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Business-Managed Democracy » Education » Schools as Businesses » Business Model » language |
The language of school reform borrowed heavily from business management literature (see table below).
For example the Minister for Education in Ontario, John Snobelen, described “his vision” for Ontario’s schools in 1995 in terms of “clients”, “customers” and “front-line service providers” (teachers) who would be “customer and client-focused”. Such language was also taken up by the Australian media:
Allan White is the general manager of a $4.5 million business with 1000 teenage clients all wanting to buy a bright future. In short he runs a high school… [which] boasts a management team, which includes the executive officer (principal), and line managers (two assistant principals and a pivotal business manager).
| Bureaucratic professionalism | New managerialism |
|---|---|
| Public service ethos | Customer-oriented ethos |
| Driven by commitment to professional standards and values such as equity | Driven by efficiency, cost effectiveness and competitive advantage |
| Cooperation | Competition |
| Managers with educational backgrounds | Managers trained in economics, business management |
| Focus on inputs, control of processes, teacher qualifications, qualitative outcomes | Focus on goals, measurable results Consequences for poor results – accountability |
| Schools | Educational Enterprises |
| Parents Learning Students Teachers Principals |
Consumers/customers/clients Production/product Products/clients Workers/producers/classroom managers/service providers Managers/leaders/entrepreneurs |
If you have any examples or updates you would like to contribute please email them to me and I will add them here. Please give references for where you sourced the information.
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