
exams
Students are using library sufficiently
Students are using ICT facilities sufficiently
Students are using laboratories sufficiently
Class repetition rates
Access to higher education
The rate of absenteeism of students

4. Social Life
Students are supported in their social activities
Commemorative and celebration ceremonies are regarded
Students are actively participating in social and cultural
activities and competitions
Student clubs are actively running
There are volunteer community works
Students are informed about the natural disasters such as
earthquake, fire and flood
Students are taken to field trips such as museums, exhibitions,
etc.
5..Financial
aspects
School budget is used effectively
Parents and other sectors are supported school with donations

6. Relations
with
Environment
School Parent Association is actively participating school
activities
Parents are regularly informed about childrens academic and
general level
There are cooperation between school management, guidance
service and parents
School has good relations with other institutions
160


5. CLASSIFICATION OF CRITERIA
In the introduction of this module we stated that a criterion is a standard
or a benchmark we use to measure phenomena that we wish to assess and
evaluate. Just as in real life, what is to be measured is essential since it is based on
it the measure is selected.

When measuring connecting materials, the measurement accuracy shall be
of one tenth of a millimeter and a workshop calliper will do, whereas when
determining the area of land we shall use a measuring tape. Crucial is also
accuracy when preparing meals at home a 5 % deviation of measurement does
not make any difference, but in a laboratory or in the course of drug preparation
such a deviation is inadmissible. Therefore, in the first case, it is sufficient to use
an ordinary kitchen scale, while in the latter case a high precision laboratory scale
shall be used. From another perspective, it will be important to distinguish the
measuring tools in dependence on the quantity they are to measure.

Let us apply a similar approach to the educational systems and
educational processes. How can we classify the evaluation criteria?

The classification may depend first of all on the area of education and
functioning of the school or the whole educational system that we need to
evaluate. The point is what model of evaluation is used e.g. the above referred
to EFQM system outlines nine areas, i.e. nine groups of criteria.

Another generally applied set of criteria was included in the publications
of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. In OECD
reports (Education at a Glance 2007), school systems are described with
indicators organized thematically within a framework. It consists of three
dimensions:

161


Actors in educational systems (individual learners, instructional settings
and learning environments, educational service providers, and the
education system as a whole)

Groups of indicators according to whether they deal with the learning
outcomes of individuals or countries, policy levers or circumstances

Policy issues to which the indicators relate, with three major categories
distinguishing between the quality of educational outcomes and
educational provision, issues of equity in educational outcomes and
educational opportunities, and the adequacy and effectiveness of resource
management.

The following Table combines the first and the second dimension:

Table 3: Classification of criteria
Education and
learning outputs
and outcomes

Policy levers and
contexts shaping
educational
outcomes
Antecedents or
constraints that
contextualise policy
Individual
participants in
education and
Learning
The quality and
distribution of
individual
educational
outcomes
Individual attitudes,
engagement and
behaviour
Background
characteristics of the
individual learners
Instructional
Settings
The quality of
instructional
delivery

Pedagogy and
learning practices
and classroom
climate
Student learning
conditions and
teacher
working conditions
Providers of
educational
Services
The output of
educational
institutions
and institutional
performance
School environment
and organisation

Characteristics of the
service providers and
their communities
The education
system as a
whole
The overall
performance of the
education system

System-wide
institutional settings,
resource allocations
and policies
The national
educational, social,
economic and
demographic contexts

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Another classification of criteria reflects the manner of measuring we are
performing, or the type of the variable. There are two main groups of criteria
numerical criteria and categorical criteria. Numerical criteria, however, are
further sub-grouped into ordinal, cardinal and metric criteria. The ordinal criteria
express the rank order, the cardinal criteria express the rank order with equal
intervals and the metric criteria assign to the phenomena numerical values that
can be used in common mathematical operations. Examples are given in the table
below:

Table 4: Types of criteria
Nominal criteria Distribution of students in school by sex
Number of students admitted to medical schools
Fields of study offered by a school
School provides information on the admission procedure
on its website
Ordinal and
cardinal criteria
Year of school attendance
Level of qualification of teaching staff
Ranking of school subjects by popularity among students
Evaluation of classroom climate using a 6-point scale
Students' ratings - school report
Metric criteria Test scores
Age of teachers
Number of lessons of a subject taught
Absence of students expressed in the number of missed
lessons
Expenditure on continuing education of teaching staff



Another way of classifying the evaluation criteria proceeds from the scope
of their impact, i.e. the scale. Sometimes the evaluation focuses solely on the local
level e.g. on the evaluation of a single teacher or a class, on the evaluation of a
single school e.g. throughout an ongoing project. A smaller evaluation unit
allows for a more detailed approach in the course of a self-assessment carried
out by the school, most likely every teacher as well as every student will have an
opportunity to express his/her opinion. The very opposite is represented by the
global evaluation, i.e. to a smaller degree. Such evaluations make use of basic,
critical, numerical and often aggregated information; their purpose is to reflect
163


the functioning of the entire system and its individual parts. Subject to
comparisons can be e.g. the quality of instruction according to PISA tests, cost-
effectiveness or success rate of graduates/school leavers in their transfer to
higher level of education or transition to work.

Another classification generally relates to methodology. For gathering
data on social reality and their processing two main strategies are brought
forward for consideration quantitative and qualitative. The first one is rooted in
positivism it seeks to obtain objective, measurable and descriptive data. It
employs such data gathering methods which cover a large number of
investigated units at low costs (money, time), for example; a uniform testing of
students in some countries, uniform final examinations, etc. Qualitative methods
are close to phenomenology, they thoroughly explore the relevant problem,
study it in context, they strive for understanding, or interpretation. The
qualitative strategy in the evaluation is manifested by the use of research
methods such as interviews, observations, analysis of school documents,
comprehensive case studies. external

The last aspect to be mentioned is the classification of criteria depending
on whether it is an internal and external evaluation. In the event of external
evaluation the room for maneuvering tends to be limited, it usually applies the so
called ready to use assessment systems (e.g. EFQM). Conversely, the internal
evaluation makes it possible (to a larger or smaller extent) to select the criteria to
be used.

6. CONCLUSION

In this module we tried to employ efficient methods which could help to
create, find out or choose good, e.g. objective and effective criteria for evaluation
of school effectiveness and especially to bring them into practice.

Setting out criteria and corresponding indicators to evaluate schools takes
a lot of time and effort of a school manager and his staff. Within schools for
164


example it is hard to make qualitative criteria ready for use. The selected criteria
and indicators have to correspond with the policy of the school and its mission
and vision. Within project based school management specific indicators for each
project have to be defined before getting started with a project.

At least one should always be aware of the fact that 'what we measures is
what we shall see'.

7. SUGGESTED METHODOLOGY
Presentation of basic concepts
Case studies of criteria construction and use
Problem solving approaches discussion on model situation and practical
experience of participants
Practical work preparation of own criteria and indicators in accordance
with practical demand and needs of concrete school leadership system


8. RESOURCES & LINKS
Bracknell Forest Education Department Curriculum Quality and Achievement
Branch (1999). Criteria for School Evaluation and Development.
http://www.bracknell-forest.gov.uk/criteria-for-school-evaluation-and-
development.pdf

Hodgsona F. and Whalley, G. (1985) Evaluation of In-Service Education: the
Question of Criteria, Professional Development in Education, Volume 12,
Issue 1 Winter 1985 , pages 44 47.

Michek, S. (2007). Manual for self-assessment of vocational education and training
providers. Prague: National Institute of Technical and Vocational
Education, 2007. ISBN 978-80-87063-04-0.


Stufflebeam, D. L.; Madaus, G. F. ; Kellaghan, T. (Eds.) (2000). Evaluation Models:
Viewpoints on Educational and Human Services Evaluation. Second Edition.
Hingham, MA, USA: Kluwer Academic Publishers.
http://site.ebrary.com/lib/surreyuniv/Doc?id=10053344&ppg=37


165


Tedlie, Ch. and Reynolds, D. (2000). International Handbook of School Effectiveness
Research. London - New York: Falmer Press. ISBN:
Model excelence EFQM. Praha: esk spolenost pro jakost, 2004. ISBN 80-02-
01671-8.



Website:
Czech School Inspection. http:// www.csicr.cz



































166






PROject based SCHOOL
management








School Managers and Learning
Achievements:
How Can School Managers Improve
School Results?


Authors:
Patrizia Gelmetti
Tiziana Pedrizzi










Developed by:
ANSAS National Agency for the Development of School Autonomy
Lombardia, Italy
167


1. INTRODUCTION
Over the last two decades the focus of education has shifted from teaching
to learners achievements. As a matter of fact, right after World War II and till the
eighties, it was considered enough to invest in buildings, laboratories, the
number of teachers and training courses in order to raise the level of learners
outputs and achievements. Nowadays international researche and analyses in
students and adult literacy pointed out the assumption that investments always
impact on outputs with the same direct proportion.

Therefore two types of policies were developed. The first one is to assess
school outputs through the generalization of the participation in international
standardized students assessment surveys (like PISA) or in national assessment
procedures.

The second one concerns the learners assessments by the introduction of
external standardized final exams (total or partial examination procedures), as
the external assessment is considered to be more reliable than the internal one.

Furthermore, a renewed interest in educational leadership is spreading all
over Europe, after a period of predominance of organisational and managerial
competencies. This happens also as the assessment of the students performances
in the subjects of the core curriculum has become central to many national
policies in the field of education and training. So managers in schools must
become able to manage their students assessment in order to enhance their
school performance and image. They also need to be able to use achievements
results to improve the teaching in their schools.

The aim of this module is to understand school managers role in
increasing learning achievements, to learn how to use PBSM to improve schools
outcomes and to give school managers (trainees) a chance to apply project based
school management in a case study.
168


2. TERMINOLOGY

National testing: the national administration of standardised tests and
centrally set examinations.

Achievement: Successful performance; a measure of the quality and of the
quantity of the success one has in the mastery of knowledge, skills, or
understandings.


3. NATIONAL TESTING OF STUDENTS IN EUROPE
The national testing of students is becoming increasingly important across
Europe as a means of measuring and monitoring the quality of education and
structuring European education system. The tests are based on centrally set
procedures for the preparation of their content, for the administration and
marking, and for the interpretation and use of results.

National testing is carried out under the authority of a national or
centralised body, and all examinees take the test under reasonably similar
conditions. Except in a few countries, national tests represent a relatively new
way for the students assessment in Europe. The introduction and use of national
tests began slowly and sporadically and has increased significantly only since the
1990s. In the current decade some countries are still introducing this type of
assessment instrument, while those that started earlier have seen further
developments in their national testing system.

The aims are different from test to test. The first type summarises the
achievement of students at the end of a particular education stage and may have
a significant impact on their school career. The results of these tests are used to
award certificates or to make important decisions regarding streaming
progression from one year to the next or the final grading of students. In most
cases, these results are considered in conjunction with the internal results at the
end of the year or with final internal examinations.
169



The second one consists of standardised assessments whose main
objective is to monitor and evaluate schools or educational systems as wholes.
The aim is to increase the quality and effectiveness of education, even by ranking
schools.

At the school levels, to which the national tests are provided, testing varies
considerably from country to country. The frequency varies: it could be every
year to every 2 or 3 years (the majority of the European countries) during the
whole of compulsory education. As for the timing, education authorities in most
cases organise national tests towards the end of the school year.

National tests are based on the curriculum and linked to national
education standards in the subjects tested. Certain countries limit national testing
to two or three subjects although several of them have announced plans to widen
its scope by adding additional ones.

In the vast majority of countries, national tests represent a combination of
subject-centred and skill-based questions and tasks. Very often countries favour a
mix of multiple-choice items, short answers and essays, and open-ended
questions, depending on the subject and the school year.

Test questions are supplemented by background questionnaires for school
principals, teachers, parents and students which link the data collected to the
socio economic background of the students, their motivation, the support
measures or the school climate.

In the great majority of European countries, the aggregated results of
national tests for each school are not publicised. But some countries arrange for
central government publication of results for each school or recommend local
publication even in the leaflets of schools. These data can be published as raw
170


data or with weight indicators depending on the characteristic of the student
population or the Added Value of schools.

In some European countries the external evaluation of schools or school
managers takes account of the results achieved by the students in national tests.
In others, there are regulations, recommendations or resources for support, that
relate to the use of the test results during the internal school evaluation. In fact
central authorities expect schools to carry out an internal process of quality
analysis based on their results in certain national tests.

In many countries there are strong debates about unintended effects of
national tests. The most common unintended effects/consequences are:
overemphasis on subjects tested and on parts of these subjects, problems for
weak students, demotivation and anxiety increase in students, less importance to
teachers judgements. In case tests are used to rank schools, it is necessary to
measure first of all Added Value (Eurydice, 2009).

4. SCHOOL MANAGERS and SCHOOL RESULTS
It has been found that effective leaders develop school climates and
cultures that help motivate both students and teachers leading to the creation of
better teaching and learning environments which are more conducive to higher
levels of student achievements. Besides, in most school systems, the school
manager is required by the systemic authorities to improve student learning and
is held accountable for it by building commitments in developing a shared vision
for motivating and energizing the teachers and students.

It has been reported that the leadership behaviour of a manager and
his/her role as an instructional leader has a significant impact on creating more
effective schools leading to higher levels of student achievements. For example
Cotton (2003) has asserted that the following types of behaviours by a principal
have a significant impact on student achievements:

171


The establishment of a clear focus on student learning by having a vision,
clear learning goals, and high expectations for learning for all students
Interactions and cordial relationships with relevant stakeholders with
communication and interaction, emotional and interpersonal support,
visibility and accessibility, and parent/community participation;
Developing a school culture conducive to teaching and learning through
shared leadership and decision-making, collaboration, risk taking leading
to continuous improvements;
Providing instructional leadership through discussions of instructional
issues, observing classroom teaching and giving feedback, supporting
teacher autonomy and protecting instructional time; and
Being accountable for affecting and supporting continuous improvements
through monitoring progress and using student progress data for program
improvements (cited in Gamage, Adams and McCormack, 2009).

A manager needs to have a clear understanding of the major dimensions
of his or her position, including: (a) the aims and goals which his or her school is
attempting to achieve; (b) the means or the resources available to achieve these
goals; (c) the degree of freedom delegated to him or her by the employing
authority to innovate or modify existing educational methods and procedures in
order to achieve these goals; (d) the legal, traditional and personal authority
vested in the role of the manager; (e) the constraints and boundaries likely to
limit school-based decisions; and (f) the extent of the managers responsibility
and accountability for funding, staffing and administration of the school.

Apart from establishing a vision and setting goals, effective managers
place high emphasis on achieving high levels of student learning and provide
resources towards the efforts to improve the achievements and general well-
being of the students. In practice, these managers constantly encourage teachers
and students to attain higher levels of academic achievements; adopt
collaborative planning processes, problem solving and decision-making focus on
172


school improvements while ensuring that all school development programs are
geared to make all students learn.

It is obvious that there is no one particular style of leadership claiming to
be the perfect one leading to improved school performances and student
achievements. School managers are required to be more flexible in adapting
appropriate leadership styles with the creation of collaborative working
environments with higher-levels of commitment, motivation, ownership,
developing, trusting and healthier school cultures, facilitating higher
productivity and increased student achievements Gamage, Adams and
McCormack, 2009). With these in mind, we believe that Project Based School
Management method will help school managers to increase their schools general
achievement levels. In order to better understand PBSM the following case study
is parepared as a part of in-service training program designed for school
managers. Following part of the module covers the training methodology and
step by step case study.


5. TRAINING METHODOLOGY
After the introduction the participants will describe shortly the situation of
the achievement results in their own school, based on the National Testing of
Students in Europe, or on national evaluations and will discuss positive and
negative aspects of national/international assessment.

Then, the participants will discuss a case study presented by the training
staff, and will suggest possible improvements to be introduced into the school
activities.

During the group work, the participants will use a grid provided by the
training staff.

The chapter PBSM Philosopy and Training Methodology (1. Planning, 2.
Organizing, 3. Commanding, 4. Coordinating, 5. Controlling) is the reference
173


point for structuring the grid. The provided grid suggests a wide range of items
for each point of the discussion. Considering the limited amount of time, during
the work session the trainers will identify only three items for each point to
submit to the participants.

At the end of the work session the participants will fill the grid and
discuss the results; then they will prepare a draft Project that will be structured
according to PBSM Philosopy and Training Methodology in order to improve
the school results.


5.1. Case study
The group will analyse the case presented by the trainers and will suggest
possible improvements to be introduced into the school activities.

During the case study, the participants will analyse:

1. The social and economic environment the school belongs to, in order to find
out if there is any connection between the student results and the socio-cultural
family situation;

2. The school situation:
is the external evaluation a habit for the school or is it a first?
what is the attitude of teachers, parents and SM towards the external
evaluation?
conditions/circumstances in which the external evaluation was provided

3. The testing results are important in order to:
point out the main problem(s) arisen from the analysis of the testing
results (e.g. results below the average level, non-homogeneous results,
very different from one subject to another, very different from one class to
another)
174


find out the causes: teachers, organization, students, previous class
situation
discuss strategies at different levels (best practices)

4. Possible use of results:
In the school: improving the school organization, encouraging students
self analysis processes, promoting teachers training activities, organizing
additional classes and advanced modules for students...
In the territory: involving parents and other stakeholders in processes for
the improvement of school activities...

The discussion on the results can consider two aims: one is the already
mentioned improvement of the students achievements, the other is the
relationship with the territory, in order to involve the stakeholders as much as
possible in the school life.

5.2 Case Study Grid

CASE STUDY GRID
1. Social school context (environmental conditions and social level of the
students families)
Invovelment of stakeholders in the planning and organization of
managerial and educational activities (resources and services
provision)
Involvement of parents and families in the school-life

2. School situation analysis (general situation and consideration on the
standard external evaluation)
Previous participation of the school in similar initiatives (if so, kind
of measures adopted)
Compulsory or optional participation (if optional: level of common
share)
Position of teachers towards the standard external evaluation (is it
considered a good opportunity or felt as a judgment?)
Position of students towards the standard external evaluation (a
useless exercise or a good opportunity for self-evaluation?)
Timing, subjects chosen, number of classes involved
Previous training courses on the evaluation/testing/assessment
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Establishment of a Project team for the evaluation of students
achievements
Involvement of the evaluation project leader to the planning and
organization of the school activities
Motivation, incentivizing of the project leader and team members
Connection and interaction between the evaluation project leader
and other school project leaders
Project documentation methods

3. Testing Results, presentation of the results and problems to be discussed
a) Presentation of the results
Timing and circumstances (during a specific staff meeting, as an
item on the agenda, right after the testing, or at the end of the school
year? ...)
Method: comparative schedules for the same grades, comparative
schedules referring to the previous years, comments by the principal
and his staff, or no comments at all in order to allow personal
reflections?

................................................
b) Problem to be discussed
Results below the average level
Non homogeneous results, very different from one subject to
another
Non homogeneous results, very different from one class to the other
.
.........

4. Analysis of the possible causes
Teachers (competence, ability, training,)
Organization (planning, team work,.)
Students (class composition: numbers, origin of the students, ...)
Previous class situation (continuity: same teachers, a lot of
changes,..)

.

5. Strategies to adopt to face and solve the problem
Organizational aspects (assignment of teachers, classes composition,
timetable)
Didactic aspects
For the students (personal support, extra hours, remedial classes /
hours...)
For the teachers (in-service training, support to the team- work,
support to the common planning, common evaluation tests...)

176




6. Use of the results
Analysis of the results as an input to promote initiatives to reflect on
the school organization
Analysis of the results as an input to promote self-evaluation
activities for the students
Analysis of the results as an input to organize groups of teachers to
collaborate and re-arrange some didactic activities
Analysis of the results as an input to organize training courses for
the teachers
Analysis of the results as an input to organize remedial courses for
the students

Presentation of the results to the parents (timing, methods, ...)
Presentation of the results to the stakeholders (timing, methods, ...)
Possible discussion on the involvement of the policy makers and the
stakeholders

........



5.3 Discussion on Best Practices and Guidelines
The participants will discuss the group work results and they will
highlight the best practices. The comments and the observations will be listed in
the Guidelines according to the following structure:

1 Preliminary activities
2 Training of the selected staff
3 Testing implementation
4 Results analysis and interpretation
5 Presentation of the results to the teaching staff
6 Presentation of the results to the community
7 Projects to improve the school results

This content will be adapted to the characteristics and needs of the
different countries of trainees.

177


6. PROJECT FORMULATION by USING PBSM
At the end of the work session, after filling out the grid and discussing the
results; the participants will be asked to prepare a draft Project that will be
structured according to the following steps:

1. Planning
Formulation of objectives
Strategies for the involvement of stakeholders in the planning and
organization of school activities
Partecipatory decision-making processes among team members (sharing
of responsibilities and authority)

2. Organizing
Identification of the project leader
Identification of the necessary human and material resources for the
achievement of objectives
Definition of the timetable and location for the implementation of
activities
Formulation of action steps (implementation phases)
Priming of remuneration forms for the project leader and team members
Identification of documents and materials to support each implementative
phase

3. Commanding
Sharing responsabilities among team members in each implementation
phases
Defining communication strategies within the project team and with the
school manager and staff.

4. Coordinating
Defining the meeting timetable among team members, with school staff
and other stakeholders
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Setting of information system to support the interaction between team
members, school staff and stakeholders (also making the best use of
internet)

5. Controlling
Identification of methods for the in itinere evaluation
Identification of methods for the ex-post evaluation (correspondence
between objectives and results, impact evaluation...)
Setting of measurament indicators


7. CONCLUSION
National testing is a growing trend not only in Europe but also all around
the world. Results of the Eurydice research on national testing indicate that
almost all European countries are using national testing to assess students
success, to monitor and evaluate schools or the educational system as a whole. In
general the aim is to increase the quality and effectiveness of education by
testing.

The role of the school manager in increasing school effectiveness is widely
analysed and accepted by the academic community. Apart from establishing a
vision and setting goals, effective managers place high emphasis on achieving
high levels of student learning and provide resources towards the efforts to
improve the achievement and general well-being of students. Effective managers
constantly encourage teachers and students to attain higher levels of academic
achievement. In order to do so, school managers are required to be more flexible
in adapting appropriate leadership and management styles.

The Project-based School Management method is a new management
methodology developed as a result of PRO-SCHOOL project. This publication as
whole and this module in particular provides a training methodology to use
Project Based School Management method to improve school results.

179



8. RESOURCES & LINKS:


Eurydice. (2008). National summary sheets on education systems in Europe and
ongoing reforms,
http://eacea.ec.europa.eu/ressources/eurydice/pdf/047DN/047_IT_EN.pdf

Eurydice. (2009) National Testing of Pupils in Europe: Objectives, Organisation
and Use of Results:
http://eacea.ec.europa.eu/education/eurydice/documents/thematic_reports/1
09EN.pdf

Eurydice Web Site: www.eurydice.org

Gamage, D., & Adams, D., & McCormack, A. (2009) How Does a School Leaders
Role Influence Student Achievements? A Review of Research Findings and Best
Practices. International Journal of Educational Leadership Preparation, Volume 4,
Number 1 (January March) http://cnx.org/content/m19751/latest/
180







PROject based SCHOOL management







In-Service Training
Curriculum

181


PROJECT-BASED SCHOOL MANAGEMENT PHILOSOPHY AND
TRAINING METHODOLOGY


Duration: 3 hours
Responsible partner: Menderes Town National Education Directorate, Turkey

Aim(s) of the module:
to introduce Project-Based School Management (PBSM) approach to
school managers
to understand the rationale behind the project-based school management,
identify the knowledge, skills, attitudes and values which are necessary
for successful project-based management,
understand the importance of ensuring participation in in-service
trainings,

Preparation& Materials needed:
Prepared questions for discussion
Flipchart, markers, papers and sticky tapes
PowerPoint presentation

Assessment :
Assessment will be done by participants by using Kirkpatricks four level model.



182



Objectives Contents Methods
&Tools
Timing Explanations
-learn about
project-based
management,
project-based
organizations
and project-based
school
management
-what is project-
based
management,
-what is project-
based
organizations
and project-
based school
management
Presentation
& structured
discussion

50 min -Introductory
questions will
be asked to
start discussion
-PowerPoint
presentation
-Further
discussion
-learn about the
functions of
project-based
school
management and
key management
skills for PBSM
- functions of
project-based
school
management
- key
management
skills for PBSM
Presentation,
group work
and structured
discussion

40 min -PowerPoint
presentation
-groups will be
determined
and questions
for discussion
will be given
-results of the
discussions will
be presented to
whole group
-learn about
adult learning
principles and
active learning
methods
Group work
Case study
Discussion
Brainstorming
Role play
Icebreakers
Buzzgroups

Presentation
and Role play
45 min -Presentation of
the subject by
PPT
-Each training
method will be
introduced by
using role play
-learn how to
evaluate
trainings
Four level of
learning
evaluation
model:
1.Reaction
2.Personal
learning
3.Applied
learning
4.Results
Presentation
and structured
discussion

45 min -The subject
will be
introduced by
PPT
-Questions for
discussion
-Evaluation of
the module by
using
Kirkpatrick
model



183


EFFECTIVE SCHOOL INDICATORS AND IN-SERVICE TRAINING NEEDS
OF SCHOOL MANAGERS

Duration: 2 hours

Responsible partner: Menderes Town National Education Directorate, Turkey

Aim(s) of the module:
to give brief information about PRO-SCHOOL project,
to give a picture of effective school indicators according to perceptions of
high school managers, teachers and parents from partner countries,
to share the in-service training needs of school managers
to disseminate projects outputs with target groups

Preparation & Materials needed:
Prepared questions for discussion
Flipchart, markers, papers and sticky tapes
PowerPoint presentation

Assessment :
Assessment of the module will be done by using talking stick method (each
participant will be asked to comment on the module)



184



Objectives Contents Methods
&Tools
Timing Explanations
-define and
understand the
concept of
school
effectiveness

what is school
effectiveness
what are the
indicators of
effective
school

Structured
discussion
45 min -A structured
discussion will be
started by
introducing
questions,
participants will
discuss the answers
and write down a
list of answers
-learn and
discuss about
research results
of Pro-School
Project
Research
results of Pro-
School Project
PowerPoint
presentation
75 min - PowerPoint
presentation will be
given
-After the
presentation the
participants will
comment on the
results and their
own experiences


185


LIFECYCLE OF THE PROJECT

Duration: 3,5 hours

Responsible partner: Transilvania University of Brasov, Romania

Aim(s) of the module:
to develop knowledge and tools for understanding project management and
its benefits for quality assurance of the processes in an educational
institution and in various sections of it.
to prepare school managers to access the national and European funding
opportunities by developing coherent and structured projects for the school
or for needs within the school.
to support school managers and heads of working teams in preparing,
delivering and assessing the knowledge, by valorizing the resources and
avoiding overlapping.

Preparation & Materials needed:
Flipchart, markers, papers and sticky tapes
PowerPoint presentation

Assessment (please explain):
Project based assessment. The trainees are required to develop the Activity Plan
for a project to be implemented in their educational institution.











186


Objectives Contents Methods
&Tools
Timin
g
Explanations
- to introduce the
history of Project
Management and
discuss the
importance of
Project Management
in schools
-Introduction;
History of Project
Management
- Why Project
Management in
schools?
PPT
presentatio
n and open
discussion
30 min
-to teach how to set
up a Project
Management Plan
Identification
setting up the goal,
objectives
Expected outcomes:
indicators
PPT 30 min
-to introduce
Project Appraisal
steps and
procedures
Identifying the
funding
programme
Identifying the
resources
Developing the
project proposal
Correlation:
Objectives
Activities Results
Project time frame:
the Gantt diagram
Developing the
Financial plan
correlating
activities with
financing
PPT,
discussion
on samples
60 min After the
introduction
of the subject
by PPT,
samples will
be shown
and
discussed
-to teach about
Project Financing
and contracting
criteria
Contracting
Project financing
criteria
PPT,
lessons
and
discussion
30 min
-to introduce the
steps of Project
Implementation
Monitoring
Risk management
Reporting
PPT,
lessons
and
discussion
30 min
-to introduce
Project Evaluation
Project Evaluation:
External Evaluation
and Audit
PPT 30 min
187


TOOLS FOR PROJECT BASED SCHOOL MANAGEMENT


Duration: 6 hours

Responsible partner: Brasov County School Inspectorate, Romania

Aim(s) of the module:
to train school managers to identify schools needs
to transpose them in terms of a project
to analyze the necessary resources to match the projects goal

Preparation & Materials needed:
Projector, Flipchart, markers, papers and sticky tapes





















188


Objectives
School
Managers
will be
trained on
how to:
Contents Methods &Tools Timing Explanations

- define the
logical
framework
of a project

The terms of:
project, project
management
The benefits of
a project
The lifecycle of
a project
Presentation &
structured
discussion

60 min Introducing the
module content,
glossary of
project- related
terms
Examples will be
given to illustrate
the potential of
projects to solve
institutional
needs
- identify
and analyze
the needs
Formulate aim
of project
Analyse
existing
situation
Identify and
analyse
institutional
needs
Prioritising
these needs
Selecting the
target group
Presentation &
Sample case
brainstorming &
structured
discussion
90 min The
correspondence
idea - goal
Transposing the
aim in terms of a
project
Quantifying the
needs, answering
the questions:
Why?, To whom?,
Where and
when?
- use the
instruments
specific to
needs
analysis
Questionnaires
Focus group
SWOT
Analysis
Gantt Diagram
Presentation,
sample case
scenario & activities
based on hand-outs
activities
60 min How to apply the
instruments
specific to needs
analysis
- identify
novelty and
relevance of
the project
The relevance
in terms of
institutional
and financial
priorities,
The novelty of
the proposed
project
reported to
existing ones
Structured
discussion
Case studies
30 min The projects
potential
contribution to
enhance quality
and promote
innovation in the
field concerned
Relevance of the
chosen project in
the light of the
demonstrated
need
189


- identify
the possible
constraints

Constraints
referring to:
timing, budget
and quality
standards
Decisional
matrix
Presentation,
brainstorming &
structured
discussion

30 min

-criteria related to
feasibility
-criteria related to
soundness of
project
management

- identify
necessary
resources
and
available
ones
Human
resources
analysis
Material
resources
analysis

Presentationsample
case scenario &
activities based on
handouts
60 min -choosing the
project team;
-assigning
appropriate
responsibilities
and roles
decisional and
communication
flow;
-analysing
necessary and
existing
resources;
-managing
human and
material
resources in a
project.
- set up a
partnership
The
importance,
roles and
involvment of
partners
Choosing a
suitable
partnerships
Sample case
scenario
20 min -how to choose
partners;
-roles and tasks
assignment in a
partnership;
-the roles of
partners and
coordinator;
Assess the
training
module
Assessment Process review
Feedback fill-in
sheet
10 min SMs asked to
summarize and
review the topics
presented&
discussed.
190


MANAGEMENT THEORIES AND SCHOOL MANAGEMENT STYLES

Duration: 3 hours

Responsible partner: University of the Peloponnese, Corinth, Greece

Aim(s) of the module:
to give school managers basic information about management theories and
leadership styles
to help them understand the importance of management and
communication skills for effective school management.

Preparation & Materials Needed:
Case studies, projector, Flipchart, markers, paper and sticky tapes

Assessment:
Every SM has to present a plan of activity for his school
















191



Objectives Contents Methods
&Tools
Timing Explanations
To introduce
management
theories

Basic
information
about
management
theories
Lecture and
Power
Point
presentation
40 min Define related
terms
Examples will be
given to define
the exact
meaning of the
terms.
To introduce and
discuss
leadership styles
Basic
information
about different
leadership styles
Lecture and
Power Point
presentation
20 min Discussion
based on the
questions
To introduce
communication
and discuss its
importance in
effective school
management

Communication
with staff,
students and
parents,
motivation and
climate at a
school
Lecture
Discussion

40 min Structured
discussion
Leadership &
communication
strategy activity
To discuss on
good practices

Good practices in
management,
leadership
communication
Lecture
Discussion,
power point
60 min
Assess the
training module
Assessment Discussion 20 min Summarize the
topic presented
and discussed
192


METHODS OF QUALITY MANAGEMENT IN SCHOOLS

Duration: 3 hours

Responsible partner: HOGENT University College Ghent, Belgium

Aim(s) of the module:
enumerate the basic characteristics of integrated quality management
explain the Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) cycle, the European Foundation for
Quality Management (EFQM) model with the nine fields of interest and the
TRIS method
display their insight in the various phases of a self evaluation process
become aware of good practices in internal evaluation
become capable of judging self evaluation tools

Preparation & Materials needed:
PowerPoint presentations, questionnaires, projector, flipchart, markers

Assessment :
Questionnaire about the efficiency of the methodology used, the lecturers, the
aims, the contents, the expectations of the participants












193


Objectives Contents Methods
&Tools
Timing Explanations
Highlight the
general aims
of the module
General aims Lecture &
Power Point
presentation
10 min
Illustrate the
basic
principles of
Integrated
Quality
Management
Basic characteristics
of Integrated
Quality
Management
Structured
discussion
&
PowerPoint
presentation
15 min Illustrating the
basic principles of
Integrated Quality
Management
(strengths and
weaknesses within
schools)
Explain the
Methods of
Quality
Management
PDCA cycle
EFQM as basic model
with 9 fields of
interest:
1. Leadership
2. Policy and strategy
3. Co-workers
4. Partners and
means
5. Management of
processes
6. Customer results
7. Appreciation by
the personnel
8. Social results
9. Final results
TRIS
Lecture &
PowerPoint
presentation
& Exercises
60 min Integrating the
PDCA cycle in the
EFQM model.
Illustrating the
means of the TRIS
model (Flanders)
within higher
education.
Exercises on the
methods of
Quality
Management.
Insight in the
Self
Evaluation
Process
Stages of a self
evaluation process
Lecture &
Power Point
Presentation
Structured
Discussion
40 min Illustrating the
stages of the self
evaluation process
Judging Self
Evaluation &
Quality
Assurance
Tools
Illustrate good
practices to monitor
quality on a project
based manner and
the self evaluation
process in
educational systems
Lecture
Discussion

35 min Exchange
European good
practices
Reflect

Conclusion of the
module
Discussion 15 min
Assess Questions about
efficiency of the
used methodology,
lecturers, aims,
Question-
Naire
5 min
194


EVALUATION OF SCHOOL EFFECTIVENESS

Duration: 3 hours

Responsible partner: Institute of Education and Communication, Czech
University of Life Sciences Prague, Czech Republic

Aim(s) of the module:
Learn and understand good examples of school effectiveness evaluation
criteria and processes
Learn how to choose appropriate evaluation criteria according to school
objectives and strategy
Classify the internal and external criteria
Discuss the differences in school effectiveness within European secondary
schools
Exchange of European good practices of effectiveness at secondary school
level

Preparation & Materials Needed:
PC, projector, screen, PowerPoint presentations, flipchart, markers, pens, paper
195



Objectives Contents Methods
&Tools
Timing Explanations
To explain main
aims of the
module and
definition of
main terms
What does school
effectiveness mean?
How can we
evaluate
effectiveness
Lecture &
PowerPoint
presentation

10 min The content of the
course will be
introduced
To learn about
developments in
school
effectiveness
research
Development of
school effectiveness
research
Lecture and
discussion
20 min Different
approaches to
school
effectiveness
evaluation will be
introduced and
discussed
Description of
main points of
external and
internal criteria
(a)Selection of
criteria
(b)Checking quality
of selected criteria
(reliability, validity)
(c)Operational
definition of each
criterion/defining
indicators
Lecture &
PowerPoint
presentation
20 min The main points
will be presented
on the
PowerPoint
presentation, also
the strategy of
school
inspections in
partner countries
will be explained
To understand
the classification
of criteria
Classification of
criteria:
Types of criteria

Presentation
Discussion
and analysis
50 min On the circulated
materials, the
different criteria
classification will
be described.
Preparation of
own criteria and
indicators in
accordance with
practical
demand and
need of concrete
school
leadership
system
Application of the
criteria on the
experience gained
during the
excursion at
secondary school
previous day
Workshop,
SWOT
analysis,
discussion
60 min School managers,
their personal
examples and
experience will be
described in the
circulated
materials. The
participants will
try to identify
effective and
ineffective
strategies and
analyze them.
Summary and
feed back

Conclusion of this
module and
questions
Discussion 20 min Answering
questions,
writing
conclusions on
the flipchart

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SCHOOL MANAGERS AND LEARNING ACHIEVEMENTS
How Can School Managers Improve School Results?

Duration: 3 hours

Responsible partner: ANSAS - National Agency for the Development of School
Autonomy Lombardia, Italy

Aim(s) of the module:
to understand school managers role in increasing learning achievements,
to learn how to use PBSM to improve schools outcomes
to give school managers a chance to apply project based school management
in a case study.

Preparation & Materials Needed:
PPT, 2 Case Studies

Assessment :
Every SM has to present a plan of activity for his school and an evaluation of the
module as a useful tool to prepare it.












197



Objectives Contents Methods
&Tools
Timing Explanations
To introduce and
discuss the
Eurydice national
testing research
results
National
testing of
students in
Europe:
-aim of testing
-use of the
results

PPT,
discussion
General description
of
European
evaluation
processes and
students
achievements in
schools,
discussion of
national and
international tests
To understand the
relationship
between school
effectiveness and
school
management
School
managers and
school results:
-characteristics
of effective
school
managers

PPT,
discussion

-Analysis of the
social & economic
environment
-Importance and
use of testing
results
Case study-1 Case
analysis by
PPT and
written
materials
SMs will analyze
the case presented
by the trainers and
will suggest
possible
improvements to be
introduced into the
school activities

To offer to SM an
overview of the
problem they can
reproduce in their
schools in a
meeting teacher or
by themselves or
by external
experts

Case study-2
Project
formulation by
using PBSM
Case
analysis by
PPT and
written
materials
The trainers present
as a SM the
negative results of
his school. He asks
teacher to decide
about changing in:
1.Teacher training
2.School curriculum
3.Internal
evaluation
The group of SM
has to simulate the
teachers discussion
about change.


198





Title: Training Modules for Managers and Other Teaching
and Managerial Staff

Editor: Menderes Town National Education Directorate


Edited by: M. Emin BAKAY, Prof. Milan Slavk
Gldan Kalem

Reviewed by: Prof. Maurice Rolls
doz. Dr. Manfred Bruer
doc. Ing. Roman Hrmo, PhD.

Print: Can Digital Bask Ltd. ti

Number of pages: 223

Edition: First, 2010









This publication is not for sale.

"This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This
publication reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be
held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained
therein."


Menderes Town National Education Directorate

199