Background to the Research
- Data
have been previously been collected on the number of men and women
in senior education posts but there had been no definitive study into
the reasons for the under-representation of women in these posts,
and why in many cases women do not apply for senior positions.
- The
overall objective of this study was therefore to identify the barriers
- actual or perceived - to women's progression to higher posts, including
posts attracting responsibility points, so that the employing authorities
can devise appropriate action plans for change.
Research Approach
- Quantitative and Qualitative methods were combined to obtain data as
follows:
- A
confidential survey questionnaire of 3,500 teachers at all levels
(male and female).
- Eleven
focus group discussions (7 female and 4 male) comprising principals,
vice principals and assistant teachers.
- Twelve
work diaries, completed by principals and vice principals (male
and female) over a 4 week period.
- Ten
in-depth Case Study interviews with women principals with varying
levels of experience.
- A
confidential survey questionnaire to a sub-sample of 585 School
Governors.
- A
Story Completion exercise distributed to a random sub-sample of
the School Governors in which they were asked to complete imaginary
scenarios in which equal opportunities were a key factor.
- Consultations
with a wide range of individuals in the education sector.
Main
Findings
The
Role of the Principal
- The
Principal's role has changed since the advent of Local Management
of Schools and now involves a greater degree of financial management,
staff motivation and marketing of the school.
- Principals
state that a large proportion of their time is spent on routine administration
and that much of this is carried out home.
- Over
60% of teachers believe that the Principals role is 'very stressful'
yet few are able to define the competencies required to carry out
the role successfully.
Working
Time and Patterns
- Around
92% of teachers work longer than their contractual hours, with the
average working week equating to 43 hours.
- Women
are more likely than men to carry out their additional work at home
rather than at school.
Work
and Domestic Responsibilities
- Over
a third of women spend over 21 hours a week on domestic responsibilities
(compared to 12% of men) and this can lead to difficulties in balancing
work and home.
- Almost
half of women believe that taking a career break jeopardises promotion
prospects, there is a widely held view that job-sharing is not appropriate
in the education sector, and many teachers believe that young women
are a high risk for promotion because of the possibility of their
taking maternity leave.
Women's
Attitudes to Promotion
- Women
and men have very different views on the career priorities of the
opposite sex. Women dramatically over-estimate the importance to men
of status, pay and terms and conditions, while men significantly over-estimate
how important a 'convenient' job is for women.
- Men
are much more likely than women to 'throw their hat into the ring'
and apply for promotion as a gesture of ambition, whereas women want
to be absolutely certain they can do the job before they apply.
- Almost
two-thirds of women but only 15% of men believe that women have to
out-perform men to get promoted.
- Key
reasons for women not applying for promotion include concerns about
the validity of the selection process, not wanting to give up teaching,
lack of confidence in their own abilities and the possibility of a
hostile reaction from others.
Training
and Career Development in Schools
- There
is limited training available for those who are not yet in a managerial
position but who would like to be.
- Around
one third of teachers would not seek advice on career development
from their principal and women are less likely than men to feel that
their principal has encouraged them in their career.
- Both
teachers and Governors believe strongly that being seen to take up
training opportunities gives teachers a greater chance of being promoted.
Networking
- Women
under-estimate the amount of networking they do and are less likely
than men to use their networking contacts for career development purposes.
- Informal
networks for women are not considered by women to exist.
- Governors
rate 'talking to teachers' as an important source of information about
the education sector, but very few teachers state that their contact
with Governors is any more frequent than twice a year.
The
Role of School Governors
- The
profile of respondents to the Governors' Survey was primarily male,
in full-time employment and with an average of nine years' service
as a Governor. Male Governors outnumbered females by 3 to 1 in the
primary, secondary and grammar sectors.
- Well
over one third of Governors do not believe that the current selection
process enables them to assess candidates' abilities properly.
- There
are considerable differences of opinion between teachers and Governors
about what qualities each other values in schools.
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