Theories and Concepts in HR Management

All school administrators are human resource leaders because they work with and make decisions about people. When we look at school budgets personnel costs vary from 50% to 80%. As we, the school leaders, spend most of our resources on human resources, we also spend most of our time with the adults in a school building. I look at the principal position as coaching. In sports terms, the principal is the coach and teachers are the players. The coach’s job is to observe the players while playing and give them feedback to improve their individual performance along with the team’s performance. The coach does not play but observe. The coach is where the game is being played. And the coach understands the game.  A principal is no different than a coach. His/her job is to observe teachers and give them feedback to improve their performance along with the team’s performance so eventually student will learn and they will win the game. The principal should be where the game is being played, which is the classrooms. The principal should also know about teaching and learning, management, and communication.

“Public schools in America were founded with the purpose of teaching literacy.” (Seyfarth, 6) It is still important that the school do so. However, over the time, schools have undertaken many more functions as the country has changed. Now, the schools teach all kinds of skills that students will need to be successful in life such as organization, health, universal moral values, technology, teamwork, and respect for differences.

As public expectations changes, so do the school administration philosophies. Such changing philosophies directly impact human resources and definition of organizational effectiveness. When we look at it from a historical perspective we see the following pattern in organizational effectiveness and human resources management:

Efficiency: Early twentieth century efficiency was the focus as public schools prepared a flood of children from immigrant families. Dealing with crowded schools and need to prepare children for life, which required technical skills for blue color jobs, administrators turned to the corporate world and borrowed the ideas and methods of scientific management, which placed high value on efficiency. 

Human Relations: When “one size fits all” approach did not work in a vastly changing country and world, human relations movement took charge. “Researchers found that when workers were invited to offer ideas on increasing productivity, output rose.” (Seyfarth, 7) The movement that grew out of those findings emphasized open lines of communication between managers and employees. This did not have such a huge effect on schools because, due to the nature of the occupation, most teachers had a voice in decision-making process anyways.

Equality: After the U.S. Supreme Court Decision, Brown vs. Topeka, the focus was on increasing the equality of educational opportunities. Schools included not only racial minorities but also special education students and females and gave them equal access. This movement also affected the human resources management, as the teaching force needed additional and different ways of training and skills.

Quality: Often in connection with national crisis, the quality is an issue that surfaces periodically. In early 80’s the concern was the rising tide of mediocrity as a result of deteriorating quality of education. This was underlined by reports such as the National Commission of Excellence in Education in 1983. Such change affected the teaching occupation, the classroom environment, expectations from teachers, and how they were evaluated.

School Based Management:  As a response to the quality concern, was born school based management. It was thought that when instructional decisions were made closed to the classroom, they would be more effective. By 1990’s about one-third of all schools had adapted some form of school-based management.

Accountability: Policy makers still wanted to keep teachers more accountable for student learning. That let to No Child Left Behind of 2002. As NCLB imposed many regulations upon teachers and schools, standardized tests become part of the teaching profession. Result of student learning affected teachers and schools. It impacted teaching as a profession as what to teach and how to teach, how to evaluate teachers, and what type of training provided to teachers have drastically changed. As performance based salaries, charter schools, and school reforms became hot topics in education; they way principals managed human resources took a new shape and form.

As we live in an ever-changing world, globalization and technology will shape the future of human resources management. As the students compete with students from all over the world for the same jobs and resources, schools will need to educate students who can compete in the global arena. Such demand will change the teaching profession. Technology skills, global awareness, multiculturalism, global citizenship, and innovation will be at the core of teaching profession. With the increasing technology, increasing online education opportunities, someone in another country will be able to teach in a school in America. That will change the lay of the land in human resources management in education. Student will not need to go to school. You never know…the traditional brick and mortar schools may be defunct in near future…Are ready for that…Does America educating its current teaching force for that? That is the question whose answer will determine the future of our country…