Glossary

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A B C D E F G H I L M N O P Q R S T U V W Z
  • DEFINITION

    Teacher management is a component of human resources management, defined as the search for the best possible match between human resources and the needs of an
    organisation, in terms of quantity and quality. Teacher management functions include recruitment, training and motivation of personnel, their deployment and the establishment of staffing norms, wage negotiations and organisation of pay, follow up and evaluation of performance, planning of future needs, the development of communication systems or yet again making opportunities available for personal and professional development (Best, Tournier, and Chimier, 2018: 2).

    Best, A.; Tournier, B.; Chimier, C. 2018. Topical questions on teacher management. Paris: IIEP-UNESCO.

    EXAMPLE OF USE

    IIEP advocates a systematic and professional approach to managing human resources in education, which it considers crucial to the success of an education system. Countries have to devise mechanisms to develop and implement a  comprehensive,  forward-looking, and genuine HRM approach in the education sector. Attention also needs to be given to the everyday routine management activities that continue to be characterized by delays, lack of transparency, favouritism, etc., and thus constitute a major source of teacher dissatisfaction and disengagement. Attempts to improve teacher management need to start with a careful diagnosis of the main current problems that a  country is facing in this area.  Some  problems  require new management policy choices concerning, for instance, the training, career structure, or utilization of teachers and other staff (IIEP-UNESCO, 2012: 92).

    IIEP-UNESCO; OECD; CELE. 2012. Guidelines for Capacity Development in Education Policy Planning and Resource Management. Paris: IIEP-UNESCO. 

  • DEFINITION

    Planning of [teaching] manpower provision.

    UNESCO Thesaurus.

    EXAMPLE OF USE

    Both recruiting and source countries should manage teacher supply and demand within the context of organized recruitment which includes effective strategies to improve the attractiveness of teaching as a profession and to ensure the recruitment and retention of teachers in areas of strategic importance (ILO, 2012:14).

    ILO. 2012. Handbook of good human resource practices in the teaching profession. Geneva, International Labour Organization.

     

  • DEFINITION

    Decision by the competent authority to assign teachers to an educational institution other than the one they are currently working at.

    EXAMPLE OF USE

    Teacher transfers have not been common in Indonesia, so the adoption of effective transfer systems at district level would be crucial. For instance, the Education Office in the district of Gorontalo identified 634 of its 5,000 teachers who could be redeployed, and implemented measures such as merging small schools, introducing multigrade teaching in schools with fewer than 90 students and providing incentives for teachers to move to remote schools (UNESCO, 2014: 253).

  • DEFINITION

    Utilisation rate the actual number of teaching hours compared to the theoretical duration of use: U. T. = (actual number of periods taught divided by theoretical number of periods to be taught on school premises) x 100. Example: If, in theory, each classroom can be used for 50 instructional periods per week, and if that room is used for just 25 periods per week, its utilisation rate is (25/50) x 100 = 50 %. This means that the number of pupils could double without having to build a new classroom. This rate can be calculated for each room, for each type of room (general education or specialised instruction) or for the whole set of classrooms in a school. It is hard to push a utilisation rate beyond 80 %, due to the difficulties in organising timetables for the different courses. Furthermore, this is not advisable: if the rate is 80 % utilisation, this already means dropping the principle of each class having its own classroom. Having said that, it is indispensable to leave one classroom free at all times so that pupils can use it for study during free periods (IIEP definition). , Optimal teacher utilization means the use of teachers in a way that responds to both the needs and constraints of the education system and teachers' own capacities and aspirations (Göttelman-Duret, 2000: 9).

    EXAMPLE OF USE

    Drawing upon the results of relevant studies and reports on several developing countries, the monograph explores, in particular, two central aspects of efficient teacher utilization: the first relates to optimal staff allocation i.e. how to make sure that teachers, especially qualified and experienced, are deployed to where they are most needed, at the same time, taking into account their individual characteristics and preferences; the second crucial aspect of optimizing the utilization of teachers concerns the enhancing of teacher's commitment to quality-seeking and self-development through appropriate career patterns, promotion systems and other incentives (Thompson, 1995: vii).

  • DEFINITION

    Tertiary education builds on secondary education, providing learning activities in specialized fields of education. It aims at learning at a high level of complexity and specialization. Tertiary education includes what is commonly understood as academic education but also includes advanced vocational or professional education (ISCED levels 5 to 8).

    UNESCO-UIS. 2012. International Standard Classification of Education. ISCED 2011. Montreal: UNESCO-UIS

    EXAMPLE OF USE

    Tertiary education opportunities for refugees are not a luxury. They provide young refugees and their families with an opportunity for increased self-reliance through gainful employment. The prospect of participation in tertiary education contributes to greater primary and secondary enrolment and retention (UNHCR, 2015a). Tertiary education has ‘a greater potential than other levels of education to ... enhance the strategic choices that refugees make’ (Dryden-Peterson and Giles, 2010, p. 4) and to nurture a generation of change-makers who can take the lead in identifying sustainable solutions to refugee situations. (UNESCO, 2019: 150).

    UNESCO 2018. Global education monitoring report, 2019: Migration, displacement, and education: building bridges, not walls. Paris: UNESCO

     

  • DEFINITION

    Transferable skills include the ability to solve problems, communicate ideas and information effectively, be creative, show leadership and conscientiousness, and demonstrate entrepreneurial capabilities. People need these skills to be able to adapt to different work environments and so improve their chances of staying in gainful employment.

    UNESCO. 2012. EFA global monitoring report, 2012.Youth and skills putting education to work, summary. Paris: UNESCO

    EXAMPLE OF USE

    Employers want assurances that young people applying for jobs have at least strong foundation skills and can deploy their knowledge to solve problems, take the initiative and communicate with team members, rather than just follow prescribed routines. These ‘transferable skills’ are not taught from a textbook but can be acquired through good quality education. Yet employers often indicate that these skills are lacking in new recruits to the labour market ( UNESCO 2012:27).

    UNESCO. 2012. EFA global monitoring report, 2012. Youth and skills putting education to work, summary. Paris: UNESCO