On being more accountable: The push and pull of risk in school leadership

Abstract

This article addresses risk and its minimization as a powerful rationality for driving leadership practices in contemporary schools. It explores risk‐consciousness as ‘a moral climate of politics’ (Giddens 2002) and as a management imperative that impacts on any contemporary organization, including schools. The impact of risk‐consciousness on the work that school leaders do is explored, with particular attention to some of the negative effects of this on schools as sites of learning. The article raises questions about the implications of all this for staff development in general and the needs of school principals in particular.

Notes

1. See http://education.qld.gov.au/strategic/policy/guidelines/risk/integrated.html (accessed 4 May 2006).

2. See http://education.qld.gov.au/strategic/policy/guidelines/risk/integrated.html (accessed 4 May 2006).

3. See http://education.qld.gov.au/strategic/policy/guidelines/risk/integrated.html. The full list includes interruption; commercial/legal relationships; custody of information, including the duty to provide and to withhold access; financial/market; management activities and controls; occupational health and safety; personnel/human behaviour; political/legal; property/assets; public/professional/product liability; security; socioeconomic; and, technology/technical services.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Erica McWilliam

Erica McWilliam is the Assistant Dean for Research in the Faculty of Education at Queensland University of Technology, Victoria Park Road, Kelvin Grove, Queensland, 4059, Australia. Email: [email protected].

Lee‐Anne Perry

Lea‐Anne Perry is the Principal of All Hallow’s School, 547 Anne Street, Brisbane, Queensland, 4000, Australia. Email: [email protected]