The Effects of Senior Management Teams on Teacher Morale and Job Satisfaction

Abstract

This article reports on research which sought to examine the effects on teacher morale and job satisfaction of one primary school's management. It focuses on a relatively new management strategy in English and Welsh primary schools: the use of senior management teams. The findings reflect the views of the `managed' rather than the managers, and reveal the nature and quality of school management to have been the most influential factor in determining the quality of teachers' working lives, their job satisfaction and morale. Some of the problems emanating from the establishment of an SMT are examined. It is concluded that this approach does not represent a straightforward means of dealing with the pressures of contemporary headship and the author advocates a more radical approach.