The role and responsibilities of a subject leader in secondary school Essay

The role and responsibilities of a subject leader in secondary school - Essay Example Subject leaders are responsible for meeting the needs of all pupils in their area of work through planning that emphasises individual needs; through teaching that recognises the importance of clear learning objectives and high expectations for all pupils; through assessment that informs planning and learning; through close collaboration with other staff in devising and implementing individual education plans, and through the deployment of staff and resources as determined by pupils' needs. This places a particular responsibility on subject leaders to develop and agree systems and procedures with other members of the team. (Green, 2004) Effective leaders motivate and support all those efforts that are involved in teaching and learning in their subject or area of work. This includes recognising and acknowledging the contributions of others, building and maintaining a team with clear aims, clear goals direction and targets, and helping others and self to set and meet appropriate professional development targets. Leaders possess the responsibility for monitoring and evaluating the effectiveness of teaching and learning in their subject or area of work, in particular to help set targets for pupil and staff performance, and determine any priorities in relation to the subject or area of work. ... size of the school or college and in many smaller schools the head teacher may retain a major responsibility for monitoring and evaluating both pupil and staff performance. The subject leader still want to use evidence of pupils' achievement and start developing plans to set targets and looks forward for improvement. (Holden et al, 2000) Subject leaders need to be confident about and have expertise in their subject or area of work in terms both of knowledge and understanding and of pedagogy. Subject Leaders Accountability Subject leaders are accountable for performance within their particular subject area. They are accountable to pupils, parents, colleagues and the senior management team of the school in which they work. (Green, 2004) "Accountability" as the term is used today refers to the belief that teachers and schools should answer to the public for the academic achievement of students. Indicators are used to represent what and how much students have learned. Following this line of reasoning, it makes perfect sense to design assessments that can be used to measure student outcomes and to infer teacher and school competence from these reported outcomes. Consequently, accountability becomes operational through the administration of tests that serve as mechanisms to audit the performance of teachers and schools. According to Bernauer, "School leaders must effect certain school-level changes as a precondition for ongoing improvement, particularly in regard to the allocation of time; that is, in order for dialogue to be productive, it must not only be focused but also be a regular component of the school day. Adequate instructional time must also be available if the results of dialogue are to be effectively transformed and delivered in the classroom. While there