Human Resource Management in Education ─ Contexts, Themes and Impact

The study of educational leadership makes little sense unless it is in relation to who the leaders are, how they are leading, what is being led, and with what effect. Based on the premise that learning is at the heart of leadership and that leaders themselves should be learners, the Leadership for Learning series explores the connections between educational leadership, policy, curriculum, human resources and accountability. Each book in the series approaches its subject matter through a three-fold structure of process, themes and impact.

Series Editors - Clive Dimmock, Mark Brundrett and Les Bell

The effects of globalization are evident in education policy around the world. Governments from the United States to China are driving their education systems to produce more skilled, more flexible, more adaptable employees. The pressure to perform is all-pervasive, meaning present-day leaders have to go beyond the principles of humane and equitable management practice and look for a competitive advantage through strategies that enhance motivation, build capacity for organizational improvement, and produce better value-added performance.

Human Resource Management in Education debates the fundamental question of how far effective human resource management policies can enable schools and colleges to transcend the paradoxes of the global reform agenda. It analyses the relationship between leadership, the classroom and results, and uses case studies to explore the extent to which performance is enhanced by distributed leadership and constrained by social, political and economic contexts.

The book is divided into three parts:

• examining the current context of human resource management, by critically analysing globalization, human capital theory, and worldwide trends in government legislation, societal values, and teacher culture(s);
• exploring two pairs of contemporary themes in human resource management, by comparing the roles of leaders and followers, on the one hand, and contrasting learning and greedy organizations, on the other;
• looking at how the context and the themes impact on particular contemporary practices in human resource management, by analysing the selection and development of professionals, the remodelling of school teams and the management of performance.

The authors carefully blend advocacy with evidence to ensure relevance for both practitioner and academic audiences across the globe. The book would be of particular use to students on masters courses in educational leadership.

Justine Mercer is an Associate Professor at the Institute of Education, University of Warwick, UK.

Bernard Barker was formerly Chair in Educational Leadership and Management and Director of Postgraduate Research Studies at the School of Education, University of Leicester, UK.

Richard Bird is Legal Policy Consultant to the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), UK.