Directory UMM :Data Elmu:jurnal:I:International Journal of Educational Management:Vol11.Issue6.1997:
The management of development planning in
international schools
P.M .C. Leggate
The Ove rse as Sc ho o l o f Co lo mbo , Battaramulla, Sri Lanka
J.J. Thompson
Sc ho o l o f Educ atio n, Unive rsity o f Bath, Bath, UK
Due to increasing interest in
school development planning,
improvement and effectiveness, more schools are gaining greater control over their
own school management.
Argues that school development plans should provide an
operational structure with a
clearly identifi ed direction
and priorities. Focuses on the
problem of planning within
the international school
context and investigates
specifi c objectives via a
survey. Results confi rmed
that long-term planning is
valued by heads of international schools and that staff
development is integral to
planning and implementing
strategies.
Development planning in schools
Th e gr ow th of in ter est in sch ool im pr ovem en t
a n d sch ool effectiven ess over r ecen t yea r s h a s
br ou gh t w ith it a n in cr ea se in th e volu m e of
liter a tu r e a n d deba te r ela tin g to th e va lu e of
developm en t pla n n in g in sch ools, a n d its
r eleva n ce to a w ide r a n ge of con texts. With
th e m ove to decen tr a liza tion of system s of
edu ca tion wor ldw ide, a n d th e deploym en t of
cen tr a lly pr escr ibed cu r r icu la r fr a m ewor k s
m a n a ged a n d in ter pr eted r e gion a lly a n d
loca lly, th er e h a s becom e eviden t a gr ow in g
n eed for th e design a n d a doption of clea r
pla n s for a ction a t th e in dividu a l sch ool level.
In cr ea sin gly in th e sch ools of th e Un ited
Kin gdom , Au str a lia , N ew Zea la n d a n d Den m a r k , for exa m ple, th er e is eviden ce of a
m or e su bsta n tia l em ph a sis on sch ool developm en t pla n n in g. Alth ou gh th e ter m s u sed to
descr ibe th e pla n n in g pr ocess m ay va r y, a s
Ha r gr eaves a n d Hopk in s (1994, p. 1) poin t ou t:
Developm en t pla n n in g is a r espon se to th e
m a n a gem en t of m u ltiple in n ova tion s a n d
ch a n ge, a n d th e per ceived n eed for a system a tic a n d wh ole-sch ool a ppr oa ch to pla n n in g,
especia lly wh er e sch ools a r e expected to be
m or e self-m a n a gin g.
Th e con sequ en ce is th a t gr a du a lly m or e
sch ools in th e Wester n wor ld a r e ga in in g a
gr ea ter con tr ol over th eir ow n sch ool
m a n a gem en t. In m a n y cou n tr ies th e m ove to
decen tr a liza tion is a ccom pa n ied by th e
pr ovision of a defi n ed edu ca tion a l fr a m ewor k
in th e for m of design a ted cu r r icu la a lon g
w ith specified a ssessm en t a n d a ccr edita tion
pr ocedu r es, wh ich do, in fa ct, pr ovide gr ea ter
oppor tu n ities for in cr ea sed m a n a gem en t
a u ton om y. In br in gin g a n in ter n a tion a l
per spective on sch ool developm en t Dem pster
et a l. (1994) n ote:
…th e con cept of self-m a n a ged sch ools is
vita l to politica l a n d bu r ea u cr a tic str a te gies
for th e devolu tion of a u th or ity a n d r espon sibility to th e poin t of edu ca tion a l ser vice
deliver y (p. 25).
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 6 [ 1997] 2 6 8 –2 7 3
© MCB Unive rsity Pre ss
[ ISSN 0951-354X]
[ 268 ]
In m a n y cou n tr ies both sta te a n d in depen den t sch ools a r e discover in g th a t th e deter m in a tion of th e fu tu r e of th e in stitu tion lies
w ith in th e con tr ol of m em ber s of th eir sch ool
boa r ds, com posed of elected, or selected,
gover n or s wor k in g w ith th e h ea d a n d
tea ch in g sta ff, ea ch w ith a r espon sibility for a
pa r ticu la r r ole in th e pr ocess. In su ch a situ a tion th e n eed for a n over a ll sch ool developm en t pla n , or th e sch ool’s equ iva len t to th e
cor por a te str a te gic pla n , becom es even m or e
pr essin g. For in a n e gotia ted pla n th er e exists
a veh icle for th e tr a n sla tion of th e sh a r ed
vision of th e sch ool com m u n ity in to som e
for m of coh er en t r ea lity, th r ou gh pr ior itized
str a te gies a n d a ction pla n s w ith in a n a gr eed
tim e sch edu le.
Alth ou gh th e r a tion a le for h avin g a pla n
m ay be obviou s, in th a t it sh ou ld pr ovide a n
oper a tion a l str u ctu r e togeth er w ith a clea r ly
iden tifi ed dir ection in volvin g pr ior ities to
m eet th e n eeds of th e or ga n iza tion a t a n y
pa r ticu la r tim e, deter m in in g th e a ppr opr ia te
a ppr oa ch to th e design a n d im plem en ta tion of
su ch a pla n r a ises a n u m ber of im por ta n t
qu estion s wh ich n eed to be a ddr essed by th e
sch ool. For th e gr ou p of sch ools k n ow n collectively a s “in ter n a tion a l sch ools” th eir pecu lia r ch a r a cter istics give r ise to a pa r ticu la r
n eed for su ch developm en t pla n n in g.
The international school context
With th e in cr ea sin g globa l m obility of th e
com m er cia l, pr ofession a l a n d diplom a tic
com m u n ities h a s com e th e con sequ en t
gr ow th in th e n u m ber of fa m ilies ba sed for
va r yin g per iods of tim e in loca tion s wh ich
a r e fa r aw ay fr om th eir h om e en vir on m en t.
P a r en ts of su ch fa m ilies a r e fa ced w ith a
dilem m a in r espect of a r r a n gem en ts for th e
edu ca tion of th eir sch ool-a ge ch ildr en . Do
th ey leave th eir ch ildr en in a boa r din g sch ool
in th e h om e cou n tr y in volvin g a bsen ce fr om
th e pa r en ta l dom icile, or do th ey ta k e th e
ch ildr en w ith th em a n d a r r a n ge sch oolin g in
wh a tever loca tion th ey h a ppen to be, often for
sh or t per iods of tim e? Th e n etwor k of in ter n a tion a l sch ools h a s evolved pr in cipa lly a s a
r espon se to su ch a ch a llen ge a n d h a s don e so
w ith in cr ea sin g m a gn itu de. F r om th e fi r st
in ter n a tion a l sch ools wh ich wer e esta blish ed
in th e 1920s, th e m a jor expa n sion occu r r ed
between th e 1960s, wh en a n estim a ted 50 or so
su ch sch ools existed (Ber eday a n d La u wer ys,
1964) to th e situ a tion in th e 1990s wh er e it
wou ld be r ea son a ble to con sider th e n u m ber
P.M.C. Le ggate and
J.J. Tho mpso n
The manage me nt o f
de ve lo pme nt planning in
inte rnatio nal sc ho o ls
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 6 [1 9 9 7 ] 2 6 8 –2 7 3
to h ave gr ow n to in excess of 1,000 (Hayden
a n d Th om pson , 1995).
Alon gside th e in cr ea se in th e n u m ber of
in ter n a tion a l sch ools, so a r gu a bly h a s th e
de gr ee of diver sity of or ga n iza tion a l type of
sch ools wh ich com pr ise th e n etwor k
in cr ea sed. Wh ile th e sch ools gen er a lly ca ter
for a m u ltin a tion a l gr ou p of stu den ts, th e
cu r r icu lu m , a n d in deed th e in dividu a l ph ilosoph y, in a n y on e of th e sch ools m ay va r y qu ite
con sider a bly fr om th a t in a n y oth er. Attem pts
to ca te gor ize su ch sch ools (Gella r, 1981; Hayden a n d Th om pson , 1995; Lea ch , 1969;
Ma tth ew s, 1989; P ön isch , 1987; Ter w illiger,
1972) h ave so fa r fa iled to pr odu ce a sin gu la r
ta xon om y wh ich a ccou n ts for th e r a n ge of
in stitu tion a l va r ia tion s in volved.
Notw ith sta n din g th e con sider a ble va r iety
a m on gst th e in ter n a tion a l sch ools th er e exist
a n u m ber of ch a r a cter istics wh ich m a n y, if n ot
a ll su ch sch ools, sh a r e in com m on . Ma n y
em ploy com m on a ppr oa ch es to cu r r icu la r
pr ovision , m a de possible by th e developm en t
of th e so-ca lled in ter n a tion a l cu r r icu la a t a ll
a ges th r ou gh ou t th e elem en ta r y a n d
secon da r y a ge r a n ge. In clu ded in su ch
pr ovision a r e th e In ter n a tion a l Ba cca la u r ea te
for th e u pper secon da r y ph a se (In ter n a tion a l
Ba cca la u r ea te Or ga n iza tion , 1994a ), th e
In ter n a tion a l Ba cca la u r ea te Middle Yea r s
P r ogr a m m e (In ter n a tion a l Ba cca la u r ea te
Or ga n iza tion , 1994b) a n d th e In ter n a tion a l
Sch ools Cu r r icu lu m P r oject for th e elem en ta r y ph a se (Ba r tlett, 1993), r ecen tly br ou gh t
in to th e over a ll u m br ella of th e In ter n a tion a l
Ba cca la u r ea te Or ga n iza tion . Som e n a tion a l
exa m in a tion s h ave a lso been exten ded in to th e
in ter n a tion a l sch ool n etwor k ; th ese in clu de
th e In ter n a tion a l Gen er a l Cer tifica te of
Secon da r y E du ca tion fr om th e UK (UCLE S,
1993) a n d a n in ter n a tion a l ver sion of th e
Adva n ced P la cem en t pr ogr a m m e fr om Nor th
Am er ica (Lew is, 1994).
Most of th e sch ools a r e in depen den t in stitu tion s gover n ed by boa r ds w ith con sider a ble
a u ton om y, a lbeit su bject to con sider a tion s of
loca l n eed a n d in ter n a tion a l r ecogn ition or
a ccr edita tion . Wh ile th is offer s gr ea t flexibility a n d oppor tu n ity for in n ova tion , it a lso
pr esen ts a situ ation in wh ich th e sch ool m ay
exper ien ce a va r iety of a ppr oa ch es to developm en t over wh a t ca n be a ver y sh or t per iod of
tim e. Th is r ela tive la ck of sta bility, in la r ge
m ea su r e, a r ises fr om th e n a tu r e of th e r a pid
tu r n over in stu den ts a n d sta ff th a t m a n y of
th e sch ools exper ien ce, in clu din g th a t of
h ea ds th em selves. Th is in tu r n h igh ligh ts th e
even gr ea ter n eed for ca r efu l pla n n in g to
en su r e con tin u ity a n d con sisten cy in th e
over a ll developm en t of th e sch ool. In a
r esea r ch stu dy w ith over 300 h ea ds in in ter n a tion a l sch ools, Haw ley (1994) iden tified a
r a n ge of sch ool ch a r a cter istics wh ich cor r ela te w ith lon gevity in post. Per tin en t to th e
pr esen t deba te w a s th e fin din g th a t h ea ds
r em a in lon ger in th ose sch ools wh er e th e
sch ool boa r d policy is defin ed by a w r itten
policy m a n u a l. Th e m edia n sch ool h ea d du r a tion w a s fou n d to be 4.7 yea r s for th ose wh o
wor k in sch ools w ith a w r itten boa r d policy
m a n u a l bu t on ly 2.7 yea r s in sch ools w ith n o
w r itten policy. Th e r ea lity of th is k in d of in ter n a tion a l m obility, w ith ch a n ges in th e a dm in istr a tion , boa r d m em ber sh ip, h ea ds, tea ch in g
sta ff, stu den ts a n d pa r en ta l body, is th a t developm en t h a s often been spa sm odic. In su ch
cir cu m sta n ces th e lin k between th e pla n n in g
pr ocess a n d th e n atu r e of th e lea der sh ip of th e
in stitu tion becom es im por ta n t.
Leadership and planning
A cr u cia l issu e, th er efor e, for th e fu tu r e developm en t of a n in ter n ation a l sch ool is th e pr oblem of defin in g a n d m a in ta in in g a
con sisten t vision in th e fa ce of fr equ en t
ch a n ges in th e lea der sh ip with in th e sch ool.
Th e r ole of th e lea der in su ch cir cu m sta n ces
h a s been descr ibed a s on e of con du ctin g a n d
gu idin g wh ich in tu r n im plies th e n eed for a
destin ation , or at lea st a dir ection . In th e ca se
of m a n y in ter n ation a l sch ools, su ch dir ection
w ill be pu r su ed n ot on ly by a n in dividu a l (say
th e h ea d) bu t possibly by a gr ou p (th e sen ior
m a n a gem en t tea m , for exa m ple) over a per iod
of tim e. Th e n eed for th is dir ection to be clea r ly
iden tified a n d stated w ith in a defin ed pla n or
policy docu m en t is of cr itica l im por ta n ce.
Given th e diver sity w ith in th e in ter n a tion a l
sch ool popu la tion , it m ay well be th a t su ch
pla n s w ill th em selves va r y en or m ou sly a s
w ill, th er efor e, th e specific r oles of th e lea der s
in im plem en tin g th em . As Hodgson et a l.
(1994, p. 118) fou n d w ith in th e UK con text:
h ea dtea ch er s wou ld h ave k ey, a lth ou gh n ot
n ecessa r ily iden tica l r oles.
How m u ch m or e tr u e th is is lik ely to be for
in ter n a tion a l sch ools, wh er e sta ff br in g for w a r d pr eviou s exper ien ce fr om a w ide r a n ge
of n a tion a l a n d cu ltu r a l ba ck gr ou n ds. Cer ta in ly expecta tion s w ill differ.
Aga in , th e poin t is str essed by Ha r gr eaves
a n d Hopk in s (1991, p. viii):
ever y sch ool h a s to fin d its ow n u n iqu e
a ppr oa ch to developm en t pla n n in g; th is is
essen tia l if th er e is to be r ea l pr ogr ess in
m a k in g th e sch ool a m or e effective a n d
r ew a r din g pla ce for tea ch er s a n d stu den ts.
F u r th er, Ca ldwell a n d Spin k s (1992) poin t ou t:
sch ools in th e 1990s w ill r equ ir e a h igh level
ca pa city for str a te gic pla n n in g, th a t is to see
th e la r ger pictu r e a n d on a con tin u in g ba sis
set a n d r eset pr ior ities in a sim ple sch ool
[ 269 ]
P.M.C. Le ggate and
J.J. Tho mpso n
The manage me nt o f
de ve lo pme nt planning in
inte rnatio nal sc ho o ls
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 6 [1 9 9 7 ] 2 6 8 –2 7 3
developm en t pla n , wh ich w ill pr ovide th e
fr a m ewor k for th e a n n u a l oper a tion a l pla n
(p. 10).
Alth ou gh th e developm en t pla n m ay be sim ple in essen ce it sh ou ld a lso be:
r ea listic, n eith er too a m bitiou s n or in su fficien tly dem a n din g…th er e sh ou ld be n o m or e
th a n th r ee or fou r m a jor pr ior ities, th ou gh
ea ch pr ior ity m ay con ta in a n u m ber of elem en ts (Ha r gr eaves a n d Hopk in s, 1991, p. 40).
Th e dyn a m ics of wh o sh ou ld becom e a ctively
involved in th e pr ocess is a ddition a lly a n
im por ta n t dim en sion in th e exer cise. If th e
str a te gic pla n n in g exer cise ca n in volve a
br oa d-ba sed r epr esen ta tion fr om th e en tir e
sch ool com m u n ity in a con su lta tive pr ocess
th en th er e is lik ely to be a sen se of dr aw in g
togeth er to com m on goa ls. As n oted in th is
con n ection by Haw k es (1991):
in th is sen se th e Str a te gic P la n ca n in cr ea se
th e syn er gy of a sch ool, pa r ticu la r ly if th e
com m u n ity h a s a r ea l sen se of ow n er sh ip of
th e pla n (p. 1).
A n u m ber of differ en t m odels h ave been pr oposed a s ways for w a r d in r espect of th e pr ocess
of developm en t pla n n in g, a n d th ey a r ise fr om
differ en t pa r ts of th e wor ld. All in cor por ate
com m on a spects wh ich essen tia lly r equ ir e a
sch ool to gath er a clea r u n der sta n din g of its
con text, to iden tify th e goa ls a n d pr ior ities
wh ich sh ou ld be a ddr essed, to decide h ow su ch
goa ls sh ou ld be r ea ch ed, to deter m in e th e
m ea n s for im plem en tin g th e ch osen pr ior ities
a n d to pr ovide a m ea n s of eva lu atin g th e level
of su ccess. Th e va r iables in th ese m odels a r e
deter m in ed to a la r ge exten t by th e level of
pa r ticipation a n d th e n atu r e of involvem en t in
th e decision -m a k in g pr ocess w ith in th e sch ool
com m u n ity. It is im por ta n t for sch ools to
espou se a m odel wh ich will n ot on ly look to
sh or t-ter m solu tion s to cu r r en t pr oblem s bu t
wh ich will pr ovide a fr a m ewor k for a n evolu tion a r y appr oa ch to developm en t.
In or der to discover h ow su ch issu es a r e
a ddr essed in th e con text of th e in ter n a tion a l
sch ools n etwor k , a n a r en a wh ich h a s been
r ela tively u n der -r esea r ch ed in th e pa st, it w a s
decided to u n der ta k e a n in itia l stu dy of cu r r en t pr a ctice in a r a n ge of in ter n a tion a l
sch ools.
Design of the study
With in th e pr elim in a r y con text of th e stu dy it
w a s decided to iden tify th e specific objectives
to be in vestiga ted so th a t a n a ppr opr ia te
r esea r ch str a te gy cou ld be iden tifi ed. Th e
objectives wer e a s follow s:
• to deter m in e th e exten t to wh ich
developm en t pla n n in g cu r r en tly exists in
[ 270 ]
in ter n ation a l sch ools, a n d th e sta tu s wh ich
it is per ceived to en joy;
• to a scer ta in th e expecta tion s of h ea ds for
th e exten t of pa r ticipa tion of oth er a gen ts
in th e pr ocess of lon g-ter m pla n n in g; a n d
• to su r vey th e per ception s of th e n a tu r e of
lea der sh ip r oles w ith in in ter n a tion a l
sch ools.
Given th e exten t of th e diver sity a m on g th e
gr ou p of in ter n a tion a l sch ools wor ldw ide, th e
pr oblem s a ssocia ted w ith a ssem blin g a r epr esen ta tive sa m ple of su ch sch ools a r e for
m ida ble, especia lly in th e a bsen ce, a lr ea dy
n oted, of a n a gr eed cla ssifica tion of th e
in stitu tion s. Sin ce a m a jor in ten tion of th e
stu dy w a s to ga th er in for m a tion on th e r a n ge
of issu es per ceived by in ter n a tion a l sch ools
in developm en t pla n n in g, h eter ogen eity
w ith in th e sa m ple w a s a gr ea ter r equ ir em en t
th a n h om ogen eity w ith r espect to r epr esen ta tion ; gen er a lizibility w a s u n lik ely to be a n
ou tcom e of su ch a stu dy.
Beca u se of th e desir a bility for h eter ogen eity it w a s decided th a t th is stu dy sh ou ld be
con du cted th r ou gh a su r vey. Th e in str u m en t
sh ou ld be a posta l qu estion n a ir e, wh ich
wou ld fa cilita te a ccess to a r ea son a ble n u m ber of th e geogr a ph ica lly w idely disper sed
sch ools. A m or e per son a lized a ppr oa ch
th r ou gh sta n da r dized in ter view s wou ld h ave
en a bled a n a ddition a l set of issu es to be
explor ed wh ich wou ld n ot be fea sible u sin g
th e qu estion n a ir e, bu t con sider a tion s of cost
a n d r esea r ch er tim e m a de su ch a n a ppr oa ch
im pr a ctica ble.
By dr aw in g on cu r r en t liter a tu r e in th e
field of sch ool developm en t pla n n in g it w a s
possible to a ssem ble a list of issu es fr om
wh ich to explor e per ception s of th e r ole a n d
r a tion a le for lon g-ter m pla n n in g a n d str a tegic developm en t in th ese sch ools. Su ch a list
wou ld str ictly on ly h ave va lidity in ter m s of
u sa ge w ith in th e edu ca tion a l system s fr om
wh ich th ey wer e dr aw n ; pa r t of th e br oa der
in ten tion of th e cu r r en t stu dy w a s to fin d ou t
to wh a t exten t th a t va lidity cou ld be m a in ta in ed in th e differ en t con text of th e in ter n a tion a l sch ools. Qu estion n a ir e item s wer e
gen er a ted, payin g du e a tten tion to th ose
a spects of qu estion n a ir e design iden tified by
in ter a lios Oppen h eim (1992) a s optim izin g
r elia bility a n d va lidity for th e in str u m en t.
Th er e wer e fou r pr in cipa l section s to th e
in str u m en t: fixed-r espon se item s r ela tin g to
th e cu r r en t sta tu s of developm en t pla n n in g in
th e r espon den t’s ow n sch ool; fixed-r espon se
a n d open -r espon se item s con cer n in g sch ool
ba ck gr ou n d in for m a tion ; eigh t sta tem en ts
w ith a Lik er t-type sca le r espon se (five ca tegor ies) r ela tin g to th e r ole of lon g-ter m pla n n in g; a n d open -r espon se item s explor in g th e
P.M.C. Le ggate and
J.J. Tho mpso n
The manage me nt o f
de ve lo pme nt planning in
inte rnatio nal sc ho o ls
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 6 [1 9 9 7 ] 2 6 8 –2 7 3
pla n n in g pr ocess a n d im plem en ta tion of
developm en t pla n n in g. Th e selection of
closed item s com bin ed w ith oppor tu n ity for
fr ee r espon ses w a s con sider ed to be a n a ppr opr ia te com bin a tion , bea r in g in m in d th e
desir a bility to k eep th e in str u m en t a s con cise
a s possible for com pletion by bu sy pr ofession a ls. Codin g a n d a n a lysis of th e r espon ses w a s
a lso fa cilita ted by su ch a design .
Th is su r vey ta r geted th ose w ith in th e in ter n a tion a l sch ools wh o wer e clea r ly in volved in
a n y developm en t pla n n in g wh ich wou ld ta k e
pla ce – th e h ea ds or su per in ten den ts. Iden tifyin g oth er s wh o m ay be in volved for th e
pu r poses of a n swer in g th e qu estion n a ir e
itself w a s th ou gh t to be too pr oblem a tic, a n d
u n n ecessa r y for th is sm a ll-sca le stu dy. In for m a tion con cer n in g th e exten t to wh ich oth er s
wer e in volved wou ld, h owever, be sou gh t fr om
th e h ea ds. (In wh a t follow s, th e ter m “h ea ds”
w ill be u sed collectively for th ose r espon din g
to th e su r vey.)
Th e pilotin g of th e qu estion n a ir e w a s
con du cted in a n in ter n a tion a l sch ool w ith in
wh ich it w a s k n ow n th a t developm en t pla n n in g took pla ce, w ith m em ber s of th e sen ior
m a n a gem en t tea m . Resu lts fr om th e pilot
sch ool r espon ses wer e n ot in clu ded in th e
m a in stu dy a n d, a fter a dju stm en ts a r isin g
fr om com m en ts r ela tin g to a m bigu ity of
expr ession a n d gen er a l cla r ity of layou t, th e
qu estion n a ir e w a s for m a lly a dopted a s th e
r esea r ch in str u m en t.
Th e qu estion n a ir e w a s sen t to 70 sch ools
wor ldw ide, selected to r efl ect th e h eter ogen eou s gr ou p ta r geted. Sch ool size, type, a ge
r a n ge, loca tion a n d in stitu tion a l h istor y wer e
con sider ed in con su ltin g a n u m ber of differ en t in ter n a tion a l sch ools dir ector ies a s a
ba sis for selection . Com pleted qu estion n a ir es
wer e r eceived fr om th e h ea ds of 40 differ en t
in ter n a tion a l sch ools, a r espon se r a te of 57
per cen t. Th e r a n ge of sch ools r espon din g
r eflected a sim ila r de gr ee of h eter ogen eity a s
th a t con str u cted in th e or igin a l selection .
Findings
Follow in g a descr iption of th e n atu r e a n d
m a gn itu de of th e r espon se to th e qu estion n a ir e th e ou tcom es of th e r esea r ch w ith
r espect to th e th r ee objectives a lr ea dy defin ed,
togeth er w ith th e in fer en ces wh ich ca n be
dr aw n for ea ch of th em , a r e iden tified a n d a
gen er a l set of con clu sion s fr om th e r esea r ch
a s a wh ole, a s it a pplies w ith in th e con text of
th e pa r ticu la r sa m ple dr aw n , a r e offer ed.
Nature of the response
Th e r espon din g sch ools wer e loca ted in 30
cou n tr ies spr ea d a r ou n d th e m a jor r e gion s of
th e wor ld in clu din g E u r ope, N or th Am er ica ,
Sou th Am er ica , Afr ica , Asia , Au str a la sia a n d
th e Middle E a st. N o sin gle cou n tr y h a d m or e
th a n th r ee sch ools r epr esen ted a n d th e va st
m a jor ity h a d on ly on e. Over 75 per cen t of th e
sch ools offer ed in ter n a tion a l cu r r icu la , th e
m ost w idely qu oted of wh ich w a s th e In ter n a tion a l Ba cca la u r ea te. E ven th ose sch ools
wh ich for m a lly offer ed pr ogr a m m es lea din g
to n a tion a l qu a lifica tion s em ph a sized th e
in ter n a tion a l per spective wh ich th ey sou gh t
to br in g to th e edu ca tion pr ocess w ith in th e
sch ool.
It w a s in ter estin g to n ote th e n a tion a lity
r epr esen ta tion r epor ted a m on g th e a dm in istr ative sta ff of th e sch ool, wh er e US n a tion a ls
(34 per cen t) a n d UK n a tion a ls (27 per cen t)
pr edom in a ted. Equ iva len t figu r es for th e
tea ch in g sta ff (27 per cen t US, 29 per cen t UK)
a n d for th e m em ber sh ip of th e boa r d (22 per
cen t US, a n d 17 per cen t UK) r eflect th e w idely
r ecogn ized pr esen ce of US a n d UK n a tion a ls
th r ou gh ou t th e in ter n ation a l sch ool
con stitu en cy. Th e r ela tively lower pr opor tion s
of US a n d UK n a tion a ls a m on g boa r d m em ber s
m ay r epr esen t a sen sitivity to th e n eed to
in clu de h ost cou n tr y n a tion a ls or even a lega l
r equ ir em en t to do so. All bu t on e of th e sch ools
r epr esen ted in th e su r vey h a d a gover n in g
body a n d 63 per cen t h a d a n elected boa r d.
Th ese da ta a r e sim ila r to th ose r epor ted
elsewh er e for th e r a n ge of in ter n a tion a l
sch ools wor ldw ide (Hayden a n d Th om pson ,
1995). F r om a n a n a lysis of th e r esu lts som e
in ter estin g pa tter n s ca n be discer n ed.
Current status of development planning
E ven w ith in su ch a diver sity of sch ools, it
wa s eviden t fr om th e r espon ses to th e qu estion n a ir e th a t th er e w a s a n over wh elm in g aw a r en ess of a n d su ppor t for, th e im por ta n ce of
lon g-ter m pla n n in g, even w ith in in stitu tion s
for wh ich sh or t-ter m en ga gem en ts of sta ff a r e
th e n or m .Of th e r espon din g h ea ds, 68 per cen t
r e ga r ded it a s com pletely essen tia l w ith th e
r em a in der r a tin g it of pr im e im por ta n ce.
Th r ee-qu a r ter s of th e sch ools su r veyed h a d
a lr ea dy in tr odu ced a developm en t pla n in
wh ich sh or t-, m ediu m - a n d lon g-ter m goa ls
h a d been iden tified a n d pr ior itized. Th e
im plica tion th a t u p to a qu a r ter of th e sch ools
involved h a d n ot got su ch a pla n in pla ce,
despite su ppor t expr essed elsewh er e by th e
sa m e sch ools for th e n otion , a n d a 78 per cen t
r ejection of th e idea th a t a n n u a l pr ior ities
wer e su fficien t to offer a sen se of dir ection ,
wou ld seem to in dica te th a t th er e exist
fa ctor s wh ich im pede th e im plem en ta tion . A
con clu sion wh ich m ay be dr aw n fr om th e
level of su ppor t for lon g-ter m pla n n in g in
sch ools wh ich a r e ch a r a cter ized by diver sity
a n d sh or t-ter m issu es is th a t it is ju st th e ver y
[ 271 ]
P.M.C. Le ggate and
J.J. Tho mpso n
The manage me nt o f
de ve lo pme nt planning in
inte rnatio nal sc ho o ls
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 6 [1 9 9 7 ] 2 6 8 –2 7 3
pr esen ce of su ch tr a its wh ich m a k es th e n eed
to esta blish a lon g-ter m m ission in th e sch ool
so vita l. Th a t sa m e diver sity, in sta ff a n d
stu den ts, m ay a lso be, for som e, a sign ifica n t
con tr ibu tor to th e pr oblem of im plem en ta tion , a lth ou gh 85 per cen t of th e r espon den ts
den ou n ced th e su ggestion th a t sch ools ca n n ot
cr ea te effective lon g-ter m pla n s beca u se of
th e h igh m obility fa ctor a m on g sta ff a n d
stu den ts.
Am on g th e su ggestion s m a de for h in dr a n ce
to th e pr ocess of lon g-ter m pla n n in g wer e th e
va r iety of cu ltu r a l expecta tion s of su ch a n
exer cise, lin gu istic a n d le ga l com plexities,
th e im pa ct of tr a n sien cy on fin a n cia l pla n n in g pa r ticu la r ly, lim ited in pu t fr om a lu m n i
a n d u n cer ta in ties gen er a ted by exter n a l
for ces, politica l or clim a tic. In con tr a st it
sh ou ld be n oted th a t positive fa ctor s wh ich
m ay fa cilita te th e lon g-ter m pla n n in g in
in ter n a tion a l sch ools wer e a lso iden tifi ed.
Th e de gr ee of in depen den ce a n d a u ton om y
en joyed by th e sch ools often br in g w ith th em
fewer exter n a l or gover n m en t con tr ols,
gr ea ter open n ess to ch a n ge, th e poten tia l to
im plem en t ch a n ge r a pidly a n d th e oppor tu n ity to pr ovide effectively for in dividu a l stu den t n eeds w ith in th e sch ool.
Participation in development planning
Th er e w a s a lm ost tota l a gr eem en t w ith th e
sta tem en t th a t th e pr odu ction of a n effective
developm en t pla n depen ds on a pr ocess of
w ide con su lta tion a n d involvem en t fr om
m em ber s of sta ff a n d th e sch ool com m u n ity
(95 per cen t, w ith 46 per cen t str on gly a gr eed),
a lth ou gh th e idea th at th e pr ocess n ecessa r ily
involves r ea ch in g con sen su s a m on g su ch a
con stitu en cy w a s n ot qu ite so str on gly h eld
(88 per cen t, w ith 23 per cen t str on gly a gr eed).
A diver gen ce of opin ion occu r r ed between
gr ou ps of r espon den ts w ith r espect to th e
exten t to wh ich th e w ish es of th e w ider com m u n ity sh ou ld be ta ken in to a ccou n t. Th er e
w a s a clea r in dica tion fr om 66 per cen t of th e
r espon den ts th a t lon g-ter m pla n n in g sh ou ld
r eflect th e n eeds of th e loca l com m u n ity,
a lth ou gh 29 per cen t of th e h ea ds str essed th e
im por ta n ce of m a in ta in in g a ba la n ce between
specific sch ool a n d com m u n ity in ter ests, w ith
lea der sh ip defin itely com in g fr om th e sch ool.
Th is clea r ly h a s im plication s for th e n a tu r e of
decision m a k in g at boa r d level, especia lly in
th ose ca ses wh er e sign ifica n t r epr esen ta tion
fr om th e loca l com m u n ity is pr esen t.
Leadership and planning
Th er e w a s r a th er less a gr eem en t w ith r espect
to th e a u th or ity wh ich th e h ea d m igh t com m a n d in th e deter m in a tion of th e dir ection
a n d fu tu r e pla n s for th e sch ool. Wh ile a ll
sch ools a ck n ow ledged th e im por ta n ce of
[ 272 ]
str on g lea der sh ip qu a lities in th is r espect,
th er e w a s a diver gen ce of view s between
th ose (27 per cen t) r espon den ts wh o wou ld
r e ga r d on ly th e h ea d a s h avin g th e r espon sibility of iden tifyin g th e fu tu r e
dir ection a n d pla n s for th e sch ool, a n d th e
r em a in der (over 70 per cen t) wh o did n ot
sh a r e th a t view. Th e la tter r espon den ts
fu r th er in dica ted th a t it w a s essen tia l th a t
th e h ea d wor k ed w ith a m a n a gem en t tea m , a s
its ch ief execu tive officer.
Conclusions
Th e da ta ga th er ed th r ou gh th e qu estion n a ir e
su r vey in clu ded a r a n ge of fr ee r espon se
com m en ts wh ich pr ovided in sigh ts in to a
n u m ber of a ddition a l issu es r ela tin g to th e
developm en t pla n n in g pr ocess. Th ey did,
h owever, con fir m th a t, in th e view s of th e
h ea ds, th er e is a h igh r e ga r d for th e va lu e of
th e lon g-ter m pla n n in g pr ocess in in ter n a tion a l sch ools. Th er e is a lso a str on g sen se of
com m itm en t to th e con cept of sch ool developm en t pla n s in th ese in stitu tion s. Th a t th is is
in k eepin g w ith cu r r en t tr en ds in th e USA
a n d in Br ita in is u n su r pr isin g in view of th e
in dica tion in th is su r vey th a t n a tion a ls fr om
th ose cou n tr ies for m a sign ifica n t pa r t of th e
m obile sta ffin g popu la tion in su ch sch ools,
especia lly a t sen ior m a n a gem en t levels.
Th e difficu lties exper ien ced in th e
im plem en ta tion of sch ool developm en t
pla n n in g ca n n ot, h owever, be
u n der estim a ted. Th e pr ovision of a n effective
fr a m ewor k to iden tify th e elem en ts of th e
pr ocedu r es in volved is a m a jor pr ior ity,
wh ich a gr ea t m a jor ity (80 per cen t) of th e
sch ools h ave a ttem pted to a ddr ess. Th e n eed
to en su r e th a t su ch a veh icle is con sisten t
w ith th e sch ool’s ph ilosoph y, a n d m ission
sta tem en t, w a s str essed in th e fr ee r espon se
com m en ts pr ovided by th e h ea ds. Th is h a s
a lso been expr essed elsewh er e a s th e n eed to
en su r e th a t th e style of th e m a n a gem en t
system in a n in ter n a tion a l sch ool is
com pa tible w ith its espou sed va lu e system
(Hayden a n d Th om pson , 1996). Th e
im por ta n ce of th e fu ll su ppor t of th e sch ool
boa r d in th e im plem en ta tion of th e ch a n ge
w a s a lso m en tion ed fr equ en tly by r espon den ts.
Th e im por ta n ce of on goin g com m u n ica tion
w ith th e differ en t a gen cies in volved w ith th e
pr ocess w a s seen to be cr u cia l, especia lly in a
situ a tion wh er e th er e is a h igh tu r n over of
tea ch in g sta ff a n d pa r en ts. Th e pr ovision of
a ppr opr ia te docu m en ta tion , a t r e gu la r in ter va ls, by th e lea der sh ip w a s con sider ed essen tia l.
Given th e m obile sta ffin g str u ctu r e in m a n y
of th e sch ools, th e r ole of sta ff developm en t
P.M.C. Le ggate and
J.J. Tho mpso n
The manage me nt o f
de ve lo pme nt planning in
inte rnatio nal sc ho o ls
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 6 [1 9 9 7 ] 2 6 8 –2 7 3
sh ou ld be seen a s in te gr a l to th e pla n n in g a n d
im plem en ta tion str a te gies. Th is w ill h ave
con sequ en ces for or ga n iza tion a l a n d fin a n cia l pr ovision a s pa r t of th e over a ll sch em e.
Alth ou gh it w a s a n ticipa ted a t th e ou tset
th a t th e m a jor fa ctor s in th e pr ocess of developm en t pla n n in g in in ter n a tion a l sch ools
wou ld h ave cen tr ed on th e disa dva n ta ges of
sh or t-ter m con sider a tion s a r isin g fr om th e
tr a n sien t sta ff, stu den t a n d pa r en ta l bodies, it
is clea r th a t th e belief is w idely h eld, by h ea ds
a t lea st, th a t th e cr ea tion of a r a tion a l fr a m ewor k for pla n n in g a n d im plem en ta tion ,
m a tch ed to ca r efu lly pr ior itized goa ls for
fu tu r e developm en t, m a k in g th e best possible
u se of ava ila ble r esou r ces, is a positive con tr ibu tion to m eetin g th e n eeds of in ter n a tion a l
sch ools.
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[ 273 ]
international schools
P.M .C. Leggate
The Ove rse as Sc ho o l o f Co lo mbo , Battaramulla, Sri Lanka
J.J. Thompson
Sc ho o l o f Educ atio n, Unive rsity o f Bath, Bath, UK
Due to increasing interest in
school development planning,
improvement and effectiveness, more schools are gaining greater control over their
own school management.
Argues that school development plans should provide an
operational structure with a
clearly identifi ed direction
and priorities. Focuses on the
problem of planning within
the international school
context and investigates
specifi c objectives via a
survey. Results confi rmed
that long-term planning is
valued by heads of international schools and that staff
development is integral to
planning and implementing
strategies.
Development planning in schools
Th e gr ow th of in ter est in sch ool im pr ovem en t
a n d sch ool effectiven ess over r ecen t yea r s h a s
br ou gh t w ith it a n in cr ea se in th e volu m e of
liter a tu r e a n d deba te r ela tin g to th e va lu e of
developm en t pla n n in g in sch ools, a n d its
r eleva n ce to a w ide r a n ge of con texts. With
th e m ove to decen tr a liza tion of system s of
edu ca tion wor ldw ide, a n d th e deploym en t of
cen tr a lly pr escr ibed cu r r icu la r fr a m ewor k s
m a n a ged a n d in ter pr eted r e gion a lly a n d
loca lly, th er e h a s becom e eviden t a gr ow in g
n eed for th e design a n d a doption of clea r
pla n s for a ction a t th e in dividu a l sch ool level.
In cr ea sin gly in th e sch ools of th e Un ited
Kin gdom , Au str a lia , N ew Zea la n d a n d Den m a r k , for exa m ple, th er e is eviden ce of a
m or e su bsta n tia l em ph a sis on sch ool developm en t pla n n in g. Alth ou gh th e ter m s u sed to
descr ibe th e pla n n in g pr ocess m ay va r y, a s
Ha r gr eaves a n d Hopk in s (1994, p. 1) poin t ou t:
Developm en t pla n n in g is a r espon se to th e
m a n a gem en t of m u ltiple in n ova tion s a n d
ch a n ge, a n d th e per ceived n eed for a system a tic a n d wh ole-sch ool a ppr oa ch to pla n n in g,
especia lly wh er e sch ools a r e expected to be
m or e self-m a n a gin g.
Th e con sequ en ce is th a t gr a du a lly m or e
sch ools in th e Wester n wor ld a r e ga in in g a
gr ea ter con tr ol over th eir ow n sch ool
m a n a gem en t. In m a n y cou n tr ies th e m ove to
decen tr a liza tion is a ccom pa n ied by th e
pr ovision of a defi n ed edu ca tion a l fr a m ewor k
in th e for m of design a ted cu r r icu la a lon g
w ith specified a ssessm en t a n d a ccr edita tion
pr ocedu r es, wh ich do, in fa ct, pr ovide gr ea ter
oppor tu n ities for in cr ea sed m a n a gem en t
a u ton om y. In br in gin g a n in ter n a tion a l
per spective on sch ool developm en t Dem pster
et a l. (1994) n ote:
…th e con cept of self-m a n a ged sch ools is
vita l to politica l a n d bu r ea u cr a tic str a te gies
for th e devolu tion of a u th or ity a n d r espon sibility to th e poin t of edu ca tion a l ser vice
deliver y (p. 25).
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 6 [ 1997] 2 6 8 –2 7 3
© MCB Unive rsity Pre ss
[ ISSN 0951-354X]
[ 268 ]
In m a n y cou n tr ies both sta te a n d in depen den t sch ools a r e discover in g th a t th e deter m in a tion of th e fu tu r e of th e in stitu tion lies
w ith in th e con tr ol of m em ber s of th eir sch ool
boa r ds, com posed of elected, or selected,
gover n or s wor k in g w ith th e h ea d a n d
tea ch in g sta ff, ea ch w ith a r espon sibility for a
pa r ticu la r r ole in th e pr ocess. In su ch a situ a tion th e n eed for a n over a ll sch ool developm en t pla n , or th e sch ool’s equ iva len t to th e
cor por a te str a te gic pla n , becom es even m or e
pr essin g. For in a n e gotia ted pla n th er e exists
a veh icle for th e tr a n sla tion of th e sh a r ed
vision of th e sch ool com m u n ity in to som e
for m of coh er en t r ea lity, th r ou gh pr ior itized
str a te gies a n d a ction pla n s w ith in a n a gr eed
tim e sch edu le.
Alth ou gh th e r a tion a le for h avin g a pla n
m ay be obviou s, in th a t it sh ou ld pr ovide a n
oper a tion a l str u ctu r e togeth er w ith a clea r ly
iden tifi ed dir ection in volvin g pr ior ities to
m eet th e n eeds of th e or ga n iza tion a t a n y
pa r ticu la r tim e, deter m in in g th e a ppr opr ia te
a ppr oa ch to th e design a n d im plem en ta tion of
su ch a pla n r a ises a n u m ber of im por ta n t
qu estion s wh ich n eed to be a ddr essed by th e
sch ool. For th e gr ou p of sch ools k n ow n collectively a s “in ter n a tion a l sch ools” th eir pecu lia r ch a r a cter istics give r ise to a pa r ticu la r
n eed for su ch developm en t pla n n in g.
The international school context
With th e in cr ea sin g globa l m obility of th e
com m er cia l, pr ofession a l a n d diplom a tic
com m u n ities h a s com e th e con sequ en t
gr ow th in th e n u m ber of fa m ilies ba sed for
va r yin g per iods of tim e in loca tion s wh ich
a r e fa r aw ay fr om th eir h om e en vir on m en t.
P a r en ts of su ch fa m ilies a r e fa ced w ith a
dilem m a in r espect of a r r a n gem en ts for th e
edu ca tion of th eir sch ool-a ge ch ildr en . Do
th ey leave th eir ch ildr en in a boa r din g sch ool
in th e h om e cou n tr y in volvin g a bsen ce fr om
th e pa r en ta l dom icile, or do th ey ta k e th e
ch ildr en w ith th em a n d a r r a n ge sch oolin g in
wh a tever loca tion th ey h a ppen to be, often for
sh or t per iods of tim e? Th e n etwor k of in ter n a tion a l sch ools h a s evolved pr in cipa lly a s a
r espon se to su ch a ch a llen ge a n d h a s don e so
w ith in cr ea sin g m a gn itu de. F r om th e fi r st
in ter n a tion a l sch ools wh ich wer e esta blish ed
in th e 1920s, th e m a jor expa n sion occu r r ed
between th e 1960s, wh en a n estim a ted 50 or so
su ch sch ools existed (Ber eday a n d La u wer ys,
1964) to th e situ a tion in th e 1990s wh er e it
wou ld be r ea son a ble to con sider th e n u m ber
P.M.C. Le ggate and
J.J. Tho mpso n
The manage me nt o f
de ve lo pme nt planning in
inte rnatio nal sc ho o ls
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 6 [1 9 9 7 ] 2 6 8 –2 7 3
to h ave gr ow n to in excess of 1,000 (Hayden
a n d Th om pson , 1995).
Alon gside th e in cr ea se in th e n u m ber of
in ter n a tion a l sch ools, so a r gu a bly h a s th e
de gr ee of diver sity of or ga n iza tion a l type of
sch ools wh ich com pr ise th e n etwor k
in cr ea sed. Wh ile th e sch ools gen er a lly ca ter
for a m u ltin a tion a l gr ou p of stu den ts, th e
cu r r icu lu m , a n d in deed th e in dividu a l ph ilosoph y, in a n y on e of th e sch ools m ay va r y qu ite
con sider a bly fr om th a t in a n y oth er. Attem pts
to ca te gor ize su ch sch ools (Gella r, 1981; Hayden a n d Th om pson , 1995; Lea ch , 1969;
Ma tth ew s, 1989; P ön isch , 1987; Ter w illiger,
1972) h ave so fa r fa iled to pr odu ce a sin gu la r
ta xon om y wh ich a ccou n ts for th e r a n ge of
in stitu tion a l va r ia tion s in volved.
Notw ith sta n din g th e con sider a ble va r iety
a m on gst th e in ter n a tion a l sch ools th er e exist
a n u m ber of ch a r a cter istics wh ich m a n y, if n ot
a ll su ch sch ools, sh a r e in com m on . Ma n y
em ploy com m on a ppr oa ch es to cu r r icu la r
pr ovision , m a de possible by th e developm en t
of th e so-ca lled in ter n a tion a l cu r r icu la a t a ll
a ges th r ou gh ou t th e elem en ta r y a n d
secon da r y a ge r a n ge. In clu ded in su ch
pr ovision a r e th e In ter n a tion a l Ba cca la u r ea te
for th e u pper secon da r y ph a se (In ter n a tion a l
Ba cca la u r ea te Or ga n iza tion , 1994a ), th e
In ter n a tion a l Ba cca la u r ea te Middle Yea r s
P r ogr a m m e (In ter n a tion a l Ba cca la u r ea te
Or ga n iza tion , 1994b) a n d th e In ter n a tion a l
Sch ools Cu r r icu lu m P r oject for th e elem en ta r y ph a se (Ba r tlett, 1993), r ecen tly br ou gh t
in to th e over a ll u m br ella of th e In ter n a tion a l
Ba cca la u r ea te Or ga n iza tion . Som e n a tion a l
exa m in a tion s h ave a lso been exten ded in to th e
in ter n a tion a l sch ool n etwor k ; th ese in clu de
th e In ter n a tion a l Gen er a l Cer tifica te of
Secon da r y E du ca tion fr om th e UK (UCLE S,
1993) a n d a n in ter n a tion a l ver sion of th e
Adva n ced P la cem en t pr ogr a m m e fr om Nor th
Am er ica (Lew is, 1994).
Most of th e sch ools a r e in depen den t in stitu tion s gover n ed by boa r ds w ith con sider a ble
a u ton om y, a lbeit su bject to con sider a tion s of
loca l n eed a n d in ter n a tion a l r ecogn ition or
a ccr edita tion . Wh ile th is offer s gr ea t flexibility a n d oppor tu n ity for in n ova tion , it a lso
pr esen ts a situ ation in wh ich th e sch ool m ay
exper ien ce a va r iety of a ppr oa ch es to developm en t over wh a t ca n be a ver y sh or t per iod of
tim e. Th is r ela tive la ck of sta bility, in la r ge
m ea su r e, a r ises fr om th e n a tu r e of th e r a pid
tu r n over in stu den ts a n d sta ff th a t m a n y of
th e sch ools exper ien ce, in clu din g th a t of
h ea ds th em selves. Th is in tu r n h igh ligh ts th e
even gr ea ter n eed for ca r efu l pla n n in g to
en su r e con tin u ity a n d con sisten cy in th e
over a ll developm en t of th e sch ool. In a
r esea r ch stu dy w ith over 300 h ea ds in in ter n a tion a l sch ools, Haw ley (1994) iden tified a
r a n ge of sch ool ch a r a cter istics wh ich cor r ela te w ith lon gevity in post. Per tin en t to th e
pr esen t deba te w a s th e fin din g th a t h ea ds
r em a in lon ger in th ose sch ools wh er e th e
sch ool boa r d policy is defin ed by a w r itten
policy m a n u a l. Th e m edia n sch ool h ea d du r a tion w a s fou n d to be 4.7 yea r s for th ose wh o
wor k in sch ools w ith a w r itten boa r d policy
m a n u a l bu t on ly 2.7 yea r s in sch ools w ith n o
w r itten policy. Th e r ea lity of th is k in d of in ter n a tion a l m obility, w ith ch a n ges in th e a dm in istr a tion , boa r d m em ber sh ip, h ea ds, tea ch in g
sta ff, stu den ts a n d pa r en ta l body, is th a t developm en t h a s often been spa sm odic. In su ch
cir cu m sta n ces th e lin k between th e pla n n in g
pr ocess a n d th e n atu r e of th e lea der sh ip of th e
in stitu tion becom es im por ta n t.
Leadership and planning
A cr u cia l issu e, th er efor e, for th e fu tu r e developm en t of a n in ter n ation a l sch ool is th e pr oblem of defin in g a n d m a in ta in in g a
con sisten t vision in th e fa ce of fr equ en t
ch a n ges in th e lea der sh ip with in th e sch ool.
Th e r ole of th e lea der in su ch cir cu m sta n ces
h a s been descr ibed a s on e of con du ctin g a n d
gu idin g wh ich in tu r n im plies th e n eed for a
destin ation , or at lea st a dir ection . In th e ca se
of m a n y in ter n ation a l sch ools, su ch dir ection
w ill be pu r su ed n ot on ly by a n in dividu a l (say
th e h ea d) bu t possibly by a gr ou p (th e sen ior
m a n a gem en t tea m , for exa m ple) over a per iod
of tim e. Th e n eed for th is dir ection to be clea r ly
iden tified a n d stated w ith in a defin ed pla n or
policy docu m en t is of cr itica l im por ta n ce.
Given th e diver sity w ith in th e in ter n a tion a l
sch ool popu la tion , it m ay well be th a t su ch
pla n s w ill th em selves va r y en or m ou sly a s
w ill, th er efor e, th e specific r oles of th e lea der s
in im plem en tin g th em . As Hodgson et a l.
(1994, p. 118) fou n d w ith in th e UK con text:
h ea dtea ch er s wou ld h ave k ey, a lth ou gh n ot
n ecessa r ily iden tica l r oles.
How m u ch m or e tr u e th is is lik ely to be for
in ter n a tion a l sch ools, wh er e sta ff br in g for w a r d pr eviou s exper ien ce fr om a w ide r a n ge
of n a tion a l a n d cu ltu r a l ba ck gr ou n ds. Cer ta in ly expecta tion s w ill differ.
Aga in , th e poin t is str essed by Ha r gr eaves
a n d Hopk in s (1991, p. viii):
ever y sch ool h a s to fin d its ow n u n iqu e
a ppr oa ch to developm en t pla n n in g; th is is
essen tia l if th er e is to be r ea l pr ogr ess in
m a k in g th e sch ool a m or e effective a n d
r ew a r din g pla ce for tea ch er s a n d stu den ts.
F u r th er, Ca ldwell a n d Spin k s (1992) poin t ou t:
sch ools in th e 1990s w ill r equ ir e a h igh level
ca pa city for str a te gic pla n n in g, th a t is to see
th e la r ger pictu r e a n d on a con tin u in g ba sis
set a n d r eset pr ior ities in a sim ple sch ool
[ 269 ]
P.M.C. Le ggate and
J.J. Tho mpso n
The manage me nt o f
de ve lo pme nt planning in
inte rnatio nal sc ho o ls
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 6 [1 9 9 7 ] 2 6 8 –2 7 3
developm en t pla n , wh ich w ill pr ovide th e
fr a m ewor k for th e a n n u a l oper a tion a l pla n
(p. 10).
Alth ou gh th e developm en t pla n m ay be sim ple in essen ce it sh ou ld a lso be:
r ea listic, n eith er too a m bitiou s n or in su fficien tly dem a n din g…th er e sh ou ld be n o m or e
th a n th r ee or fou r m a jor pr ior ities, th ou gh
ea ch pr ior ity m ay con ta in a n u m ber of elem en ts (Ha r gr eaves a n d Hopk in s, 1991, p. 40).
Th e dyn a m ics of wh o sh ou ld becom e a ctively
involved in th e pr ocess is a ddition a lly a n
im por ta n t dim en sion in th e exer cise. If th e
str a te gic pla n n in g exer cise ca n in volve a
br oa d-ba sed r epr esen ta tion fr om th e en tir e
sch ool com m u n ity in a con su lta tive pr ocess
th en th er e is lik ely to be a sen se of dr aw in g
togeth er to com m on goa ls. As n oted in th is
con n ection by Haw k es (1991):
in th is sen se th e Str a te gic P la n ca n in cr ea se
th e syn er gy of a sch ool, pa r ticu la r ly if th e
com m u n ity h a s a r ea l sen se of ow n er sh ip of
th e pla n (p. 1).
A n u m ber of differ en t m odels h ave been pr oposed a s ways for w a r d in r espect of th e pr ocess
of developm en t pla n n in g, a n d th ey a r ise fr om
differ en t pa r ts of th e wor ld. All in cor por ate
com m on a spects wh ich essen tia lly r equ ir e a
sch ool to gath er a clea r u n der sta n din g of its
con text, to iden tify th e goa ls a n d pr ior ities
wh ich sh ou ld be a ddr essed, to decide h ow su ch
goa ls sh ou ld be r ea ch ed, to deter m in e th e
m ea n s for im plem en tin g th e ch osen pr ior ities
a n d to pr ovide a m ea n s of eva lu atin g th e level
of su ccess. Th e va r iables in th ese m odels a r e
deter m in ed to a la r ge exten t by th e level of
pa r ticipation a n d th e n atu r e of involvem en t in
th e decision -m a k in g pr ocess w ith in th e sch ool
com m u n ity. It is im por ta n t for sch ools to
espou se a m odel wh ich will n ot on ly look to
sh or t-ter m solu tion s to cu r r en t pr oblem s bu t
wh ich will pr ovide a fr a m ewor k for a n evolu tion a r y appr oa ch to developm en t.
In or der to discover h ow su ch issu es a r e
a ddr essed in th e con text of th e in ter n a tion a l
sch ools n etwor k , a n a r en a wh ich h a s been
r ela tively u n der -r esea r ch ed in th e pa st, it w a s
decided to u n der ta k e a n in itia l stu dy of cu r r en t pr a ctice in a r a n ge of in ter n a tion a l
sch ools.
Design of the study
With in th e pr elim in a r y con text of th e stu dy it
w a s decided to iden tify th e specific objectives
to be in vestiga ted so th a t a n a ppr opr ia te
r esea r ch str a te gy cou ld be iden tifi ed. Th e
objectives wer e a s follow s:
• to deter m in e th e exten t to wh ich
developm en t pla n n in g cu r r en tly exists in
[ 270 ]
in ter n ation a l sch ools, a n d th e sta tu s wh ich
it is per ceived to en joy;
• to a scer ta in th e expecta tion s of h ea ds for
th e exten t of pa r ticipa tion of oth er a gen ts
in th e pr ocess of lon g-ter m pla n n in g; a n d
• to su r vey th e per ception s of th e n a tu r e of
lea der sh ip r oles w ith in in ter n a tion a l
sch ools.
Given th e exten t of th e diver sity a m on g th e
gr ou p of in ter n a tion a l sch ools wor ldw ide, th e
pr oblem s a ssocia ted w ith a ssem blin g a r epr esen ta tive sa m ple of su ch sch ools a r e for
m ida ble, especia lly in th e a bsen ce, a lr ea dy
n oted, of a n a gr eed cla ssifica tion of th e
in stitu tion s. Sin ce a m a jor in ten tion of th e
stu dy w a s to ga th er in for m a tion on th e r a n ge
of issu es per ceived by in ter n a tion a l sch ools
in developm en t pla n n in g, h eter ogen eity
w ith in th e sa m ple w a s a gr ea ter r equ ir em en t
th a n h om ogen eity w ith r espect to r epr esen ta tion ; gen er a lizibility w a s u n lik ely to be a n
ou tcom e of su ch a stu dy.
Beca u se of th e desir a bility for h eter ogen eity it w a s decided th a t th is stu dy sh ou ld be
con du cted th r ou gh a su r vey. Th e in str u m en t
sh ou ld be a posta l qu estion n a ir e, wh ich
wou ld fa cilita te a ccess to a r ea son a ble n u m ber of th e geogr a ph ica lly w idely disper sed
sch ools. A m or e per son a lized a ppr oa ch
th r ou gh sta n da r dized in ter view s wou ld h ave
en a bled a n a ddition a l set of issu es to be
explor ed wh ich wou ld n ot be fea sible u sin g
th e qu estion n a ir e, bu t con sider a tion s of cost
a n d r esea r ch er tim e m a de su ch a n a ppr oa ch
im pr a ctica ble.
By dr aw in g on cu r r en t liter a tu r e in th e
field of sch ool developm en t pla n n in g it w a s
possible to a ssem ble a list of issu es fr om
wh ich to explor e per ception s of th e r ole a n d
r a tion a le for lon g-ter m pla n n in g a n d str a tegic developm en t in th ese sch ools. Su ch a list
wou ld str ictly on ly h ave va lidity in ter m s of
u sa ge w ith in th e edu ca tion a l system s fr om
wh ich th ey wer e dr aw n ; pa r t of th e br oa der
in ten tion of th e cu r r en t stu dy w a s to fin d ou t
to wh a t exten t th a t va lidity cou ld be m a in ta in ed in th e differ en t con text of th e in ter n a tion a l sch ools. Qu estion n a ir e item s wer e
gen er a ted, payin g du e a tten tion to th ose
a spects of qu estion n a ir e design iden tified by
in ter a lios Oppen h eim (1992) a s optim izin g
r elia bility a n d va lidity for th e in str u m en t.
Th er e wer e fou r pr in cipa l section s to th e
in str u m en t: fixed-r espon se item s r ela tin g to
th e cu r r en t sta tu s of developm en t pla n n in g in
th e r espon den t’s ow n sch ool; fixed-r espon se
a n d open -r espon se item s con cer n in g sch ool
ba ck gr ou n d in for m a tion ; eigh t sta tem en ts
w ith a Lik er t-type sca le r espon se (five ca tegor ies) r ela tin g to th e r ole of lon g-ter m pla n n in g; a n d open -r espon se item s explor in g th e
P.M.C. Le ggate and
J.J. Tho mpso n
The manage me nt o f
de ve lo pme nt planning in
inte rnatio nal sc ho o ls
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 6 [1 9 9 7 ] 2 6 8 –2 7 3
pla n n in g pr ocess a n d im plem en ta tion of
developm en t pla n n in g. Th e selection of
closed item s com bin ed w ith oppor tu n ity for
fr ee r espon ses w a s con sider ed to be a n a ppr opr ia te com bin a tion , bea r in g in m in d th e
desir a bility to k eep th e in str u m en t a s con cise
a s possible for com pletion by bu sy pr ofession a ls. Codin g a n d a n a lysis of th e r espon ses w a s
a lso fa cilita ted by su ch a design .
Th is su r vey ta r geted th ose w ith in th e in ter n a tion a l sch ools wh o wer e clea r ly in volved in
a n y developm en t pla n n in g wh ich wou ld ta k e
pla ce – th e h ea ds or su per in ten den ts. Iden tifyin g oth er s wh o m ay be in volved for th e
pu r poses of a n swer in g th e qu estion n a ir e
itself w a s th ou gh t to be too pr oblem a tic, a n d
u n n ecessa r y for th is sm a ll-sca le stu dy. In for m a tion con cer n in g th e exten t to wh ich oth er s
wer e in volved wou ld, h owever, be sou gh t fr om
th e h ea ds. (In wh a t follow s, th e ter m “h ea ds”
w ill be u sed collectively for th ose r espon din g
to th e su r vey.)
Th e pilotin g of th e qu estion n a ir e w a s
con du cted in a n in ter n a tion a l sch ool w ith in
wh ich it w a s k n ow n th a t developm en t pla n n in g took pla ce, w ith m em ber s of th e sen ior
m a n a gem en t tea m . Resu lts fr om th e pilot
sch ool r espon ses wer e n ot in clu ded in th e
m a in stu dy a n d, a fter a dju stm en ts a r isin g
fr om com m en ts r ela tin g to a m bigu ity of
expr ession a n d gen er a l cla r ity of layou t, th e
qu estion n a ir e w a s for m a lly a dopted a s th e
r esea r ch in str u m en t.
Th e qu estion n a ir e w a s sen t to 70 sch ools
wor ldw ide, selected to r efl ect th e h eter ogen eou s gr ou p ta r geted. Sch ool size, type, a ge
r a n ge, loca tion a n d in stitu tion a l h istor y wer e
con sider ed in con su ltin g a n u m ber of differ en t in ter n a tion a l sch ools dir ector ies a s a
ba sis for selection . Com pleted qu estion n a ir es
wer e r eceived fr om th e h ea ds of 40 differ en t
in ter n a tion a l sch ools, a r espon se r a te of 57
per cen t. Th e r a n ge of sch ools r espon din g
r eflected a sim ila r de gr ee of h eter ogen eity a s
th a t con str u cted in th e or igin a l selection .
Findings
Follow in g a descr iption of th e n atu r e a n d
m a gn itu de of th e r espon se to th e qu estion n a ir e th e ou tcom es of th e r esea r ch w ith
r espect to th e th r ee objectives a lr ea dy defin ed,
togeth er w ith th e in fer en ces wh ich ca n be
dr aw n for ea ch of th em , a r e iden tified a n d a
gen er a l set of con clu sion s fr om th e r esea r ch
a s a wh ole, a s it a pplies w ith in th e con text of
th e pa r ticu la r sa m ple dr aw n , a r e offer ed.
Nature of the response
Th e r espon din g sch ools wer e loca ted in 30
cou n tr ies spr ea d a r ou n d th e m a jor r e gion s of
th e wor ld in clu din g E u r ope, N or th Am er ica ,
Sou th Am er ica , Afr ica , Asia , Au str a la sia a n d
th e Middle E a st. N o sin gle cou n tr y h a d m or e
th a n th r ee sch ools r epr esen ted a n d th e va st
m a jor ity h a d on ly on e. Over 75 per cen t of th e
sch ools offer ed in ter n a tion a l cu r r icu la , th e
m ost w idely qu oted of wh ich w a s th e In ter n a tion a l Ba cca la u r ea te. E ven th ose sch ools
wh ich for m a lly offer ed pr ogr a m m es lea din g
to n a tion a l qu a lifica tion s em ph a sized th e
in ter n a tion a l per spective wh ich th ey sou gh t
to br in g to th e edu ca tion pr ocess w ith in th e
sch ool.
It w a s in ter estin g to n ote th e n a tion a lity
r epr esen ta tion r epor ted a m on g th e a dm in istr ative sta ff of th e sch ool, wh er e US n a tion a ls
(34 per cen t) a n d UK n a tion a ls (27 per cen t)
pr edom in a ted. Equ iva len t figu r es for th e
tea ch in g sta ff (27 per cen t US, 29 per cen t UK)
a n d for th e m em ber sh ip of th e boa r d (22 per
cen t US, a n d 17 per cen t UK) r eflect th e w idely
r ecogn ized pr esen ce of US a n d UK n a tion a ls
th r ou gh ou t th e in ter n ation a l sch ool
con stitu en cy. Th e r ela tively lower pr opor tion s
of US a n d UK n a tion a ls a m on g boa r d m em ber s
m ay r epr esen t a sen sitivity to th e n eed to
in clu de h ost cou n tr y n a tion a ls or even a lega l
r equ ir em en t to do so. All bu t on e of th e sch ools
r epr esen ted in th e su r vey h a d a gover n in g
body a n d 63 per cen t h a d a n elected boa r d.
Th ese da ta a r e sim ila r to th ose r epor ted
elsewh er e for th e r a n ge of in ter n a tion a l
sch ools wor ldw ide (Hayden a n d Th om pson ,
1995). F r om a n a n a lysis of th e r esu lts som e
in ter estin g pa tter n s ca n be discer n ed.
Current status of development planning
E ven w ith in su ch a diver sity of sch ools, it
wa s eviden t fr om th e r espon ses to th e qu estion n a ir e th a t th er e w a s a n over wh elm in g aw a r en ess of a n d su ppor t for, th e im por ta n ce of
lon g-ter m pla n n in g, even w ith in in stitu tion s
for wh ich sh or t-ter m en ga gem en ts of sta ff a r e
th e n or m .Of th e r espon din g h ea ds, 68 per cen t
r e ga r ded it a s com pletely essen tia l w ith th e
r em a in der r a tin g it of pr im e im por ta n ce.
Th r ee-qu a r ter s of th e sch ools su r veyed h a d
a lr ea dy in tr odu ced a developm en t pla n in
wh ich sh or t-, m ediu m - a n d lon g-ter m goa ls
h a d been iden tified a n d pr ior itized. Th e
im plica tion th a t u p to a qu a r ter of th e sch ools
involved h a d n ot got su ch a pla n in pla ce,
despite su ppor t expr essed elsewh er e by th e
sa m e sch ools for th e n otion , a n d a 78 per cen t
r ejection of th e idea th a t a n n u a l pr ior ities
wer e su fficien t to offer a sen se of dir ection ,
wou ld seem to in dica te th a t th er e exist
fa ctor s wh ich im pede th e im plem en ta tion . A
con clu sion wh ich m ay be dr aw n fr om th e
level of su ppor t for lon g-ter m pla n n in g in
sch ools wh ich a r e ch a r a cter ized by diver sity
a n d sh or t-ter m issu es is th a t it is ju st th e ver y
[ 271 ]
P.M.C. Le ggate and
J.J. Tho mpso n
The manage me nt o f
de ve lo pme nt planning in
inte rnatio nal sc ho o ls
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 6 [1 9 9 7 ] 2 6 8 –2 7 3
pr esen ce of su ch tr a its wh ich m a k es th e n eed
to esta blish a lon g-ter m m ission in th e sch ool
so vita l. Th a t sa m e diver sity, in sta ff a n d
stu den ts, m ay a lso be, for som e, a sign ifica n t
con tr ibu tor to th e pr oblem of im plem en ta tion , a lth ou gh 85 per cen t of th e r espon den ts
den ou n ced th e su ggestion th a t sch ools ca n n ot
cr ea te effective lon g-ter m pla n s beca u se of
th e h igh m obility fa ctor a m on g sta ff a n d
stu den ts.
Am on g th e su ggestion s m a de for h in dr a n ce
to th e pr ocess of lon g-ter m pla n n in g wer e th e
va r iety of cu ltu r a l expecta tion s of su ch a n
exer cise, lin gu istic a n d le ga l com plexities,
th e im pa ct of tr a n sien cy on fin a n cia l pla n n in g pa r ticu la r ly, lim ited in pu t fr om a lu m n i
a n d u n cer ta in ties gen er a ted by exter n a l
for ces, politica l or clim a tic. In con tr a st it
sh ou ld be n oted th a t positive fa ctor s wh ich
m ay fa cilita te th e lon g-ter m pla n n in g in
in ter n a tion a l sch ools wer e a lso iden tifi ed.
Th e de gr ee of in depen den ce a n d a u ton om y
en joyed by th e sch ools often br in g w ith th em
fewer exter n a l or gover n m en t con tr ols,
gr ea ter open n ess to ch a n ge, th e poten tia l to
im plem en t ch a n ge r a pidly a n d th e oppor tu n ity to pr ovide effectively for in dividu a l stu den t n eeds w ith in th e sch ool.
Participation in development planning
Th er e w a s a lm ost tota l a gr eem en t w ith th e
sta tem en t th a t th e pr odu ction of a n effective
developm en t pla n depen ds on a pr ocess of
w ide con su lta tion a n d involvem en t fr om
m em ber s of sta ff a n d th e sch ool com m u n ity
(95 per cen t, w ith 46 per cen t str on gly a gr eed),
a lth ou gh th e idea th at th e pr ocess n ecessa r ily
involves r ea ch in g con sen su s a m on g su ch a
con stitu en cy w a s n ot qu ite so str on gly h eld
(88 per cen t, w ith 23 per cen t str on gly a gr eed).
A diver gen ce of opin ion occu r r ed between
gr ou ps of r espon den ts w ith r espect to th e
exten t to wh ich th e w ish es of th e w ider com m u n ity sh ou ld be ta ken in to a ccou n t. Th er e
w a s a clea r in dica tion fr om 66 per cen t of th e
r espon den ts th a t lon g-ter m pla n n in g sh ou ld
r eflect th e n eeds of th e loca l com m u n ity,
a lth ou gh 29 per cen t of th e h ea ds str essed th e
im por ta n ce of m a in ta in in g a ba la n ce between
specific sch ool a n d com m u n ity in ter ests, w ith
lea der sh ip defin itely com in g fr om th e sch ool.
Th is clea r ly h a s im plication s for th e n a tu r e of
decision m a k in g at boa r d level, especia lly in
th ose ca ses wh er e sign ifica n t r epr esen ta tion
fr om th e loca l com m u n ity is pr esen t.
Leadership and planning
Th er e w a s r a th er less a gr eem en t w ith r espect
to th e a u th or ity wh ich th e h ea d m igh t com m a n d in th e deter m in a tion of th e dir ection
a n d fu tu r e pla n s for th e sch ool. Wh ile a ll
sch ools a ck n ow ledged th e im por ta n ce of
[ 272 ]
str on g lea der sh ip qu a lities in th is r espect,
th er e w a s a diver gen ce of view s between
th ose (27 per cen t) r espon den ts wh o wou ld
r e ga r d on ly th e h ea d a s h avin g th e r espon sibility of iden tifyin g th e fu tu r e
dir ection a n d pla n s for th e sch ool, a n d th e
r em a in der (over 70 per cen t) wh o did n ot
sh a r e th a t view. Th e la tter r espon den ts
fu r th er in dica ted th a t it w a s essen tia l th a t
th e h ea d wor k ed w ith a m a n a gem en t tea m , a s
its ch ief execu tive officer.
Conclusions
Th e da ta ga th er ed th r ou gh th e qu estion n a ir e
su r vey in clu ded a r a n ge of fr ee r espon se
com m en ts wh ich pr ovided in sigh ts in to a
n u m ber of a ddition a l issu es r ela tin g to th e
developm en t pla n n in g pr ocess. Th ey did,
h owever, con fir m th a t, in th e view s of th e
h ea ds, th er e is a h igh r e ga r d for th e va lu e of
th e lon g-ter m pla n n in g pr ocess in in ter n a tion a l sch ools. Th er e is a lso a str on g sen se of
com m itm en t to th e con cept of sch ool developm en t pla n s in th ese in stitu tion s. Th a t th is is
in k eepin g w ith cu r r en t tr en ds in th e USA
a n d in Br ita in is u n su r pr isin g in view of th e
in dica tion in th is su r vey th a t n a tion a ls fr om
th ose cou n tr ies for m a sign ifica n t pa r t of th e
m obile sta ffin g popu la tion in su ch sch ools,
especia lly a t sen ior m a n a gem en t levels.
Th e difficu lties exper ien ced in th e
im plem en ta tion of sch ool developm en t
pla n n in g ca n n ot, h owever, be
u n der estim a ted. Th e pr ovision of a n effective
fr a m ewor k to iden tify th e elem en ts of th e
pr ocedu r es in volved is a m a jor pr ior ity,
wh ich a gr ea t m a jor ity (80 per cen t) of th e
sch ools h ave a ttem pted to a ddr ess. Th e n eed
to en su r e th a t su ch a veh icle is con sisten t
w ith th e sch ool’s ph ilosoph y, a n d m ission
sta tem en t, w a s str essed in th e fr ee r espon se
com m en ts pr ovided by th e h ea ds. Th is h a s
a lso been expr essed elsewh er e a s th e n eed to
en su r e th a t th e style of th e m a n a gem en t
system in a n in ter n a tion a l sch ool is
com pa tible w ith its espou sed va lu e system
(Hayden a n d Th om pson , 1996). Th e
im por ta n ce of th e fu ll su ppor t of th e sch ool
boa r d in th e im plem en ta tion of th e ch a n ge
w a s a lso m en tion ed fr equ en tly by r espon den ts.
Th e im por ta n ce of on goin g com m u n ica tion
w ith th e differ en t a gen cies in volved w ith th e
pr ocess w a s seen to be cr u cia l, especia lly in a
situ a tion wh er e th er e is a h igh tu r n over of
tea ch in g sta ff a n d pa r en ts. Th e pr ovision of
a ppr opr ia te docu m en ta tion , a t r e gu la r in ter va ls, by th e lea der sh ip w a s con sider ed essen tia l.
Given th e m obile sta ffin g str u ctu r e in m a n y
of th e sch ools, th e r ole of sta ff developm en t
P.M.C. Le ggate and
J.J. Tho mpso n
The manage me nt o f
de ve lo pme nt planning in
inte rnatio nal sc ho o ls
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 6 [1 9 9 7 ] 2 6 8 –2 7 3
sh ou ld be seen a s in te gr a l to th e pla n n in g a n d
im plem en ta tion str a te gies. Th is w ill h ave
con sequ en ces for or ga n iza tion a l a n d fin a n cia l pr ovision a s pa r t of th e over a ll sch em e.
Alth ou gh it w a s a n ticipa ted a t th e ou tset
th a t th e m a jor fa ctor s in th e pr ocess of developm en t pla n n in g in in ter n a tion a l sch ools
wou ld h ave cen tr ed on th e disa dva n ta ges of
sh or t-ter m con sider a tion s a r isin g fr om th e
tr a n sien t sta ff, stu den t a n d pa r en ta l bodies, it
is clea r th a t th e belief is w idely h eld, by h ea ds
a t lea st, th a t th e cr ea tion of a r a tion a l fr a m ewor k for pla n n in g a n d im plem en ta tion ,
m a tch ed to ca r efu lly pr ior itized goa ls for
fu tu r e developm en t, m a k in g th e best possible
u se of ava ila ble r esou r ces, is a positive con tr ibu tion to m eetin g th e n eeds of in ter n a tion a l
sch ools.
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