Research on educational management in Europe

Educational management has developed in a social context that is changing rapidly due to governmental policies and to social changes. The context of educational management with its aspects of deregulation, participation of new groups, new stakeholders, gender definitions and changing quality requirements is much more of a factor determining the functioning of educational management than it was several years ago. This book on educational management offers an overview of the research done on important themes in recent changes in educational management in Central and Western Europe. Decentralization and deregulation are discussed in research papers from different European countries. The transformation processes are analyzed in a variety of situations. The role of school leadership in different contexts is the theme of several contributions. The evaluation of training and development in educational management is also a focus of attention. Since 1989, there have been dramatic changes in the education systems of most countries in Europe. This book presents research on their impact on the management of schools from four perspectives. First, it considers some major socio-political changes, including decentralization and deregulation. Next, it shows how these changes are affecting school governance and management in both Western and former communist countries. Several chapters then explore the implications for the roles and tasks of school leaders. Finally, it also deals with issues related to their training and development. The book is a rich source of material about the impact of macro-political changes on schools and about ways of researching them. It will, therefore, be of interest to policy-makers and practitioners, as well as researchers.