Schulleiterinnen und Schulleiter im Spannungsverhältnis zwischen programmatischen Zielvorgaben und alltäglicher Praxis

Abstract

In the context of this dissertation, the professional approaches of head-teachers were examined. The aim was to reinforce the knowledge of school management activities and at the same time encourage understanding for the daily strains exerted upon the actors. It focuses on the actions of the school management, its contribution to and stress from the task of school development. In this context, the question as to how head-teachers deal with the specific demands, which on the one hand arise from empirically based criticism see e.g. results of the international performance tests and criticism published in the media and, on the other hand, social changes, e.g. changes in the qualification demands of the work environment, and which of these demands exert a particular strain on them was significant.The professional approach of the head-teachers was examined from three perspectives: management theory, organisational theory and professional theory. In contrast to the popular programmatic about the right head-teacher , a picture forms from the theories which addresses action paradoxes and assumes that only a reflective handling of contradictions and the necessary ability to dissociate on the part of the actors make it possible to adapt accordingly to the professional demands.The examination consisted of a combination of two methods. Initially, a standardised questionnaire was distributed, followed by a qualitative interview. 145 questionnaires were assessed and 20 qualitative interviews were conducted with head-teachers in Lower-Saxony. The evaluation of the questionnaires showed that four action dimensions could be formed. The head-teachers surveyed exhibited high degrees of staff orientation (80.7%) and command a distinct, object-orientated management understanding (65.2%). Satisfaction with the position and working environment is very high for the head-teachers (69.2%). In contrast to the assumption of high stress levels, 6.4% feel very stressed and 24.1% quite stressed by their job.The professional approaches worked out in the empirical material through the analysis of individual cases outline differences. In all, five clearly distinguishable approaches could be established. The extent of these approaches ranges from a professional approach to a resignative approach. The professional approach is characterised by a constructive action orientation, which considers both individual professional objectives and different interest positions within the school. Consequently, the actors are able to analyse on the level of the school organisation and actively influence processes within the school on the basis of a positive professional self-concept. In the case of the resignative approach, the main difference to the previous type is that the actors do not orientate themselves according to a positive professional self-concept. The predominant processing of conflicts and the discrepancy between individual preferences and the action context found become a stressful moment in the professional approach. The subjectively high significance of the work and a comparatively low sense of achievement lead to a tendency towards resignation. A spectrum of the professional approaches of acting head-teachers could be highlighted through this study and it shows that some professional approaches cannot necessarily be aligned with given functions, e.g. utility, supervisory or advisory functions, the individual professional values on the one hand and the reality of the practice on the other. If head-teachers become aware of the patterns according to which they act and that their interpretation patterns can differ from those of the college, this reflection of one s own action can serve to recognise structural facts, react more effectively and organise schools more professionally.