Reflections on managing a school : a visit to De La Salle School, St Helens, England

Abstract

One of the attractions of following a diploma course in Education Administration and Management at the University of Malta was the opportunity to observe a school abroad. Having taught at a Lasallian school in Malta for several years, and having heard or read so much about similar schools abroad, this was an opportunity we literally jumped at, notwithstanding all the uncertainties about travelling by air so soon after the infamous 11th September attacks on the Twin Towers. In November 2001, we visited De La Salle School, St Helens. Our aim was to observe the way the school was run with a particular emphasis on aspects we covered in our diploma course in Education Administration and Management. From the start, there were two issues that we felt we had to deal with. One was that we wished to criticize De La Salle School within in an English context. Thus we tried to read books and articles to become acquainted with the setting and to be well informed on topical concerns. The other issue was that we felt the real value of such a study was to compare it to the local situation. Thus, from the beginning, our work took on a comparative outlook as it were. We have learned much from our visit abroad. In his book The Art of Educational Evaluation, (1985) Eisner writes: "We who work in and study education are engaged in a field that has 'no nature'. By that I mean that the ways in which a child learns or a teacher teaches or an educator evaluates may be other than the way they are. There are an infinite number of ways to teach, to learn, and to evaluate. Furthermore, the ways that are effective in some contexts may be inefficient in others." Yet sharing our thoughts, our philosophies, our experiences and conclusions is a valuable aspect of our world of teaching, a dimension that adds depth and significance to our own jobs, in our own schools. What we sincerely auger is that after our visit abroad, all that we have learned shall ultimately reach the child in the classroom and make a difference.