ABSTRACT
The view that managing is an activity of those at the top of the hierarchy is understandable since successive Burnham awards have created in schools a responsibility structure which is clearly hierarchical. It is clear that the awards and the structure created have been implicitly based on a management theory derived from the concepts of scientific management and bureaucracy. Classical management theory is prescriptive and tends to advocate a more rigid form of organisation than is appropriate to present needs. The flag of the advocates of universal principles of management has been carried forward by many disciples. This chapter discusses that many of the beliefs about how schools can be managed derive from classical management theory and have questioned some of the implicit assumptions which underpin a rational approach to management. It highlights the importance of the teacher's perceptions and personality in determining how he behaves.
