Effective School Management

3
Motivating People
MOTIVATION
‘Motivation’ can be defined as ‘getting results through people’ or ‘getting the
best out of people’. The second definition is slightly preferable, since ‘the
best’ which people can offer is not necessarily synonymous with ‘the results’
which we might initially want from them, though it should be in line with the
overall goals and ethos of the school or college.
As Peters and Waterman (1995) say: ‘Management’s principal job is to get
the herd heading roughly west.’ A head of an English department may, for
example, have fairly strong feelings about the choice of set books. However,
if he or she wishes to get the best out of the teacher responsible for taking the
class, he or she should at least allow his or her own choice to be modified by
the teacher’s preference. Both should be asking what is in the best interests of
the pupils.
In motivating people we should be concerned with the needs and
potential of three parties:
(1) The group which we are managing or in which we manage.
(2) The individuals who make up that group.
(3) The ‘clients’ (pupils, parents, etc.) of the school, college or other
organization in which we all work.
A fundamental mistake is to forget that people are best motivated to work
towards goals that they have been involved in setting and to which they
therefore feel committed. If people do not feel committed towards a given
result or activity, the only motivations at our disposal are those of the carrot
and stick – reward and punishment. We therefore have to be prepared to
modify our own initial perceptions of what is required. Some people have a
strong ‘internal’ motivation – a sense of purpose or drive. Others do not.
WHOM DO WE NEED TO MOTIVATE?
In a hierarchical organization, subordinates are obvious candidates for
‘motivation’. However, it is even more important to be able to motivate

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2 6
EFFECTIVE SCHOOL MANAGEMENT
equals and superiors. In the last resort, we can tell a junior member of our
department what he or she is to do, but we have no such power with a
schoolteacher who is our equal and even less with the headteacher, chair of
governors or local education officer. Here we are in much more of a ‘selling’
role and, like all good salespeople, must be very aware of the benefits that
will accrue to our customer.
A cynical – but often true – maxim is: ‘There is nothing I cannot achieve
provided that my boss gets the credit for it!’
SATISFYING NEEDS
People work in order to satisfy some need. The need may be to achieve fame
or power, to serve other people or simply to earn the money to live. It may
even be the rather negative need to avoid punishment.
Most motivational theorists have therefore concentrated their attention on
(1) examining human needs; and
(2) considering how the needs are met and can be better met in work.
People work at their best when they are achieving the greatest satisfaction
from their work.
MASLOW’S HIERARCHY OF NEEDS
Maslow (1943) suggested that it was useful to think of human needs as being
at different levels in a hierarchy – see Figure 3.1. The principle behind the
hierarchy is that, starting from the bottom, the needs at each level have to be
satisfied to some extent before we think about needs at the next level up.
SELF-REALIZATION
Achievement
Psychological growth
EGO
Status
Respect
Prestige
SOCIAL
Friendship, group acceptance
Love
SECURITY
Freedom from danger
Freedom from want
PSYCHOLOGICAL
Food, drink, shelter, sex,
warmth, physical comfort