Applying a knowledge management taxonomy to secondary schools

The purpose of this article is to examine the relevance of a corporate-based taxonomy of knowledge management to secondary schooling. Do the principles of knowledge management from the corporate world translate to the world of education; specifically, secondary schooling? This article examines categories of knowledge management articulated in Michael Earl's corporate-based taxonomy of knowledge management and seeks to determine their degree of applicability to knowledge management in secondary schooling. It is found that, on the whole, many of the categories not only have relevance to secondary schooling, but are already in use in secondary schools. This article will enable principals to examine their own knowledge practices within their schools, with a view to optimising such strategies to improve school performance through practical actions.