Master of Arts (Educational Management)

Many researchers have found that the school image is important in the survival of the school system. As the saying goes, "First impressions last". So, in line with the saying, schools that project their image well are able to maintain good relationships with the community. The support they receive from pupils, parents and neighbourhood residents' committee helps them in many ways. The programme of the school has to cater to the needs of the public. Schools should change and keep up with emerging trends. Research has shown that the leadership in school plays an important role in building and maintaining a school image.

Studies have shown that choices made by parents on the school for their children depend heavily on what they expect from the school. They tend to look for schools with a rich tradition and good reputation. Thus the choice of enrolling their children in a new school depends on not just the quality of the facilities of the new and fully-equipped building but also on what the school can offer in its first few years. If the school is unable to meet the parents' expectations, the number of pupils requesting for transfer will increase. The school has a responsibility to maintain its pupil enrolment and at the same time, try to increase its annual intake.

In order to explore ideas to solve the image problem of schools that has been stated, the study sought evidence on the use of marketing strategies in education on customer retention and increase in demand to see if what works well for private enterprises in the service industries would be applicable to schools. Schools are compared with service industries as teachers provide educational services to the pupils and parents and they who regarded as customers or consumers.

The present study found that many teachers felt that they have a duty to educate the young in the community. Not every member of the public has been satisfied with the service provided by the teachers even though they may have tried their best. It is in such times that school leaders need to intervene with appropriate actions. In the study, the public survey revealed that parents wished to have a better working relationships with the neighbourhood school.

Results of the interviews and surveys before the implementation showed that the school has a vision and a mission to serve the community. The principal and his middle managers helped to implement the school plan, monitor the teachers' progress and also maintain contact with the public. After the implementation, a general survey was conducted to seek feedback on the English/Mathematics and Mother Tongue programmes of the school. Parents who were surveyed during the open house showed that they were generally satisfied with the organization of the school but would want to be more involved in the programmes.

The purpose of this study was to explore how strategic marketing management concepts might be introduced to kindergartens and childcare centres. Fifty respondents that included parents, teachers, supervisors and experts (lecturers, preschool franchise managers, childcare officers, and school inspectors) participated in a survey that examined three key areas, namely, the product mix, the strategic educational management mix, and the ethics of using business/marketing concepts in educational management. Causal comparative studies were carried out, using SPSS (Version 9) for data analyses. From amongst a list of 15 preschool activities in the product mix, thinking skills, reading moral education and outdoor play were the top four most important activities in the product mix rate and ranked by the respondents. Similarly, homework and computer lessons were rated and ranked as the least important. The concept of a strategic educational management mix comprising 14 strategies/objectives was proposed. Significant differences were found between how deeply respondents valued the strategies/objectives and the extent of their beliefs that pre-schools in Singapore have actually achieved in each. When faced with dichotomous decision making situations with respect to the ethical adoption of business/marketing concepts in educational management, the respondents' positions were found to be consistently in favour of not adopting business marketing concepts.

This study used the action research design to examine what the factors are that will influence the primary six pupils of Kuo Chuan Presbyterian Primary School (KCPPS) and their parents in their opting for a secondary school. It examines the theory of the marketing of schools and how it can be applied to help schools. The findings can also help a practicing principal of a secondary school in the marketing of his/her own school.

This study is a follow-up of Chew et al’s Diploma in Educational Administration (DEA) Project entitled A Preliminary Marketing Study : Kuo Chuan Presbyterian Secondary School. This DEA project studied the factors within a school that would attract primary school pupils and their parents to choose the school for secondary school education. Chew et al’s project targeted secondary one pupils of Kuo Chuan Presbyterian Secondary School (KCPSS) for their study.

This current research study targeted the primary six pupils instead. For this research, data was collected through the use of a modified survey questionnaire used by Chew et al in their project. The survey questionnaire was given to every primary six pupils of KCPPS for the year 2001. A separate section of the survey questionnaire was given to the parents of the pupils to fill in. The results obtained from the pupils were compared to those obtained from their parents. Data was also collected through group interviews of the pupils.

The study showed that the majority of pupils in KCPPS come from Bishan area in which the school is situated. The biggest group of pupils was from the EM2 stream.

Factors that were considered important by the pupils and their parents in opting for a secondary school were : how well the school was performing academically, whether the school emphasized a well-rounded education, the distance of the school from home, whether the school had good qualities, whether the school had good discipline and whether the school had a friendly and caring environment.

A school principal planning to market his/her school could using the findings from this study to focus on the areas that the target audience consider to be important.