Education Commons^™

Why So Few Women? A Case Study Of Female Superintendents In P-12 Public Education Systems, Alfreda M. Howard

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative case study explored the pathways, barriers, and advancement strategies of female superintendents in Georgia. The problem that the study addressed was examining the gender disparity in the superintendency. The purpose of this study was to explore the leadership journey of female superintendents who served in P-12 public education systems in Georgia for the 2021-2022 school year. The researcher created and pilot-tested a semi-structured interview protocol to collect data for the study. Study participants included five current female superintendents in Georgia.

Findings revealed that female leaders are grossly underrepresented in the superintendent role. Graduate degrees and terminal degrees in …

The Relationship Between Teachers' Perception Of Data-Driven Instructional Leadership And Their Sense Of Efficacy And Anxiety For Data-Driven Decision-Making, Jarvis J. Price

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to ascertain the relationship between teachers’ perception of data-driven instructional leadership and their sense of self-efficacy and anxiety towards data-driven decision-making. Additionally, the research study examined if teachers’ school level (elementary or secondary) influenced their perception of data-driven instructional leadership and their sense of self-efficacy and anxiety towards data-driven decision-making. The researcher utilized a correlational research design and correlational/regression analysis to conduct this study based on the theoretical framework of Bandura’s social learning theory. The researcher surveyed 300 full-time certified educators in a rural school district located in the southeastern United States using the …

Perceptions Of Mentoring: Examining The Experiences Of Women Superintendents In Georgia, Scarlett Copeland

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The number of women superintendents working in Georgia public schools exceeds the national average, but unfortunately, when compared to the number of men in the same position, women are not as well represented. This gap between female and male superintendents, and the reasons why this disparity exist, has been the subject of many research studies. One possible explanation for this phenomenon is a lack of mentoring for women superintendents.

This descriptive mixed methods study gathered both quantitative and qualitative data on the mentoring experiences of women superintendents in Georgia. The quantitative participants in this study included 39 women superintendent in …

The Relationship Between Mandatory School Uniforms And Attendance, Jessica Mayweather

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to determine whether a relationship exists between the implementation of a mandatory uniform policy in an urban public middle school and student attendance rates (as measured by the schools yearly progress report collected by the state Board of Education). Four schools serving students in grades 6-8 in an urban school district in Georgia were included in this study.

Three comparisons were used to determine whether or not and, if so, the extent to which the relationships existed. Some qualitative and quantitative measures were utilized in the design of this mixed method study. These methods …

Parent Perceptions Of The Georgia Special Needs Scholarship, Charity C. Roberts

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Author's abstract: The purpose of this study was to understand both contributors and barriers to use of the Georgia Special Needs Scholarship (SB10). Although SB10 was designed to offer parental choice of schools for students with disabilities, it has diminished the capacity of parents to access due process granted through IDEA. Perspectives in this study were provided by parents who chose to rescind their child's participation in the voucher program and parents who continued to access the voucher. Analysis of the lived experiences of parents of students with disabilities in Georgia revealed both similar and diverse experiences, perceptions and concerns …

Marvin S. Pittman: A Historical Inquiry Of His Life, Legacy And Leadership, Pamela Frost Altman

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation is an inquiry into the educational leadership style of Marvin Summers Pittman, April 12, 1882-February 27, 1954. Pittman was a transformational leader with a vision to set goals that sometimes appeared to be outside the box during his time as an educational leader. Pittman introduced new and innovative programs in education, including his zone plan for teacher training, and theories for the consolidation of schools. Pittman understood that education was the tool needed to give power back to the people, and to enable them to be productive citizens. Education was Pittman's tool to bring the poor farm boy …

Georgia Female School Superintendents: Perceptions Of Isolation, Juliann Payne Alligood

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The researcher's purpose in this study was to describe the perception of isolation among Georgia female school superintendents. A qualitative method was used to conduct the study. The research instrument used in conducting the study was comprised of 13 open-ended interview questions which were designed to elicit responses to the research question and subquestions. The researcher interviewed ten Georgia female school superintendents concerning their positions as female school leaders. The researcher recorded the interviews with audio tapes, had tapes transcribed by a trained transciptionist, and coded the transcripts for recurring themes and patterns. To validate her findings, the researcher enlisted …

Georgia High School Principals' Perceptions Of Inclusion, James Timothy Yarborough

Legacy ETDs

While considerable research has been conducted concerning the perceptions of teachers regarding the practice of inclusion, there is little corresponding research about the perceptions of principals towards inclusion. Also, much ofthe existing research is contradictory. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to provide educational policymakers with data regarding inclusion. Since principals are responsible for designing and instituting inclusion programs at the school level, their current and prevailing perceptions regarding inclusion were the missing pieces of the information puzzle.

In an attempt to fill this void, the researcher created a survey with quantitative and qualitative components. The survey was distributed …

Superintendents' Perceptions Regarding The Impact Of Class Size Reduction On School Facility Planning In Georgia, Andrea Jones Williams

Legacy ETDs

During the 2000 legislative session, Georgia lawmakers felt there was a need to improve education in Georgia. The A-Plus Education Reform Act of 2000 was passed in response to their concerns. One section of this act mandated that public schools reduce class sizes. This mandated reduction in class size has had different impacts on Georgia school systems. Successful implementation has been a daunting task for some school systems. School systems have reported different experiences and challenges during the initial phases of implementation. Problem areas have ranged from a lack of classroom space to teacher availability. These problems hav e been …

The Level Of Involvement Of Georgia's Principals In Providing Inclusive Special Education Services, Marie Penkunas Klofenstine

Legacy ETDs

Increased responsibility of principals for all programs, including special education, comes at a time when administrative training provides minimal information on special education programs (Malloy 1996). Even though the trend in Georgia toward more inclusive practices has resulted in a call for major changes in teacher education programs, there have been little changes requiring principals to be competent, knowledgeable, or to take coursework related to special education administration. The purpose of this study was to investigate the level of involvement of Georgia's school principals in special education service delivery in their schools. The dependent variables were three specific categories related …

The Personal And Professional Backgrounds Of Georgia's Female High School Principals, Marjorie H. Hamilton

Legacy ETDs

The purpose of this study was to describe the personal and professional backgrounds of the female public high school principals in Georgia. Both quantitative and qualitative methods were employed to conduct the research. A demographic questionnaire, which included items addressing personal, educational, and professional background information, was mailed to all of the identified female public high school principals for the 2000--2001 school year. The quantitative data analysis resulting from the demographic questionnaire is presented in the narrative form with corresponding tables. The final item on the questionnaire asked whether or not the respondent would participate in a long, in-depth interview …

A Description Of New Teacher Induction Programs In The State Of Georgia, Judi Harris Wilson

Legacy ETDs

The purpose of this study was to descriptively analyze new teacher induction programs across the state of Georgia regarding the support programs school districts provided for new teachers. Subjects for this study were 500 randomly selected Georgia teachers who completed their first year of teaching during the 1999-2000 school year. Participation in this study required that the subjects complete and return a survey developed in 1990 by Dr. Shelby Talley and modified by the researcher for this study. There were 327 surveys returned with a collective response rate of 65.4%.

This study found that induction practices to socialize new teachers …

Barriers To Female Principals: Perceptions Of Female High School Administrators In Georgia, Jane Spires Hilliard

Legacy ETDs

The purpose of this study was to determine what factors female high school principals and assistant principals in Georgia perceived as barriers to women entering high school principalships. The factors presented to the participants were determined by a thorough review of the literature. A survey instrument with two sections was developed. Section one consisted of 12 factors often mentioned as barriers to women entering high school principalships. These factors were rated on a Likert scale which ranged from strongly agree to strongly disagree. Participants were also given the opportunity to list any other factors they perceived as barriers. The second …

Perceptions Of The Visionary Leadership Of Assistant Principals In Georgia Middle Schools, Christopher John Lemieux

Legacy ETDs

This study was intended to explore the visionary leadership of assistant principals in public middle schools. A study of this type conducted on a statewide basis provided empirical information on the visionary leadership of assistant principals as perceived by themselves and their respective teachers in Georgia middle schools. Since a limited amount of research existed on the visionary leadership role of middle school assistant principals, this study helped to fill a void in the current professional literature. Quantitative research methodology was used to analyze data generated from The Leadership Profile surveys, principals' middle school concept implementation surveys, and the assistant …

A Descriptive Study Of Public Alternative Schools In Georgia, Willie James Wiley

Legacy ETDs

The purpose of this study was to identify the types of alternative schools in Georgia, to describe the characteristics of the alternative schools, and their students, and to determine the primary goals of the alternative schools. The descriptive information was collected from 97 public alternative schools. The data collected by a 44 item multiple response survey included the perceptions of Georgia's alternative school administrators. The survey items were developed from a literature search and site visits to five different models of alternative schools in a large urban school system The responses were categorized to calculate the range, mean, percentages, and …

Rediscovering Educational Giants: African American Schools In Bulloch County, Georgia 1920-1949, Enola Gay Smith Mosley

Legacy ETDs

This study provided in depth knowledge of the forty-three African American schools existing in Bulloch County, Georgia, between the years 1920 and 1949. The three areas studied were their physical appearances, their curricular aspects, and their funding practices. The first area dealt with their external physical appearances and the internal environment of each school. The next area concerned their curricular aspects. Information such as subjects taught, teachers, supervision, length of the school year and school day, and school closing exercises was presented. The last area concerned the funding practices of these schools. This study included Rosenwald, Barrett-Roger, and Smith-Hughes funding …

Georgia's Globally-Minded Principals: Backgrounds, Attitudes, And Perceptions, Catherine Cummings Wooddy

Legacy ETDs

This study sought to provide information concerning the high school principal's global-mindedness and whether that global-mindedness had an effect on globally focused teaching and programming within that school. The study also attempted to identity demographic and background factors, beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors that have an association with the global-mindedness of the person. Underlying the study was the premise that today's students need to be prepared for the globalized world in which they will live, that their preparation will come primarily from school and home, that educators must understand the globalized world if they are to prepare students, and that the …

The Perceptions Of Administrators And Teachers Regarding The Features Of Alternative Schools In Georgia, Leslie Mcaffee

Legacy ETDs

The purpose of the study was to determine the perceptions of administrators and teachers at alternative schools in Georgia of the importance of identified key program features of these schools by comparison with the existence of these features at their own schools. All administrators and teachers at all 117 alternative schools in Georgia that serve disruptive students were mailed surveys for this study. Fifty-six percent of the schools returned completed surveys. Teachers and administrators were asked to rate the importance of 40 features of alternative schools and the existence of these features in their respective alternative schools. Each feature belonged …

An Examination Of Georgia Middle School Teachers' And Principals' Beliefs About The Nctm Standards, Factors Influencing The Change Process, And The Role Of Identified Principals During The Mathematics Reform Effort In Georgia, Lynn Deal Futch

Legacy ETDs

The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) recommended that schools implement its Standards because they believed that the Standards improved students' mathematical ability. Every mathematics teacher in the state of Georgia had the opportunity to attend or be a part of a workshop, conference, or project involving suggestions for implementing the Standards in the classroom The problem for Georgia educators was to determine if these Standards were being perceived by principals and teachers, the key change agents, as having merit enough to change their views of how mathematics should be taught. The purpose of this study, therefore, was to …

The Relationship Between Leadership Styles Of Georgia Elementary School Principals And Selected Biographic And Demographic Variables, Cynthia Cahill Lomonaco

Legacy ETDs

Research has shown that differences exist among leadership styles of school principals. These differences may be associated with selected biographic and demographic variables. This study surveyed principals of 243 Georgia public elementary schools to determine their leadership styles, based on the constructs of Structure and Consideration, and examine their biographic characteristics and the demographic characteristics of the schools they serve. Once leadership styles were identified, based on Structure and Consideration, relationships between the independent variables and the dependent variables were examined. Independent variables included: sex, age, ethnicity, marital status, administrative experience, teaching experience, educational level, school setting, school size, and …

Student And Teacher Effects Of Elementary School Tracking: An Examination Of A Rural Georgia School District, David L. Strickland

Legacy ETDs

This study examines the effects of homogeneous and heterogeneous ability grouping on teacher and student performance within three elementary schools in a rural Georgia school district. Research methodologies included an analyses of standardized achievement test scores, a teacher questionnaire, and individual interviews with teachers. The analyses of standardized test scores revealed that 2nd grade students who were heterogeneously grouped performed significantly better on math and verbal skills than 2nd grade students who were homogeneously grouped. Teacher questionnaire responses did not reveal significant differences between homogeneous and heterogeneous years in student self-esteem, discipline, or classroom management. However, teachers who had formerly …

Georgia Norms For The Teacher Motivation Diagnostic Questionnaire, Nancy Bland Norton

Legacy ETDs

One purpose of this study was to establish Georgia norms for the Teacher Motivation Diagnostic Questionnaire (TMDQ), an instrument designed to assess four specific aspects of teacher motivation. The four aspects included (a) Principal Expectations, the beliefs teachers have about how much principals value student achievement, (b) Future Utility, how much teachers believe improvement in student achievement would benefit them, (c) Self-Concept of Ability, how much confidence teachers have that they can improve student achievement, and (d) Attitude Toward Principal, the attitudes teachers have about the principal. Another purpose of the study was to determine if there were statistically significant …