To date, learning spaces in higher education have been designed with little engagement on the part of their most important users: students and teachers. In this paper, we present the results of research carried out in a UK university. The research aimed to understand how students and teachers conceptualise learning spaces when they are given the…

This is a case study demonstrating the impact the co-operative movement has had on one co-operative school in south-west England. Lipson Co-operative Academy in Plymouth was one of the first schools to convert to become a co-operative school in 2009. The article has been co-written by members of the Academy and focuses on three transformational…

Discusses findings of two (British) research projects initiated by the National Union of Teachers: a survey of NUT school representatives' views of EAZs and an evaluation of teachers' role in EAZs. Despite provision of high-quality professional-development opportunities, many teachers at EAZ schools feel that they do not "own" the…

This study investigated the relationship between the power of English school heads and the participation of teachers in school decision-making. Specific objectives of the study were 1) to determine the type and extent of teacher participation in school decision-making, 2) to examine the relationship between teacher status within the school and…

Interviews in seven English secondary schools revealed levels of teacher involvement in decisionmaking in the areas of finance and resources that ranged from schools where heads kept information confidential to one where a committee used a formula. (MLF)

Ideally, school leadership should be shared among staff. However, the extent of justifiable sharing in actual practice depends on diverse contexts and consequent risks for headteachers. Research on management teams at four British primary schools shows how principals variably shared leadership by setting parameters for teamwork. (Contains 42…

Analysis of three English schools indicates that "low morale" is a diffuse phenomenon used by teachers to describe important aspects of their response to working life. It is always better management practice to accept this perception of reality than to take on defensive postures or deny its existence. (MLF)

Workforce remodeling in England has been presented as a means to empower school staff through a restructuring process which has possibilities to dramatically shift the ways in which they operate. This initiative has also included a number of legislative requirements intended to help embed the more technocratic aspects of the remodeling process.…

Recent advice on improving schools has centred on the distribution of responsibilities within schools. Whilst the focus of leadership in schools has traditionally been upon the Headteacher, there are now strong arguments to support a greater participation in leadership from teachers (Gold "et al", 2003). This article reports on…