Leading the Strategically Focused School by Brent Davies

Leading the Strategically Focused School by Brent Davies

Leaders need to consider the 'now' of school improvement and also how to build strategic capability within the school in order to ensure long-term success and sustainability. Drawing upon research conducted by the National College for School Leadership, this book examines how this can be done. It is suitable for school leaders.

′One of the great things about Brent Davies’ books is that they combine rigorous research with practical realityLeading the Strategically Focused School is no exception. Indeed in this text Brent has surpassed himself in drawing on the two decades of research underpinning his concept of Strategic Leadership and then relating it to the current perceptions of school leaders. The result is a book that resonates with common sense but that is disciplined by the insight of someone in command of his field. This is not a book with easy answers, we have too many of those, but one that captures the holism of contemporary leadership, makes you think and leads to informed action′ - Professor David Hopkins, HSBC Chair of International Leadership, and formerly Chief Adviser on School Standards to the Secretary of State 2002-2005

′Brent Davies is now established as the pre-eminent scholar on strategic leadership in schools. This book contains a balanced critique of the existing literature and breaks new ground in tackling the critical issue of how strategic leadership can be sustained. As in all his work, he draws widely from the experience of successful practitioners, and this ensures its credibility and instils confidence in those who are embarking on a career in school leadership′ - Professor Brian Caldwell, Associate Director-Global, International Networking for Educational Transformation, and Managing Director, Educational Transformations

′Brent Davies tackles the much misunderstood and abused concept of strategy and gets great results. Linking strategy with sustainability, Leading the Strategically Focused School is full of wonderful conceptual tools, and practical case vignettes. This book is both conceptual and practical, and takes all the excuses off the table. An inspiration and invitation to take action for the good of all′ - Michael Fullan, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto

′I recommend the book to anyone who is, or who aspires to be, a leader in schools, as it makes an important contribution to the thinking required to achieve cohesive, strategic approaches to the running of schools based upon sound practical experience′ - Brian Roberts, Editor, International Journal of Educational Management

′Too many organisations are over-managed and underled. There′s a lot of good advice here, not least by creating in the staffroom and the corridor a culture of casual but always professional conversation. Schools that talk about their work are halfway there.′ - Michael Duffy, Times Educational Supplement

′Books on management can be a very dry read. Often, management books are not attuned to the issues and unique setting that is a modern day school. This book, however, is neither dry nor out of touch with the needs of management in 21st century schools ... The book leads a novice manager and leader through an understanding of what strategic management and leadership is ... its core messages and practical guidance will undoubtedly help the reader′ - ESCalate

′Davies′ style is lucid, pithy, well written and wonderfully accessible to busy school leaders, who wish to develop a thoughtful, successful approach to improving their schools′ - Management in Education

′There is much more in this book than it′s possible to describe in a brief review....For me as a reviewer there′s cause to think more critically about measures of school success. You can′t ask for much more from a book than that it contributes and extends your own thinking. It will have a similar effect on all who read it′ - Tim Brighouse, School Leadership & Management

′Professor Davies has an enviable capacity to write engagingly and he is one of those all-too-rare educational writers whose theory springs from the close and discerning observation of practice. His distinctive academic contribution to the field of educational leadership has been to focus on the ′strategic′ but always illustrating the points he makes with a vivid story′ - Principal Matters

Dr Brent Davies is Professor of International Leadership Development at the University of Hull . He is also a Professorial Fellow at the University of Melbourne, Visiting Professor at the Institute of Education (University of London), Special Professor at the University of Nottingham and a Faculty Member of the Centre on Educational Governance at the University of Southern California. He is an Associate Director of the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust.  Brent spent the first ten years of his career working as a teacher in South London. He then moved into higher education and now works exclusively on leadership and management development programmes for senior and middle managers in schools. He was Director of the International MBA in School Leadership at Leeds Metropolitan University. He then took up a post at the University of Lincolnshire and Humberside to establish the first Chair in Educational Leadership and create the International Educational Leadership Centre in Lincoln. He moved to the University of Hull in 2000 to establish the International Leadership Centre. In 2004 he transferred within the University to become a research professor in leadership development at the Hull University Business School.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9781412911917
ISBN 10	1412911915
Title	Leading the Strategically Focused School
Author	Brent Davies
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Paperback
Publisher	SAGE Publications Inc
Year published	2006-03-21
Number of pages	192
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.