Women in Secondary Education Management

Management theory has developed a great deal since the beginning of management, and has thus not only reflected the management practice but also influenced it. It was not until recently that it has actually started also to include the analysis of the position of women in management. Women with their typical characteristics – including a subtle combination of responsibility, sensibility, persistence and feminine sophistication – have become an inevitable part of today’s economic and social life. In this paper we decided to research the field of education in terms of women working as headmistresses/principals. While presenting the position of women in school management, we devoted my special attention to specific problems of women managers connected with the following stereotypes: the stereotypical connection of men and management, the ‘labelling’ of women managers as members of some kind of minority, their reconciliation of private and business life, as well as the overloaded and stressful life (of women managers).