There is widespread concern about the shortage of secondary school teachers in England. Recruitment to initial teacher training regularly fails to meet its intake targets. The secondary school pupil population is increasing. Teacher vacancies have risen, and more teachers are reportedly leaving the profession prematurely. Despite considerable…

In recent decades, education policy has changed considerably so that now, numerous types of schools are available in the "marketplace". The most recent additions to this landscape are Academies and Free Schools, with freedoms to make more choices about curriculum, structures and leadership. In this climate, this paper takes one school as…

The aim of the research was to investigate the most effective ways for small rural primary schools to work together in order to improve provision and raise standards. The project sought to examine the circumstances and context of small rural schools in Lincolnshire and evaluate their different leadership models (such as collaborations,…

This groundbreaking volume considers the ultimate fate of the comprehensive high school as individuals enter the twenty-first century. Contributors consider whether the question of the high school's seeming demise is exaggerated and why it is experiencing the many problems that it does. Essays focus on the United States, the United Kingdom,…

The aim of the research presented in this report was to investigate the most effective ways for small rural primary schools to work together in order to improve provision and raise standards. The project sought to examine the circumstances and context of small rural schools in Lincolnshire and evaluate their different leadership models (such as…

The aim of the study was to explore the impact of collaboration across small schools on the development of leadership capacity. Despite a growing body of research on school leadership, little is known about its function and development in small schools (defined here as NOR less than 120). Small schools, of which there are about 2700 in England,…

National rural policy places the local primary school as a key resource within the rural community, yet as a consequence of countywide financial constraints, some small schools are undergoing reorganization, involving amalgamation, federation and school closure. This article considers the complexities involved in the workings of the English rural…

This paper reviews 25 years of research on small rural schools in England, in a period of unprecedented educational reform, and shift in government policy on small schools from persistent threat of closure through a period of a centrally funded "presumption against closure" in the early 2000s. It notes a dearth of funded or peer-reviewed…

In this article the author describes a whole-school values education programme at Greenfield Lower School, a small village school near the town of Flitwick, England. The programme, based on the work of Neil Hawkes, senior advisor with Oxfordshire LEA, is designed "to help the school community think about and reflect upon positive universal…

Describes problems and some advantages and disadvantages of small rural primary schools. Topics discussed include school closures, finance, teacher/pupil relationships and interactions, interruptions and the teaching head, adult/adult relationships, the small school environment, and approaches to learning. (RH)

In 1998, when "Teachers--meeting the challenge of change" was published by the English Department for Education and Skills (DfES), one of the most fundamental reforms of the teaching profession was initiated--performance management. In 2005, all schools became subject to "Light Touch Validation" of their performance management…

The author describes the proposed closure, which parents are attempting to prevent, of a small neighborhood school. Their argument is that parental involvement is the most significant single factor of success in school. (KC)

The closure of its school often proves to be the kiss of death to village communities. Reported from Cambridgeshire is the latest scheme for keeping small schools open. (Editor)

The National College for School Leadership (NCSL) was launched in 2000 with a remit to supervise and further enhance educational leadership development initiatives in England and Wales and now supervises the delivery of a wide range of programmes for school leadership development for teachers at various stages in their career development. Small…

The Head of Upper Nidderdale High School in North Yorkshire shows how a small 11-16 comprehensive can provide a common core curriculum and a choice of options that keeps career doors open. (Editor)