British Journal of Education Vol.6, No.10, pp.15-23, October 2018 ___Published by European Centre for Research Training and Development UK (www.eajournals.org) 15 Print ISSN: 2054-6351, Online ISN: 2054-636X THE CONTRIBUTION OF EDUCATION STAFF TRAINING TO CRISIS MANAGEMENT AMONG TEACHERS: A CASE STUDY OF THE PREFECTURE OF ILIA Zoe Karanikola, Kousavelos Nikos and Georgios Panagiotopoulos Technological Educational Institution of Western Greece ABSTRACT: The purpose of the present study is to investigate the views of the directors and deputy directors of the schools in the prefecture of Ilia regarding their training and its contribution to crisis management among teachers. The sample of the survey consisted of 61 directors and deputy directors (out of a total of 79) of the elementary schools of the prefecture of Ilia. Quantitative methodology was used to analyze the data (Frequency method), while the internal cohesion index (Cronbach) was checked. According to the findings, the vast majority of the sample has faced some forms of crisis among teachers and considers that the most common type of crises is interpersonal. Directors and deputy directors believe that the main causes of crises are the individual factors, the style of management and the organizational weakness. Finally, the overwhelming majority of the sample argues that the manager needs to have specialized knowledge on crisis management issues between colleagues and therefore the training of education staff on these issues becomes necessary and obligatory. KEYWORDS: Training, Crisis Management, Manager, Deputy Director. INTRODUCTION It is commonly accepted that one of the key factors in shaping school reality and the school climate is the education staff. Education staff are those who have an administrative, disciplinary, supervisory and guidance role in the education system. According to the existing legislation, the directors and deputy directors of the school units are called to play this role (Georgogiannis, Piga & Kouneli, 2005: 56). The main axes influencing their role are the socio- economic environment of the school, the legislative framework, the pupil's potential and, of course, the teaching staff of these schools. However, provoking unexpected situations or conflicts among teachers can often alter the smooth functioning of the school and show events that determine the beginning of a crisis that can put the school community out of control. Therefore, the main skills that directors should develop is understanding and considering the school as a living organism, where the human factor is the key to its balance and smooth functioning. Therefore, it is necessary for all directors to be trained, to develop their knowledge and skills, to obtain effective school crisis management strategies and to maintain a positive climate in school (Saiti, 2015). This present work deals with the exploration of the views of the directors and deputy directors of the school units of the prefecture of Ilia regarding the training and its contribution to crisis management among teachers, as evidenced both by bibliographic review and by empirical research.