Education Commons^™

Real Change Is Real Hard: The Challenge Of Transforming School Systems, David Alan Dolph

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

Since 1983 when the National Commission on Excellence in Education published A Nation at Risk, school systems have been the target of calls for change. Proposed reforms have ranged from large- scale efforts focused on accountability and high-stakes testing to more targeted issues such as inclusion, vouchers, technology, and differentiated instruction.

Whether the changes that have been implemented can be judged as truly transformational or as large-scale tinkering remains to be seen. Nevertheless, since school systems have been and will continue to be the object of change efforts, this article offers food for thought for school business officials and other …

Status Of Women In Higher Education: A Metanalysis Of Institutional Reports, Kathleen Brittamart Watters, Carolyn Ridenour

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

The authors examined twenty-one institutional reports on the status of women on American college and university campuses. The analysis revealed a dominant discourse of women positioned as dependent on men. Among the five emergent themes included, first, the reality that women were marginalized on these campuses and second, overrepresented in lower power positions. Third, evidence suggested an unequal distribution of salary and perquisites by gender. Fourth, adopting policies toward equity can lessen gender discrimination; however, not with a lack of a strong public and visible commitment to equity by campus leadership, the fifth theme. Additional findings include explanation of three …

Same-Sex Marriage And Public School Curricula: Preserving Parental Rights To Direct The Education Of Their Children, Charles J. Russo

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

The Development And Validation Of The Elementary School Ethical Climate Index, Kay Anne Keiser, Laura E. Schulte

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

The purposes of this study were to develop and validate an instrument that measures the ethical climate of elementary schools. To create the Elementary School Ethical Climate Index (ESECI), we adapted the ethical climate index for middle and high schools. The ESECI assesses student and teacher interactions and relationships through the application of five ethical principles: respect for autonomy, nonmaleficence, beneficence, justice, and fidelity (Kitchener, 1984, 1985). To provide evidence of the ESECI’s reliability and validity we distributed the ESECI to the students and teachers/staff at one urban elementary school in a Midwestern city. There was a significant difference in …

Myths And Poor Policy Affecting The Future Of School Superintendents, Theodore J. Kowalski

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

Across the country, state policymakers are acting to weaken professional standards for school superintendents. Nine states no longer require a license for this position and among the remaining 41 states, over half (54%, including Ohio) have provisions for waivers or emergency certificates and 15 states (37%, including Ohio) sanction alternative preparation programs for licensure (Feistritzer, 2003). Sadly, this trend toward de-professionalizing the most influential position in public education is being fueled by myths and unless it is curtailed, it will seriously damage our public education system.

The Levy Process And Your Constituents: Know The Issues, David Alan Dolph

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

School levies and bond issues have dramatically increased across the country. State funding formulas that limit inflationary growth in revenue, more man- dates that require additional resources, and changes in tax laws all contribute to this growing phenomenon.

More and more, school boards are turning to their constituents for financial support through the levy process. School business officials and other education leaders are looking at a variety of approaches and techniques for increasing the likelihood of voters’ approving levies. One technique is to survey constituents to determine the issues foremost on their minds. Data collected through statistically accurate survey techniques …

School Reform Strategies And Normative Expectations For Democratic Leadership In The Superintendency, George J. Peterson, Theodore J. Kowalski

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

The concept of democratic leadership emerged in the early decades of the twentieth century in response to the effects of social change on schools and to growing dissatisfaction with autocratic management. One of its most prominent advocates was John Dewey, an eminent philosopher who viewed scientific management’s obsession with efficiency to be detrimental to a well-balanced social interest (Razik & Swanson, 2001). Democratic school administration was not practiced widely, however, until America had suffered a great economic depression circa 1930. After many successful businesses failed, classical theory and scientific management, the philosophical pillars of the Industrial Revolution, lost much of …

Facing An Uncertain Future: An Investigation Of The Preparation And Readiness Of First-Time Superintendents To Lead In A Democratic Society, Theodore J. Kowalski, George J. Peterson, Lance D. Fusarelli

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

The preparation of superintendents is a critical component, an essential element, of systemic education reform, although as (Cooper, Fusarelli, Jackson, & Poster, 2002) observed, “the process is rife with difficulties,” including synchronization of preparation and actual practice, the theory-practice disconnect, the need for life-long learning, and development of an adequate knowledge base (Cooper et al., 2002, p. 242).

The vast majority of research on the efficacy of administrator preparation programs focuses on principals. Most doctoral programs in educational administration serve as de facto preparation programs for superintendents, even though some contain little coursework specifically tailored for the position (Andrews & …

Role Expectations Of The District Superintendent: Implications For Deregulating Preparation And Licensing, Theodore J. Kowalski, Lars G. Björk

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

At this juncture when policymakers are being asked to choose between deregulation and reform, problems affecting the superintendency need to be framed appropriately and policy decisions need to be based on evidence and not raw politics or emotion. Deregulating a profession clearly is a serious matter that is prudent either when the need for the state to protect the public from practitioners is no longer valid or when the underlying knowledge has been found to be fraudulent or irrelevant (Kowalski, 2004). This paper identifies role expectations and position requirements that have evolved for school district superintendents over the past 100 …

School Choice: Structured Through Markets And Morality, Thomas J. Lasley, Carolyn Ridenour

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

School choice is increasingly promulgated as a promising education reform policy for failing urban schools, but no solid evidence has yet shown the promise fulfilled. The authors argue that choice based on market theory without a moral center is insufficient. Without a moral foundation, such market-driven choice programs may actually disadvantage some children further. A market approach, absent a moral perspective, fails to encompass all the necessary dimensions for an educational system that can fulfill the traditional commitment to the common good and effectively serve all urban children, their families, and society. Six moral principles are offered along with examples …

Developing Policy For Part-Time School Administration Faculty, Theodore J. Kowalski

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

This inquiry is an analysis of the trend toward infusing practitioners into the preparation of school administrators. Motives for increasing the number of part-time employees in higher education are identified and specific problems associated with the deployment of these instructors are discussed. The argument is made that the merits of this trend depend on the extent to which department policy addresses adjunct faculty employment, deployment and development in relation to a reform vision and strategy. Essential policy considerations related to involving practitioners are recommended.

'Divertual' Learning In Education Leadership: Implications Of Teaching Cultural Diversity Online Vs. Face To Face, Carolyn Ridenour, A. Llewellyn Simmons, Timothy J. Ilg, A. William Place

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

What are the consequences of this teaching-learning situation when graduate students in a Department of Educational Leadership are enrolled in a course on cultural diversity? Might the words on the computer screen be completely unrelated to the humanity, personality, style, interpersonal behaviors, and dispositions of the student writing them, as Menand suggests? Or, might the detachment provide a security in which the most honest and unadulterated discourse can be shared between teacher and students, as some proponents hope? In this chapter we explore responses to this dilemma. We attempt to capture this situation in our label: "divertual learning," a neologism …

Evolution Of The School District Superintendent Position, Theodore J. Kowalski

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

Clearly, no issue is currently more crucial to the future of the position of school district superintendent than the battle being fought over professional preparation and state licensing. The intent of licensing professionals is to protect society and not the licensee. Consequently, a decision to deregulate a profession should not be made solely in political arenas in which self- and group interests are more likely to outweigh societal interests. This chapter is grounded in the belief that persons within a profession, regardless of their personal views, have a responsibility to ensure that policy debates of this magnitude will be objective …

Academic Generations: Exploring Intellectual Risk Taking In An Educational Leadership Program, Carolyn Ridenour, Darla J. Twale

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

We examined intellectual risk and risk-taking behavior in educational leadership preparation programs and investigated the intersection of academic generations within a community of practice, that is, doctoral students and faculty. The literature review examines several perspectives on risk and risk-taking which includes cultural milieu and gender and ethnic differences. We offer suggestions for addressing risk and for further research.

Emotional/Behavioral Disorders: A Retrospective Examination Of Social Skills, Linguistics, And Student Outcomes, John W. Hill, Kathy L. Coufal

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

A language-based social skills instruction intervention used to prepare middle and high school students with emotional/behavioral disorders for return to less restrictive public school placements was evaluated. The daily 50-minute intervention focused on repetitive readings, recitations, and role-playing of skill step procedures until students achieved mastery on each required task in five broad dimensions: peer relations, self-management, academic, compliance, and assertion. The students were divided into three groups according to the length of intervention (under 2 years, 2 to 3 years, and more than 3 years). Dependent t tests were used to test the effects of prolonged intervention on past …

The Ongoing War For The Soul Of School Administration, Theodore J. Kowalski

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

The volume in which this essay appears was a response to the book Better Leaders for America’s Schools: A Manifesto, published in 2003 by the the Broad Foundation and the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation. It was created around the premise that America's schools face a crisis in leadership. For America to have the great schools it needs, it contended, schools and their school systems must have great leaders.

The material to which Dr. Kowalski's essay responds is available online here>>>.

The Supreme Court And Pledge Of Allegiance: Does God Still Have A Place In American Schools?, Charles J. Russo

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

The dearth of statistical or anecdotal evidence aside, combined with the relative lack of reported litigation, it appears that most students and teachers regularly participate in perhaps the most common daily school ritual by joining in the patriotic recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance (Pledge) and the salute to the American Flag. Yet, as discussed throughout this article, this daily practice has had a history of controversy, whether in schools or political settings.

Turning specifically to schools, in Newdow v. United States Congress (Newdow), the Ninth Circuit set off a firestorm of controversy when, in a case from California, it …

Review: 'Women In Catholic Higher Education: Border Work, Living Experiences, And Social Justice', Carolyn Ridenour

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

Twelve writers challenge the structures and priorities of traditional Catholic colleges and universities: contemporary “reality TV” for anyone who values social justice in Catholic education. Throughout the book the writers confront the status quo of Catholic universities, questioning even those who have embraced feminist theology. The editors divided the book into three parts with subheadings that overstate their contents: “Feminist Border Work: Tensions and Contradictions” (3 chapters), “Living Experiences: Identity, Empowerment, and Action” (4 chapters), and “Social Justice: The Ideal, the Reality, and the Quest” (3 chapters). Like bookends, the editors have constructed two additional chapters: one at the beginning …

The Sacred And The Secular: Aligning A Marianist Mission With Professional Standards Of Practice In An Educational Leadership Doctorial Program, Darla J. Twale, Carolyn Ridenour

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

This inquiry was conducted to explore how the characteristics of our university’s religious mission are interwoven into our educational leadership doctoral program and are manifest in the structure and learning experiences that our students encounter. We examined how these characteristics might correspond to or relate to the Interstate School Leaders Licensure Consortium (ISLLC) standards that resulted from national reform initiatives in educational leadership in the mid 1990s. We concluded that the foundations of the PhD program are built solidly on the distinctive characteristics and identity of our founders and are aligned with these professional standards as well. Implications for universities …

Today's Threats Prove To Be Tomorrow's Promise: Higher Education In 2027, Theodore J. Kowalski

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

The effects of technology on the instructional mission of this nation's colleges and universities have been both positive and negative. While an estimated two million students, many of whom would not have had access to higher education a few decades ago, are already engaged in distance learning, this gain has been paralleled by a proliferation of inferior, profit-driven institutions and degree programs. Some observers already have predicted the demise of the modem university, claiming that a small number of independent, entrepreneurial scholars and an army of low-paid adjunct instructors using the Web and cable television will replace regular faculties in …

Planning And Managing School Facilities, Theodore J. Kowalski

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

Nearly half of the nation's school buildings need to be renovated or replaced. This book provides a knowledge base for administrators to plan and manage construction projects, and addresses specific planning tasks including public opinion polling, enrollment projections, financial planning, selecting architects and other professionals, and managing facilities once they are operational.

Theodore Kowalski addresses the administrative procedures associated with planning and managing school facilities. As noted at the outset, practitioner interest in school facilities has been growing rapidly in recent years because decades of neglect, poor planning, and cost cutting have created a situation in which large numbers of …

Issues Of Racial, Ethnic, And Gender Diversity In Preparing School Administrators, Carolyn Ridenour, Patricia F. First, Angela Lydon, Michelle C. Partlow

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

The four authors teach in the Department of Educational Leadership at the University of Dayton. Each taught a new course that addressed issues of diversity in schools, focusing on race, ethnicity, and gender. Each developed the course in a unique way and in distinct settings, though each involved:

1. Reflecting holistically on the experience of teaching the course in order to generate common themes explaining what the experience meant to the faculty as individuals and as women (Blackmore & Kenway, 1993).

2. Examining students' work, behaviors, communication, and attitudes in order to infer level of, as well as changes in, …

Cultural Change Paradigms And Administrator Communication, Theodore J. Kowalski

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

Public school reform has taken three distinct turns over the past two decades. In the early 1980s, most policymakers blamed a lack of educational productivity on lazy students. Influenced by this argument, virtually every state legislature enacted laws lengthening the school year, lengthening the school day, and increasing high school graduation requirements. Within a relatively short period of time, however, the would-be reformers concluded that intensification of student experiences was insufficient to produce significant improvements. While not abandoning their original conviction, they shifted their attention to a second target-educators. The result was a flurry of proposals to revise or eliminate …

The Experience And Meaning Of A Marianist Education Today: A National High School Study Of Mission And School Culture, Carolyn Ridenour, Alan Demmitt, Jill L. Lindsey-North

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

Focus groups conducted with students, parents, teachers, and alumni (N=540) at 13 Catholic Marianist high schools provided rich insights into the experience and meaning of the education provided at these institutions. While academic excellence was a common thread woven across meaning given by both parents and teachers, students and alumni articulated a meaning replete with images of belonging. That these schools valued persons holistically (rather than solely academically) permeated most groups. Using theories of organizational culture as the foundation, the relationship between missions and the meaning of life in these schools is discussed.

The School Superintendent: Theory, Practice, And Cases, Theodore J. Kowalski

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

This book provides both theoretical and practical insights into the evolving responsibilities associated with being the chief executive officer of a school system. Treats school administration as a science and a craft involving professional artistry, and examines the position in relation to challenges and potential frustrations and accomplishments. Describes contemporary superintendency in the context of four role conceptualizations (professional educator, business manager, statesman, social scientist). Traces the evolution of each role's expectations and discusses their continued emphasis in current practice. Considers policy development -- with an emphasis on deregulation and decentralization. Focuses on relevant issues, including communication, decision making, ethical …

Prayer At Public School Graduation Ceremonies: Exercise In Futility Or A Teachable Moment?, Charles J. Russo

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

Due to conflicting lower court judgments on the propriety of prayer at public school graduation ceremonies, this question will return to the Supreme Court. This article is divided into three major sections. Part I briefly recites the history of the Establishment Clause and education. Part II examines case law relevant to prayer at public school graduation ceremonies. This section begins with a brief examination of the cases prior to Lee. It next reviews the majority and dissenting opinions in Lee in some detail to show how the diametrically opposed views of Justices Kennedy of the majority and Scalia of the …

Home For The Holidays: A Red-Flag, Carry-In, Reclaiming Intervention, John W. Hill

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

The Organization And Planning Of Adult Education, Theodore J. Kowalski

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

The heightened interest in and the rapid expansion of adult education has become a trend in a variety of environments. In order to serve these developing areas, educators, personnel directors, as well as staff development specialists require improved methods for planning learning activities within their own unique organizational contexts.

In The Organization and Planning of Adult Education Kowalski examines the issues created by providing a social service in diverse organizational settings and presents a format for initiating and developing adult education programs. In order to comprehend the complexity of the context of programming within an organization, two novel components are …

Qualitative-Quantitative Research Methodology: Exploring The Interactive Continuum, Isadore Newman, Carolyn Ridenour

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

Rejecting the artificial dichotomy between qualitative and quantitative research strategies in the social and behavioral sciences, the authors argue that the two approaches are neither mutually exclusive nor interchangeable; rather, the actual relationship between the two paradigms is one of isolated events on a continuum of scientific inquiry.

Impulse Control Rap: "We Got A Skill To Help You Chill", John W. Hill

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.