I remember when...

[Edu-IT]

I remember when I was at school and there used to be just a head and then deputy heads. Just been browsing a few school websites and I see they now have all sorts!

 

What is an executive headteacher and associate headteacher? I'm still wondering how an assistant headteacher differs from a deputy headteacher too.

 

Can anyone explain?

[witch]

Locally to us an executive head teacher is 'above' and between the two heads of a secondary modern girls and a secondary modern boys school that are next door to each other and closely associated.

A deputy head teacher has the legal right to 'run' a school whereas an assistant or associate head teacher does not.

In big schools, associate heads usually have responsibility for a specific area of the school - eg pastoral, examinations, timetabling, that sort of thing - not usually specific subjects.

Hope that helps! ( I'm a school governor, that's how I know)

[joe90bass]

Never heard of associate or executive headteachers - is that just an England thing!? In our place we have: Headteacher > Deputy Headteacher > 4 Assistant headteachers then your Heads of faculty, etc

[Edu-IT]

Never heard of associate or executive headteachers - is that just an England thing!? In our place we have: Headteacher > Deputy Headteacher > 4 Assistant headteachers then your Heads of faculty, etc

I'd never heard of it before either. I'm assuming it's not that common.

[witch]

As I said - it seems to be when two schools have joined in some sort of coalition (ohh, topical) and so no, it isnt common.

It is becoming more common because recruiting heads is difficult so an executive can be responsible for more than one school where each school has deputies, assistants etc

Edited May 8, 2010 by witch

[tech_guy]

We had an 'Executive' HT until he left last year. Now we just have a HT. So that's where all the money went & why we're broke?!

[GrumbleDook]

The amount of rules, regs, planning and decision making that goes on in education now is masses compared to what it used to be. Some places use the extra layers for 'delegation' (ie make someone else do the work) or 'devolved leadership' (give someone else the authority to make decisions, plan and get on with it).

 

The other reason why we have these extra layers is because people are paid properly for it now.

[laserblazer]

Our last Senco was made an AH in her last year to up her pension (she deserved it) so now the new Senco is also an AH.

[Edu-IT]

Our last Senco was made an AH in her last year to up her pension (she deserved it) so now the new Senco is also an AH.

Clever! So can anyone be made an assistant head?

[IanT]

We have: Principle > 2x Vice Principles> 4x Assistant Principles

 

I remember the days of 1x Headteacher > 1x Deputy Headteacher ................ simples

[witch]

Yeah, it was simpler back in the day but the SMT did not have half of the stuff they have to deal with now - pastoral, value added, league tables, one-to-one, the list goes on and on

[elsiegee40]

This is at the school where I'm a governor. Until about 2 years ago, we had 2 HTs working as Associate HTs; effectively a jobshare. Because the school is a National Support School (NSS) and the HTs both National Leaders of Excellence, they were out a lot at other schools and this arrangment meant our school didn't lose out!

 

Then we started to work more closely with another school that was a National Challenge School. At this point, the Associate HTs became Executive HTs of both schools and one of the deputies was promoted to "Head of School"... a complex structure, but given the income earned by the Exec HTs definitely best for the school!

[localzuk]

We have an executive head, of our school federation, who happens to also be our head teacher. We then have a deputy head, and a couple of assistant heads. Assistant heads are kinda something in between 'department head' and 'deputy head' with responsibilities such as timetabling, or pastoral issues.

 

To be honest, I think its a catch all title for 'middle management'.

[laserblazer]

I guess if you have good teachers who have reached the top of their scale and you want to keep them, then AHship is the answer.

[steve]

We'll soon have 10 members of SLT. We're adding 2x assistant principals come sept. We'll then have - 1x Principal - 2x Vice Principals - 7 x Assistant Principals (I believe they use principal because they think we are a college - but we only have a 6th form)

 

Given we only have about 120 FTE staff, I think its getting a bit OTT. The wage bill for leadership will be around 3/4 million.

 

If we get cuts from the new gov. I can't see them cutting SLT roles .....

[GrumbleDook]

I guess if you have good teachers who have reached the top of their scale and you want to keep them, then AHship is the answer.

 

Or AST / Excellent Teacher status is the other route to keep good teachers. The problem with good teachers going into management / leadership (there is a difference) is that they spend less time in the classroom. If that is going to happen then at least make so that the time out the classroom is helping others to become good teachers themselves.

[torledo]

i remember when [and i'm sure plenty of people can also]...i was at school, and we had one head and a deputy head. and, er, that was it pretty much.....

 

i think some bigger schools may have had more than one deputy. but stuff was just so much more straightforward then.

 

and being at school i probably didn't see the lack of investment and poor pay that people complained of at the time......but i prefer that era. sometimes i do wish that we could have just skipped the noughties [and the way thinks are looking so far, wouldn't be bad to skip this decade aswell]

 

what do you mean this thread isn't about a trip down memory lane...:p

[featured_spectre]

We have 1x Head Teacher, 1x Deputy Head Teacher, 1 x Assistant Head Teacher, then obv. the heads of department and NM (me) within the SLG.

[SYNACK]

As far as I am aware we get max one of each per school in NZ (P, DP, AP).

[Edu-IT]

Too many chiefs there Steve!

[p858snake]

Never heard of associate or executive headteachers - is that just an England thing!? In our place we have: Headteacher > Deputy Headteacher > 4 Assistant headteachers then your Heads of faculty, etc

We have executive principals in Australia, In QLD at least it's based on the number of pupils enrolled at the school as per what the name titles are and the perks you get with your pay.

 

When i Left high school as we had a Executive Principle and Four Deputy Principals for a thousand and something students over five grade levels.

[localzuk]

i remember when [and i'm sure plenty of people can also]...i was at school, and we had one head and a deputy head. and, er, that was it pretty much.....

 

i think some bigger schools may have had more than one deputy. but stuff was just so much more straightforward then.

 

and being at school i probably didn't see the lack of investment and poor pay that people complained of at the time......but i prefer that era. sometimes i do wish that we could have just skipped the noughties [and the way thinks are looking so far, wouldn't be bad to skip this decade aswell]

 

what do you mean this thread isn't about a trip down memory lane...:p

 

Ah yes, the great era where teachers had 17 different responsibilities, school networks were ad-hoc built with whatever happened to be lying around, and the idea of a dedicated network manager was a laughable one... Such a good time

[witch]

I guess if you have good teachers who have reached the top of their scale and you want to keep them, then AHship is the answer.

 

Not really - or at least not in the schools in which I work or am governor (grammar??). AH, as has been said, carries a lot more 'middle management' responsibility than the teacher would have had and this will only work if they want said management. The other problem is that it takes arguably the best teachers away from teaching.

It 'sounds' as if AH is the next step up but it really isnt unless the teacher wants to go into management and perhaps headship

[sparkeh]

The other problem is that it takes arguably the best teachers away from teaching

 

Yeah I have always found this odd. Seemingly the better you become at teaching the more admin you do and less teaching.

 

My largest primary now has two Assistant Heads in addition to the Head and Deputy. I believe this was done as the workload for all the various things the Head and Deputy have to cover was too great so some areas were delegated. Seems to be working very well there.

[SpuffMonkey]

The other problem is that it takes arguably the best teachers away from teaching.

 

Ah - but teachers just can't be managed by anyone except other teachers....whereas of course ICT specialists can be managed by anyone....grrr