What’s in it for you?

Ian Mifsud and Kenneth Vella talk about the benefits of the Malta Society for Educational Administration and Management for all educators.

Just over 11 years ago, the Malta Society for Educational Administration and Management (MSEAM) was set up. It was a dream come true not only for the initial founders but also for many others who joined it and have attended the varied activities it has organised.

It was set up at a time when the Maltese education authorities were spearheading reforms focusing on decentralising greater responsibilities to the school site. Now, we have moved one step further through the setting-up of the State College network system.

This welcome move brings with it the need to study, understand, train and learn the knowledge, skills and attitudes required to manage and lead our educational institutions. No mean feat.

Giving educators greater authority and, therefore, responsibility to lead their schools into the 21st century raises implications not only for those directly involved in schools but also those who are there to support and supervise, such as the Education Directorates, and those involved in the running of management training programmes and courses, that is, the Faculty of Education.

MSEAM caters to a wide spectrum of people. It aims first to advance the practice and encourage the research of educational administration and management in Malta. It also provides a forum for discussion in the field of educational administration, and facilitates the dissemination of knowledge about research, training and good practice in the area.

MSEAM aims to link theory and practice in management and leadership by encouraging fruitful collaboration between those engaged in teaching and research and those who are existing educational leaders. It also attempts to establish and maintain close contact with other bodies concerned with education in Malta and worldwide, and foster high standards in the study, practice and preparation of educational leaders.

MSEAM is the local body within the Commonwealth Council for Educational Administration and Management which was founded in 1972 as an imaginative response to the needs of the Commonwealth countries as educational management be­came an important discipline.

Over the past few months, MSEAM organised four talks focusing on topics of direct relevance to school members.

The first, dealt with the issue of cybercrime. A member of the Cyber Crime Unit within the Malta Police Force gave a talk on cyber-bullying, invasion of privacy, distribution of pornographic material over portable devices and misuse of ‘social communities’.

This is a new area for quite a number of educators and the presentation helped stimulate a discussion that illustrated the importance and sensitivity of the area and showed that all educators need to be made aware of how to react in such circumstances.

The second talk was entitled ‘Education … what for?’ This talk, given by the co-author of this article, Ian Mifsud, who is a current PhD candidate at the University of Lincoln in the UK, challenged participants to stop and reflect, so as to revisit the actual purpose of education. How it helps us to provide all students, not just a select few, with a quality education was the key question raised and addressed.

The third talk focused on the collaboration of schools. Mario Cutajar, an MSEAM board member and PhD student at Bath University, presented a paper on a topic of interest to us locally, given the educational reforms currently underway.

It presented research work carried out as part of his studies on the importance behind collaboration to create a culture of synergy as envisaged by the network system that has been introduced.

The fourth talk on education and the law attracted quite a lot of attention and reactions from the participants. The speaker, Dr Stephen Zammit, then legal adviser within the Ministry of Education, informed participants on legal issues currently affecting education, particularly educational leaders.

The critical question posed was that of personal and professional rights versus legal obligations and liabilities and asked what was in it for educators. This presentation showed how important it is for school leaders to know the legal boundaries within which they are working. The debate that ensued showed the need for more sessions in this area.

Those interested in learning more about the Society and finding out how they can benefit through its membership are encouraged to visit the newly launched website www.mseam. info or e-mail the secretary on contact@mseam.info.

Mr Mifsud and Mr Vella are PROs of MSEAM.