The Role Expectations of the Head of Department in Secondary Schools in England and Wales : From the Viewpoint of Curriculum Management

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to clarify the role expectations of the head of department (HoD) in secondary schools in England and Wales from the viewpoint of curriculum management. The HoD, perceived as the senior subject specialist, has received attentions as the academic middle manager since 1980s for the following reasons. (1) The subject department has been considered as the most appropriate and important 'unit of change' to improve teaching and learning. (2) The National Curriculum demands expressed in subjects made it inevitable that HoDs, with their specialist knowledge, would have the major role in its implementation. (3) It has been made difficult for all tasks for curriculum be undertaken by senior managers. Among the multifarious management tasks required of the HoD, the following six tasks are especially unique to the department level. (1) To create a climate for the cooperation of departmental team, (2) to delegate responsibility to each member, and (3) to manage departmental meetings effectively. These tasks concerning within the department could lead the individual subject curriculum to the congruence by making the teaching philosophy cohesive to both student and teacher and by ensuring the successful implementation of the scheme. (4) To perceive the subject in the context of the school as a whole, (5) to lead inter-departmental cooperation, and (6) to provide information on the department for senior managers and governors. These tasks concerning the rest of the school could lead the whole school curriculum to the congruence by making the subject cohesive to the whole and by making the subject operated smoothly. In curriculum management, HoDs, with their subject specialist knowledge, should create the circulation where the contribution to the improvement of the whole school curriculum by managing the subject effectively results in the successive improvement of the subject, which further improves the whole.