Title:

Integrating Local Authority Children's Services-Living values of judgement as a leader and manager involved in educational inclusion

Abstract: (Your abstract must use 10pt Arial font and must not be longer than this box)

Background and Relevance to BERA members

There are numerous and rapid changes taking place in education and Children's Services across the country in a response to the Governments 'Every Child Matters' strategy. The possibility of having to work to other agencies priorities etc leaves individuals facing 'culture change' and emotions can come to the surface. Researching my work in education with a responsibility for inclusion is fraught with tensions and dilemmas. Much of the work is value based; balancing the needs of the individual with those of the collective. As a leader and manager, I am researching my work within a complex psychosocial environment and, in doing so, I am searching for standards of judgement that will be comprehensible to BERA members and that enable me to feel confident that I am doing a good job in developing my research-based professionalism.

Research questions; Foci of enquiry

The research questions centre on how I, as a leader and manager, can facilitate change towards improved integrated working between professionals, to the benefit of children and young people. The focus of the enquiry is into my role as a leader and manger as I 'hold' my teams during the journey; to prevent them taking flight back to stability or fighting against an overwhelming fear of entering chaos. In doing so, I must understand what it is that I do that can help or hinder. What are my values in the 'culture change'? Can I live my values? How do I know I'm doing the right thing?

Research methods

The research methods include stakeholder analysis (Burgoyne, 1994) with the specific technique of semi-structured interviews and participant observation. They include the living theory narrative enquiry approach advocated by McNiff (2006) for researching questions into improving practice. They include the methods for enhancing rigour advocated by Winter (1989) and Habermas' (1976) approach to social validity.

Analytical and Theoretical frameworks

A significant feature of the analytic framework generated in the research is the inclusion of reflection on the process and personal experiences of the researcher, not only during the data-gathering period but also through the analysis, writing up and beyond (Holliday 2002). The

Significance

During my research for my master's degree (Harrisson 2006) it became clear to me that the tangible features of team working were deliverable. However, the less tangible features, such as maintaining and developing relationships, seemed to be significant to success. 'People factors', such as feeling valued, being able to express and manage emotions and respecting each others values were at the forefront of the majority of participants hopes and fears (as well as mine!). Reflecting on the process and outcomes, it became clear that in my role as leader and manager I would have to live my values explicitly and genuinely whilst 'holding' others. This gave rise to a further question, 'What standards do I have to judge my success?' The significance of these values, in standards of judgment will be related to the learning outcomes from the BERA Practitioner-Researcher 2006-7 e-seminar on the standards of judgment that are appropriate for assessing the quality and validity of the knowledge created by practitioner-researchers. These are of significance for those in schools and education authorities seeking to hold themselves publicly accountable to educational, as well as education, standards.

References

Burgoyne J.G.(1994) Stakeholder Analysis in Cassell C & Symon G (1994) Qualitative methods in organizational research. Sage Publications. London.

Drew S. and Coulson-Thomas C. (1996) Transformation Through Teamwork: The Path To The New Organisation? Management Decision. Vol.34 No. 1 pp 7-17. MCB University Press.

Dryden W. (1995) Brief Rational Emotive Therapy. Wiley. Chichester.

Habermas, J. (1976) Communication And The Evolution of Society. London; Heinemann.

Harrisson, N. (2005) Integrated Local Authority Children's Services: A critical review. MA Dissertation, University of The West of England. Retrieved 18 January 2007 from http://jackwhitehead.com/B&NES/nhma.pdf

Holiday A. (2002) Doing and Writing Qualitative Research. Sage. London.

Johnson D.W. and Johnson F.P.(1987) Joining Together: Group Theory And Group Skills. Prentice-Hall international editions. New Jersey.

Lewis R. (1994) From Chaos to Complexity Implications For Organisations. Executive Development Vol. 7 No 4.

McNiff, J. (2006) My Story Is My Living Educational Theory, in Clandinin, J. (Ed.) (2006) Handbook of Narrative Inquiry: Mapping the Methodology. London, New York; Sage.

Whitehead, J. & McNiff, J. (2006) Action Research Living Theory. London; Sage.

Winter, R. (1989) Learning From Experience. London; Falmer.