Course Contents

Course Content Unit 1: The school as an open system • Systems thinking • Reconceptualize the concept of a ‘good school’ • Analyse Student Teachers’ roles in the existing practices at various levels of the school structure • Conceptualize school as a system (input, output, and process) • School as an organizational system • School as a social system • School as an open system • Suggested readings Unit 2: School leadership and management • The teacher as leader: As an instructional leader (strategic planning, vision, and mission) • As an agent of change or a transformational leader • Human relationships: The base for educational leadership Unit 3: Core management skills for teachers • Communication skills • Communication process • Directions of communication • Barriers to communication • Overcoming barriers to communication • Interpersonal skills • Managing conflict with the school community • School record management (concepts and principles) • General records (about school, staff, and students) • Financial records • Educational records • Equipment records • Correspondence records • Accounts Unit 4: The school as a learning organization and teamwork in the workplace • Conceptualizing the school as a learning organization • The establishment and smooth running of school councils • Shared leadership • Shared decision-making: Empowering teachers • Managing cooperation within the school • The relationship of the school with society • Teamwork • Considering schools as organizations and communities • Leading purposeful change in schools: People, power, and culture Unit 5: School plant management • School plant management • Building size, shape, design, construction, and maintenance • Managing the school library, laboratories, and the playground • The school environment (common principles) • Scheduling and managing day-to-day activities, considering the available resources • Planning and managing co-curricular activities

Course Synopsis

School today is experiencing a paradigm shift in conceptions and operations related to school management. Systems thinking has become the major paradigm for school improvement efforts. Traditional analytical thinking focuses on isolating smaller and smaller parts of a system for study. Systems thinking, on the other hand, focuses on interactions between the different components of a system and aims to consider the system as a whole rather than as separate components within a whole. Thus, in a school system each part or individual is a necessary component for the system’s optimal function. The main goal of this course is to develop the capacity of Student Teachers to understand school as a system and to view school management through a systems approach. This will enable them to identify and examine their role in the school system and its significance in improving the learning outcomes of students. The course will also help Student Teachers to unearth, examine, and consider alternatives to the norms that shape status quo teaching if they are to become innovative and thoughtful professionals.

Course Learning Outcomes

Learning outcomes After completing this course, Student Teachers will be able to: 1. Reconceptualize school as a system and recognize teachers’ lead role in its structure and functions at various levels 2. Identify elements of transformational leadership and how teachers can contribute to the professional development of a school community 3. Critically analyse communication patterns between different groups within a typical school system and participate in different classroom-based and field-based activities to develop their core skills in communication within the school community 4. Apply their roles within the context of school management to improve student learning outcomes 5. Participate in the decision-making process in school to influence change at the school and community level.