Rudi Herbert
To cite this article: Rudi Herbert (1982) Training teachers for educational management in further
education, The Vocational Aspect of Education, 34:88, 57-60, DOI: 10.1080/10408347308001691
Abstract
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The aims of this article are to find out what the nine Regional Advisory Councils (RAC) in England have done
concerning the implementation of the third A CSTT Report commonly known as Haycocks 11I since its
publication in 1978.
The writer will examine the concept of restricted or extended levels of management training as perceived by the
report and by the various RA C working parties. He will propose that a number of regional management centres
ought to be developed and work closely with the national centre at Coombe Lodge in order to extend the
opportunities for management education for all lecturers who have some form of management responsibility in
the further education sector.
57
58 Training Teachers for Educational Management In Further Education
would also apply at institutional level especially in TABLE H (7) Departmental staff with management
polytechnics, where there should be closer co- responsibilities below HoD level in 119 departments,
operation between the Departments of Management by title
and Education Studies especially those dealing with %of
in-service teacher training in the secondary and further Title Number Total
education sectors.
Deputy Head of Department 106 3.3
Restricted or Extended Levels of Management Section Head or Leader 455 14.4
Training Course Tutor or Supervisor 918 29.0
The first question to ask about education for manage- Subject Co-ordinator' 288 9.1
ment is, who are the clients? Is it to be restricted only Lecturer in Charge 151 4.8
to principals, vice-principals and heads of departments Combinations of Above
usually regarded as 'the management'? If this is the Titles 70 2.2
case, the West Midlands with fifty RAC's colleges Additional Titles 111 3.5
would only have 5 per cent or 305 out of 6,074 of its
staff in this category (Table I). But if this would be All Staff with Management
extended to departmental staff below head of depart- Responsibilities 2,099 66.3
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ment but with some barrier of management respon- Other Department Staff (est.) 1,065 33.7
sil~ilities as applied to 119 college departments (Table
II) the percentage would be greatly extended to 66.3 Total Staff below HoD level 3,164 100.0
per cent or 2,099 staff.
TABLE I (6) Total full-time staff in post in 50 deployment of resources within an 'organisational' unit
colleges* of education in the West Midlands region by and the training needs of those who are primarily
concerned with the management of 'learning' units.
title
Consequently they suggested 'that it is appropriate for
%of separate consideration to be given to the different
Number Total levels of management'.
Principals 50 0.8 If these distinctions are going to be taken seriously
Vice-Principals 42 0.7 and even more importantly to be implemented, the next
213 3.5 question to ask is where will all this training take place
**Heads of Department
and who will be responsible?
Other full-time staff 5,769 95.0 At the national level the FE Staff College at
Coombe Lodge caters for the management needs of
Total: 6,074 100 senior staff by its fully residential management study
conferences or workshops which are nearly all
*Including Heads of Faculty and Heads of Schools
over-subscribed.
**Excluding Polytechnics, Colleges of Higher Education,
There are some developments locally as in the West
Agricultural and Voluntary Colleges.
Midlands. Stafford College of Further Education
engineering department is already doing in-house
The Haycocks Report differentiated between the training for their section leaderso°). Another LEA is
different levels of management which it puts into nine planning to develop a moduler type of part-time course
categories and was aware that 'in this situation the in education management for staff below head of
management training needs of individual members of department level.
staffvary considerably' (para 9). The N W A E A is planning to establish a Further
Sabel's ~s~preliminary investigation for the Southern Education Management Unit at BoRon College of
Regional Council concerning the training of teachers Education (Technical). Another reason why an exten-
for education management clearly differentiated the ded level for management education for those with
needs between staff with responsibilities below and that management responsibility below head of department
of above head of department. He suggested that heads is very important, is that it will not only prepare them
of departments could be trained on a regional basis. A for their immediate post but also for senior respon-
working party report of the North West Associated sibility at some future time. One of the functions of the
Education Authority (NWAEA) (9) thought 'that there Stafford in-house training for section leaders, was to
are important differences between the training needs of give them practice in representing the head of the
those who have a high level of responsibility for the department at meetings when he was away and
leadership and development of staff and for the enhances their understanding of his particular role.
RUDI HERBERT 59
A Further Education Management Unit for a only region so far to recommend this. The N W R A C
Region and the NWAEA have been very active in the field of
education management even before the topic was
The writer corresponded with the nine secretaries of discussed through the publication of Haycocks III in
the RAC's in England to find out what had been done January 1977 a working party had recommended that,
concerning the implementation of Haycocks III since 'a modest expansion of the provision of short courses
1978. of training in education management for senior staff in
In reading through their answers it is possible to further and higher education in the region' which had
develop a four stage model towards the implemen- been accepted by the ~11)NWAEA.
tation of Haycocks III. A Further and Higher Education Steering Comm-
Stage I An RAC sub-committee has studied the ittee for Education Management Courses was set up in
report. All RACs have done this. June 1978 and.appointed a working party 'to consider
Stage II The establishment of a working party--to the philosophy of education management training, to
examine how the report could be implemented region- identify specific training needs in relation to staff in the
ally. The North, (1980) N W A E A (1979) and Southern F E / H E sector and to submit recommendations to the
RAC's (1979) have already done this. Steering Committee '(12). The latter broadly endorsed
Stage III The establishment of short courses These the views of the Haycocks III report. The Steering
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may arise out of Stage II. The N W A E A has run Committee recommended 'that the N W A E A should
courses at Bolton College of Education (Technical). establish a Further Education Management Unit
The Southern Region ran a course on five separate headed by a full-time director but staffed substantially
Fridays in November/December 1980 for eighteen on a part-time basis by staff from the three (proposed)
staff at Southampton College of HE. Unfortunately a Area Schools of the Regional Management Centre
similar course to be run jointly by Oxford Polytechnic (Liverpool, Manchester and Preston) and from the
and Bulmershe College of Higher Education had to be (BoRon) College of Education (Technical) where the
cancelled due to low enrolment. An LEA in the South Unit should be located '(13) (para 19). 'The Unit would
West Region has organised a moduler part-time be based at, but independent from the College of
evening course of nine meetings which were attended Education (Technical) at Bolton. The Unit should
by twenty-four staff. work closely with the Further Education Staff College'
The Northern Council for Further Education and (para 21).
the Northern RMC jointly organised a one day The working party was aware of the importance of
workshop at New College Durham in June, 1981 in developing mutually beneficial relationships between
order to find out the level of regional response to the regional and national management (Coombe
management education in further and higher Lodge) centres. 'We expect that developments in the
education. Region will not only draw on but will also contribute to
The West Midlands Advisory Council's Teacher and extend the work of the Further Education Staff
Education and Training Advisory Committee estab- College... we should expect the Unit to contribute to
lished an Education Management Working Group in national stock of learning materials and to be able to
July 1981. It has started to organise a series of one day offer to the Staff College programmes which it had
conferences on management in further education for successfully developed, perhaps using the special
staff below head of department i.e. section leaders and strengths of the Region' (para 27(H)). The Steering
course tutors. There will normally be a one day Committee's recommendation were accepted in prin-
conference each term to be held on different days and ciple by the N W A E A in the latter part of 1980. It had
in varying locations throughout the region. originally been planned to establish this Unit by
The University of Birmingham Faculty of Education September 1981. But subsequent changes in the
organised a regional course held on four separate operation of the advanced FE pool necessitated a
Thursdays in november 1980---February 1981 for re-appraisal of the financial arrangements which will
senior FE college staff. Also a one day conference on delay the establishment of the Unit. An interim
college management of YOP courses was held in June proposal is being put forward to N W A E A by the
1981 at Himley Hall the Management Centre of Steering Committee which would enable the formation
Wolverhampton Polytechnic. of the Unit to be carried out, until conditions allow the
Universities and polytechnics have been running an full proposal to be established.
increasing number of award learning degree and The writer is in broad sympathy with many of the
diploma courses in education management since the aims of the working party, especially the relationships
1970's. between a regional and central Unit (Coombe Lodge).
Stage I V The establishment of a Regional Education But he would like to see a regional unit devote a
Management Centre The North West has been the greater share of its resources to middle management
60 Training Teachers for Educational Management In Further Education
training as part of an extended training programme. and experienced staff who might be able to service the
The N W A E A sees the Unit fulfilling a role in terms of Unit on a part-time basis as the North West are
a priority need for 'the training of senior management proposing to do. This recommendation would 'incur
personnel (but) it is envisaged that provision will also some extra expense but it must be remembered that
be made for the needs of middle management 'o4). with falling student rolls in the 16-19 sector in the late
1980's and early 1990's there will be facilities in terms
ReeommendationmThe Future of staff and buildings, that could well be fully utilised.
The writer would 'like to see the development of a It would be in the best interest of the future generation
number of regional centres for education management of students that these facilities will be utilised and help
training attached to and utilising the existing facilities to train more effectively all levels of management in Re
of a suitable institution in the region and well qualified six hundred colleges of further education.
References
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1. Department of Education and Science. Training 9. North West Associated Education Authorities.
teachers for education management in further and Further and higher education Steering Committee
adult education ACSI~I"III August 1978. for education management courses. Working
2. Department of Education and Science. Circular Party Report 1979.
11/77 The training of teachers for further 10. Copley, B., Vince, G. Middle management--the
education HMSO 1977. role and training of section heads. Lecture, West
3. Department of Education and Science. Training of Midlands Regional Staff Development Network
adult education and part-time further education March 1981.
teachers ACSTT II March 1978. 11. North West Associated Education Authorities.
4. National Association for Staff Development. A Further and higher education Steering Committee
commentary NASD January 1979. for education management courses 1979.
5. Regional Management Centres Association. 12. North West Associated Education Authorities.
Comments on the ACSTT discussion paper for ibid.
circulation to Council 1979. 13. North West Associated Education Authorities.
6. Williets, D. L. Education management training ibid.
needs in the West Midlands. Lecture, West 14. Bailey, N. Training teachers for education
Midlands Regional Staff Development Network management, Correspondence May 1981.
June 1981.
7. Williets, D. L. ibid.
8. Sabel, W. Training teachers for education
management. Summary of a report of a
preliminary investigation Southern Regional
Council for Further Education June 1980.